A bright light at the end of a tough, discouraging month. November started out with a bang: a Short-billed Gull at Union Reservoir (though discovering after the SBIG flew off that my camera was minus the memory card was a real punch in the gut), and finding a Red Phalarope at Valmont Reservoir (that many others got to see too), the next morning was exhilarating. But the 22-day drought in between was hard. And the 188.3 mi per species ratio reflects the physical cost.