Early worm gets the bird... I hope.

Sorry if this is a little quiet. I didn't want to wake my family up.

Day one bird list

Well, as I prepare to get to bed for a 6am wake-up call to go to Niagara and hunt for rare gulls, I leave you with the birds I saw today. Not a big list, but I really wasn't searching. These ones just happened to present themselves to me today.


PRBY - Jan 1, 2011

Rock Dove

Mourning Dove

European Starling

American Kestral

Red-Tailed Hawk

Black-Capped Chickadee

The bird of the day was the American Kestral. It was a male in all his Blue-grey and rusty brown glory. Sadly, he was hunting in a field that was about to be raped and turned into a mega neighbourhood called 'Chestnut falls' or something stupid like that. Next year, he'll need to find food elsewhere.


Looking forward to tomorrows trip, all except the part about leaving at 6am.


Paul Riss
Punk Rock Big Year

PRBY bird 1 = Columba livia

Last night my wife and I were lucky enough to have her sister watch the twins so we could spend the evening at Lee's Palace in Toronto watching three great bands. Those bands were Bradleyboy, Catl and Elliott Brood. It was an amazing night watching the bands from the green room. Great times were had by all.

Then there was the midnight kiss. And right after that, I went outside to start my Punk Rock Big Year. Surprisingly, I was unable to find a Rock Dove (Pigeon) when I went outside. This was crazy when you consider I've had them fly into head while riding my bike downtown. I walked all the way to the Bathurst subway station trying to find one. No luck. It didn't seem like a great way to start my Big Year. I returned to the show to watch some more great music. When things started winding down at 2am, I hung outside Lee's having a burrito with Rachel (my wife) Bradleyboy and Miss Jude (Bradleyboy's wife). Then I saw it. Two dirty, ratty looking Rock Doves huddled on an equally dirty window sil above the burrito joint. Ugly as they were, they represented my first bird species of the year. The first tattoo will read, "Columba livia."

Here's Bradleyboy ending his set.

Here's Catl ending their set.

And here's a bit of Elliott Brood. Along with a crazy drunk girl that kept getting up on stage. We found a cut out of a crow in the green room which was handed to me. can't count it but I'll get the real thing in a day or so.

Happy New Year everyone and good birding in 2011. If you're into that sort of thing.

Paul Riss

Punk Rock Big Year outlined finished

I went to get the outline finished at lunch today. Let me say, tattooing your collar bone or near it really hurts. But it's done and all I need to do now is colour it in.

Here's a video of Pete's studio.

Here's a close-up of getting tattooed.

And here's how it feels to tattoo your collar bone area. The only place as painful was my elbow.

Here's the finished outline. You can see where the work was done today by all the red.

Flu out. Ink in.

Well, my family had a terrible stomach flu that ripped around our household and that's why activity has been sparse on PRBY. It lasted from about Dec. 8th to the 15th. Luckiest of all my family, I got it twice. Anyway, the last thing on my mind was birding or my upcoming big year. Now, with only ten days until it starts, I'm running around trying to figure out how January and the rest of next year will look. I'm not usually the guy to plan out a year of my life ahead of time. It feels like it's already over when I'm figuring out what I'll be doing in September 2011.

All that flu put a serious dent in getting the main tat done in time for the big year next year. Today, at lunch, I'll be finishing the outline. Then I have to wait until next year to finish filming the colouring of it.

I'm sure I'll be posting again before the new year but I wanted to wish everyone that reads PRBY a happy holiday, however you celebrate.

My twins decorating our Christmas tree.

Punk Rock Big Year soundtrack

My son, Shepard Thrasher Riss, helping me with the Punk Rock Big Year soundtrack.

My other bird related tattoos

The other day, an original John James Audubon's "Birds of America" sold for $11.5 million. That's incredible. I have always loved his work. So much that I have some of his paintings tattooed on my right upper arm. Speaking of my tattoos, I really haven't shared any of them here before. Here's a video showing my bird related tats. My sleeve is only partially finished. I've put it on hold to do the PRBY stuff.