Bird Schmidt - Our Birding Life List

BIRD SCHMIDT

Birdwatching in Flin Flon Creighton and Beyond

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Meet the Schmidts

Harvey took this photo of a bird that we, after a long period of rain-hampered observation and an even longer discussion, had initially identified as a Yellow Rail. However, after we had the photo developed we agreed that it looks more like a Sora.

Resources

Favorite Field Guides

The Sibley Guide to Birds by David Allen Sibley

The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior by David Allen Sibley

National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America

Peterson Field Guides: Warblers by Jon Dunn and Kimball Garrett

Birds of the Elbow by J. Frank Roy

Atlas of Saskatchewan Birds by Alan R. Smith

Gulls: A Guide to Identification by P. J. Grant

Hawks in Flight by Peter Dunne, David Sibley, and Clay Sutton

A Guide to the Identification of the Sparrows of the United States and Canada by James D. Rising

Favorite Birding Software

Thayers: Birds of North America v2.51

Favorite Links

Birding Hotspots Around the World

Birding in Canada

Bird Studies Canada

Nature Saskatchewan

Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Canadian Nature Federation

Top Three Birds

Brenda's favorites

Hermit Thrush because of its soul-lifting song

Harris Sparrow because of its aggressive way of kicking up leaves

Loggerhead Shrike because of the way it hunts

Harvey's favorites

Great Horned Owl because of its haunting call

Short Eared Owl because of the way it hunts

Sandhill Crane because you can hear them before you ever see them, especially during migration when they are flying high overhead

Our Life List

Like many birders, we have many lists on the go. We started our official life list in 1995. Of course we've been birdwatchers all of our lives, but it wasn't until Harvey saw A Bird Lover's Life List & Journal in a book store that he started to keep track of the species that we've seen and heard as a couple. The list below shows only the birds we've observed together.

Sora or Yellow Rail - that was the question

Total Species Seen - 282

Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Horned Grebe
Eared Grebe
Pied-billed Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Western Grebe
American White Pelican
Double-crested Cormorant
Brandt's Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
American Bittern
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Cattle Egret
Snowy Egret
Great Blue Heron
White-faced Ibis
Tundra Swan
Trumpeter Swan
Greater White-fronted Goose
Snow Goose
Ross's Goose
Canada Goose
Brant
Wood Duck
Mallard
Gadwall
Green-winged Teal
American Wigeon
Eurasian Wigeon
Northern Pintail
Northern Shoveler
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Black Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Surf Scoter
Harlequin Duck
Long-tailed Duck
Common Goldeneye
Bufflehead
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Hooded Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Northern Harrier
Golden Eagle
Bald Eagle
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Northern Goshawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Swainson's Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Ferruginous Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Gray Partridge
Ring-necked Pheasant
Ruffed Grouse
Spruce Grouse
Willow Ptarmigan
Sharp-tailed Grouse
Virginia Rail
Sora
Yellow Rail
American Coot
Sandhill Crane
Whooping Crane
Black-bellied Plover
American Golden Plover
Piping Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
Black Oystercatcher
American Avocet
Black-necked Stilt
Willet
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Solitary Sandpiper
Spotted Sandpiper
Whimbrel
Long-billed Curlew
Marbled Godwit
Hudsonian Godwit
Red Knot
Sanderling
Dunlin
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Baird's Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Upland Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
Long-billed Dowitcher
Stilt Sandpiper
Wilson's Snipe
Wilson's Phalarope
Red-necked Phalarope
Franklin's Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
Ring-billed Gull
California Gull
Herring Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
Forster's Tern
Common Tern
Black Tern
Pigeon Guillemot
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Short-eared Owl
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Great Gray Owl
Snowy Owl
Northern Hawk Owl
Boreal Owl
Burrowing Owl
Common Nighthawk
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Anna's Hummingbird
Rufous Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Three-toed Woodpecker
Black-backed Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Eastern Wood-Peewee
Western Wood-Pewee
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Alder Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Dusky Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Say's Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Western Kingbird
Eastern Kingbird
Loggerhead Shrike
Northern Shrike
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Blue Jay
Steller's Jay
Gray Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Northwestern Crow
Common Raven
Horned Lark
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Purple Martin
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Boreal Chickadee
Bushtit
Brown Creeper
White-breasted Nuthatch
Red-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Winter Wren
Bewick's Wren
Rock Wren
Marsh Wren
Sedge Wren
American Dipper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Mountain Bluebird
Townsend's Solitaire
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Swainson's Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Varied Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
American Pipit
Sprague's Pipit
Bohemian Waxwing
Cedar Waxwing
Tennessee Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Black-throated Gray Warbler
Townsend's Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Palm Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Mourning Warbler
MacGillivray's Warbler
Connecticut Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow-breasted Chat
American Redstart
Western Tanager
Spotted Towhee
American Tree Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Clay-colored Sparrow
Brewer's Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Baird's Sparrow
Le Conte's Sparrow
Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Lark Bunting
Savannah Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Harris' Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Golden-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Chestnut-collared Longspur
Lapland Longspur
Snow Bunting
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Black-headed Grosbeak
Lazuli Bunting
Bobolink
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Rusty Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
Red Crossbill
White-winged Crossbill
Pine Grosbeak
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
Common Redpoll
Hoary Redpoll
Evening Grosbeak
House Sparrow

If you know the whereabouts of a bird that is not on this list, please email us.

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Last updated June 15, 2003