FOY 2021

 There is a superstition amongst some birders that the first bird seen in the new year will set the bar for how the birding year will go.  I purposely kept my "blinders" on when the 2021 rolled around so that I could run over to see the rare Snowy Owl that had taken up residence 3 months earlier just 5 blocks from my house.  It took a lot of will power not to turn my head whenever I heard chirpping in a bush during the walk over, but I did it!  My FBOTY (First Bird of the Year), was a rare Snowy Owl 😀

(Again, since this is a rare species that is attracting a lot of attention in an urban area, I did not stay long enough to get a great photo of her.  There was a lot of concern in the community about her well being, so I snapped one photo with my phone and walked away.)