Last Seen

I keep a lot of bird lists. Birds seen this year. Birds seen on my daily walks. Birds seen along the creek down the road. My ultimate list is my life list—a list of all the bird species I’ve seen in my life. Another way of thinking of it is my “First Seen” list. I’ve seen, for example, thousands of House Finches, but the one on my life list is the first one I ever saw.

I’m guessing that I’ve already started another list. My “Last Seen” list. Someday I’ll see the last House Finch I’ll ever see before I die. Maybe I already have. I hope not. Accidents happen. But what about Ruffed Grouse? I used to see Ruffed Grouse regularly when I visited my parents in northern Wisconsin. Now that I live in Colorado, I haven’t seen a Ruffed Grouse in several years. Will I ever see another one?

Chances are I won’t live in Colorado forever. The birds that have become so familiar to me here—Rock Wrens, Spotted Towhees, Bushtits—will I ever see them again after I move?

I wonder how long my “Last Seen” list is now?

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