Big Day (Bird Race)

10 May 2000

by Chris Hobbs

Big Day Statistics:

• 210 species
• 518 miles by car, 3 by foot; 0030 to 2330 hours
• Visiting:  Fort Leavenworth, Wilson Reservoir, Cheyenne Bottoms State Wildlife Area, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge
• Species of Note: Clark’s Grebe (Rare), Tricolored Heron (Rare), Red-breasted Merganser (Late), Blue-winged Warbler (Rare).
  

When thinking of interior Big Days of over 200 species, 'plateaus' tend to come in increments of 5 species.  Such was the case with the 2000 Kansas Big Day, which finally pushed the record another notch, to 210.  Since our efforts during the previous two years hit a ceiling of 205 and 206, we really needed the enthusiasm boost of hitting that new plateau!

After recording several species like Henslow's Sparrow and various Catharus thrushes by nocturnal vocalizations, daybreak found us in extreme eastern Kansas on the banks of the Missouri River at Fort Leavenworth.  Our morning total of 130 species included Red-shouldered Hawk, Pileated Woodpecker, and 26 species of warblers.  A couple of quick stops along I-70 en route to central Kansas produced Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Rock and Bewick's Wrens, Harris's Sparrow, and Painted Bunting.  Between 4:00 pm and nightfall, we added another 66 species at Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira NWR in central Kansas.  At the Bottoms, we found Western and Clark's Grebes, a few lingering migrant ducks, and good concentrations of shorebirds, including Whimbrel.  Quivira furnished a Tricolored Heron, Black Rails, and a Laughing Gull.

What's a Big Day without its share of heart breaking misses?!  Green Heron, Greater Yellowlegs, and Black-billed Cuckoo are veterans of the 'Missed List', but Greater Prairie Chicken, Sedge Wren, and Cedar Waxwing were uncharacteristically elusive.

The goal continues to be 215 species - yet another incremental plateau that could be achieved with the right combination of timing, weather, and luck!  In the meantime, we are pleased with an important by-product of our insanity - helping to raise funds to benefit the ongoing bird research in South America by the Ornithology Division at the University of Kansas.  Generous donations by the Burroughs Audubon Society of Kansas City, and many private contributors, has helped fund this important work, and for that we are very grateful!

Species List: