“Mayday” is used by aviators and mariners (and often firefighters and police) to signal a life threatening emergency.  “May Day” is a holiday generally May 1st celebrating the arrival of Spring.  This year there is not really much to celebrate as COVID-19 continues to severely limit our lives and our birding activities.  Today is May 1, 2020.  If all had gone according to plan, this would be the day for final packing and planning before flying off to El Paso, Texas tomorrow with Bruce LaBar.  We would then be heading to Big Bend National Park in pursuit of a Colima Warbler – an ABA Lifer for both of us and a species found only in that park and after a long hike.  Well, maybe next year…  At least my health is good so no need send out a mayday message for medical care, so this will be the other kind of May Day post – a celebration of Spring even if vicariously.

Colima Warbler – Big Bend Texas – Photo by Greg Lavaty

I don’t recall any specific planning to be out birding on May 1st in any previous year, but since the month of May is perhaps the best month for birding throughout the U.S. including in my home state of Washington, I expected a review of my birding observations would come up with many trips on that day.  Since my birding is primarily by memory or fantasy at this time, I went back through recent history and put together a May Day list of species seen.  All are from May 1st trips since 2011 when I first started using Ebird.  They are from 8 of the 9 years and cover trips in 4 states: Massachusetts, Connecticut. Florida and Washington.  Altogether the species total is 165.  No real rarities but a nice selection of birds.  I have selected a Dynamic Dozen photos to represent the list and then include the full species list at the end.

Bachman’s Sparrow – Florida – May 1st, 2017

Baltimore Oriole – Connecticut – May 1, 2019

Black and White Warbler – Connecticut – May 1, 2019

Canada Jay – Washington – May 1st, 2015

Florida Scrub Jay – May 1st, 2017

Limpkin – Florida -May 1st, 2017

Louisiana Waterthrush – Connecticut – May 1, 2019

Red Cockaded Woodpecker – Florida – May 1st, 2017

Snail Kite – Florida – May 1st, 2017

Swallow Tailed Kite – Florida – May 1st, 2017

Tufted Titmouse – Massachusetts – May 1st, 2018

White Headed Woodpecker – Washington, May 1st, 2011

 

The Full List

American Coot	Cliff Swallow	Little Blue Heron	Rose-breasted Grosbeak
American Crow	Common Gallinule	Loggerhead Shrike	Ruby-crowned Kinglet
American Goldfinch	Common Goldeneye	Long-eared Owl	Ruby-throated Hummingbird
American Kestrel	Common Grackle	Louisiana Waterthrush	Rufous Hummingbird
American Redstart	Common Ground Dove	MacGillivray’s Warbler	Sage Thrasher
American Robin	Common Loon	Mallard	Sandhill Crane
American Wigeon	Common Merganser	Marsh Wren	Savannah Sparrow
Anna’s Hummingbird	Common Nighthawk	Mountain Bluebird	Short-tailed Hawk
Bachman’s Sparrow	Common Raven	Mountain Chickadee	Snail Kite
Bald Eagle	Common Yellowthroat	Mourning Dove	Snowy Egret
Baltimore Oriole	Dark-eyed Junco	Northern Bobwhite	Song Sparrow
Band-tailed Pigeon	Double-crested Cormorant	Northern Cardinal	Spotted Towhee
Barn Swallow	Downy Woodpecker	Northern Flicker	Steller’s Jay
Belted Kingfisher	Dunlin (pacifica/arcticola)	Northern Harrier	Swainson’s Hawk
Bewick’s Wren	Eastern Bluebird	Northern Mockingbird	Swallow-tailed Kite
Black Vulture	Eastern Meadowlark	Northern Parula	Swamp Sparrow
Black-and-white Warbler	Eastern Phoebe	Northern Rough-winged Swallow	Townsend’s Warbler
Black-billed Magpie	Eastern Towhee	Northern Shoveler	Tree Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee	Eurasian Collared-Dove	Northern Waterthrush	Tufted Titmouse
Black-necked Stilt	European Starling	Orange-crowned Warbler	Turkey Vulture
Black-throated Gray Warbler	Fish Crow	Osprey	Vesper Sparrow
Black-throated Green Warbler	Florida Scrub-Jay	Ovenbird	Violet-green Swallow
Blue Jay	Gadwall	Pacific Wren	Virginia Rail
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	Golden-crowned Sparrow	Pacific-slope Flycatcher	Warbling Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo	Gray Catbird	Palm Warbler	Western Bluebird
Blue-winged Teal	Great Blue Heron	Pied-billed Grebe	Western Kingbird
Boat-tailed Grackle	Great Crested Flycatcher	Pigeon Guillemot	Western Meadowlark
Brewer’s Blackbird	Great Egret	Pine Siskin	White Ibis
Broad-winged Hawk	Great Horned Owl	Pine Warbler	White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper	Greater Yellowlegs	Prairie Falcon	White-crowned Sparrow
Brown-headed Cowbird	Green-winged Teal	Purple Finch	White-eyed Vireo
Brown-headed Nuthatch	Hairy Woodpecker	Purple Finch	White-headed Woodpecker
Bufflehead	Hermit Thrush	Red Bellied WP	White-throated Sparrow
Bushtit	Horned Grebe	Red Cockaded WP	Wild Turkey
California Quail	House Finch	Red-breasted Merganser	Wilson’s Warbler
Canada Goose	House Sparrow	Red-breasted Nuthatch	Wood Duck
Canada Jay	House Wren	Red-breasted Sapsucker	Yellow Warbler
Carolina Wren	Killdeer	Red-shouldered Hawk	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Caspian Tern	Least Flycatcher	Red-tailed Hawk	Yellow-rumped Warbler
Cattle Egret	Least Sandpiper	Red-winged Blackbird
Chipping Sparrow	Lewis’s Woodpecker	Ring-necked Duck
Cinnamon Teal	Limpkin	Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)

As written earlier, birding now is mostly by memory and fantasy.  The photos and lists above are from those memories of earlier May Days.  Now for some fantasy.  Proving I have way too much free time, I looked through some Ebird reports from the 1st of May throughout the ABA area and came up with a dream list of birds that have been seen on that day and that I would love dearly to see as all would be ABA Lifers.  Here is a top 10.

Colima Warbler – Texas; Yellow Green Vireo – Texas; Buff Collared Nightjar – Arizona;  Ruddy Ground Dove – Arizona; Black Noddy Tern – Florida; Bahama Mockingbird – Florida; Murphy’s Petrel – California; Mottled Petrel – Washington; Black Faced Grassquit – Florida; and Black Tailed Godwit – Newfoundland

12 species seen but they would be ABA Life Photos (all reported on May 1st somewhere):  Common Black Hawk; Golden Winged Warbler; Eastern Whippoorwill;      Chuckwill’s Widow; Cerulean Warbler; Henslow’s Sparrow; King Rail; Black Rail; Groove Billed Ani; Smooth Billed Ani; Sprague’s Pipit and Mourning Warbler.

Yes, quite a fantasy list.  I would settle for any one of them — and it doesn’t even have to be on May 1st!!  And of course what I really most want is that male Smew – but did not see one on the Ebird ABA reports for May 1st in the past 10 years.  I’ll take one any day at all.