Nick Komar’s “Biggest Year” in USA Birding - 2023

Because I had visited Puerto Rico during winter, I knew I had left some Caribbean species on the table and would have to return during the summer months to add them to my Biggest Year list. The two most conspicuous species in this category were Antillean Nighthawk and Caribbean Martin. Both are migratory and disappear from the Isla del Encanto (“enchanted island”) in winter. There may be a few Martins that spend the winter (reported in eBird). But I was watching for them throughout my visit in late January-early February. They return to breed in April and remain common to abundant through the end of September, following a pattern that is similar for Antillean Nighthawk.   As it turned out I added Antillean Nighthawk at the Marathon Airport in Florida in May so I wasn’t worried about that species. If the Caribbean Martin was the only species that could be added then a return trip to Puerto Rico would not be cost-effective. However there were several other rare species (Masked Duck, Yell

You may be wondering how is it that Nick can fly wherever he wants to at a moment’s notice. The answer is Frontier Airlines’ Go-Wild Pass. On September 8, 2023, I purchased a pass for $150 that essentially allowed me to travel almost anywhere for a month for $15 per flight. I would take full advantage of this pass to chase rarities during the month of September. So on September 12, I returned to Pensacola, Florida, where I met another Colorado birder seeking the Gray Gull. Kathy Kay arrived in Pensacola Airport about the same time as I did and we rented a car for the two-hour drive to South Rosa Beach, Florida.     We arrived at the Dune Allen beach access about 3 PM at the same time as Rick Taylor who had driven six hours from Atlanta. The three of us quickly located the Gray Gull (USA and Territories Biggest Year-Bird number 751) which was much more cooperative on this day. Rick agreed to drive me to Atlanta the next morning where I had a better chance of finding a Go-Wild flight wit

The Pacific Ocean still held numerous species for my Big Year quest. John Vanderpoel had warned me that I needed to take some pelagic trips off Southern California during late summer and that these trips sell out quickly. Indeed I was too late to reserve a spot but I put myself on the waitlist for a trip from San Diego on Sunday, September 10, 2023. I was 15th on the list so not too hopeful. However, a storm was brewing off Tijuana so I was doubtful that the boat would even go.  I landed late Friday morning, September 8, 2023, at Ontario (west of Los Angeles) and was picked up by my friend Joe Burns.    After birding with me in southeastern Arizona a month earlier, Joe had offered to host me in California if I needed to chase a bird there. The typhoon in late August had brought dozens of Yellow-footed Gull from Gulf of California to the Salton Sea and a few had stuck around. So we drove directly from the Ontario airport a couple hours southeast to Desert Shores, California, once a thri

As August came to an end, the fall migration of birds was nearing its peak. And it was the season of tropical storms. At any given time, I could turn on the weather channel and a series of storms were brewing in the equatorial regions of both oceans. Hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean and Typhoons in the Pacific meant trouble for those unlucky to live in their pathway of destruction. But for the rest of us, and especially us birders, these storms brought excitement. Some birds get caught in the powerful winds associated with these storms and get displaced, sometimes by hundreds or even thousands of miles.   The storms are caused by warming of the oceans. The oceans are hottest in the tropical region. The hot water evaporates and forms storm clouds laden with moisture. These build up until they burst, spilling the moisture via torrential rains. With our planet getting warmer every year, climatologists note that the number and intensity of storms has increased.  The first of these massive