10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 18, 2019

But at a hotel in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, he had a singing male Eastern Bluebird on Sunday morning, and that was definitely his Best Bird of the Weekend. What was your best bird of the weekend? Tell us in the comments section about the rarest, loveliest, or most fascinating bird you observed. How about you?

2019 115

2019 North Carolina Georgia Birds 115

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2012

It’s tough to make out what species the baby bird is but it sure likes bluegrass. Lead singer Josh Williams managed to keep the song going and the crowd sure appreciated the unexpected guest star in this video shot almost a year ago at the Doyle Lawson Bluegrass Festival in North Carolina. As for the bird?

North Carolina 236

North Carolina Adoptable Birds Species 236

10,000 Birds

MARCH 24, 2015

The first time I agreed to join my fiancé Brian on a joint birding/fly-fishing excursion, I wasn’t sure what to expect. It turns out, fishing and birding are the perfect match. Fly-fishing takes anglers to beautiful freshwater streams and rivers in pristine locations, locations that are usually filled with birds.

Fish 195

Fish North Carolina Woodpeckers Turkey 195

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 27, 2018

Leaves and birds in the Appalachian Mountains. North Bend State Park, West Virginia. North Bend State Park, West Virginia. Strong populations of birds reside in the hardwood forests and dense understories in this north-eastern location of West Virginia. Grandfather Mountain State Park, North Carolina.

West Virginia 196

West Virginia Virginia Kentucky South Carolina 196

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 30, 2018

Many were specifically established for migratory birds and are strategically positioned along one of the four major North American migration flyways. Others were established to protect specific bird species or subspecies. As a result, there are excellent birding hotspots in the system. Pea Island NWR (North Carolina).

Wildlife 214

Wildlife Las Vegas Texas Minnesota 214

10,000 Birds

APRIL 8, 2018

.” Despite the cruel, cold weather I was out and about on both Saturday and Sunday morning, despite the added cruelty of just having returned from (slightly) warmer North Carolina late on Friday night. Western Bluebirds are another marvelous bird, and he saw his at Malibu Creek State Park. How about you?

North Carolina 113

North Carolina Cruelty 2018 United States 113

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2014

My wife and I recently welcomed a second child into the world, so much of my birding has been of the theoretical nature of late. However, this past weekend I was able to get out for a couple hours to take in a phenomenon that birders in North Carolina have rarely seen of late. Trips ducks North Carolina winter'

North Carolina 197

North Carolina Ducks Farming Fish 197

10,000 Birds

JULY 24, 2012

Here in the southern reaches of North America, we’re fortunate to have opportunities to view birds that are far more common far more south – like neotropics south – with some regularity. And there were a couple of them recently reported down at the southern tip of North Carolina, so I had to go and have a look.

North Carolina 166

North Carolina South Carolina Birds North America 166

10,000 Birds

MAY 13, 2014

I saw my first Swainson’s Warbler in eastern North Carolina, along the Roanoke River near the town of Weldon. The story is etched into my memory not for my experience with the bird, which was an obstructed view of a singing male through a mess of dense underbrush at about 100 feet, but for the effort it took to get there.

North Carolina 200

North Carolina Groups Experience Experiments 200

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2015

Forced inside due to various work obligations and a heckuva lot of snow (and the attending unplanned childcare responsibilities that said snow results in around here), my actual birding has been lean these couple weeks. A little bit of background and North Carolina esoterica now. Birding eBird' At least I hope so!

North Carolina 196

North Carolina North America Owls America 196

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 22, 2015

A small, streaky brown bird with an impossible evil yellow eye. The North Carolina Sage Thrasher on a less challenging day. This bird, this smallish, streaky, weird bird has your brain turning. So, Sage Thrasher in North Carolina! Man, birding is the best. You see parts of it. The breast.

North Carolina 135

North Carolina Cows Collecting Birds 135

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2021

There was a time when I thought each bird species had its own individual song. Then I found out that there was this vocalization called a ‘call,’ so I thought each bird species had its own individual song (but just the males) and individual call. Bird communication is a complex and evolving science.

North America 279

North America Research Birds Groups 279

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 27, 2015

There’s probably nothing in the birding world that engenders as much ire as the perception of suppression. one of the tenants of our community, and one tightly held by many of us, is that information about unusual birds should be freely accessible. That’s why we have listservs, and rare bird alerts, and the like.

North Carolina 162

North Carolina Tenant Groups Birds 162

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

We all have those days when we want to get out and go birding, but can never quite decide where we want to go. Mason Farm is one of the best places for birding in the region, and arguably in the state. But being fall, the birding has not been a complete bust. For a birder, having a great local patch is a real luxury.

North Carolina 174

North Carolina Salamander Farming Tennessee 174

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2021

“This beautiful and singular bird, although a constant resident in the southern extremities of the peninsula of Florida, seldom extends its journeys in an eastern direction beyond the State of North Carolina. I picked up a few bottles and we were off on our way home to Albany.

New York 264

New York South Carolina North Carolina Massachusetts 264

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 30, 2015

In the past, I’ve been fairly hesitant about taking my two young children with me on longer birding excursions. I don’t want to burn them out on long car rides to less than exciting locations, but mostly i don’t want to have to deal with crabby kids begging me to go home when I’m busy seeking out a new state bird.

North Carolina 145

North Carolina Mountain Lions Otters Lions 145

10,000 Birds

MARCH 13, 2016

This is the second in a however-many-parts-it-takes series about western vagrants showing up on the coast of North Carolina. So long as these birds keep arriving, I’ll keep doing what it takes to see them at great personal cost to myself. Happy birders watching North Carolina’s 3rd Burrowing Owl.

Owls 100

Owls North Carolina Cooking Groups 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 7, 2014

I reached two of my personal North Carolina birding goals this year. All the pelagic trips I could want and all I have to do is find birds, chat with people on board, and try not to throw up or fall asleep. These birds are small and delicate looking, but they’re no shrinking violets. I panicked for a second.

North Carolina 196

North Carolina Birds Hunting Albatross 196

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 1, 2015

Birding for the Curious: The Easiest Way for Anyone to Explore the Incredible World of Birds by Nate Swick brings birding back to its roots—a simple, joyous way to enjoy nature using our eyes, ears, hands (for sketching), and brain. There are now no excuses except a lack of curiosity. And, nobody wants to admit that.

Birds 263

Birds North Carolina North America Owls 263

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2015

A couple weekends ago I headed out to the Carolina Bird Club’s winter meeting in Nags Head, North Carolina, on the cusp of the Outer Banks. As such, it’s generally one of the best attended meetings and boasts the best bird list with field trips that range inland as well as up and down the barrier islands.

North Carolina 177

North Carolina Owls Geese Alligators 177

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2016

For the past several weeks a pair of Trumpeter Swans have made themselves at home along a road through Mattamuskeet NWR in eastern North Carolina. I know this for a fact, because this is precisely what I did last week when I spent a day in the eastern part of North Carolina chasing rarities. I guess so.

North Carolina 121

North Carolina Wounded Hunting Geese 121

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

I’ve taken tours out of Monterey Bay (with pelagic legend Debi Shearwater , now retired) and Half Moon Bay, California ; Newport, Oregon ; and Hatteras, North Carolina. The boat is called the Legacy and it is an 80 foot whale watching vessel that generally seats 115, but takes about 70 for birding trips.

San Diego 147

San Diego Los Angeles Cooking North Carolina 147

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 1, 2013

There are some birds I have not seen in North Carolina because they are very rare. There are some birds I have not seen in North Carolina because I have lousy luck. And there are some birds I have not seen in North Carolina because I am kind of a lazy lister.

North Carolina 165

North Carolina Kentucky Soreing 2000 165

10,000 Birds

JULY 3, 2014

I was happy to read that the wood stork ( Mycteria Americana ), a bird near and dear to me, was down-sited from the status of endangered to threatened species. However, birds in the U.S. are considered a distinct population segment, which is protected by the ESA and the Migratory Bird Treaty act.

North Carolina 216

North Carolina Bald Eagle South Carolina Florida 216

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 28, 2016

To say that my birding has been limited this year is an understatement. My spring and early summer were sucked away from me by the work involved in producing a new field guide to the Carolinas. Swallow-tailed Kite is an enigmatic species in North Carolina. The birds did not make me wait long.

North Carolina 102

North Carolina Mississippi 2016 Charlotte 102

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 5, 2013

As we might have already mentioned here on 10,000 Birds, this year is shaping up to be a historic year in terms of a Snowy Owl irruption. And because birders are often bloggers, the amount of material that has already been published regarding this invasion of big, white owls from the north is pretty impressive.

Owls 222

Owls North Carolina New Hampshire Indiana 222

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2015

I think some of the antagonism towards listing in birders comes from the mistaken belief that one’s list is nothing more the basest commodification of birds, living beings with incredible life histories reduced to a number. For the most part, the birds come to you when they come to you. I tend to see things the other way around.

North Carolina 210

North Carolina Falcons Florida Birds 210

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 28, 2014

It can be boring, for sure, but my own birding lately has been pretty much exclusively in service of my home county list, that of Guilford County, North Carolina. It’s my own ambition to reach 200 by the end of next year, and I’ll need about 30 birds to get there. Birding county listing rails'

North Carolina 192

North Carolina Family Owls Birds 192

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 9, 2012

One wonders how birding tour leaders and industry reps manage to embrace life on the road. As you might have guessed, I’ll be birding somewhere new this weekend. Where will you be this weekend and will you be birding? Also be sure to come back Monday to share your best bird of the weekend !

Tucson 158

Tucson North Carolina 2012 Arizona 158

10,000 Birds

JULY 10, 2012

With the proliferation of those erstwhile invaders, House Sparrow , European Starling , and Rock Pigeon , there a lot of homogeneity among these species, which is a shame because what parking lot birds generally lack in beauty they more than make up for in charisma. But there’s still some regional biases for those who pay attention.

North Carolina 197

North Carolina Fast Food Sparrows Birds 197

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 12, 2013

It says something about who they want to be, what they want to see regularly, how seriously they take this birding hobby. Or it’s simply a matter of finding a place to bird when you’ve got nowhere better to go. Or it’s simply a matter of finding a place to bird when you’ve got nowhere better to go.

North Carolina 167

North Carolina Sparrows Fox Dogs 167

10,000 Birds

JULY 5, 2015

The Gulf Stream lies between 20-40 miles off the North Carolina coast, and to the unpracticed eye it looks scarcely different that the expanse of blue water it courses through. These three aspects combine to produce one of the most productive spots in the North Atlantic, a place where birds and fish and marine mammals congregate.

North Carolina 183

North Carolina Mammals Breeding Fish 183

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

North Carolina is perhaps unfortunate to have a lot of such places. So when a potential state 1st record of Mountain Plover , only the 4th such record on the east coast, turned up on one of these islands, I assumed that it was one of those birds we’d have to envy from afar. Mountain Plover is a remarkable little bird.

North Carolina 102

North Carolina Colorado Wounded Groups 102

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2015

Our hotel was along the coastal highway less than ten minutes by car from the Cape May – Lewes Ferry, which means it was also ten minutes by car from Cape Henlopen State Park, a marvelous birding hotspot that combines beaches, saltmarshes, and scrub pine forest in perfect proportions for a visiting birder. This one will have to suffice.

Delaware 186

Delaware New York Birds North Carolina 186

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2015

I only had a few days in California while visiting my brother at Berkeley, but we couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to visit one of the most famous birding sites in the country: Point Reyes National Seashore. Add those life mammals to the life birds I already expected to see, and I was practically vibrating with excitement.

Seals 203

Seals Elephants Whales Whaling 203

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2012

On Saturday, 28 January, while I was at the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival, Doug Gochfeld and I made our way to central Florida for most of a day’s birding, looking for the specialty species of that region. We drove slowly down the dirt roads listening and watching for birds.

Wildlife 162

Wildlife North Carolina Woodpeckers Florida 162

10,000 Birds

JULY 28, 2015

June is an interesting time to bird in northwestern Maine. Sure, the birds are out there, but to see them you have to face…the dreaded…black flies. I hoped to see warblers, warblers, warblers, plus classic northeastern species I had had no opportunity to look for while living in North Carolina. Kennebago Lake.

Birds 160

Birds North Carolina North America Woodpeckers 160