I didn't write up much of a report after Little Rock's inaugural Birdathon event, much to my chagrin. So, looking forward to 2019's event, I am writing a much overdue report from 5/12/18. My team, Team M Gidonax, had originally set a fundraising goal of $250 and a species goal of 90. Through a slough of generous donations, we achieved our goal well before the Birdathon event. Following is the report of our event, supported by observations submitted through iNaturalist. WARNING: Not all observations were of birds (we tried a very holistic approach, which included surveying snake populations).

On May 12, 2018, Matt Gideon and I set out to bird the confines of Pulaski County (PuCo), starting just before dawn and ending a little before 5pm, so we could participate in the BirdBash held at the end of our allotted time. We started out in south PuCo before dawn to listen for owls and nightjars. This morning excursion yielded 0 owls, but a handful of Chuck-will's-widows. We also caught the beginning of the dawn chorus. This chorus featured several Northern Cardinals, an Indigo Bunting, and one of my favorites, Wood Thrush. We birded this route (Atwood Rd. to Chicot Rd.) on our way to our first intended stop, Pinnacle Mountain State Park.

https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45647152

We only birded Pinnacle's arboretum trail, as this had been an awesome migratory warbler spot in the past. We only had a handful of warblers, all of which were resident species. We did find our first Empidonax sp. of flycatcher, the Acadian Flycatcher. This was an especially good find, though expected at locale, because this genus of flycatcher is how we came to our team mash-up name: M Gidonax. We picked up a couple of vireos and woodpeckers, then moved to our next spot just down the road.
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45647000
Here's the list from County Farm Rd, en route to Two Rivers: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45647289

Two Rivers Park, still in western PuCo, is one of my favorite year round birding spots. However, it is a favorite spot for a lot of people with varying interests. Fortunately, we visited on a day without hordes of cyclists or runners and were able to stop in the middle of the trail to view interesting species, not just birds. We watched a few dragonflies go by as we headed out on the equestrian trail. We immediately found two more Empidonax flycatchers: Willow and Least. We had help with the Willow, as we only originally glimpsed it. But, another group came by shortly after us and used some playback to lure it in and found it to be Willow and not the very similar Alder Flycatcher. We journeyed to an observation that overlooked a decent reed-bed and used playback to try and observe Soras. No luck there, but we did come across two Cottonmouths at the base of the tower. At this locale we were able to pick up several field birds and marsh birds, including but not limited to, Eastern Kingbird, Warbling Vireo, Baltimore Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird, and Common Yellowthroat.
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45671579

Staying in west PuCo, we decided to hit the North Shore Dr. and Cook's Landing duo. Historically, North Shore Dr has had seasonal wetlands that has held shorebirds. However, we only found a small puddle that held a lone Mississippi Mud Turtle boot-scootin' it to the next mudhole (another herp for our list). There were quite a few field birds at this first locale, which was a consolation for there being very little water. We found scores of Dickcissels, calling out. We studied a brush pile that had a group of inquisitive House Finches that were later joined by other field birds. Shortly before leaving, we stopped and listened to the song of a Lark Sparrow, which we finally located in the top of a sapling oak. Although we didn't spend much time at Cook's Landing, this was one of our more fruitful excursions. We mostly birded the dam area, which held several water birds: Forster's Tern, Black Tern, Spotted Sandpiper, Mallards, Lesser Scaup, and a few others. We met up with a couple other teams and shared some stories and some sightings. Though this event was competitive, it was also quite collaborative, with groups helping out other groups with interesting finds.
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45647428
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45647652
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/12613838

Before getting lunch, we journeyed south to Boyle Park, off of University. Boyle Park is probably my favorite location for dragons/damsels, but is also a really good spot for migrating passerines. Today was no exception for either. We found our highest amount of migrating warblers (2: Chestnut-sided and Magnolia) as well as a Rose-breasted Grosbeak and a Gray-cheeked Thrush. This GC Trush was our team's unique bird, as we were the only ones to observe it. Also, I had not seen this bird in several years and it was a lifer for Matt. So, I am nominating this bird as our Bird of the Day. This was our best locale, yielding 40 species of birds and several different species of herps, insects, and wildflowers.

https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45591728
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/12613833

Next, we hit Lorance Creek Natural Area in southeast PuCo. This is one of my favorite birding patches in PuCo year round and it didn't disappoint. The habitat is quite similar to that of the Arboretum Trail that we had already visited, but we were able to nab some new species: Prothonotary Warbler and Yellow-throated Warbler. This braided stream system also had some pretty neat herps, as well.

https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45660275
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/12613826
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/12613830
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/12613831

Time was starting to become a concern, but we still had some unfinished business in southeast PuCo. We birded Harper Rd, leading up to David D. Terry Park/Lock & Dam. This route yielded more field birds and finally offered up some decent shorebird numbers (Pectoral Sandpipers being unique). We briefly stopped at the dam and picked up our target species, Painted Bunting, and not much else. Our last spot was on our way to the BirdBash event, so we made a drive-by on Fourche Dam Pike to pick up a Western Kingbird, of which we found four.

https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45599103
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45660257

At the BirdBash event, we met up with the other teams and shared stories, ate wonderful food, tallied birds, and counted donations. Overall, we came in 3rd in species count, with 97. This event was not only a blast to participate in, but was also a great way to get the community involved in local bird conservation and raise funds for these efforts.

Looking ahead, we already have our team page up for this year's Birdathon (https://act.audubon.org/onlineactions/WLJfmAFwAUm3p06tSfL8hw2), which will take place on 5/11/19. Check out our team page and the pages of our competitors. Also, we appreciate any support, whether it be donations or just following our efforts and cheering us on. You can follow us here, on iNaturalist (me: @moondevg ; and Matt: @mattgideon) or on eBird.