birdsoup

First of the Year

I recently glanced at my 2011 Bird List and notice my first bird of the year was a Red-tailed Hawk.  I remember the sighting well.   It was New Years Day.  I was in the passenger seat on I-95 in Connecticut heading to Greenwich Point Park.  There it was sitting on a lamp post.  A hawk is pretty good bird to start the year.  Often the first bird is something mundane like a house sparrow or pigeon.

Last of the Year

It is almost 12 months later and I still remember that first bird of the year.  That made me wonder what happened just one day earlier, on Dec 31, the last day of 2010?  What was the last bird I saw in 2010?

I have no idea!

Why is the first bird noteworthy but the last bird quickly forgotten?  This year I will try to notice the last bird of 2011.  It will probably be something common and unexciting, maybe a House Sparrow or Starling. 

But I’ll never know unless I make a conscious effort.

Then, the next day, Jan 1, 2012, I can start my list again.