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Introducing the 2021 Joe Roller Memorial Green Big Year

Welcome to the 2021 Joe Roller Memorial Green Big Year Blog!

The Colorado birding community lost one of its pillars when Joe Roller passed away in November 2020. Joe was a fountain of birding lore and loved people as much as birds. Many considered him a beloved friend. To honor Joe's legacy, I've partnered with Colorado Field Ornithologists (CFO) and created the Joe Roller Memorial Grant to support bird research in Colorado. The grant will be initially funded by pledges raised through my 2021 Green Big Year, a green (carbon-free) birding initiative. I will be walking or riding my bike from my house in Littleton, Colorado to see as many species as possible in 2021. My 2020 green list is currently 244 species, but I am aiming for at least 250 bird species in 2021! I'll update this blog with adventures, birds, and photos throughout the year.

We are taking per-species pledges and flat tax-deductible donations towards the Grant online at https://Cobirds.org/CFO/Grants. (Scroll to the bottom of the page).

If you pledge $0.20 per species or $1 per species, and I end 2021 with 250 species, you would be asked for a payment of $50 or $250, respectively. No pledge is too small (or large)! All pledges and donations make a difference and are greatly appreciated! You do not need to be a CFO member to pledge or donate!

For more information about the grant or for assistance with donating, please email JRMemGrant@cobirds.org

 
Thanks!!
Scott Somershoe
See my profile


  Photo of Joe Roller by Tom Wilberding

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Big ride for big time green year birds.

First and foremost, thank you for all the pledges and donations! The total pledges so far have been astonishing! Between donations and pledges per species (assuming I hit 250 species), we are about 70% of the way to our $20,000 target! I think Joe would probably roll his eyes and tell a joke about the time we chased what would be his first Arapahoe county Brown Thrasher at Cherry Creek State Park. We saw the thrasher fly away and vanish and then Joe gave me slack for not getting him better looks!   Please consider a tax-deductible donation or pledge per species (pledges do not need to be paid until the 2021 green year ends). The pledges and donations are motivating me to get out and get birds. I'm truly humbled. Thank you. This is going to be such a fun year! Click the link (scroll to the bottom) to pledge or donate!  https://cobirds.org/CFO/Grants/ January 2021 overview (and then the birds!). I thought I'd start off with a little overview of my general strategy for this ...

A sparrow, a sapsucker, and a shrike, oh my!

I've been able to take advantage of dry roads and nice weather lately. I had a couple very successful adventures in the last week and picked up some green avian targets for the year. January 20, 2021 A Harris's Sparrow was frequenting a private residence in Littleton (JeffCo) and despite arriving in the early afternoon, to find no birds anywhere, a flock of White-crowned Sparrows showed up a few minutes later and the Harris's popped up! Talk about luck! I also had taken my camera (a first for a bike ride) and lucked out with a couple decent photos for the blog! A sharp looking Harris's Sparrow! Harris's Sparrow (Green year bird #75) With the grand luck on the Harris's Sparrow, I decided to swing by the ball fields at Kipling and 285 (still in Litteton) to see if there were any Snow Geese around. Not a goose to be found, so I kept going north to Bear Creek Greenbelt to look for either of Winter Wrens that had recently been found between S Estes St and S. Kipling ...