al levantin birder

Some bird photos that could have been good, Anticipation Building for Midwest Birding Symposium. What happens when you take them off? And not only did he do a big year but it turns out that he did a big year at the same time as two other birders, and it turned out to be the biggest big . Our competitive quests are documented in the 2004 non fiction book, The Big Year, by Pulitzer Prize winning author Mark Obmascik. Contingency plans ahead of time just save time during the course of the year. Au contraire. Levantin would never say this, but according to his fellow birders, hes kind of a big deal. How old was Levantin. Instead of being set in 1998 like the book, the movie takes place in the present. 2, on a tour boat in Bodega Bay: Al Levantin, a retired Fortune 500 chief executive now living in a mansion near Aspen and itching for a challenge. Accompanying the red-tailed hawk, there's a bunch of American crows and black-billed magpies, Filby said. A: My advice to anyone planning a big year is to do lots of studying and working out the logistics, since you need to be in my places during the migration period. I see gadwells and buffleheads and, if Im on a really hot streak, a single old squaw.. The loudmouth chachalaca's voice sounds "as if Ethel Merman had swallowed a rusty trombone." Birding for over 50 years Greg has birded in all 50 states and much of Canada. All I need is a birder friend who has some connection with Greg Miller. All Rights Reserved. This unprecedented year of beat-the-clock . Their competitive quests are documented in the 2004 non-fiction . Birds that had never been seen in quantities or single sightings of such species were being recorded, Obmascik said. Al Levantin, one of the birders about whom the movie and book The Big Year is based, will be the next guest on Bird Calls Radio. Skip to primary content. The annual citizen science project helps researchers get a better idea of how birds are doing in the face of threats such as climate change and human development. The group spotted 42 species for the Christmas Bird Count in a single day. Non-birding readers can surely begin to imagine how our feathered friends can invite such affection and awe. After counting several new species in Carbondale, the group headed to their next stop: the Aspen Glen neighborhood. Obmascik said his initial interest in the story was based more on the mens obsession than on the subject of birding, which to the outsider may seem quite dull. Posted on December 7, 2012 by greg miller. C: What advice do you have for a hypothetical birder contemplating a North American (or even a state-wide) big year? So, with birding, you do stop and it is peaceful. Be sure to browse our extensive galleries, species accounts, and book and product reviews. On a recent lunch break spent birding in Central Park rumors of both an early Blue-winged Warbler and an Al Levantin being present reached my ears. A: Sandys record will be very, very difficult to best because of not having access to Attu. Special to The Times. This years Christmas Bird Count, which started Dec. 14, runs through Jan. 5. Komito actually "won" the competition with 745 species, still the United States record. Levantin's real-life big year started with watching birds from skis on the Snowmass Ski Area. Corey: Has being one of the three birders in, C: A bird that is near and ear to my heart as someone who grew up in the Catskill Mountains is the, C: Thanks for the interview, Al. On December 5 more of our group arrived. Ebbe Banstorp (my travel buddy for nearly 30 years of chasing) of California and Sandy Komito of New . The temperature was only 2 degrees, and the sun was just hitting the top of Mt. When my husband and I were hiking on Mt. The bald eagles were nowhere in sight, but Levantin and the others spotted a gaggle of geese in the Roaring Fork River. Our special human participants included Al Levantin, played by Steve Martin in the movie The Big Year; Ted Robertson, a visiting birder from California and accomplished wildlife biologist; Mark Fuller, photographer of the second edition of the book Birds of Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley; and George Waaler, 13-year-old artist, expert birdwatcher, and budding all-around naturalist. The other bird that frustrated me is the Blue Mockingbird which I always seem to miss by a few hours. I was in Florida for work at the time but he talked to my wife and when I got back, we hooked up with Greg. I got a call saying Hollywood producers, including Ben Stiller, wanted to make this story into a movie. Any behind the scenes birding experiences with cast/crew that you can share? (Authors rank pretty low in the Hollywood food chain, after all.) We only saw 2,725 individual birds and 61 species. So, up in the tree up there, there's a red-tailed hawk and there's a raven flying past it, said Dick Filby, a local birder who leads winter bird outings in the Snowmass Ski Area. A hairy woodpecker, that is. Since 1993, Wildside has offered birding tours and photo workshops that adhere to strong ethical standards. Bookmarks are saved to your account and can be accessed from any device. Eleanor has reported on a wide range of topics in her community, including the impacts of federal immigration policies on local DACA recipients, the Valleys COVID-19 eviction and housing crisis, and hungry goats fighting climate change across the West through targeted grazing. Translation: "I'm on to you, friend. (By the way, have you recovered from the debts racked up during your big year?). Outside of birding, what are your other interests or hobbies? Jack Black is perfectly cast for Greg. Stop the Destruction of Globally Important Wetland. The book followed three men on a quest for a Big Year - a competition among birders to see who can see and identify the greatest number of species of birds in North America (north of Mexico) in a calendar year. But, according to Larson, the Christmas Bird Count was not always so peaceful. mso-footer: none; While we were missing many of the northern snowbirds we expected to see, highlights included seeing the Northern Pygmy Owl, Northern Shrike, Barrows Goldeneye, and Yellow-rumped Warbler. This past December I had the opportunity to spend several delightful days in south Texas with most of the birders who have ever counted more than 700 birds while doing a North American "Big Year" notables like Benton Basham, Sandy Komito, John Vanderpoel, Bob Ake, Lynn Barber, Greg Miller, Dan Sanders, Al Levantin and Chris Hitt. Fellow birder Allen Levantin also started birding as a kid growing up in the Bronx, a borough in New York City. Anytime the ponds freeze up, the kingfishers move to the river, and when the river freezes up, they head south, Filby said. He also remains in touch with author Obmasick, who was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team (for the Columbine shooting coverage) at The Denver Post. If a fellow birder had a question about a bird, do you consider yourself an expert (or at least proficient) on any specific family of birds? Levantin remains an avid birder, searching trees and hollows, landfills and even somewhere so mundane as a feeder, both here and in far-flung locations. Awesome interview with an equally awesome person. I used to watch them every day, and I ended up learning to love them, she said. Obmascik tracks three competitors through their Big Year: Sandy Komito, retired from the construction business in New Jersey, is a previous Big Year winner and he is trying to replicate his earlier win. 2 things he loved to do. , The macho quest of bird tallying Each player on the journey has a potentially fatal flaw. Both follow the stories of the three men who dominated the 1998 Big Year competition: Sandy Komito recorded a total sighting of 745 unique bird species in North America, Greg Miller saw 715, and Al Levantin made it to 711 reported bird species. Photo: Dick Dickinson/Audubon Photography Awards. There was a mockingbird in Arizona last year that I didnt chase. Save up more money than you think you need-surprises happen. Aspen Public Radio. Obmasick, who went on to pen an account of climbing the states fourteeners in a single year, Halfway to Heaven, has fond memories of his first work and the intense dedication of The Big Years protagonists. The bald eagles were nowhere in sight, but Levantin and the others spotted a gaggle of geese in the Roaring Fork River. The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) and the Roaring Fork Audubon Society held their counts Dec. 18 and 19. A: The rivalry with Sandy was a bit overblown. These birdmen have much in common: ambitious, self- made winners from the Depression-era Bronx who probably birded together as children, having been rescued from the stultification of poverty by the Boy Scouts and their nature-focused field trips. The ensemble cast includes Rashida Jones from The Office, Jim Parsons from The Big Bang Theory, and Anthony Anderson from Law & Order. How do you keep track of your bird observations? And now with birding, it's all about what you see, you hear and also the feeling., Birders count species in the upper valley with ACES. Filby, who grew up birding in England, has a keen eye. . Fortunately it worked. The boys of Big Years are men -- beginning, arguably, with John James Audubon, who trekked from sea to shining sea in a quest to paint every species of New World bird after first blowing their brains out with a shotgun. Two other birders, Sandy Komito and Al Levantin also did Big Years the same year as me and also broke the 700-mark. What is your relationship today with Mark Obmascik, Sandy Komito, and Al Levantin? A: Im not 100% sure who will play my role but Im leaning toward Steve Martin. It is hard to imagine completing one Big Year, let alone two, but Komito, with an eye on posterity, sets out to bulletproof his standing 1987 record of 721 species. C: Now that a film is being made of the book have the requests for your time started to heat up? Code 1 and 2 are common or fairly common species that a birder should be able to see with a certain amount of effort. Obmascik, a Denver journalist, cunningly keeps the winner and his final tally secret until the end of this sprightly account, which he narrates with an omniscient, wry and sympathetic voice. . So we can start with the Eagle buffer zone and then we can go to the other side of the river over there, if youre in the mood, said Tekce. Levantin, who owns an apartment in New York City as well as a house in Colorado, will discuss his Big Year, the movie, where he likes to birdwatch, and a variety of other topics. Aspen Public Radio. Theres no more running through airports to catch a plane to Harlingen just as it pulls away from the gate; the new post-9/11 travel restrictions did away with that. The first Bicknells I ever saw was in Central Park and I saw another subsequently in the park. Do you feel that technology in today's world makes doing a Big Year easier? Did the cast and crew appreciate the high-end optics? A birding site by one of the guys from The Big Year (book & movie) Search. It looks like this leader doesn't have any trips planned. Fellow birder and wildlife biologist Ted Robertson keeps track of the total count using a birding app called eBird, which was developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The day started at 7:30 am with pastries and caffeine at Marys condo in downtown Carbondale. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. How else to explain how three very different characters from very different walks in life chose to embark upon this journey during the same 12-month period? Sounds like itll be quite funny. And unbelievably, Twentieth Century Fox made a full feature motion picture inspired by the book . In 2004, Mark Obmascik suddenly burst onto the birding scene with the release of his first book, The Big Yearand his fame escalated when Hollywood made it into a movie in 2011. . Membership benefits include one year of Audubon magazineand the latest on birds and their habitats. Rashida Jones played stump-the-chump on birdcalls with Jack Black by whistling her own imitation of a painted bunting. Now, the data collected every year is used to study the health of bird populations. Enter contestant No. I used to watch them every day, and I ended up learning to love them, she said. Main menu. Our competitive quests are documented in the 2004 non fiction book, The Big Year, by Pulitzer Prize winning author Mark Obmascik. Since its founding, The Town of Carbondale is accepting applications for our Parks Department temporary/seasonal positions. We protect birds and the places they need. This is where the sheer size of the movie business sank in for me. Levantin has been doing the Christmas Bird Count for 40 or 50 years now. It was started in England, and all the royalty would go out on a huge hunt, Larson said. Are you involved with any local or national birding organizations? The Biggest Urban Pygmy Cormorant Roost is Finally Protected!! Birder Profile is a weekly blog segment at "Birding is Fun!" spotlighting a fellow birder. . This leaning tree is their favorite tree because right underneath the hunting is the best.. A good time was had by all! I mean, you never quite know until you get the data, but we had a good group of people, he said. Eventually, they persuaded the Garfield County Commissioners to keep the area protected, but the company can still reapply later. This holiday tradition was known as the Christmas Side Hunt, and whoever brought in the biggest bounty won, but on Christmas Day in 1900, a well-known ornithologist proposed a new holiday tradition: a "Christmas Bird Census." Levantin remains an avid birder, searching trees and hollows, landfills and even somewhere so mundane as a feeder, both here and in far-flung . The bland but rare Baird's sparrow appears "as tall as a can of Coke but with none of the fizz." Should we walk a little bit down the river to see what else we can see? That might have been that but for an innocuous footnote that revealed his year's tally, a piddling 572, and that waved on the page like a checkered flag. On the way, the group stopped to pay homage to the former house of longtime local Dave Clark. 2, on a tour boat in Bodega Bay: Al Levantin, a retired Fortune 500 chief executive now living in a mansion near Aspen and itching for a challenge. in the U.S.? C: In The Big Year, Mark Obmascik really plays up the rivalry between you and Sandy Komito. Joan and Larry Duprey with Greg Miller in Ohio. In 1998 three birders--Sandy Komito, Al Levantin and Greg Miller--had their big year attempt chronicled in 2004 in a book of the same name by Mark Obmascik.Due to a few fortuitous circumstances including some spectacular fallout on Attu, a remote Alaskan Island, Komito's 1998 record of 745 species has never been surpassed.Their friendly yearlong rivalry is being documented further in a motion . skiing and birding. Corey: Has being one of the three birders in The Big Year changed your life in any measurable way? Ive birded with a woman who was at Attu with Sandy Komito, and now I can say Ive birded with a guy who interviewed Al Levantin. Al talks about his Big Year, birding in general, birding in Central Park, his encounter with a mountain lion and how many birds he logged in Connecticut during his Big Year (Nutmeggers may not like the answer.) This is Larsons fifth or sixth Christmas Bird Count. They even had trained Norwegian rats scamper, on cue, through the barracks from one actor to another. Levantin has . By. For starters, a lot of stuff gets changed. Farther down the river, the trio counted two green-winged teals floating along with several mallard ducks and an elusive American dipper bobbing in and out of the frigid water. . Aspen resident Judy Wender, the newest birder in the group, said its never too late to start. The book follows three men on a quest for a Big Year - a competition among birders to see who can spot and identify the . According to Fuller, this years downvalley count was a success. That meant a Big Year on his own terms. Here is the Bird Calls radio archive of Saturday, Oct 29, with guest Al Levantin, one of the three original birders about which "The Big Year" book was written. Oct 29 Bird Calls, As always, thanks for checking in with Bird Calls Radio. Al and I have always found it easy to talk to each other, but we don't get a chance to do much these days. To the great good luck of the 1998 competitors, El Nio coughed up enough bizarre weather patterns and freak storms to dump a stupefying number of confused rarities into the unfamiliar climes of America the beautiful. I followed the Park Service advice of raising my hands over my head and screamed at the lion. A small group of birders piled into his car at the Third Street Center. Well, in 1998 Al Levantin did what for many North American birders is a dream unfulfilled he did a North American Big Year (seeing as many species as possible in North America in one year). Miller was the first to attempt a Big Year while holding down a full-time job. Now these are very common birds, but there are 98 Canada geese there, Levantin said. They were tasked with covering several areas from Carbondale to Glenwood Springs, starting with the nearby nature park. Their competitive quests are documented in the 2004 non-fiction book, The Big Year, by Pulitzer Prize winning author Mark Obmascik. 1998 wasn't just any Big Year. Eventually, they persuaded the Garfield County Commissioners to keep the area protected, but the company can still reapply later. Based on Al and Gregs visit to Hollilynn Drive in Boise for Gray Partridge, I had to run out there and see the location for myself. Swipe is only available in chrome dev tools mobile mode. Keep checking back as we are updating our schedules regularly! People like Kenn Kaufman, Neil Hayward and Christian Hagenlocher have done really inspiring Big Years. He has wanted to bird for many years. In the birding community, it's called the North American Big Year. Anything about your family youd like to share with us? There were 25 early birds who gathered on December 17, 2022, for RFAs 47th annual CBC. Colorado lawmakers reject service workers scheduling bill, Longmonts latest flood insurance rate maps continue to face delays, IN THE BLUE: Aurora commission says rehiring controversial canine officer justified, Boulder County Roller derby is an opportunity to play a sport and connect with a community, The Latino Chamber of Commerce welcomes a new board of directors, Longmont Symphony Orchestra: Something for everyone, Birders Ted Robertson, from left, Dick Filby and Al Levantin counted 98 Canada geese in the Roaring Fork River near Aspen Glen on Dec. 18. Find a count near you and join this fun community science project. Bokram was able to identify the woodpecker as male because of the small red tuft near the crown of his head. mso-header: none; Many birders know Mr. Levantin from the book The Big Year, in which his quest to see a record number of species in North America was chronicled. The idea was to count and observe birds rather than eat them or hunt them for identification. It really brings me to a peaceful spot in my life, she said. I've been here 50 years, and I started birding before I got here, and I'm still doing it, he said. Mark Fuller, who is with Roaring Fork Audubon, says Clark was an avid birder and naturalist. And did you really straight-faced lie to Komito about your total at one point to shut him up? Bald eagle. Most of the women in the group have been birding together for years and they look after one another. Every year around Christmas time, local residents join tens of thousands of people across the Western Hemisphere to record all the birds they see or hear within a 15-mile radius. Find out more . Contact Lance at 970-618-9335 lburwell@ alpineproperty.com, Amazing opportunity to work PT in a relaxed, professional work environment, with a flexible schedule. margin: 0.4cm 0cm 0cm 0cm; C: Thanks for the interview, Al. Bouncing from coast to coast on frenetic pilgrimages for once-in-a-lifetime rarities, they brave broiling deserts, bug-infested swamps, and some of the lumpiest motel mattresses known to man. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. C: How do you feel about the actor chosen for your role? Tekce and other concerned residents gathered hundreds of signatures throughout the valley, as well as support from wildlife specialists, to stop the development. Bird Galveston's East End with one of the world's most famous birders! Greg had the fortunate opportunity to be the Bird Consultant for the movie, The Big year, which was filmed in spring & summer of 2010. In its 50 . Whether we should thank these guys or rap them on the knuckles remains eternally open to question. Reading books by Sandy, Bill Ridell and Jim Vardaman gives you a flavor for whats required and the areas you need to visit. Know as The Real Life Birder from the Movie THE BIG YEAR, Greg has been birding since umm well since before he can remember, as he was so young. So those are black-billed magpies, he said. One birder on the scene was local student George Waaler. Others started a Big Year in some big birding hot spot; Levantin insisted on being with his wife for New Year's. Others hired guides to ease the discovery of rare birds; Levantin wanted to find everything himself. I've been here 50 years, and I started birding before I got here, and I'm still doing it, he said. At first, I started comparing the book to the movie. Two other birders, Sandy Komito and Al Levantin also did Big Years the same year and also broke the 700-mark. Levantin may not have won the competition, but it hasnt stopped him from counting birds. First bird Levantin saw? I hope they do a good job with the movie, it should be fun to watch how the chase played out. Two other birders, Sandy Komito and Al Levantin also did Big Years the same year as me and also broke the 700-mark. The ferruginous pygmy owl becomes "a spunky predator that weighs less than a pack of cigarettes." We have not been seeing large flocks of Pinyon Jays, and of course, we will record them for Colorado Field Ornithologists Pinyon Jay Community Science Project. It wasn't just birds you know, deer, probably foxes., This holiday tradition was known as the Christmas Side Hunt, and whoever brought in the biggest bounty won, but on Christmas Day in 1900, a well-known ornithologist proposed a new holiday tradition: a "Christmas Bird Census.". For decades, this area known as the Eagle buffer zone was protected habitat for bald eagles, but after the nest moved upstream, the Aspen Glen Golf Company, which owns some of the land in the buffer area, requested that the protections be lifted for residential development. Code 2 birds are either present in smaller numbers or have a limited range in the ABA area. He was on the set for 3 weeks with many of the actors and crew and got to meet the stars! Freshly and miserably divorced, ashamed of his failure, working 60-hour weeks debugging Y2K software in a windowless dungeon at a nuclear plant, Miller turns to his first passion for solace and purpose. Al Levantin, a chemist and retired Fortune 500 executive from Aspen with "40 . These three competitive . Results > . The book followed three men on a quest for a Big Year - a competition among birders to see who can see and identify the greatest number of species of birds in North America (north of Mexico) in a calendar year. He said the way to contend with lions on the trail was to make ourselves big, just as you say. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Greg Miller, one of the men I wrote about, was hired as a consultant for the film, and he taught the main actors how to act like real birders and not some cartoonish pith-helmeted Miss Jane Hathaway from The Beverly Hillbillies. To this day Im sorry I didnt get a picture of the lion, but needless to say I wasnt thinking of pictures at that time. Al graciously agreed to answer some questions via email, so, 10,000 Birds readers, you get to hear all about The Big Year straight from the birders mouth. Ive seen the brown versions many times but never the white. It wasn't just birds you know, deer, probably foxes. When he moved to southern Maryland before his Big Year, he looked up ABA members in the directory and Bell was the first one. Dan Sanders, Greg Miller, Chris Hitt, Benton Basham, Al Levantin, Sandy Komito, John Vanderpoel, Lynnn Barber, Robert Ake, John Spahr. The idea was to count and observe birds rather than eat them or hunt them for identification. in the world? There are more Code 1 and 2 species. A third man grew so obsessed with finding new species that he even braved a Christmas Eve dinner, alone, at a Chinese restaurant, in Duluth. Mailing Address: Al Levantin, Birding in Tanzania and one of the three original birders in the book The Big Year. So, up in the tree up there, there's a red-tailed hawk and there's a raven flying past it, said Dick Filby, a local birder who leads winter bird outings in the Snowmass Ski Area. They would just kill anything they saw pretty much. The truth is, I havent seen it yet or read the script. For example, in 1998, Greg Miller and Al Levantin, two of the three birders featured in The Big Year, mostly flew to bird-spotting locations. Feel free to contact us and dont forget to subscribe! After a quiet stop outside the house, the birders headed on to the nature park. The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) and the Roaring Fork Audubon Society held their counts Dec. 18 and 19. But there was competition. RFA treated us to lunch at a local restaurant where we shared stories of our exciting day with the birds. Al talks about his Big Year, birding in general, birding in Central Park, his encounter with a mountain lion and how many birds he logged in Connecticut during his Big Year (Nutmeggers may not like the answer. C: Is there anything else you want to add? There has been some online discussion among the birding community about the optics used in the movie. This is Larsons fifth or sixth Christmas Bird Count. The last step in the Christmas Bird Count is to compile and submit the local data to the National Audubon Society. If you're looking for books on birds and bird watching, here are 10 great places to start (compiled with help from Cornell Lab staff and our Facebook fans). Roaring Fork Audubon's downvalley count WILDLIFE FEST: The annual "Wildlife Adventures" Nature Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 22 at Chinsegut Conservation Center, 23212 Lake Lindsey Road, north . It didnt take them long to spot their first birds. Many years later, I did what is called a big year, where you spend the whole year looking to find as many species as possible.. Al: corporate chief executive. One other suggesting is to be prepared to leave one area for another if a rare bird shows up in the ABA area. 1) his family had a game of "name the bird" and he once said "jackdaw" (found it in a dictionary) A: The movie is a comedy and Im very pleased to have Steve Martin play my part. Police Academy Sponsored Cadet $68,120 per year. I used to run up and down 14,000-foot peaks and never stop and never really check out the wildlife. I adore Greg Miller! Our email newsletter shares the latest programs and initiatives. Al Levantin has retired extremely rich after serving on the board of a chemicals company.