10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

Not all birds are created equal. These are the kinds of birds even those barely cognizant of nature recognize, appreciate, and aspire to. These are the kinds of birds even those barely cognizant of nature recognize, appreciate, and aspire to. Central Africa has one of those birds.

Uganda 272

Uganda Africa Birds Penguins 272

10,000 Birds

MAY 23, 2023

I recently asked ChatGPT some questions about the best birding locations in the United States and the results were decidedly mixed. Here are the queries and the ChatGPT responses are below: What is birding? What is a “nemesis bird” in birding? What is a “big year” in birding?

United States 147

United States North America Birds America 147

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2024

I was thinking of inventing a background story about a Chinese poet mentioning starlings (and other bird species) in one of his poems, and a rich Chinese fan of these poems pursuing the ambition of introducing all bird species mentioned therein to China, explaining the occasional occurrence of the starling in Shanghai.

Birds 199

Birds Research Science Europe 199

10,000 Birds

MAY 9, 2022

It’s a slim volume, a republication, mostly, of a chapter from her fine 2010 book Birdology , with some added material including an introduction, in which she describes how she has, a decade after her first experience with falconry (as described in the main part of the book), “come back for more.”

New Hampshire 221

New Hampshire Chickens Hunting Falcons 221

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 4, 2019

Imagine that… a successful snipe hunt. But on Friday evening he and Daisy visited Irvine Regional Park at dusk and were rewarded with Lesser Nighthawks , a lifer and an awesome Best Bird of the Weekend. What was your best bird of the weekend? How about you?

2019 128

2019 New York Birds California 128

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2014

Seeing a wild Snow Leopard is every wildlife enthusiast’s dream, probably the ultimate and most elusive wildlife experience on the planet. Knowing this, we were certainly far from disappointed by our experience but we of course all dreamed of a closer view. View of our camp in the Rhumbak Valley.

Snow Leopard 279

Snow Leopard Leopards Hunting Sheep 279

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 2, 2024

Bird Day is a lovely, little jewel of a book. The idea is to portray one bird for each hour of the day in words and art, presenting the diversity, beauty, and wonder of avian life. Angell’s black-and-white illustrations bring sparks of energy and visual clarity to the fascinating bird behaviors described by Huber.

Chicago 188

Chicago Barn Owls Penguins New Zealand 188

10,000 Birds

MARCH 29, 2015

(This photo is actually of a TK seen a few days later, but it was at our favorite birding gas station pit stop that we also stopped at on our first day. Excellent 10,000 Birds posts have been written about Pico Bonito and Honduras by Corey and Carlos , so I’m going to focus on some of my most memorable experiences.

Honduras 254

Honduras Birds Costa Rica Groups 254

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 12, 2024

Memorable encounters with Mammals: Part I Most birdwatchers enjoy seeing mammals, but the trouble with mammals is that they tend to be much more challenging to see than birds. I remember the guide on my first Kenyan birding safari remarking that “birding groups always see far more mammals than those who come just to see animals.

Fur 194

Fur Bulgaria Otters Estonia 194

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021

I am still tired from the long drive, but it was great to play with the very best toys for birders, to be able to share experiences and to ask the factory staff all sorts of silly questions. At the end of the workshop we all went birding, to further test the glasses of our choice. impressive for Central Europe.

Austria 298

Austria Factory Asia Battery 298

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2021

His second book on migration is a tale of many birds and many research studies all connected by the theme of migration and by his thoughtful narrative voice. His second book on migration is a tale of many birds and many research studies all connected by the theme of migration and by his thoughtful narrative voice.

Cyprus 257

Cyprus Slaughter Slaughtered Research 257

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 26, 2014

What good, though, is a polar vortex if it doesn’t come attended by polar birds? Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was a Bald Eagle that he watched (and photographed) hunting and eating a Blue-winged Teal at Viera Wetlands. What was your best bird of the weekend? Birding best bird weekend'

Bald Eagle 176

Bald Eagle 2014 Eagles Birds 176

10,000 Birds

APRIL 27, 2022

Some of my earliest bird-related memories (what other memories even exist?) Today, Barn Owls can be found across both islands, hunting open fields at twilight or comfortably resting in abandoned relics of the sugar cane industry. Visitors to the Caroni Bird Sanctuary can often see a pair roosting together in the mangrove.

Trinidad 276

Trinidad Owls Barn Owls Abandon 276

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2019

These reports (called “ Banking on Nature “) are relevant to birders because they are among the few comprehensive analyses that relate to the economic impact of birders on national wildlife refuges, which are among the more popular birding locations. A number of these NWRs appear on my list of the Top 25 NWRs for Birding.).

Wildlife 254

Wildlife Maryland San Francisco Minnesota 254

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

You may have read my recent piece on Birding the Okavango Delta in Botswana here on 10,000 Birds. If you have never thought of India as a birding destination, I’d urge you to give it a good look. Babita Tours has many years of experience organizing tailor-made wildlife tours for private groups in this wonderful country.

India 195

India Wildlife Tigers Eagles 195

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

There’s something wonderfully primeval about the Northern Bald Ibis: it has the look of a bird that really ought to be extinct. The fact that it’s not is quite surprising, as this curious bird has come very close to the brink. Sadly, they no longer breed in Algeria, while in Turkey no free-flying birds remain. (In

Morocco 232

Morocco Austria Algeria Germany 232

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2022

If you think it is rather pretentious to start a birding blog post with a Kafka story, I fully agree with you. Anyway, the story is not quite how I remembered it, to be honest, but fitting enough to describe the almost claustrophobic birding experience in ever-shrinking Nanhui. I just want to point out it could be much worse.

Raccoons 224

Raccoons Birds Oregon China 224

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2022

It is near a river, attracting some birds that like to eat wet food. As the national bird of Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, the African Fish Eagle is usually very busy whenever it stays in these countries, giving speeches, opening shopping centers, etc. The birds I asked about this pretended not to be related to anyone though.

Zimbabwe 147

Zimbabwe Birds South Africa Benin 147

10,000 Birds

JUNE 21, 2015

Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was his first Gull-billed Tern of the year at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. They are a graceful tern and Corey appreciated watching it hunt, feed, and fly over the marshes. What was your best bird of the weekend? How about you?

2015 166

2015 Jamaica Birds Hunting 166

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2015

Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe today announced as part of Great Outdoors Month the agency is proposing to expand fishing and hunting opportunities on 21 refuges throughout the National Wildlife Refuge System. The Service is committed to strengthening and expanding hunting and fishing opportunities,” said Ashe. “The

Fish 144

Fish Wildlife Hunting Game 144

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2020

In Costa Rica, our July birding news usually consists of interesting sightings during the mid-summer tours. These and other important birding related questions come to mind and during a normal July, I would be personally and actively helping answer them. Which tours saw the most roosting owls?

Costa Rica 223

Costa Rica Birds Thailand Family 223

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2017

Now that the odometer on year lists has rolled back to zero, you’re probably eagerly looking forward to beginning the bird hunt anew. Corey did not see many birds this weekend but he saw a few good ones. What was your best bird of the weekend? How about you?

2017 101

2017 Birds Hunting Experience 101

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Having been penned in our house for the last month (and more), the last time we have been out birding seems like a distant memory. I was ardently working to finish a years-long project on the birds of T&T so those last few weeks have not been bird-less by any means. A tree that is loved by birds is also loved by the birder.

Trinidad 263

Trinidad Hunting Venezuela Woodpeckers 263

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2018

I had to work all weekend but managed to chase snow birds on Friday morning. I might have missed out on those buntings I’ve been hunting, but lots of Horned Larks made up for the loss. What was your best bird of the weekend? Tell us in the comments section about the rarest, loveliest, or most fascinating bird you observed.

2018 100

2018 Birds Hunting Experience 100

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 9, 2014

My coolest birding encounter this weekend involved watching a Sharp-shinned Hawk lurking under a highway overpass. That’s probably not such a bad place to hunt. Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was a consolation prize for missing New York State’s second Common Ground-Dove at Jones Beach State Park.

2014 175

2014 New York Birds Hunting 175

10,000 Birds

JUNE 14, 2011

During the filming of this production, I got to experience “dirt hawking&#. Dirt hawking is a form of falconry that involves hunting rabbits and other small game with Harris Hawks (other hawk species also qualify). The odds are pretty much even between raptor and prey – as it would be with a wild bird and a prey animal.

League Against Cruel Sports 270

League Against Cruel Sports Rabbits Falcons Hunting 270

10,000 Birds

APRIL 12, 2022

A recent episode of the American Birding Podcast featured an interview with Virginia Rose (Founder and President) and Freya McGregor (Coordinator) of the non-profit Birdability. The mission of Birdability is to “share the joys of birding with people who have disabilities, and to ensure that birding is accessible to everybody.”

Portland 199

Portland Oregon Laws Experience 199

10,000 Birds

JUNE 19, 2016

Those of you in the tropical zones can enjoy your resident birds in peace for once. Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was a Barn Swallow that kept him company in a bird blind while Seaside Sparrows sang and Common Terns hunted in Wildwood, NJ. What was your best bird of the weekend? How about you?

2016 100

2016 Breeders Birds Hunting 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 28, 2015

What do you think makes for a good bird hide? I have asked myself that same question many times over the last six months, until last week, when I was involved in an opening ceremony of five new bird hides at the Palic Lake, by the town of Subotica in the very north of Serbia, along the border with Hungary (all photos are from that area).

Serbia 251

Serbia Birds Spain Hungary 251

10,000 Birds

JULY 24, 2016

Speaking of summer, the coolest birds I saw this weekend were on the festive curtains (pictured above) in my son’s new cabin at sleepaway camp in the Finger Lakes. But if I have to pick a living bird, American Kestrels hunting along farm roads always work for me. Tyrannus tyrannus is an exemplary Best Bird of the Weekend.

2016 100

2016 Birds Farming Hunting 100

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

I’ve been learning to band birds at the South Florida Bird Observatory. But hands-on bird experience has been a major gap in my knowledge to date and I’m astounded at how much more I’m discovering about birds. For example, last Sunday we found an unusually large bird in one of the nets.

Florida 245

Florida South America United States North America 245

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2020

In this post, we’ll share the most positive of the positives, at least for those who write for 10,000 Birds who decided to share. Of all the birds that make the list for a given year one of those birds must be the Best Bird of the Year. We are always content bird-watching around Broome anyway!

2020 241

2020 Birds Costa Rica Germany 241

10,000 Birds

APRIL 8, 2012

My family took our annual post-Easter Egg hunt hike at Powder Mills Park, where I spied several gorgeous matched pairs of Wood Ducks along with lots of different woodpecker species. What was your best bird of the weekend? Tell us in the comments section about the rarest, loveliest, or most fascinating bird you observed.

2012 189

2012 Birds Eggs Hunting 189

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 20, 2013

In fact, we lead the world in these ubiquitous red birds, a fact that undoubtedly chafes terrorists and freedom haters everywhere. My best bird this weekend was hardly rare, but spotting a Great Blue Heron in a suburban yard far from water definitely caught my attention. That’s his third new bird in Queens in less than a month!

St. Louis 170

St. Louis 2013 United States Arizona 170

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2019

“Target birds” The term can foster excitement but is easily contentious. Aren’t all birds worth watching? There’s nothing wrong with appreciating and watching every bird but there’s also nothing wrong about going to great efforts to see lifers only found in dreams. Fiery-throated Hummingbird.

Costa Rica 203

Costa Rica Panama Birds Eagles 203

10,000 Birds

MARCH 5, 2012

What this land-locked country lacks in endemic birds it more than makes up for in accessibility of tough species, numbers of birds and the overall wildlife experience. It is also home to the largest concentration of African Elephants on the planet and over 450 bird species. We are currently filming in Botswana.

Botswana 211

Botswana Zebras Lions Elephants 211

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 5, 2020

Just under a fortnight ago, I saw a report on the local bird alert of a sighting of a group of approximately 20 Nacunda Nighthawks at a wetland not more than 20 minutes from where I live. Especially as we were at the time about to experience a rapidly advancing tropical storm. Such is birding, such is life.

Livestock 223

Livestock Ducks ALA illegal 223