10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2017

Over the past few months there have been a lot of birds breeding around Broome with the excellent rain events that we have been having and the vegetation is at long last revived. The grass is green, the wildflowers are spectacular and now we have numerous species of dragonfly to enjoy as the season starts to change.

Breeding 100

Breeding Eggs Protection Cows 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 4, 2017

After a very good Wet Season with substantially more rain than normal over the first few months of 2017 the land was flooded and a huge variety of birds arrived in the Broome area to take advantage of the ideal conditions for breeding. The more brightly coloured female bird remained at the back of the family group as they swam to shore.

Breeding 100

Breeding Eggs Raised 2017 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2022

Every place has its common birds, the species that do very well in a given habitat. As we like to say, these are species that are “hard to miss”, birds that, if you are watching, will be seen. In northern habitats, they could be Common Ravens, geese , or chickadees. What about urban sites?

Costa Rica 147

Costa Rica San Jose Asia Geese 147

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2023

I tried to get a better idea of what exactly the definition of cuckoo-dove is but am still not very clear about it – Wikipedia only offers the rather formal definition “any of several species of bird in the genera Macropygia , Reinwardtoena, and Turacoena of the pigeon family.” But I may well be wrong.

Birds 147

Birds Geese Fish Industry 147

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2016

Ducks, swans, and geese may initially appear easy to identify. But, as with many avian families, the more you look, the more complicated it gets. The publicity material says 84 species, but I counted and recounted, and I only see 83. So much simpler than pinning down those warblers!

North America 161

North America Asia Europe America 161

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 6, 2020

Didn’t every household have a copy of a Peterson Field Guide on the shelf, maybe a third or fourth edition that family members grew up with, which they could quickly consult to see the arrow pointing to that belly band? These are the species that immediately come to my mind, and I probably missed some. Or, a classic Golden Guide?

North America 237

North America America 2020 Hawaii 237

10,000 Birds

APRIL 27, 2014

There are excellent birding opportunities along the highway throughout the year and the area still remains flooded from the rains over our Wet Season and it has been a breeding site for several species of birds. All three species of Ibis were present with Glossy Ibis far outnumbering the Straw-necked Ibis and Australian White Ibis.

Birds 165

Birds Geese Falcons 2014 165

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 7, 2017

The Crossley ID Guide: Waterfowl covers every residential, migrating, vagrant, exotic, and introduced swan, goose, dabbling and diving duck in North America (Canada and the United States): 62 Species Accounts on four swan species and one vagrant subspecies; 15 goose species; 46 duck species; plus accounts for hybrid geese, ducks and exotics.

Ducks 124

Ducks North America Geese Hunters 124

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 18, 2012

The lake was filled with families of Dusky Moorhens and Purple Swamphens (or Pukeko as we call them in New Zealand), all tending small groups of black chicks. Magpie-larks are neither magpies nor larks but are the largest of the monarch-flycatchers, and the most terrestrial of the family.

New Zealand 173

New Zealand Ducks Australia Japan 173

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 4, 2021

Of the dozen gifts mentioned in the Christmas carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” seven are birds: the seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying, four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and – of course – a partridge in a pear tree. No matter how big your avian-related library is, this would be a terrific addition to it.

Birds 246

Birds Colombia Collecting Bald Eagle 246

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

APRIL 1, 2014

I’m going to start with a specific example: species accounts for Common Tern and Arctic Tern. How have these species accounts changed from The Sibley Guide to Birds , published in 2000 (heretofore called Sibley One) to The Sibley Guide to Birds, Second Edition , published in March 2014 (and heretofore called Sibley Two).

North America 247

North America Birds Species America 247

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 6, 2017

Duck : “any of various swimming birds (family Anatidae, the duck family) in which the neck and legs are short, the feet typically webbed, the bill often broad and flat, and the sexes usually different from each other in plumage.”. Many individual species get an entry too, though they are generally not capitalized.

Albatross 106

Albatross Bears Ducks Bald Eagle 106

10,000 Birds

MAY 2, 2016

On my recent short family vacation to Miami, I was granted a single day to get out and really bird like a madman. We immediately headed to an undisclosed location where Carlos had breeding Mangrove Cuckoos staked out. En route to our next stop we slowed down next to a park and spotted the now countable Egyptian Geese.

Florida 124

Florida Miami Birds Owls 124

10,000 Birds

MAY 26, 2014

My string of winter-only visits to the Adirondacks is over now, happily, because of a three-day weekend with the family in Montreal. But one of the species I most wanted to track down because they are one of my favorite boreal birds, Olive-sided Flycatchers, were absent. Shows what I know about when birds breed. Wait, what?

New York City 163

New York City New York Canada Woodpeckers 163

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2016

Tawny Frogmouths are actually more closely related to the Nightjar family. They breed after rain events and this was exactly the situation once again. The dam was very full and there were numerous species of birds present. It was nothing like the experience in September with literally hundreds of each species looking for water.

Shelters 100

Shelters Geese Australia 2010 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

Brown Pelicans , and the northernmost Brown Booby breeding colony on this side of the Pacific. Other birds with webbed feet, including ducks and geese, have only three webbed toes; the hallux (which in birds is usually the “hind toe&# and in humans, the “big toe&# ) is free.

2011 155

2011 Pelicans Papua New Guinea Birds 155

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 30, 2013

Also known as the Flyeater, this tiny bird is the only representative of the Australasian warbler family found in mainland Asia, and very similar to my own Grey Warblers in New Zealand, even their songs. Straight off the bat we found a Little Grebe and a small flock of distant Cotton Pygmy-geese !

Thailand 103

Thailand New Zealand Family Bats 103

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 7, 2013

Seeing 525 species was nice, as was the fact that I birded in four countries, nine of the fifty states in the United States, and fifty-one counties. I want to reach 500 birds in the ABA, get my Queens list to 295, see a total of at least 500 species, and get my World Life List to 1,100. But how did I see so many species this year?

2012 145

2012 Czech Republic Hedgehogs Hungary 145

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2011

Hunting sandhill cranes in Kentucky is a bad idea from a public relations standpoint, considering the growing cadre of birders and nature enthusiasts for whom cranes are a touchstone species. Initiating a hunting season on a large, charismatic species like a crane is no way to resuscitate hunting.

2011 254

2011 Kentucky Tennessee Hunting 254

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2011

4) Sacred Kingfisher Sacred Kingfisher ( Halcyon sancta) These little guys, a ntaive species, can be very common – in a three hour trip two weekends ago I counted 21 without really trying, around seven times as many Common Kingfishers as I have seen in my entire life in England. Feral Turkey are also quite common.

New Zealand 179

New Zealand Birds Thailand Falcons 179

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2015

The Refuge is now home to nearly 200 species of birds, over 50 species of mammals, 25 species of reptiles and amphibians, and a wide variety of insects, fish and plants. The refuge offers opportunities for hiking and biking trails, canoeing and kayaking on Swan Lake, bank fishing, and family friendly programs and events.”

Fish 145

Fish Wildlife Hunting Game 145

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2011

Outside of the breeding season a few birds may join together in a loose flock if the feeding is good. A three-part trip report for Hong Kong including the Orange-headed Thrush and visiting Tai Mo Shan , Cheun Lung Family Walk, and Aberdeen Reservoirs, can be found on Redgannet. Very interesting species. Married to a Canon?

2011 191

2011 Deer India New York 191

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2011

I had a beautifull view on 5 horned grebe here (one in breeding plumage), in Ann Arbor Michigan, for the 3 seconds it lasted, until I heard a huge “CRRACK&# , and I fell through the ice. On Sunday at Kissena Park I saw five species of sparrows. And my first Killdeer of year! I see why people sometimes call them gray ghosts.

2011 156

2011 New York Deer Birds 156