Tennessee Birders by the Numbers: 2016 (Vol. 12)
Welcome to the Tennessee Birders by the Numbers (TBN) report for 2016,
unfortunately a little late in getting it out this year. 2016 was a fantastic
year for birders in Tennessee and this report like those of the last few years
will also include data from the new year, 2017--up to the present. And indeed a
fantastic year it was. Among the great TN birds in 2016 were: Lesser Goldfinch
(found by Mark Greene), Townsend's Solitaire (Mark Greene), Iceland Gull (Mike
Todd), Ruff (Mark Greene), White-winged Dove (Kristy Baker), Inca Dove (Damien
Simbeck), Wood Stork (Bruce Dralle), Pomarine Jaeger (Ruben, Victor Stoll, Alan
Troyer), Red Phalarope (Damien Simbeck), Sabine's Gull (Ruben Stoll, Mark
Greene, different birds, places!), Brown Booby (Ruben Stoll), Northern Wheatear
(Tony King), Bohemian Waxwing (Colin Sumrall), and Eurasian Wigeon ( Ruben &
Victor Stoll). And, of course there were many others. At least those were the
birds I was hoping to see if I had a chance. And I did get three of them!
At the end of the report the "miscellaneous" category will include: a
"southeastern" list (TN and NC, and all states south, SC, GA, AL, MS, FL), an
all time World list, an all time Total Ticks list, and some personal lists and
information on 45 years of birding.
I. TN List (top 40)
As noted before the ABA continues to include Jeff Wilson's important results.
Note that currently with 409 birds for TN (yes, the official list is now out of
date), the 75% level is 307-- 19 ABA birders have reached that level.
1. 388 Jeff Wilson2. 366 Micheal Todd3. 360 Clyde Blum4. 359 Mark Greene5. 357
Terry Witt6. 355 Dollyann Myers7. 354 David Chaffin8. 353 Kevin Calhoon9. 352
Tommie Rogers10. 342 Ron Hoff11. 341 Rick Knight12. 337 Gail & Steve
Clendenen13. 329 Francis Fekel14. 327 Chris Sloan15. 326 Rick Waldrop16. 314
Scott Somershoe17. 311 Ken Oeser19-t. 307 Thomas McNeil19-t. 307 David
Trently20. 306 Kevin Breault21. 305 Stephen Zipperer22. 295 Morton Massey23.
287 John O'Barr24. 284 Rack Cross26-t. 282 Darrel Wilder26-t. 282 Gail King27.
281 Rick Shipkowski28. 280 Mike O'Malley29. 274 Joshua Stevenson30. 269 Q.
Gray31. 264 Gary Brunvoll32. 258 Larry Peavler33. 255 Jon Mann35-t. 254 David
Hollie35-t. 254 Gene Knight36. 251 Bruce Dralle37. 245 Jesse Pope38. 240
Michael Bernard39. 237 Mike Resch40. 235 Leif Anderson
II. TN Birders on State/Province Lists
Many TN birders are on the lists for other states and provinces and with the
removal of thresholds we perhaps get a better picture of TN birding. The
following list includes TN birders by the number of states/provinces in which
they reported lists. Also included are the state/province abbreviations for
those TN birders who are first among TN birders on these lists, and beginning
with this year state/province abbreviations that are in parentheses are ones
where the birder has achieved 50% of the state/province. So for example, David
Chaffin has reported lists in 61 states/provinces, is the leading birder in 12
states/provinces, and in 8 has achieved at least 50%. Note that I did not
include areas, e.g., Hawaii, that are not in the official ABA area. Finally,
note that TN birders have achieved the majority of birds in 35 different states
and provinces.
1. David Chaffin (61 states/provinces), (AK), (CA), DC, (KY), (ME), (MI), (OK),
(SD), (WV), AB, NB, YT2. Kevin Breault (60), CT, ID, (IL), (IN), MA, MT, NH,
NV, NY, OR, RI, UT, (VT), WI, WY, BC, (MB), NS, ON, PE, PQ, SK3. Rick Waldrop
(57), (GA), (MD), (MN), (ND), (VA)4. Dollyann Myers (54)5. Ron Hoff (50)7-t.
Steve Clendenen (49)7-t. Ken Oeser (49)8. Gail Clendenen (46), (AZ)9. David
Trently (39), (PA), NF10. Mike O'Malley (37)11. Scott Somershoe (35), (CO)12.
Gail King (33)13. Tommie Rogers (31), DE, (FL), (IA), (KS), (MO), (NE), WA14.
Michael Todd (30)15. Francis Fekel (25)16. Kevin Calhoon (24) (NM), (OH),
(SC)17. Rick Shipkowski (18)18. Stephen Zipperer (17)19. John O'Barr (13)20.
Thomas McNeil (9)22-t. Clyde Blum (8)22-t. Joshua Stevenson (8)23. Darel Wilder
(7)24. Jeff Wilson (6), (AL), (AR), (MS), (TN)26-t. Mark Greene (5)26-t. Rick
Knight (5), (LA), (NC), (TX)27. Rack Cross (3)
Changes for this year include: Steve Clendenen from 46 to 49 states/provinces,
Scott Somershoe from 24 to 35, and first among TN birders in CO, Francis Fekel
from 23 to 25, Rick Shipkowski from 6 to 18, Stephen Zippered from 8 to 17,
Thomas McNeil from 8 to 9, and Tommie Rogers, now the leading TN birder in WA.
Note that no TN birder is on the lists for Northwestern Territories, Nunavut
and St. Pierre et Miquelon.
III. ABA Area
The following are our TN birders on the ABA Area list, including totals and
ranks in the top 100.
1. Benton Basham 881 (4)2. David Chaffin 824 (21)3. Dollyann Myers 795 (59)4.
Tommie Rogers 783 (82)5. Kevin Calhoon 776 (88)6. Rick Waldrop 7477. Clyde Blum
7408. Gail & Steve Clendenen 7279. Rick Knight 71811-t. Michael Todd 70411-t.
Darrel Wilder 70413-t. Kevin Breault 70113-t. Morton Massey 70114. Ron Hoff
68915. Ken Oeser 68816. Terry Witt 68317. Rick Shipkowski 63518. David Trently
63219. Francis Fekel 61520. Gail King 60721. Scott Somershoe 60322. Mike
O'Malley 59323. Thomas McNeil 54624. Gary Brunvoll 51425. Stephen Zipperer
40126. John O'Barr 328
Major increases on the list this year were Dollyann Myers from 782 last year to
795, Tommie Rogers from 771 to 783, Darrel Wilder from 681 to 704, Scott
Somershoe from 510 to 603 (nothing like moving to the West!), and Stephen
Zipperer from 332 to 401. I try to be as inclusive as I can on this list so if
there are other TN birders on the ABA Area list please let me know.
IV. Canada
As noted last year, not many TN birders go to Canada but that might be a
mistake. Some of my best birding experiences were in Canada. I hope to go
again, this time to Newfoundland and St. Pierre et Miquelon, not a lot of
species but tons of birds given the colonies off the Avalon Peninsula. David
Chaffin leads TN birders with 332 birds, followed by Kevin Breault at 331, Rick
Waldrop at 263, Dollyann Myers 236, Ron Hoff 218, Kevin Calhoon 145, Mike
O'Malley 96, David Trently 92, Scott Somershoe 60, and Gail King 23. The top of
the Canada list is still held by Roger Foxall with 546.
V. Lower Forty-Eight
This list includes all states with the exception of Alaska and Hawaii, and is
highly correlated with the ABA Area list. Our leaders for 2016 are: David
Chaffin at 769, Tommie Rogers at 761, Kevin Calhoon 753, Rick Waldrop 732, Gail
& Steve Clendenen 727, and Clyde Blum 716.
VI. United States
Our leaders here are: David Chaffin at 850, Dollyann Myers 827, Kevin Calhoon
814, Clyde Blum 777, and Tommie Rogers 776.
VII. AOU North
The AOU stands for the American Ornithological Union, established is 1883, and
the AOU North is covered by the AOU checklist of North American birds,
including North and Central America. This year our leaders are: Rick Waldrop
with 1732 and a rank of 7, followed by Kevin Calhoon 1284, David Chaffin 1282,
Clyde Blum 1040 and Gary Brunvoll 1021.
VIII. AOU South
No change from last year, Rick Waldrop leads with 2314 birds and a fine rank of
11, followed by Gary Brunvoll with 752, Gail King with 750, and David Chaffin
at 525.
IX. Mexico
No change on this list either this year. Dollyann Myers is at the top with 732
birds and a rank of 25, followed by Clyde Blum with 685 (rank of 35), with Gail
King at 660, Gary Brunvoll 591, Ron Hoff 579 and Rick Waldrop 567.
X. Central America
Here Rick Waldrop leads with 909, followed by Dollyann Myers 693, Ron Hoff 630,
Terry Witt 617, and David Trently 606.
XI. West Indies & Caribbean
Rick Waldrop leads here too with 306, followed by Kevin Calhoon with 200,
Dolyann Myers at 195, and Ron Hoff with 157.
XII. Europe & Western Paleartic
Again the leader here is Rick Waldrop with 361, followed by Dollyann Myers 208
and David Chaffin with 186.
XIII. Asia
Ron Hoff leads here with 1865 and a great rank of 11, followed by Dollyann
Myers at 1827, and Terry Witt with 1494.
XIV. World
I think this is the most important of all bird lists, and Dollyann Myers and
Ron Hoff continued to add birds in 2016. Dollyann now at 8141 (rank of 8), and
Ron 8094 (rank of 9). Others are Terry Witt with 6476, and Rick Waldrop at
5243. Note that Hugh Buck still leads the World with 9053 but has not been
active since 2014--only about 900 birds between Buck and Dollyann & Ron!
XV. North America
Rick Waldrop continues with his fantastic rank of 3 and 1756 birds on this
list, followed by Dollyann Myers at 1531, Ron Hoff with 1390, Terry Witt 1331,
and David Chaffin 1309.
XVI. South America
On this list Dollyann and Ron have 2522 and 2519, respectively, with ranks of
12 and 13. Rick Waldrop is at 2451 and a rank of 18, followed by Terry Witt
with 2078.
XVII. Africa
Dollyann and Ron lead on this list with 1658, followed by Terry Witt with 1287.
XVIII. Australasia
Here Dollyann and Ron have 987 and 978 birds, respectively, and ranks of 5 and
6.
XIX. Eurasia
No change this year on this list: Ron Hoff with 2071, followed by Dollyann
Myers 2058, Terry Witt 1585, Rick Waldrop 1103, and David Chaffin 932.
XX. Atlantic Ocean
Mike O'Malley remains on top on this list with 66 birds (rank of 24), followed
by Dollyann Myers and Ron Hoff at 36 and 21, respectively.
XXI. Pacific Ocean
Here Dollyann has 416 and Ron 401 with ranks of 18 and 20, followed by Francis
Fekel at 160 and Rick Waldrop 118.
XXII. Indian Ocean
Ron has a great rank of 3 on this list with 250 birds, followed by Dollyann
with 241 and a rank of 6.
XXIII. South Polar Region
No change this year on this list with Mike O'Malley with 25 birds (rank of 73),
followed by Kevin Calhoon with 24, Dollyann Myers with 20, and Ron Hoff with 18.
XXIV. Millennium
This list includes all the birders who have been the most active in the ABA
Area since the century began (specifically, this is the ABA Area list for the
21st century). First on this list is Clyde Blum at 714 birds and a rank of 17,
followed by Gail and Steve Clendenen with 690, Michael Todd with 672, David
Chaffin at 663, Kevin Breault with 635, and Mike O'Malley at 402.
XXV. Photographed ABA Area
Mike Todd leads this list with 668 (rank of 22), followed by Kevin Calhoon 654,
Tommie Rogers 640, Ken Oeser 615, Clyde Blum 602, Ron Hoff with 511 (439 was
his number last year!), and Mike O'Malley with 426.
XXVI. Photographed World
Ron Hoff has a wonderful ranking of 2 on this list with 4264 birds, followed by
Chris Sloan with 1794, Kevin Calhoon 1508, and Mike Todd at 1431.
XXVII. World Families
Dollyann Myers and Ron Hoff are the leaders here with 232 families and a rank
of 15, followed by Rick Waldrop with 166. The highest rank has 239 families.
XXVIII. All Territories & Provinces
This list is quite similar to the Total Ticks list below and combines all the
territories/provinces in Canada. Kevin Breault leads here with 1379 (rank of
17), followed by David Chaffin 1073 (rank of 24) and Rick Waldrop with 594.
XXIX. Total Ticks
The main focus of my birding for now 45 years (can it be!), Kevin Breault leads
with 12,042 (rank of 3), followed David Chaffin at 11,730 (4), Rick Waldrop
with 9049, Dollyann Myers 7729, Ron Hoff 6856, Ken Oeser 5360. David Trently
5202, Gail & Steve Clendenen 4757, Michael Todd 3839, Rick Shipkowski 2325,
Stephen Zippered 1125, and John O'Barr 804. Note that the all time Total Ticks
list can be found below in the Miscellaneous category.
XXX. Canadian Provinces
Eight TN birders are on the lists for 11 of 14 Canadian Provinces: David
Chaffin, Kevin Breault, Rick Waldrop, Dollyann Myers, Ron Hoff, Francis Fekel,
Mike O'Malley, and David Trently. Kevin Breault leads in British Columbia,
Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island.
David Chaffin leads in Alberta, New Brunswick and Yukon. David Trently leads in
Newfoundland & Labrador. As noted above, no TN birders are on the lists for the
Northwest Territories, Nunavut and St. Pierre et Miquelon. And note that St.
Pierre et Miquelon is just a small ferry ride away from Newfoundland &
Labrador. I bird a lot in Canada, and hope to do so again this year or the
next, so contact me if you have any questions.
XXXI. Annual Lists
On the ABA Area annual list for 2016 we have David Chaffin with 409, and
Stephen Zipperer at 322.
XXXII. Annual List for Tennessee
This year we have David Chaffin with 250, and Stephen Zipperer with 220.
XXXIII. Miscellaneous: the all time World list, Southern list, the all time
Total Ticks list, and 45 years of birding
A. The current World list includes birders who are still active but does not
include some who have died or are not currently active. So this is the All Time
World list (top 40). Note Dollyann Myers and Ron Hoff, ranks 14 and 15. The
list indicates the year for the last activity.
1. 9053 Hugh Black, 20152. 8942 Tom Gullick, 20113. 8825 Jon Hornbuckle, 20114.
8765 Claes-Goran Cederlund, 20145. 8650 Peter Kaestner, 20166. 8601 Philip
Rostron, 20117. 8595 Joe Thompson, 20168. 8552 Robert Walton, 20159. 8464 Bob
Bates, 201410. 8449 Martin Edwards, 201111. 8402 Phoebe Snetsinger, 200112.
8313 Ronald Huffman, 201613. 8230 Hans Jornvall, 201114. 8141 DOLLYANN MYERS,
201615. 8094 RON HOFF, 201616. 8068 Alan Greesmith, 200917. 8060 John
Williamson, 200618. 8041 Dave Sargeant, 201319. 7946 Ian Lewis, 201720. 7932
Stephen F. Bailey, 201621. 7930 Keith Retton, 201622. 7865 George Winter,
200723. 7860 Bernard Master, 201625-t. 7798 Elaine Nye, 201725-t. 7798 Pearl
Jordan, 201126. 7777 Chuck Probst, 201627. 7774 David Narins, 201628. 7709
James Plyler, 200029. 7686 John Gee, 200730. 7682 Jan Smith, 201631. 7664 Mark
Van Beirs, 200732. 7663 Josep del Hoyo, 201433. 7662 Chris Doughty, 201734.
7621 David Fisher, 201335. 7612 Ken Cole, 201736. 7534 John Danzenbaker,
200737. 7532 Clyde Carter, 201138. 7520 Clayton Pollard, 199939. 7517 Daniel
Gruneberg, 200940. 7460 John Hardister, 2016
B. Over the years TBN has looked at various regional total ticks lists: the
U.S. Census Bureau "East South Central Region," a list that includes Alabama,
Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee, and a list of TN and KY and all states
adjacent to those (the Local Group). As I noted last year a more useful list
perhaps would be a southern one as most TN birders tend not to bird much in the
north. So the following is that Southern list (top 20). It includes the states
of: TN, NC, SC, GA, AL, MS and FL:
1. 2551 Kevin Calhoon2. 2121 David Chaffin3. 2116 Rick Waldrop4. 1878 Kevin
Breault5. 1802 Leif Anderson6. 1759 Thomas Heatley7. 1734 Mike Resch8. 1646 Don
Chalfant9. 1633 Clyde Blum10. 1622 Michael Bernard11. 1574 Caroline Eastman12.
1571 David Trently13. 1512 Paul Sykes15-t. 1486 Kent Davis15-t. 1486 David
Narins16. 1449 Dollyann Myers17. 1440 Richard Rosche18. 1424 JPat Valentik20-t
1410 Bill LaFramboise20-t 1410 Bill Lotz
Note the number of TN birders on this list: 7, with the top four all TN
birders, again an illustration of how much birding beyond the home patch is
done by TN birders.
C. 45 years of birding: personal stories.
2016 was my 45th year of birding so I thought I would look through my records
to come up with some interesting (perhaps not so interesting) items. All
information refers to ABA Area birds.
1. I have birded in the 10 states in which I have lived: CA, IL, OH, MO, NY,
OR, TN, TX, VT, WA. I have made 288 trips to states I did not live in at the
time, which I call Out-of-State trips or OSTs. This is the list of the states
with the most OSTs:
AL: 18 tripsKY: 13AR: 14GA, IN: 11IL: 10MS: 9OK: 8FL, NC, TX, VA: 7
Alabama (AL) is so high because my daughter went to college there and currently
lives there. The cost of all this birding for 45 years: I don't want to think
about it!
2. I was trying to estimate how many miles I have driven in my birding life,
and frankly I have no way of knowing if this estimate is close to being right
(I'll just say that I have little confidence in it), but I came up with 529,500
miles. I never did keep track of air miles, but since I was a boy I have
tracked miles on trains and recently reached 104,128 (all in U.S. and Canada).
Best state to bird from a train (usually train birding is not very good since
you can't hear birds), but North Dakota in spring is quite good for ducks, and
other water birds on Amtrak's "Empire Builder" (schedules may have changed). My
favorite mode of transportation for birding is boat, and since small vessels
don't work for me anymore, cruise ships are my best way to go. Get a balcony
room, take a seat, and watch the birds fly by. I was astounded by the number
and variety of birds seen in the Gulf of Alaska in May, one of my most favorite
birding trips ever.
3. I keep track of life birds even though my focus has been on Total Ticks, and
at this point I need 2 more Code 1 birds, 19 Code 2 birds, and 43 Code 3 birds.
I should be able to pick up the remaining Code 1 birds in California when I go
in spring. What about most needed birds? For me that would be common birds I am
not likely to see because I probably won't get to the area where they can be
found--specifically western AK. So three Code 2 birds: Arctic Loon (always look
for the diagnostic white patch of the Arctic when you see Pacifics), Wood
Sandpiper, and Bluethroat (fantastic bird in breeding season, for the next
life).
4. I also keep track of the number of states/provinces for which I have 50% or
more of the birds. That total is now 17, with WV at 49.9%, followed by UT at
49.3%, PA at 48.3%, LA at 48.2%, and NH at 48.0%.
5. These are the (11) states in which I have seen the most life birds:
Texas 140Vermont 83Arizona 57Maine & Oregon 52Florida 34New York 32California
31Illinois 28Alaska & Massachusetts 24
TN is at a rank of 33 on this list with 3 life birds.
6. And by year (top ten):
1972: 214 life birds (mainly Vermont, northeast--especially MA, NH and ME--and
Texas)1974: 58 (Oregon, California, Washington)1973: 46 (Texas)1989: 40
(Arizona)2015: 35 (Alaska, British Columbia)1993 and 1996: 27 (Florida and
Texas)1994: 26 (California)1978: 25 (Oregon, Texas)1982: 23 (Washington)
7. How much time to major milestones:
It took me one year to get to 200 life birds.Another two more years to get to
300.Eight years later to get to 400.Eleven years more to get to 500.Another
eleven years to get to 600.And thirteen more to get to 700. And, sadly, I don't
expect to get to 800. 750 is now my tentative life goal for ABA Area life
birds, but it will be very hard to get there at this point.
8. On Total Ticks I had:
4381 in 20025000 in 2005
6000 in 20067000 in 20078000 in 20099000 in 201010,000 in 201311,000 in
201512,000 in 2017
Current goal is 13,000 by 2025--possible if not easy. Must be alive.
9. Life Birds by Month (three highest and lowest)
May 218June 155July 79
April 17September 13February 6
10. Most birds on a birthday, 1978
Barrrow's GoldeneyeMarbled GodwitPacific Slope FlycatcherMountain Bluebird
11. My Millennium list is limited (currently at 635) , because so many of my
birds were identified in the last century. Should make a little more progress
when I go to California in 2017.
12. As a Total Tickers you are always seeing and listing common birds, but
which are the most common? While I don't note the numbers of birds of the same
species in a state/province, I have seen Amer. Robin in 60 states/ provinces,
Euro. Starling, Amer. Crow, Mallard in 59, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue
Heron, Canada Goose, Rock Pigeon, Tree Swallow, Red-winged Blackbird,
Brown-headed Cowbird, and Chipping Sparrow in 58.
13. Next trips: LA, perhaps GA, CA and perhaps OR. Most needed trip: AB as in
Alberta--had the entire trip planned and then got sick--and Newfoundland &
Labrador and St. Pierre & Miquelon.
That is all for Vol. 12 of TBN. Best of luck for 2017! I apologize in advance
for any errors. Many numbers and calculations were involved! If I've made a
mistake let me know and I'll make the change next year. And if I've made a big
mistake I'll email the group asap.
On a personal note I ended up with 484 annual Total Ticks for 2016 (556 was
last year's total), visiting 19 states/provinces with 24 OSTs (23 last year).
And general hopes for 2017? Professionally, my birding has recently become even
more difficult as I was elected President of my academic association, and
continue as Editor-in-Chief of a social science journal (not too bad my wife
says for someone with aphasia). Well, there is always retirement I am told, but
she says that would be the worst thing for me. There is something to the daily
structure of being obligated to get up every day, get in the car, and drive to
work. If only my office was at a National Wildlife Refuge in, say, Texas. But
unlike what some people believe (even some of my academic colleagues),
retirement is not equivalent to a quicker mortality. Humans are far more
variable than that--and at the most important level of genetics. Yes, on
average, I would agree couch potatoes are not advancing their health, but there
have always been couch potatoes, even if NFL games are new. (I believe one is
going on right now.) After all, the couch potatoes of the Paleolithic may have
invented important tools, art, even astronomy it seems. But in general it is a
good thing to keep moving (how much and what kind of movement is not well
understood yet, despite what you may have read), and birding is not a bad life
prescription. Yet, movement is only one ingredient in a healthy life. Another
is having goals, something to get up in the morning to shoot for. Paleolithic
man had goals more closely tied to basic needs but if you think they did not
have a life list (at least a mental one) you would probably be mistaken.
Indeed, the association of numbers with objects and places was the beginning of
writing. Writing may have developed from bird listing. And of course modern
birding is highly goal oriented.
But isn't this all rather silly, this watching, recording, listing, monitoring
of birds? Not very meaningful some would say. But is meaningfulness intrinsic?
Meaning is simply a function of what we find meaningful. It is not an inherent
property of an activity. Birding is as meaningful as anything else in life. And
while some of us might not agree, stamp collecting, politics (I hate to say
it), model trains, Lego, chess and so on are as meaningful as birding.
Meaningfulness comes in many forms and derives from the meaning we as
individuals attach to the activities we do.
But there is an exception, however, one that is more importantly or
characteristically human than others. Human progress. We are born to do better.
And let's be clear, birders and chess players are not going to cure cancers,
develop more efficient ways of using energy, or take us beyond the solar
system. Suggesting your child or grandchild should get into STEM majors is not
simply a way of helping them to get a better job when they graduate, but is a
way of helping them and the rest of us go forward. The name of this game is
discovery. That is what I tell my students and young people in general.
Participate in the most important human activity, science.
As always you can't list your ABA totals unless you are a member of the
American Birding Association (www.americanbirding.org). It is still quite
affordable and you get a great deal with the major magazine, "Birding," the new
magazine called the "Birders Guide" series that takes on a specific topic in
significantly detail every issue (travel, gear, listing/taxonomy, etc.), and a
much better interactive site for listing.
Always be good to birds and generous to birders of all stripes, totals and
ranks! Good birding and good totaling!
Kevin BreaultBrentwood, TN
mtweb.mtsu.edu/kbreault/ (sorry, I hope to update this soon)
