When Drew first established this blog so many years ago, he christened the new site with a title based on one of the most evocatively named phenomena in birding. The concept of a nemesis bird is something most birders are familiar with, though the exact definition may vary from person to person. It could be that incredible vagrant you “just … Read More
October Big Day 2019
Who doesn’t love a Big Day? Any excuse to get out and count birds in the name of science is a worthwhile cause in my book. eBird has been orchestrating Global Big Day events each May since 2015, an international effort to record as many of the world’s species as possible within a 24 hour period. Last fall, the Cornell-based … Read More
Winter Waterfowl in Illinois
Last Saturday (the 15th), Michael Retter and Matt Hale drove up from West Lafayette to stay at my house for the weekend (specifically for the Gull Frolic, more on that coming soon). They had to head out on Sunday, but before they left, we birded a bit looking for Scoters on the lakefront. This winter has been quite unlike others … Read More
Birding Duval and Nassau Counties, Florida 12/29
Hi everyone, My name is Nathan Goldberg, and I am happy to be a new blogger here at Nemesis Bird. I am a 17-year-old birder from Chicago, and I have been birding for four years now. Listing is a serious addiction of mine, and I’ve been bit hard by the county listing bug. Though friends keep telling me its only … Read More
Duval County Tickin’
During the last week of June one of my cousins was getting married in Orlando, so I took some time off work on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and drove down to spend a few days with my family. There was no way I could go down to Florida and not find a little time to go birding, so I … Read More
Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, NJ
Last Saturday, I traveled to Barnegat Lighthouse State Park in New Jersey. Although slightly chilly, the sun and lack of wind made the birding conditions excellent… or at least better than most January days along the Jersey shore! Upon arriving, a small group of Black-crowned Night-Herons passed directly overhead, circling around the lighthouse several times before moving over the open … Read More
Storm Birding
As anyone in the United States should know, a large storm hit the mid-Atlantic last week, bringing strong winds and rain to much of the eastern United States. This powerful storm brought hundreds of seabirds inland, causing jaegers to show up on inland lakes and storm-petrels to be found flying around major rivers. Birders all over the region flocked to … Read More
Bald Eagle State Park – Black Scoters
This morning, Drew Weber and I birded BESP in the rain/snow and were able to find some great birds including 6 Black Scoters, 2 Surf Scoters, and a lone Brant among a lot of other waterfowl. These were the first Black Scoters reported so far this fall in Centre County and our second Brant of the year. Weather conditions made … Read More
New Jersey Birding – Part 1
Last Friday, November 19th, was the start of our Thanksgiving Break so my friends and I decided to go to Cape May, NJ for some birding with the hope of getting Tim and Josh some life birds and get me a few year birds for my Big Year. Nate Fronk, Tim Schrekengost, Josh Lefever, and  a friend of Nate and … Read More
Red-necked Grebes and Black Scoters at BESP
Since Drew and I are living in the State College area for this year and the next, the posts on this site will be quite centered around Centre County, PA. As you might have read, Drew is attempting a Centre County Big year, while I am desperately trying to catch up (although I just started birding in the county August 23rd). On … Read More