LIttle Big Year Wrapup: Final total, top-10 best birds, and my plans for 2025!

[@markshen3280]

Good morning 🌅 to you from Hong Kong 🇭🇰 SAR. HAPPY NEW 2025 YEAR to you. All the best to you in health, safety, happiness, and prosperity this birding year, looking forward to more birding adventures 🥳🥳🥳🥳😉😉😉😉😉

[@JT_Birder]

Thank you and Happy New Year to you as well!

[@markshen3280]

@@JT_BirderAll the best and success in your bird year 2025 . Happy birding 🦢🦜🦚🦩🕊️🦆🦅🦉

[@andyfirth1267]

Absolutely fantastic channel. I’m a UK based patch birder so it’s nice seeing your local patch and birdlife. Excellent footage and commentary. Thanks for taking the time and making the effort to provide the content.

[@JT_Birder]

@@andyfirth1267 Thanks for the kind words, Andy! I’m glad you enjoy the videos.

[@MHarenArt]

Congratulations on your Little Big Year!! Fun to follow along and see all these great birds too! Good luck on your 2025 challenge, but you will have fun, and YES will follow along!

[@JT_Birder]

@@MHarenArt Thank you! The goal is definitely to have fun.

[@Hummingbirder1]

Bro! You TOTALLY should count all those photos, including the Wilson's Snipe one. As a Swede I had no problem ID'ing the birds by the photos before you said what they were. Also: your reasons for NOT getting any photos weren't lame, they were valid! My own goal is always to get a new bird on pixels, but often it doesn't work out well and sometimes: not at all. I've thoroughly enjoyed your little big year and haven't missed one episode, looking forward to your next plans (I'm just midway through the video so far).

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks for the thoughts on including those birds - I totally agree. And the photos somehow didn’t look as bad to me once they were out into the video. Also thanks for watching all my videos!

[@markshen3280]

Hi, again. You mentioned about the Chinese White-Faced Drongo. It is also called, Ashy Drongo (DICRURUS LEUCOPHAEUS). This bird migrates through Shanghai, China 🇨🇳 each spring and autumn. The race LEUCOGENIS breeds close to the Shanghai region and is the subspecies most commonly seen in Shanghai.

[@JT_Birder]

I am still waiting patiently for a White-Faced Drongo to show up on my home patch

[@markshen3280]

@@JT_BirderHi, again. You need to come to Hong Kong 🇭🇰 SAR, or China 🇨🇳, to catch a glimpse of this bird. This bird does not migrate to the U.S. nor Canada 🍁. It’s a ‘local’ China 🇨🇳 bird.😄

[@thesecretthirdthing]

Such a fun series to watch. Thanks for putting it out there.

[@JT_Birder]

@@thesecretthirdthing Thank you! I appreciate the support.

[@theresehogan4406]

Great not-so-little big year JT ! So many fantastic birds ! Looking forward to your findings in 2025 !

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks you for finding several of those great birds for me! Yellow-crowned Night Heron springs first to mind…

[@stevensaunders4982]

Nice job Jeff. It was fun following you around your home patch this year and I’m sure you’ll hit your target in 2025 once you add in the coastline. Now’s the time to get a Snowy to start your new season with. Thanks for all your work and sharing these great clips. Happy birding!

[@JT_Birder]

@@stevensaunders4982 Thanks, Steven! I would love to get a Snowy on video. It is supposed to be a good winter for them.

[@stevensaunders4982]

@ I live in VT and hope to get down your way to see one. I’m sure you’ll find and film one.

[@francesT5877]

Hooray! Looking forward to watching! That was a real achievement in such a small area, and while also doing a job.

[@JT_Birder]

Thank you, Frances. A job definitely does interfere with birding! Especially in the winter when the days are short.

[@krewkrew100]

Congrats on the little big year! In 2024 I did a county big year in Harford County MD and it was a blast

[@JT_Birder]

@@krewkrew100 Thanks! A county big year sounds like fun. How many species did you get?

[@peterlittle6651]

that was a great year Jeff thanks for bringing this UK guy along , really appreciated

[@JT_Birder]

You are welcome, Peter. Thank for all your supportive comments during the year.

[@beckyb4948]

Fantastic tally! I've enjoyed it very much, particularly since I used it as motivation to explore Horn Pond myself, venturing out from the main paths around the lake. Thank you for sharing it. Personally, though, that broad-winged hawk was my favorite photo - it captured both its wildness and its nobility. I'm looking forward to your coverage of the rest of the state!

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks, Becky! Glad you are enjoying Horn Pond. I’ll definitely be birding there a fair amount in 2025 as well.

[@MJCfromCT]

Epic 2025 goal! I look forward to your photo/video of Cerulean warblers in Central MA :)

[@JT_Birder]

@@MJCfromCT That’s a good suggestion, thanks. I would love to see a Cerulean this year.

[@brighteyedbirding]

Great year JT! Congrats on all the birds you found! Good luck with the next challenge in 2025! Also, just a side note. People would be more inclined to pick up a calendar if it supported you in some way. Perhaps for next year you could think about running your calendars through a program that provided you with a portion of the profit. It's more inticing for me to pick it up if I know it's supporting people!

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks, Jordan. I’m looking forward to seeing what you will be doing in 2025 as well. Any birding challenges planned? Interesting thoughts on the calendar, I was thinking that people would be less likely to buy it if they thought I was making money on it but I see your point.

[@brighteyedbirding]

@ no challenges for me! My fear is people will always expect bigger and better moving forward for challenges each year so I don’t wanna lock myself into a challenge and have to 1 up myself each year. But I definitely respect it from the rest of my colleagues!

[@JT_Birder]

That makes sense. I can tell you are thinking long term for your channel and trying to build a brand which is great.

[@norahkmurphy]

Thanks for sharing your 2024 adventures. You’ve inspired me to do my own (non-KZbin) little big year. Can’t wait to see all your Massachusetts birds in 2025. Congratulations and Happy New Year!

[@JT_Birder]

That’s great to hear, Norah! Please let us know how that little big year goes for you.

[@DeanBaumeister]

I've really enjoyed your channel. Good luck with 2025!

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks, Dean! I’m looking forward to 2025.

[@PhotographybyPamHardy]

What a great year you had! I am looking forward to following your 2025 adventures.

[@JT_Birder]

Thank you, Pam!

[@PhotographybyPamHardy]

You're welcome!

[@hstein27]

Congratulations on a successful 2024! No surprise at your pick of the Townsend's as number one! 2025 is already off to a good start with today's surprise at Horn, which I'm sure will be in your next video.

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks, Harris. You are always a good source of tips on birding around MA!

[@paulcherry366]

Congratulations. That’s a great list for just your home patch. 250 should be quite doable. I’d venture to guess you crack 300 for the state.

[@JT_Birder]

@@paulcherry366 Haha I appreciate your optimism! I’ve never seen more than 240 so 300 sounds really tough.

[@ghvanderweg]

Happy New Year from The Netherlands! Really enjoyed following along on your Little Big Year, looking forward to following the MA challenge as well :) Also I agree on all the birds counted. If it's ID-able, you should count it.

[@JT_Birder]

Yes that is the plan. In fact I got some lousy photos of a Rough-legged Hawk today and I will be counting it 😊

[@jameslogan1305]

Happy New Year! Congrats on the little Big Year! Thank you for the great series this year. Just subscribed so I can continue to follow along for the MA Big Year. Best of luck for 250!

[@JT_Birder]

@@jameslogan1305 Thanks for watching and subscribing!

[@curtisdepena]

Great job and awesome videos. Excited for 2025

[@JT_Birder]

Thank you!

[@Jps3bs]

Big Congrats onyoyr Amazing Little BIG Year👍🥳😀 I'm certainly looking forward to your new quest of 250 species in Massachusetts. Love your channel and Happy New Year.🎉🥳

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks for all the kind comments you have given me on my videos!

[@Jps3bs]

@JT_Birder You're most welcome 😊

[@Hummingbirder1]

Same comment about the Screech Owl as the Blackburnian, some nice cryptic dark/black footage with the call...

[@kenallison9119]

Photos are all identifiable, so I don't see any problem.

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks, Ken. It’s a done deal and on to my 2025 challenge.

[@Hummingbirder1]

Also: about the Blackburnian Warbler... Why not film it when it's singing, then you get the ID song on video and it should be countable even if it's behind too much vegetation to be seen?

[@JT_Birder]

For my 2025 challenge I’m going to stick with the requirement that I get a photo but be very relaxed about how good it needs to be. This seems to be what other birding KZbinrs are doing.

[@filipeprates4245]

If you come to Rio de Janeiro's Atlantic Forest msg me I know great birding spots :)

[@JT_Birder]

Thanks for the offer! I’d love to bird in Brazil some time.