10,000 Birds

AUGUST 9, 2021

I added yet another new Monroe County bird in the form of a Stilt Sandpiper this weekend, which is the only way this species earns my Best Bird honors. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend?

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Birds California Raised Wildlife 262

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2020

Learn to read the signs, and you’ll be able to tell the time of year just by which species cross your path… I had the chance to observe some interesting avian activity along the lakeshore this weekend, but the Eastern Bluebirds down in rural Pennsylvania were most distinctively colorful, which counts for a lot with me.

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2020 Pennsylvania Jamaica Birds 161

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 18, 2021

Insects and a host of other invertebrate life have evolved with these plant species, and thus depend on them. A White-browed Scrubwren ; one of the insectivorous passserines in my yard that will benefit from more native plant species. Locally native plants are the base part of the local ecology. The sad part of the story?

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Wildlife North America Mammals Breeding 260

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2011

I can’t wait to explore outer space at the 15th Annual Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival from 25-30 January 2012! I don’t get to go to outer space as part of the 15th Annual Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival ? Visiting Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. They must be very odd indeed.

Wildlife 171

Wildlife Florida 2012 Birds 171

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 23, 2023

This is how it looks like: Or at sunset: A species I did not come for from Shanghai is the Black-crowned Night Heron. Its species name graydoni is in honor of Philip Newenham Graydon (1864-1940), a British planter in Sabah. Why that makes Mr. Graydon worthy of having a bird species named after him is a mystery to me.

Birds 205

Birds Eagles Elephants Rhinoceros 205

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 27, 2017

About four years ago I first wrote about the Pink-headed Duck , a charming species related to the pochards (although how, exactly, is up for grabs, like so much duck taxonomy.) Now Global Wildlife Conservation is out to get some fresh evidence and hopefully re-discover the species, which was officially last seen in the 1949.

Ducks 119

Ducks Myanmar Elephants Wildlife 119

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 23, 2015

This week’s guest blog was written by Linda Hufford, who has been a wildlife rehabilitator specializing in raptors for over twenty years. The justification was ridiculously laughable: in order to further study the species. She runs Birds of Texas Rehabilitation Center in Austin County, Texas. His answer surprised me.

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Collecting Wildlife Rehabilitation Solomon Islands Texas 240

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 4, 2015

This blog was written by Marge Gibson, co-founder of Raptor Education Group, Inc. My work as a wildlife rehabilitator over the past forty-five years has allowed me a unique perspective on a disturbing trend. A personal encounter with a wild species changes one’s perspective.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 189

Wildlife Rehabilitation Bald Eagle Rescue Wildlife 189

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2014

Seeing as Plumb Beach is a known stopover area for large numbers of shorebirds, a known breeding area for a variety of saltmarsh species, including Clapper Rails , and habitat for a wide variety of mammals, reptiles, insects, and other bird species, this is a long overdue move.

Feral Cats 258

Feral Cats Feral Cats Reptiles 258

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 27, 2015

I’ll leave today’s blog in her capable hands. Motomco’s Material Safety Data Sheet for “Hawk” warns that the product “is extremely toxic to fish, birds, and other wildlife” and that “dogs and predatory and scavenging mammals and birds might be poisoned if they feed upon animals that have eaten this bait.”

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Mountain Lions Rats Rodents Lions 255

10,000 Birds

JULY 8, 2013

Yes, the earth has gone around the sun twice since the uproar from birders and other lovers of wildlife managed to convince the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency to table the idea of hunting Sandhill Cranes in Tennessee for two years. Tennessee started a festival around the event, just for wildlife watchers. It’s bad PR.

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Tennessee Hunting Hunters Wisconsin 223

10,000 Birds

JUNE 9, 2019

Of what he did see, a pair of Bald Eagles at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge was the highlight, a species that didn’t used to be around in June in Queens at all. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. So, Bald Eagles as his Best Bird of the Weekend. How about you?

2019 114

2019 Bald Eagle Jamaica Eagles 114

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2020

In his blog, Birds and Nature North America, the peripatetic Bruce Beehler professes to cover not just what the title says, but also American culture, American history, and “stories of back-roads travel and camping.” It’s a blog well worth visitation. In addition to his D.C.

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New Hampshire Washington Virginia United States 213

10,000 Birds

MAY 6, 2016

I asked a group of wildlife rehabilitators: “What are some of the Worst Bird Myths? Rehabbers are very responsive, although constantly living under the gun makes us sometimes vent about species that aren’t necessarily the ones in question. Three: Why would anyone , no matter what their species, want to become tangled in human hair?

Wildlife Rehabilitation 171

Wildlife Rehabilitation Porcupines Raccoons Birds 171

10,000 Birds

MARCH 26, 2014

million years old, over one and a half times older than the earliest remains of most living species of birds. The Cuban Sandhill Crane , Grus canadensis nesiotes and the Mississippi Sandhill Crane , Grus canadensis pulla are listed as endangered species. That festival is supported by the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge.

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Mississippi Endangered Species Florida Wildlife 169

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 27, 2014

Though, considering how many good birds I saw at the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival , you could say that I just left dream-land behind for the cold and snow-covered northeast. I saw or heard a total 0f 147 species in my six days in Florida, including two lifers and one new bird for the ABA-area. It was magnificent. ….

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Florida Alligators Wildlife Species 157

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2015

Corey had quite a few species to choose from this weekend but decided that his Best Bird of the Weekend was the simple Tree Swallow. In particular, he picked one of the many that has already staked out a claim to a nest box at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. This time, we spotted two shaggy cranes flying across the wetlands.

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2015 Jamaica New York Birds 179

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2017

For example, I saw all kinds of special species this weekend, but nothing impressed me more than displays of the tyranny of tiny birds. Corey enjoyed visits to the East Pond of Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge on both Saturday and Sunday. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment.

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2017 Jamaica Birds Wildlife 113

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 24, 2016

I got a good dose of seaducks this weekend up at the mouth of Irondequoit Bay; the most interesting species amidst the mixed flocks was a lone Bufflehead hobnobbing with Common Goldeneyes. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Such a rare bird is always a good sighting!

2016 101

2016 ALA Arizona Horses 101

10,000 Birds

MAY 20, 2018

Not only did I bag the beautiful bird I expected, but I also encountered a tasty species I never expect there until I see it every year: Olive-sided Flycatcher. Speaking of OSFL, Corey had quite a haul of species to choose from this weekend after leading two walks for New York City Audubon and doing a ton of birding on his own on Sunday.

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New York City 2018 Jamaica New York 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2017

It could have been any of those from among the over 100 species that crossed Corey’s path this weekend but of them all he chose the singing Henslow’s Sparrow at the Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge as this state-threatened species is hard to see and it gave Corey the best looks he ever had of the species.

2017 101

2017 Louisiana Birds Breeding 101

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 30, 2015

Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend could have been any of a multitude of species spotted on the East Pond of Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend?

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2015 Baltimore Jamaica New York 145

10,000 Birds

JULY 28, 2013

The natural attractions of midsummer seem more subtle than those enjoyed during the frantic peregrinations of the world’s migratory species. Of course, the reasons why robins might mob a crow are obvious, but I never attributed a mob mentality to that species! How refined are your tastes in nature? How about you?

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2013 Jamaica Birds Wildlife 153

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 5, 2017

Corey had a great Saturday morning on the East Pond of Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge which has still not filled back up after being drawn down for shorebird season this summer. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Better lay out some suet once the real cold arrives. How about you?

2017 100

2017 Neglecting Jamaica Birds 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2017

This is Jason’s fifth contribution to the blog. Birders are familiar with the National Wildlife Refuge System, which consists of more than 550 units distributed through all fifty states. National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs), which are managed by the U.S. Ding” Darling NWR in Florida.

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Factory Ducks North Dakota Nebraska 116

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 18, 2013

Of course we should seek reasons to celebrate every bird species we share our weekends with, but is the species that delights us most always the most memorable? He was very pleased to get such close looks at such a cool shorebird species with the sun low in the sky behind him. How about you? Birding best bird weekend'

2013 167

2013 Jamaica Birds Wildlife 167

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2016

Even though I only had an hour before work, I racked up just about all the warblers I wanted; any weekend I see a Blackburnian Warbler , I know which species is my favorite. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend?

2016 100

2016 Jamaica New York Birds 100

10,000 Birds

JULY 13, 2014

I’ve only been in Virginia Beach for a few days and I’ve already knocked down most of my targets, including Blue Grosbeak and Yellow-breasted Chat at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It is the first record of this invasive species for New York City and it served as a nice contrast to the hordes of pigeons in the neighborhood.

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New York City 2014 Breeders Virginia 162

10,000 Birds

APRIL 22, 2013

But, to paraphrase Monty Python, every species is sacred. Conservation of migratory species must be an international affair. No matter how much we do to protect the breeding grounds of Neotropical migrants, we can’t assure the safety of those species that lose essential wintering habitat.

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Dominican Republic Haiti Pythons illegal 170

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 8, 2022

I was surprised that this species is named for its vocalization – which sounds like laughter. For example, the Diamond Dove is the world’s second-smallest species of the columbidae order ( source ). The Latin species name haematonotus (“blood-backed”) sounds a bit more exciting but not necessarily more accurate.

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Australia Birds Parrots Ostriches 147

10,000 Birds

APRIL 14, 2013

With the foresight to get my taxes taken care of early, I was free to enjoy the cold spring weather and lingering winter species around here. He was walking along a trail at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge when he saw a flash of yellow up ahead. It’s nice to see that Red-breasted Nuthatches still haunt my home turf. How about you?

2013 187

2013 United States Jamaica Birds 187

10,000 Birds

JULY 17, 2016

This weekend, millions of people, young and old alike, were driven to explore the most unlikely corners of the world in a relentless, unquenchable thirst to track down species they hadn’t ticked before. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you?

2016 100

2016 Michigan Jamaica Birds 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 17, 2015

Coincidentally, this species was Corey’s Best Bird exactly one year ago. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Although he caught unsatisfying glimpses of his first ABA Mourning Warbler , BBOTW honors must go to a bird much better seen, like a sweet Canada Warbler.

2015 162

2015 Jamaica Canada Abandon 162

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 14, 2018

” As such, some of the details – like the lists of native plants suitable for the wildlife garden, and of course the entire section of species accounts – may be unhelpful, even confusing, for particularly literal beginning birds in other locales. It is very, very enthusiastic.

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Wildlife Rights Birds Species 119

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2012

My weekend was devoted to a seemingly endless celebration of my son’s 8th birthday, which meant that my best bird was bound to be a backyard species. Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was his first Osprey in New York State this year, seen perched on a nesting platform at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in early morning fog on Saturday.

2012 170

2012 Jamaica New York Birds 170

Critter News

SEPTEMBER 12, 2009

This is an interesting piece from the Scientific American blog. One of the major challenges in combating the bushmeat trade is identifying the source species for the meat and products. How is anyone to know if it came from a species that is protected under national or international law?

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Meat illegal Trafficking Endangered Species 100

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2013

The subject is one that comes up a lot in this blog and other bird blogs, the subject of cats and their effect on wildlife. As most people know cats, both feral and domestic, have a pretty big impact on wild birds and other wildlife, and the effect of mammals is particularly profound in New Zealand.

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New Zealand Possums Cats SPCA 114