KEITH:
Well, Birdathon ends today, but we're not finished yet. Still we came a long way toward identifying many living things that live in our Tucson, AZ and Redondo Beach, CA yards ... I really like the idea of identifying EVERY living thing, or MOST living things, but for now we have to settle for MANY. Our grand total, when we combine our yards and remove any duplicates (like Anna’s Hummingbirds and Mexican Limes), is 249. Higher than our prediction, but definitely lower than the actual number -- these are just the living things we could give names to, be they common names or scientific names. In other words: our BIOBLITZ quest has just begun! Here is a breakdown of that number: Birds = 52 Native Plants = 65 Non-native Plants = 80 Food Plants = 24 Animals = 8 Reptiles = 4 Insects = 16 So obviously there are more than 16 species of insects in our combined yards. In fact, I think I must have at least five species of native bees – but, geez, talk about challenging to get a good look at, and then to identify. We’ve just begun exploring tools like i-naturalist to help us with these trickier critters. Our Bird List, since that’s of high interest for Birdathon is as follows: Redondo Beach, CA: Allen’s Hummingbird American Crow Anna’s Hummingbird Black Phoebe Black-headed Grosbeak California Towhee Coopers Hawk Hermit Thrush Hooded Oriole House Finch Lesser Goldfinch Mallard Mourning Dove Nashville Warbler Orange-crowned Warbler Scrub Jay Townsend's Warbler Western Tanager White-crowned Sparrow Yellow-rumped Warbler Tucson, AZ: Abert’s Towhee American Kestrel Anna’s Hummingbird Ash-throated Flycatcher Bell’s Vireo Black-crowned Nightheron Black-tailed Gnatcatcher Broad-billed Hummingbird Bronzed Cowbird Brown-crested Flycatcher Cactus Wren Cooper’s Hawk Costa’s Hummingbird Curve-billed Thrasher English House Sparrow Eurasian Collared Dove Gambel’s Quail Gila Woodpecker Hooded Oriole House Finch Ladder-backed Woodpecker Lesser Goldfinch Lesser Nighthawk Lucy’s Warbler Mourning Dove Northern Mockingbird Nothern Cardinal Phainopepla Pyrrhuloxia Raven Red-tailed Hawk Roadrunner Rock Dove Turkey Vulture Verdin Western Screech Owl White-faced Ibis White-winged Dove
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KEITH: Has Mama Mourning Dove built her nest here in the cradling embrace of the plant called Mother of Millions, or is she taunting fate by raising her chicks on the Devil's Backbone? Well, that's the problem with the common names for plants. It all depends on whom you ask. She's done both! In this case the situation doesn't improve when you look to the scientific name for this species. Is this Kalanchoe daigremontiana or Brophyllum daigremontianum. And either way, why do scientists feel the need to torture the rest of us with these unpronounceable names -- job security? This is just one of the 30+ non-natives plants I've managed to identify so far around my house. I am now familiar with all four of its names ... wait, it's also called Alligator Plant and Mexican Hat. Last year another dove (the same dove?) built a nest and laid eggs in this same spot, but the eggs mysteriously disappeared before ever hatching .... no sign of eggshells .... they were just gone one day. Maybe a snake got them? (This makes me think they found themselves on the Devil's Backbone...). Hopefully this year's chicks face a brighter future.
Of course the scientists among us are also changing bird names from time to time. Let it be known that I will never call the Magnificent Hummingbird by it's new name (which is also its old name) Rivoli's Hummingbird. I've read that when they split this species into two, one of the sub-species was named Rivoli's and the other Talamanca (in Spanish) but in English: the Admirable Hummingbird. Can you imagine being demoted from the dazzling heights of Magnificent to the mediocre mid-elevations of Admirable? |
Robin & KeithThis year, April 7 to May 7, Robin and Keith are taking a crash course in learning to identify every living thing found in their home patches: Redondo Beach, CA, and Tucson, AZ. We will each be identifying and cataloguing every bug, bush, reptile, furry critter, and yes, of course, every bird! You can keep up with our efforts here at the Bird-in-Place BIOBLITZ blog (say that three times real fast). ArchivesCategories |