Is that Robert Conrad, of Wild Wild West fame? š [cid:image001.png@01D4E49C.7D373C30]
Bob Grover d +1 (631) 761-7369 | c +1 (516) 318-8536 An Equal Opportunity Employer From: bounce-123467217-3714...@list.cornell.edu <bounce-123467217-3714...@list.cornell.edu> On Behalf Of Michael Cooper Sent: Wednesday, March 27, 2019 11:24 AM To: Shaibal Mitra <shaibal.mi...@csi.cuny.edu> Cc: NYSBIRDS (NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu) <NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu> Subject: Re: [nysbirds-l] The tale of "Robert the Right", along with the saga of "Robert the Wrong" āBirding in March is going to hurt anyway, so why not aim high and risk glorious disappointmentā Or as Conrad might have put it: āIt was written I should be loyal to the nightmare of my choice. ā Mike Cooper Ridge, LI NY Sent from my iPhone On Mar 27, 2019, at 10:41 AM, Shaibal Mitra <shaibal.mi...@csi.cuny.edu<mailto:shaibal.mi...@csi.cuny.edu>> wrote: Dear Bob and all, It might be a small comfort to you to know that all of us reading your note have endured this sort of pain. Back on 30 Dec, Pat and I were among the first responders for the Downsville Golden-crowned Sparrow, and all of us dipped that afternoon. She and I then suffered further torment when work and travel prevented us from trying again, even as the birdās early morning routine was worked out and exploited by many, many of our friends. Our next opportunity to try didnāt come until 18 Jan, the morning after we returned from Ecuador. Like you, we set the alarm for the middle of the night and drove. We were lucky to see it. But win or lose, Iām convinced that chasing rare birds is a vice. Itās not such a bad one that I intend to give it up, but, for me at least, it always feels better when I make an effort to atone for my indulgence in bird-chasing. One of the forms of penance I impose on myself involves writing the Spring Season report for the Hudson-Delaware region (New York State, New Jersey, and Delaware), for North American Birds. Reading your note immediately reminded me of this ordealāand of a possible way to escape (at least temporarily) from the Dark Side. In tracking the dates of last occurrence of over-wintering songbird rarities, I have noticed that a large percentage of long-staying Varied Thrushes, Harrisās Sparrows, Western Tanagers, Painted Buntings, etc. depart from their feeding stations in mid March. In parallel, many first detections of such birds also tend to occur in mid March to early April, seemingly much earlier than their ānormalā migration periods. I interpret these discoveries as representing birds that wintered undetected or unreported nearby, but which, once having started roaming around, have been encountered by those pious/masochistic souls who manage to force themselves to go birding during March. Birding in March is going to hurt anyway, so why not aim high and risk glorious disappointment! Shai Mitra Bay Shore ________________________________________ Subject: [nysbirds-l] The tale of "Robert the Right", along with the saga of "Robert the Wrong" Date: 03/27/19 02:04:21 AM From: "robert adamo" <radamo4...@gmail.com<mailto:radamo4...@gmail.com>> To: "NY BIRDS" <NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu<mailto:NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu>> "Robert the Right", after seeking the current status of the Golden-Crowned Sparrow on this listserve, made the correct decision to pursue the bird on Wednesday, 3/20/19, and was rewarded in fortuitous fashion ! "R the R", of course, is Robert Lewis, and I congratulate him for his conviction, his effort, and his success ! While reading of "R the R,s" good fortune, "Robert the Wrong", decided to reach for the "brass ring" and so on the following Sunday, 3/24/19, he headed upstate toward the town of Downsville ! Leaving from Riverhead, L.I. at 0330, alone (after striking out trying to gather some company for this long trip) "R the W" arrived on Depot St..at ~ 0715, finding Lance Verderame at the scene ! We had never met before, but were both aware of the other because of our contributions to this listserve, as well as leading some NYSYBC field trips. It was then that I learned of Lance's being the original finder of the GCSP, and looked at this development as a "godsend"...but I was wrong ! Although there was ample bird activity, including 2 Bald Eagles, the sparrow was a no-show. I believe Lance left at ~ 1030, while I finally left at 1300. After seeing "R the R's" post re: the GCSP, I contacted John Haas, who provided additional info. on the bird, besides giving me info. on 3 good spots to find Evening Grosbeak and C.Redpolls. On my way home, I stopped at all of them, finding Redpolls at each, and Grosbeaks at none. I made it home by 1940, a long day, that while seeing 1 of 2 species not seen earlier this season, I did not get the 1 species I have not seen ever ! Cheers, Bob, aka "R the "W" P.S...Thanks again, John and Lance -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> Archives: The Mail Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> ABA<http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01> Please submit your observations to eBird<http://ebird.org/content/ebird/>! -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> Archives: The Mail Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> ABA<http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01> Please submit your observations to eBird<http://ebird.org/content/ebird/>! -- This communication and any attachments are intended only for the use of the individual or entity named as the addressee. 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