3,000+ Consecutive eBird Days

     Last week I achieved a personal milestone with my eBird account.  I reached 3,000 consecutive days of submitting a checklist.  This achievement was met with the same fanfare and accolades as when I had reached 1,000 and 2,000 consecutive days- absolutely none.  Of course I am not doing it for the acclaim.  I’m out there daily for whatever reason so I might as well submit a list, even if it is just an incidental sighting.  Each milestone though gives me a chance to reflect back on the streak and put it into some perspective.  Plus it gives me some material to share here.

The streak started 8.2 years ago, on July 27, 2018.  Since then I have submitted 5,903 checklists and added 266 new birds to my life list. That averages out to 32 new birds per year.  (Actually, 32.4 birds per year but I only count whole birds).  Taking trips to new locales helps pad the average, like Costa Rica in 2019 where I picked up around 100 or so new birds in just a couple days.  I gained over 50 life birds when I stayed in New Jersey.   That’s better than six new birds per each of the last eight years.

The streak covered four countries. Besides the United States and Costa Rica, I also travelled to Canada (no new life birds) and the Bahamas (three life birds).  In the U. S., I posted lists in 16 states and 104 counties.  Outside of NJ, California gave me the most new birds with 47.  Washington (17) and North Carolina (12) were also productive. I also birded two oceans, obviously the Atlantic and Pacific.  A pelagic trip in the Pacific got me six life birds and Atlantic pelagics garnered me 17.

I first started eBirding in 2003 (eBird began in 2002).  Since then I have submitted 10,402 checklists to date.  I have observed 654 species and photographed 600 of them.  I don’t know why I did not submit a checklist on July 26, 2018, but it was on or about that day that I noticed the bottom corner of the My Stats section of the eBird home page where it showed Days of Checklist Streak.  It then became a challenge in my own mind as to how far I can take this thing.

I don’t know if or when I will stop my streak.  But just looking ahead- 4,000 days will be on July 9, 2029.

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