Category Archives: Uncategorized
California Birding on a Family Vacation
Ethan and Ingrid chase a lifer and dozens of California Birds on a family vacation.
Birding the Southwest – February 2026
Two Mainer and their French Bulldog Biscuit spend February Birding in the Southwest.
Woodpeckers of the United States
Join us for a light-hearted, fact-filled tour of America’s woodpeckers, from the backyard-friendly Northern Flicker to the elusive American Three-toed. We sort out the differences between traditional woodpeckers, sapsuckers, and flickers, and explore the remarkable adaptations that let these birds drill, climb, and thrive across the continent. Meet favorites like Downy, Pileated, Acorn, Lewis’s, and […]
Driving 1,973 Miles to See One Bird
A fun recap of Ethan and Ingrid’s Twitch of a Smith’s Longspur
Join us for a Big Year Zoom Presentation
On Tuesday, October 21st, Please join Ethan and Ingrid on Zoom as they recap their 2024 Big Year. They will share their adventure across the Lower 48 States with photos, videos funny stories from the road. Zoom Link
Bird’s Eye View Podcast
Ingrid and I are on the latest Edition of the Bird’s Eye View Podcast! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s4-e7-from-sea-to-shining-sea-a-couples-big-year/id1710429878?i=1000696137190
EVERY BIRD FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA now on Audible
Ingrid and I just released our book EVERY BIRD FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA on Audible . . . the bad news, Audible version has no photos . . . the good news . . . Ingrid is the narrator!!! We have a limited number of FREE review copies available from Audible. If you’d like […]
EVERY BIRD FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA
Ethan and Ingrid Whitaker have published EVERY BIRD FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA, their 2024 Big Year Book. EVERY BIRD FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA ONE COUPLE’S BIG YEAR IN BIRDING A PHOTOGRAPHIC ADVENTURE ACROSS THE LOWER 48 STATES 288 Pages 800+ Wildlife Photos by the Author Humorous accounts of what it takes to find […]
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year – FINAL RECAP OF THE ENTIRE ADVENTURE
A fun and final recap of Ethan and Ingrid’s entire 2024 Big Year. Join a retired couple from Maine as they break outside of their comfort zone for a Lower 48 State Big Year . . . a contest to identify as many species of birds as possible in a calendar year. What were our […]
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 49)
You’re in luck . . . another weekly recap. This time we travel to Nantucket, Massachusetts, home of the uber rich and Joe Biden’s Thanksgiving Day get away. There we chase a Eurasian Bird that has been hanging around for almost two weeks.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 48)
As our Big Year calendar flips into December, we wrap up our final “scheduled” trip of the year. We pick up two rarities and explore some of our favorite Lone Star hot spots.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 46 and 47)
In this recap, we visit Texas for the third time . . . in an effort to see an Indian Subcontinent Exotic, an incredibly rare owl, and the most elusive breeding bird in the United States. Oh and we ate lots of Tex-Mex.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 44 and 45)
After several weeks without a new bird . . . Snowy Owls show up for the first time in almost two years and we get one . . . our 19th Owl species of the year. In this recap we explore why the Snowy Owls haven’t been around and the sad relationship between Owls and […]
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 43)
A quiet week here in Maine as we enter the homestretch of the Big Year. A surprise rare bird appeared on a golf course about an hour north of our house. The next day Ethan found the rare bird . . . and then got a big surprise.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 42)
In this week’s recap, we reach 700 birds for the year . . . in the most unsatisfying way possible and unveil the embargoed bird from Arizona during week 41. We also . . . for no apparent reason . . . show the most iconic television commercial ever made.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 41)
A recap of the 41st week of our 48 State Big Year (2024). In this episode we travel to Wyoming, Colorado and Arizona to add to our year list. These included two hard to find Owls, a White-tailed Ptarmigan and seven other life birds.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 40)
A recap of the 40th week of our 48 State Big Year (2024). In this exciting episode we travel to Long Island to see a bird that should be in Africa by now. We also meet other Big Year Birders including at 19 year old who is having an amazing year.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 39)
A recap of the 39th week of our 48 State Big Year (2024). With the Big Year three quarters of the way complete . . . we lay out our plan to reach 700 birds for the year. Where we plan to visit and what birds we hope to see. We also discuss why a […]
Streaked-backed Oriole in Ink
This weekend, Ingrid’s brother John Judge gave us this ink drawing of a Streak-backed Oriole . . . a rare bird we saw in April in Arizona. John is a professional artist based in Massachusetts and drew the Oriole to celebrate our 10th anniversary. We love it.
Ethan and Ingrid’s 2024 Big Year (Week 38)
A recap of the 38th week of our 48 State Big Year (2024). We are back home in Maine, planning how we get another thirteen birds to reach 700. We learn of a nemesis bird in a park just outside Boston. Or as we New Englanders call it . . . the City of Champions […]
| Copyright 2024 |
























