Not Dead Yet!

I am sorry for letting this blog fall into disrepair--a lot of non-birding things going on the past few months and not much birding stuff. I did, however, manage to get around 25 lifers on a family trip to California in August, the best birds being Green-tailed Towhee, Acorn Woodpecker, Verdin, and Long-billed Curlew. I only got out once or twice during fall migration, with the best bird being Tennessee Warbler. Because of schoolwork, I missed great birds like Dickcissel, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, and Yellow-headed Blackbird. For some reason, North America is in a rarity frenzy now. Everyday, some new extralimital pops up. Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Varied Thrush, Hermit Warbler, Northern Lapwing...it's crazy. Hopefully I'll be heading out to Central Park tomorrow to twitch a Varied Thrush and a Yellow-breasted Chat, if they choose to show up. I also will be going G-d willing to Israel as an exchange student for six weeks, although I don't know if I'll be able to muster up enough courage to birdwatch around my friends. I hope to see winter ducks and shorebirds and resident raptors and passerines. Until then, happy birding!