DUNCANVILLE, TEXAS — Cogresha from Earth House Hold tagged me with a birding meme. I thought the questions were interesting, so here goes:

1. What is the coolest bird you have seen from your home?
   My first difficulty here is defining the word home. Even if I could work that out, which isn’t likely, my perennial inability to choose a favorite anything presents another problem. I lived in a house in Papua New Guinea for several months, and from the deck, I could watch Great Woodswallows and Rainbow Bee-eaters and Yellow-breasted Bowerbirds to name a few. Pretty cool, yes? I have seen Bay-breasted and Blackburnian warblers, Rusty Blackbirds, and Wood Ducks at my parents’ home in Missouri. One day, there was a Monk Parakeet outside the apartment where I’m living now.
2. If you compose lists of bird species seen, what is your favorite list and why?
   I really only keep a life list, so this makes my choice of favorites a bit easier. I enjoy looking back over my list and remembering the triumphant, serendipitous, frustrating, and exhilarating moments that the entries represent. I remember places, people, and details of the experiences when I look back at the list. Too, the list reminds me how much of the world remains to be seen!
3. What sparked your interest in birds?
   My interest in birds goes back as long as I can remember. I think I made my first life list before I was 10 — maybe even before I was eight. But I did not become a really serious birder until my family moved to a house on a semi-wooded lot in Missouri, and I discovered all manner of warblers, vireos, sparrows, and flycatchers in the trees. At that time (c. 1999), I discovered birding communities on the Internet. Then, my interest running high, I went on my first birding trip ever — a field trip with Greater Ozarks Audubon in May or June 2000. That was the tipping point. That field trip changed the course of my life.
4. If you could only bird in one place for the rest of your life where would it be and why?
   I’m not ready to settle down just yet. But if I had to choose right now, I’d probably pick somewhere on the Texas Gulf Coast — perhaps the Bolivar Peninsula or South Padre Island. If I lived on the Gulf Coast, I could become a real expert at shorebirds, gulls, and terns, learning their ages, habits, plumages, and voices inside and out. Passerine migration is virtually unparalleled, and the waterbirds are abundant and spectacular. And you never quite know what’s going to blow in off the Gulf. But I haven’t made it to the Pacific Northwest yet, or Maine, or Southeast Asia, or Eastern Africa, or New Caledonia, or the taiga….
5. Do you have a jinx bird? What is it and why is it jinxed?
   I’m still missing too many birds to single one out. However, the King Rail comes to mind — I still don’t have one despite repeated efforts in suitable locations.
6. Who is your favorite birder? and why?
   I think a good birder should be like a good well — deep, full, quiet, and refreshing. I enjoy the company of birders who are passionate, curious, and knowledgeable but never (or only judiciously) obnoxious.
7. Do you tell non-birders you are a birder? What do they say to you when they find out?
   No, not until they get to know me well. Some people ask to come along on my next trip. Some think it makes me (in the words of a former roommate) “a cool nerd.” Others don’t know what to say. That’s OK.

I’d like to know more about Patrick, Jochen, and Rusty, so I’m tagging them to answer these seven questions too.

DUNCANVILLE, TEXAS — John over at Born Again Bird Watcher tagged me for the Eight Random Facts Meme. Thanks, John! Here are the rules:

- Players write a post with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
- At the end of that post, they “tag” eight bloggers to write similar posts, including the rules.
- The players then leave a comment to tell the “tag-gees” about the meme.

(Gah! I can barely stand to post instances of the singular “they” on my blog, but see #7 below.) Here goes:

1. After two years of computer programming in college, I changed my major to English. I wanted to write for people, not for machines.
2. My blond hair and blue eyes are generally attributed to my Swedish grandmother.
3. At the moment, I have 21 chigger bites (mostly around my waist), several mosquito bites, and a few unknown itchies, all from yesterday morning’s birding expedition.
4. I don’t like electric guitars.
5. Though I’ve been to the national capitals of four countries, I’ve never been to Washington, D.C. (The four countries are Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Cameroon, and France.)
6. I cringe whenever people ask me where I’m from because I never know what to say.
7. Some friends and I invented third-person singular gender-neutral personal pronouns (quem, queem, queemy!) in an attempt to rescue the English language. We’re a bit disappointed not to find them in the dictionary yet, even after the release of a promotional video.
8. If I were an art collector, I would specialize in stained glass.

And I’m tagging the following eight bird bloggers. (If you don’t already read their blogs, by the way, you probably should. All of them.)

• John at Prairie Ice
• Rob at The Birdchaser
• Jules at Øygarden Birding
• John at A DC Birding Blog
• Duncan at Ben Cruachan Blog
• Rick at Aimophila Adventures
• Mike at Mike’s Birding & Digiscoping Blog
• Anders and Claudia at Dagens fågel - Bird of the day

UKARUMPA, PNG — I was aware of the Most Beautiful Birds Meme that’s been spreading across the bird-blogging community, but unfortunately it took me two weeks to realize that Duncan had tagged me.

The blogosphere (OK, I don’t like the word either, but what else can you say?) already brims with diverse responses, but I’ll try to bring a unique twist.

Here are the rules: Post a list of the 10 birds you consider most beautiful; you may limit the list to the ABA area (continental United States and Canada) or use a geographic area of your choice. Mark birds you have seen with an asterisk. Tag 3 bloggers to keep it going.

I’ve selected 10 birds that live in Papua New Guinea, and yes, that was a challenge. For the birds I’ve seen, you can click the asterisk to search this blog for posts about them.

1. Brahminy Kite* (Haliastur indus). A white-and-chestnut raptor in a deep blue sky — that, my friends, is a beautiful sight.
2. White Tern* (Gygis alba). If heaven has birds, there will surely be White Terns. And maybe there, their rasping voices will be replaced with angels’ songs.
3. Nicobar Pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica). Pigeons are diverse and spectacular in the South Pacific. It seems a shame to skip the fruit doves, but my favorite (so far) lives in Vanuatu. And the crowned-pigeons — amazing! But the Nicobar Pigeon’s iridescent blues and greens, elongated neck feathers, comely shape, and pure white tail win it this spot.
4. Duchess Lorikeet (Charmosyna margarethae). Rainbow Lorikeet would have been an easy cliche (however sincere), but this lorikeet is a striking combination of red, green, yellow, and black. It lives in the mountains of the Solomon Islands, including the island of Bougainville, which is currently part of PNG.
5. Common Paradise-Kingfisher (Tanysiptera galatea). Bright colors and long, spatulate tail streamers — I wish for a paradise-kingfisher!
6. Superb Pitta (Pitta superba). Is it true that beauty is enhanced by inaccessibility? This pitta is black with brilliant patches of red and blue. It’s endemic to Manus Island, and my chances of seeing it are almost nil, even if I do visit the island later this year.
7. Crested Berrypecker (Paramythia montium). The sleek elegance of a waxwing combined with glowing blue, yellow, white, and black — or at least that’s how I imagine this bird.
8. Red-collared Myzomela (Myzomela rosenbergii). It was tempting to pick the Mountain Myzomela because I’ve actually seen that species, but I can’t ignore this ebony and crimson cousin.
9. Long-tailed Shrike* (Lanius schach). The tasteful gray, black, white, and cinnamon patterns of this shrike have stopped me in my tracks more than once.
10. Blue Bird-of-paradise (Paradisaea rudolphi). Just one bird-of-paradise? I’ve always preferred blue to pink, and this bird looks more like a regent than a vaudeville performer. King Bird-of-paradise was a close second, but there’s just something about those electric-blue plumes….

I photographed this pair of White Terns on Wuvulu Island last July.