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Re: Total Ticks



There is a birding game which in the US is called Total Ticks and in Canada
is called All Territories and Provinces. Here is how Total Ticks works (also
called Total Tickies for fun). In the United States there are 51 reporting
units (the 50 states plus the District of Columbia). Players work on state
lists for all states plus DC, then just add up the numbers. This means that
if you have an average of 100 species per state on your combined state lists
in the US your Total Ticks score is 5100.

The ABA has started reporting Total Ticks in its annual list summary. For
example, as of the end of 2000, Paul Lehman, who reported the most Total
Ticks, had an amazing 15,281 ticks.  My own Total Ticks was 8,851, which was
good enough for 9th place on the ABA list.

Total Tickies is a wonderful game for traveling birders like me, because it
forces you to visit the entire country, not just the birding hot spots.

My wife Caroline Eastman points out another meaning of Total Ticks. Once,
after a day of birding in Belize, Caroline was aghast to find a total of 237
seed ticks on her back and legs. Ouch! I am sure this is far from a record,
and that any old hand at birding in Mexico can come up with a tale of many
more Total Ticks than that!

Robin Carter
Columbia, SC
rcarter@sc.rr.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Clyde Sorenson" <clyde_sorenson@ncsu.edu>
To: "Robin Carter" <rcarter@sc.rr.com>
Sent: Friday, January 25, 2002 8:49 AM
Subject: Re: Total Ticks


> Robin,
>
> Explain a bit more about "Total Tickies." I have to confess it is a new
> term to me, although from your message, I think I may have been doing it
> for years. I also enjoyed a couple of your examples; I lived in Nevada
> for 3 1/2 years (Reno area- on the California line and not far from
> Oregon ;-) ) where I built a pretty good NV list, and then lived in the
> Missouri Bootheel for 4 years (where I, too, once saw a white ibis - and
> a scissor-tailed flycatcher on the same day). Anyway, I enjoyed your
> post!
>
> Clyde Sorenson
> Clayton, NC
>
>