Big Day Boston 2024 was a blast! Thank you, Adam, for coming up with the concept and organizing the event. I was super excited to participate this year, after missing out on the inaugural event in 2023 due to scheduling conflicts. What I loved about BDB was seeing the cross section of the birding community who participated…BDB had kids to seniors, families, photographers, and I’m sure a whole range of beginner to highly experienced birders. There were lots of smiles at the finish line and I think everyone had a great time!
My day started out with a little early scouting around the Charlestown waterfront near the USS Constitution where I spotted a common loon, which later evaded me after BNB officially got underway. However, I located another bird around the aquarium, so I did end up getting a loon. After Adam’s opening remarks, I birded hard from 10:00 am (thank you palm warbler!) right up to my last bird, a black-and-white warbler seen at 3:54 pm. According to my pedometer, I covered nearly 10 miles by foot. I don’t get into Boston to explore the sights all too often, so this was as much a tour of the city as well as an urban birding adventure. I took in the Charlestown waterfront, Long Wharf/Aquarium, Rose-Kennedy Greenway (Yay for food trucks!), Old South Meeting House, Old City Hall, The Boston Common, Boston Public Garden, and the Charles River Esplanade. Not knowing the city all that well, I wandered around within a block or two of Post Office Square…I wonder what I could have picked up if I would have birded there?!?
Big Days are always filled with hits and misses. I sure had a few. Unexpected birds on my list included a ruby-crowned kinglet and hermit thrush (I really didn’t expect to find one, let alone two!) in the Rose Kennedy Greenway, and a spotted sandpiper on the shoreline of the Charles River. Notable 'misses' included red-breasted merganser, chipping sparrow, northern cardinal, and downy woodpecker! A couple of ‘targets’ I really tried hard to find, but nevertheless eluded me were warbling vireo, osprey, tufted titmouse, and white-breasted nuthatch (only one was seen all day!). Surprisingly, out of all the BDB birders, nobody saw an oriole! Such is the way birding goes.
Thanks again Adam for such a fun event. I really hope we get to do it again in 2025! I’m already revising my game plan…
