Nocturnal Birdwatcher Still Working on first 200 Birds

Wilmington, DE -- Area bird watcher Al Franken, 39, has been watching birds for 10 years. He has been in every state and has even the rarest elf owl. But he is missing ducks and song birds and such.

"I got pretty good at sleeping duck ID in the afternoon. But some are still missing. Like American Wigeon."

I read the books at night so I can do most of the shorebirds. I can tell a dowitcher even though I have never seen one. Gulls give me a headache but I do run into them in urban settings, 

"I did get all the owls on my owl tour of the US. I would get up at noon, drive to the next spot for 6 hours and birds all night." He did get night jars, whip poor wills and other birds of dusk in the process.

"In the early morning as I drove to the motel for a nap I did hear some of the annoying chirpy birds in the woods and the edges of woods. But I was not going to bother with the songs just yet. Maybe some day."

Hotels were not always cooperative with his hours so he rented an RV for two weeks of his tour.