10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 3, 2020

I’ve been fortunate to see two Penguin species in the wild (African and Galapagos) and have dreamed of seeing more–maybe even all!–especially The goal of Around the World For Penguins is simple: Describe the 18 species of penguin and their breeding grounds “from the perspective of a traveller.”

Penguins 278

Penguins Georgia New Zealand Albatross 278

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2015

Mack (Cassowary Conservation and Publishing, 2014) for Birding. Mack tells the story of how he set up a research station, and a life, in Papua New Guinea. Brit birder Goodie didn’t do an ordinary big year; he decided he would see every Pitta species in the world (32 at the time) in one year. Press, 2012).

Papua New Guinea 187

Papua New Guinea 2014 Penguins Birds 187

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2021

There is much to enjoy and appreciate here and I only wish I could have tested out some of these species accounts in pelagic waters before writing about them (sadly, the 10,000 Birds pelagic to Antarctica was canceled this year). SCOPE & SPECIES ORGANIZATION. It covers 434 species across 9 orders and 18 families of birds.

Albatross 279

Albatross Penguins Family Groups 279

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

Stories enhance his 2014 history of modern ornithology, Ten Thousand Birds ( co-written with Jo Wimpenny and Bob Montgomerie). Common Guillemot research at Skomer Island, Wales. ’ Ironically, this is from Birds of Australia , which scholars and art historians suspect was more Elizabeth’s work than John’s.*.

Dissection 234

Dissection Birds Research Europe 234

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 14, 2023

Sometimes I just want to hug eBird, or more specifically, whoever writes the short species descriptions (even though I am not the typical hugging kind of person, trust me on this). The Plain Sunbird is the plain vanilla version of the otherwise often very colorful family (ok, a very low-budget sort of joke). “Dull, me?

Los Angeles 200

Los Angeles Birds Woodpeckers Owls 200

10,000 Birds

APRIL 30, 2017

Way back in the days when blog posts still got a lot of comments, I wrote a piece on why field guides that arrange species in a more or less strict taxonomic order regularly frustrate me. Taxonomy is constantly changing and so does the order of species in field guides. Phillipps, Q. & van Balen, N. It was a nightmarish thing to do.

Brunei 164

Brunei 2009 2016 2014 164

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2014

This research suggests that the boom isn’t due to an influx of newcomers, but rather because more local birds are flourishing and successfully rearing families. Specifically, researchers found that in EAB-infested areas, the birds preferred ash trees to other trees, and seemed to favor the ashes with the most severe damage.

Woodpeckers 273

Woodpeckers Illinois Science Chicago 273

10,000 Birds

MARCH 5, 2024

This may be before the Fairy-Wrens developed the ability to detect Cuckoo young in the nest, an ability recently described by ornithologists, or this family may be one of the 60% who don’t detect Cuckoo chicks. As I said before, the book plates utilize the species names used in the original books and drawings.

Australia 202

Australia Birds Europe Collecting 202

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2021

Pough “with illustrations in color of every species” by Don Eckelberry, Doubleday, 1946. The National Audubon Society Birds of North America covers all species seen in mainland United States, Canada and Baja California. The press material says it covers over 800 species, so you know I had to do a count.

North America 279

North America America Birds California Condor 279

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2015

Picidae, Woodpecker, is one of those charismatic bird families that everybody gets excited about. Woodpeckers of the World: A Photographic Guide is the first major guide to family Picidae in 20 years. The Species Accounts vary in length from one to three pages. The taxonomy is tricky, as Gorman notes in the introduction.

Woodpeckers 252

Woodpeckers 2002 Europe Research 252

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2020

That’s pretty amazing–Bolivia has more bird species than India! The source of this ranking, BirdLife International, lists Bolivia as currently having 1,439 bird species, including 18 breeding endemics. The guide covers 1,433 species, the number of birds documented at the end of 2014, the cutoff point for the book.

Bolivia 181

Bolivia Birds Brazil Switzerland 181

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2015

This is not your ordinary reference book, though it was cited as one of the best reference sources of 2014 by Library Journal. Every section is excellent, Going from back to front, the Species Natural History section is where to go for answers to all your questions about penguins and then some. And that’s just the top section!

Penguins 209

Penguins New Zealand South Africa Albatross 209

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2014

A little research revealed that these are old names of birds that have been split into different species. Water Pipit is now known as a European species; the American subspecies became the full species American Pipit in 1989. Scientific names don’t reflect the massive changes to species in the warbler family.

2006 206

2006 2014 Connecticut North America 206

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2015

I’m happy to say that Laura Erickson and Marie Read have written a book, Into the Nest: Intimate Views of the Courting, Parenting, and Family Lives of Familiar Birds , that is not too cute and that does not anthropomorphize. Some chapters focus on one species (Yellow Warbler), some on several related species (Chickadees and Nuthatches).

Eggs 263

Eggs Family 2006 New York 263

10,000 Birds

MARCH 1, 2022

I’m going to go right to a discussion of the Species Accounts, because I know that’s where you all want to be, with the warblers. I do love the fact that the table of contents lists all three names (all pointing to the same species account). Page two of each species account offers “Distinctive Views”, “Additional Photos” and notes.

United States 229

United States North America Species 2013 229

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2013

states and thirty-seven counties, and added a whopping ninety-two species to my life list. I didn’t travel much this year, with a June family trip to California and Nevada and a four-day trip in July to Trinidad and Tobago being my only opportunities to get birds not in the northeastern United States. My life Gyrfalcon.

2013 179

2013 New York City New York Trinidad 179

10,000 Birds

MAY 6, 2016

Once you eliminate the risque jokes (I know, I know, but it’s a family blog) the Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet might have the most comical name in American birding. The tyrant flycatchers, in turn, derive their name from the first member of the family to land a Latin name, the Eastern Kingbird. Please do not yell at me.

Costa Rica 103

Costa Rica 2014 Family Collecting 103

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 7, 2014

The second edition of the National Geographic Complete Birds of North America, 2nd Edition has one of the longest book names in bird bookdom: National Geographic Complete Birds of North America, 2nd Edition: Now Covering More Than 1,000 Species With the Most-Detailed Information Found in a Single Volume. This volume is no exception.

North America 178

North America America Birds Family 178

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 5, 2017

The 7th edition of the National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America covers 1,023 species that reside, migrate, or have been documented as accidentals or exotics in North America. Species Accounts: With 1,023 species, National Geographic 7 continues to cover the most species of any North American field guide.

North America 187

North America America 2017 Birds 187

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2017

Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago covers 1,417 species, 601 endemics, 98 vagrants, 8 introduced and 18 undescribed species. The archipelago consists of 17,000 islands stretching out over 2500 miles along the Equator with a varied history of avian research and study, most on the under- or not-studied side. Co-author Frank E.

Indonesia 134

Indonesia Brunei Birds Malaysia 134

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 15, 2019

Within its 400 pages, the Birds of the West Indies covers 712 species, 550 of them regularly occurring and 190 of those endemic to the region, many of them to single islands. Furthermore, there are six families confined to the Greater Antilles. If a species is monotypic, this is clearly stated.

Saint Kitts and Nevis 169

Saint Kitts and Nevis Antigua and Barbuda Dominican Republic Cuba 169

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2019

I like observing them, reading about them, grappling with species and subspecies identification, and even—on a good day—talking about sparrow taxonomy. Peterson Reference Guide to Sparrows of North America covers 61 species of the New World sparrow family Passerellidae that breed in Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico.

North America 157

North America Sparrows America United States 157

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2016

where and when the species is likely to be seen on the east coast, flight style, size and structure as compared to similar species. I realized a curious thing while researching some of the creatures in this guide–some of the common names given for the flying fish appear to have originated with co-author Steve N.G.

Pennsylvania 176

Pennsylvania Texas Whales Whaling 176

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2018

Covering 1,261 species with data and taxonomy current up to August 2017, the field guide is an exciting achievement. And, then there are the more familiar birds–Wood-warblers, sandpipers, hawks–some species migrants, some species with a wide range. Can you guess which of the species cited above are endemic?

America 214

America El Salvador Costa Rica Honduras 214

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2016

But, as with many avian families, the more you look, the more complicated it gets. And, the whole question of subspecies, which in the Northeast tends to focus on the Cackling Goose, but which I’m sure is a topic of fascination with other waterfowl species in all other parts of the world. There are the females, so many so brown.

North America 161

North America Asia Europe America 161

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 12, 2015

That last site is where Corey, Mike, and I counted birds in 2014 , and this year, I did the same. The Arenal forests are very good for this species. The fact that one or two families of nunbirds still occur at Luna Nueva is testament to the quality of the rainforest at this site. A Nightingale Wren singing in the rain.

Costa Rica 101

Costa Rica Farming Louisiana 2014 101

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 26, 2014

The Yellow-rumped Warbler ( Setophaga coronata ) complex is one of the most abundant and widespread representatives of the New World warbler family in North America, present in many parts of the United States even through the winter months, when the birds feed on small fruits and other foods, including sap.

United States 245

United States 2011 Guatemala North America 245

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 19, 2014

I want to talk about this research but if you really want to know more about it, don’t rely on me; one of the co-authors of this important paper is Darren Naish, who happens to be a stupendous blogger, and he has written the research up here. So go read that for sure, and revel in the excellent graphics. Naish, D., & Dyke, G.

Camels 204

Camels Whales Whaling Apes 204

10,000 Birds

JUNE 4, 2013

I’m going to go right to a discussion of the Species Accounts, because I know that’s where you all want to be, with the warblers. I do love the fact that the table of contents lists all three names (all pointing to the same species account). The authors note when a species cannot be sexed or aged with certainty.

United States 249

United States North America Species New York 249