Big Year
A big year is a personal challenge or an informal competition among birders who attempt to identify as many species of birds as possible by sight or sound, within a single calendar year and within a specific geographic area. Popularized in North America, big years are commonly done within single US states and Canadian provinces, as well as within larger areas such as the entire world, the lower 48 continental U.S. states, or within the official American Birding Association Area. The ABA big year record of 840 species was set by John Weigel of Australia in 2019. The world big year record of 6,852 species was set in 2016 by Arjan Dwarshuis of the Netherlands.
