Animal Person

JANUARY 6, 2010

I did tweet about " Scientists Say Dolphins Should Be Treated As 'Non-human Persons' " yesterday, as I think this is a Gray Matter for a lot of people and might be interesting to explore. Would you actually actively campaign against rights for some species? You could be for or against animal rights and believe the gateway theory.

Dolphins 100

Dolphins Animal Rights Rights Animal 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 16, 2014

Despite my thrill about Desi identifying a gull we were still at sea and still without a whale, a dolphin, or any pelagic species. Though we had left Riis Landing at shortly after 1 PM and weren’t due back until 5 PM we were still without a single sighting of a whale, a dolphin, or much of anything by 4 PM.

Whales 156

Whales Whaling Dolphins New York City 156

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2015

But, I did take many photos, and used the book, in spurts during the trip and more closely afterward, to identify three seabird species, two expected (Sooty and Black-vented Shearwaters) and one a surprise. It does not include near-shore, coastal species, like Brown Pelican, Elegant Tern, and Harbor Seal.

Dolphins 162

Dolphins Whales Whaling Porpoises 162

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 24, 2014

Add 315 bird species, 42 species of mammals – including Vulnerable Irrawaddy and Endangered Ganges River Dolphins , 61 amphibians and reptiles – including Estuarine Crocodile , at least 150 species of commercially important fish and 334 plant species to the picture. And tell me now – don’t you share my dream?

Bangladesh 190

Bangladesh Dolphins Cambodia Cooking 190

Reddit Animals

JUNE 2, 2023

I know that there are several species of animals that pass the "mirror test", i.e. they recognize themselves in mirrors (dolphins, apes, corvids.). Has there been any tests using "funhouse" style mirrors that distort the image? Would a chimpanzee look in a wobbly mirror and be able to identify themselves?

Apes 40

Apes Dolphins Animal Species 40

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2017

The site is famous for a place called Monkey Mia, where dolphins have learnt to come up to the beach a few times a day to get snacks. That’s fine, and I like dolphins, but I usually prefer them away from a circus. The dolphin feeding session was fun too. Dolphins are the stars of the show.

Sharks 100

Sharks Monkeys Dolphins Turtles 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 25, 2022

Even so, in the short term, it can be hard to accept that hundreds of species are close to being extinguished from this irreplaceble tapestry of life, that hundreds more are headed for the same eventual abysmal stop. We would see how species that used to be common, even abundant, became remnants of their former, robust populations.

Costa Rica 268

Costa Rica Parrots Albatross Birds 268

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 30, 2020

465 species have been recorded and the list keeps growing. There are 34 endemic species and the best season to pursue them is November to April when it is dry in the southwest where the remaining rainforests are, plus, this period has the added bonus of wintering migrants. Okay, okay, huge and hard to miss aside, but what about birds?

Sri Lanka 213

Sri Lanka Whales Whaling Leopards 213

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2023

Because, let’s face it, when you get off that plane and look at those severe volcanic landscapes and then find yourself face to face with one of the islands’ four mockingbird species, you’re not going to think, “Oh, look, lava and a mockingbird.” The updating of the text is very important.

2006 262

2006 Tortoises Sea Lions Sea Turtles 262

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2016

The guide is based on Sullivan’s composite photographic plates, which present whales, dolphins, shearwaters and petrels, alcids, jaegers, skuas, tropicbirds, gannet and boobies, flying fish, jellyfish side by side, as they are likely to be seen from a boat, though in all likelihood not in so much diversity and abundance.

Pennsylvania 176

Pennsylvania Texas Whales Whaling 176

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2014

The idea of Lost Animals was conceived after the publication of Extinct Birds (2001), a 400-page, four-pound book on 75 extinct species. Lost Birds looks at photographic representations of 28 species, 21 of which are birds. Some document one of the last views of the species, others are of the last representative of the species.

Animal 270

Animal Mammals Hawaii Dolphins 270

4 The Love Of Animals

NOVEMBER 21, 2012

From dolphins and dogs who are swimming buddies, playful cheetahs and puppies who are best friends, owls and kitties playing leapfrog and much more! These friends show us the emotional power of animals to bond with other species. Are you ready for hours of the cutest animal video ever?

Animal Friendly 100

Animal Friendly Barn Owls Dolphins Animal 100

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 27, 2008

Rational: species; the principle distinguishing man from beast. The preference for differentiation at the species level is an unjustified presupposition of the philosophic tradition. Once before, around the time of Plato and Aristotle, the dolphins began tentatively to approach man. True Irrationality. Transcendence.

Dolphins 40

Dolphins Non Human Humane Morals 40

10,000 Birds

JUNE 24, 2013

It took me awhile, but I managed to get on quite a few, especially when the boat slowed down to go check out some Humpback Whales and a huge number of Common Dolphins. This picture actually has three species of shearwater in it - Pink-footed , Sooty , and Black-vented. We estimated at least 3,500 sooties and over 1,000 dolphins.

Whales 151

Whales Whaling Dolphins California 151

Reddit Animals

APRIL 16, 2023

One of their most unique qualities is their self-awareness, which is a sign of higher cognitive abilities that are usually reserved for humans and a few other species. Most animals, including dogs and cats, cannot recognize themselves in a mirror, but a few species can, including chimpanzees, dolphins, and elephants.

Elephants 52

Elephants Emotional Research Dolphins 52

10,000 Birds

MAY 24, 2013

The period between May and September offer the best potential for an assortment of pelagic species (species which live most of their lives far from land) off the Atlantic coast of Florida. Birds, like this Great Shearwater , are attracted to the chum slick set out by the ship’s crew.

Sea Turtles 166

Sea Turtles Florida Chile Dolphins 166

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 13, 2022

Birds The local birdlist has reached 462 species, and some 30 more are expected. Just think of the still Unnamed Antshrike (either related to Chestnut-backed Antshrike , or, given the morphological differences, a new species: Inirida Antshrike ). Don’t we all need a lot of laughs after two years of pandemic?

Colombia 252

Colombia Birds Cooking Fish 252

10,000 Birds

JUNE 15, 2015

It was a pelagic trip organized by See Life Paulagics and it was a pretty memorable trip with five species of shearwater, Leach’s Storm-Petrels , Wilson’s Storm-Petrels , a variety of dolphins, some sharks, and a variety of other sea life. Three South Polar Skuas at once!

New York 162

New York Penguins Sharks Dolphins 162

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 8, 2015

I had spent the morning on Navarre Beach, walking the pier looking for sea turtles and dolphins, then making my way down the beach. So though I had seen many other species that Saturday morning, my day – my weekend really – was made by a Gray Kingbird on a utility line. Some are great because of just one.

Sea Turtles 159

Sea Turtles Dolphins Birds Turtles 159

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 14, 2019

As always, I was the first to the platform and in the light northwest wind and under a full moon I sipped my coffee and willed birds to make some noise so I could start checking off species. Eventually, an Eastern Towhee che-winked and I had my first species for the day. The moon was impressive as it sank down to the horizon.

Pelicans 137

Pelicans New York Whales Whaling 137

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2016

Eighteen-hour trips are the rule and only about four or five hours are spent in the prime area to see the species most birders are hoping to see. This explains why I did not see any Craveri’s Murrelets , a missed lifer, and didn’t get as good a look or as good a photo as I would have wanted of some other species.

Whales 113

Whales Whaling Albatross Dolphins 113

Critter News

MARCH 13, 2010

We hear about the problem with charismatic land species. It's those species that either have a powerful personality or a cute face that endear people to them and garner news attention. It's easier to motivate people to save them as opposed to other species that are vital, but either boring or ugly. So what happens to them?

Marine Life 100

Marine Life Porpoises Pandas Otters 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 30, 2016

One of my ambitions for this year is to do more birding around New Zealand, and in particular try and knock off a few of the possible species here I haven’t seen yet, perhaps with a mind to breaking 100 species here in a year. Without an albatross how could I torment Corey?

New Zealand 100

New Zealand Albatross Cooking Dolphins 100

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 2013

One is the sea canyon that comes close to shore, ensuring plenty of pelagic species can be found close to shore. The canyon also brings Dusky Dolphins and Sperm Whales close in, and has turned Kaikoura from a sleepy fishing village on the Picton to Christchurch road into a premier ecotourism site. This lovely bird is Westland Petrel.

Albatross 193

Albatross New Zealand Dolphins Whales 193

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2017

This past Saturday, 07 October, was the day for the Queens County Bird Club Big Sit, our fourth year of counting every species we could see from the hawk watch platform at Fort Tilden, in southwestern Queens. Well, during a Big Sit a bird is a bird is a bird and they all count as one species. It was so bad I never even blogged it.)

Birds 112

Birds Dolphins Canada Sparrows 112

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2011

This Yellow-crowned Amazon was not quite as vociferous as his Central American cousins And like many of these birds, I too love to spend time beneath the water – there are few things better than free diving or scuba diving with dolphins, whale sharks or coral reef fish.

Sharks 201

Sharks Thailand Dolphins Fish 201

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2012

Easily the highlight of the trip, it was one of three cetacean species we would see for the day, the others being Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins and Common Dolphins. Nonetheless, I added a species to my state list and two to my year list so there was that… …

Whales 174

Whales Whaling New York Dolphins 174

10,000 Birds

APRIL 17, 2013

It wasn’t quite winter yet, with all the species that brings, but already some summer species like the Hutton’s Shearwater and Salvin’s Albatrosses were gone. The same organisation can also take you out to see Dusky Dolphins (more about next week), so what are you waiting for?

Albatross 166

Albatross New Zealand Seals Fur 166

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 16, 2014

These are the dolphins in your tuna fish, for example. About 15 million birds are killed annually by hunters, and of course this is distributed among a very small number of species. The difference is, if you pick 1 billion, the dead birds will be randomly distributed among the most common 10 species.

Killing 274

Killing Cats Fish Birds 274

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 21, 2016

So close to the pole only a handful of bird species can survive, and even so, death toll is very high, hence their populations must be huge (millions). There are 11 species of birds that breed in the Ross Sea region. Finally – the Seabirds. As a consequence, the Ross Sea has one of the highest concentrations of seabirds in the world.

Russia 181

Russia Penguins Whales Whaling 181

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2016

Marlborough Sounds has a pretty special endemic, the King Shag , a species that isn’t just endemic to New Zealand but endemic to just the Sounds. The reason Alan had come was to film another endemic, a critically endangered species, the Orange-fronted Parakeet. Then came Blumine Island, and my number one target for the day.

Charlotte 119

Charlotte New Zealand Seals Fur 119

10,000 Birds

JUNE 5, 2018

So many species that change eye color or leg color as they age. This encyclopedic identification guide covered 43 species in 608 pages, and was illustrated with both Hans Larsson’s exceptional artwork and color photographs by multiple photographers. So many birds of white and gray touched with black. Not to mention the hybrids.

2004 161

2004 North America America Europe 161

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2012

It was a Benguela Nino year, and pelagic seabirds were in super-abundance in the south eastern Atlantic, with the total of species by variety and number exceeding all expectations for the birders on the inaugural trip as we pitched and wallowed about in the rolling swells on our way out to the trawling grounds.

Albatross 189

Albatross Penguins Dolphins Whales 189

10,000 Birds

JUNE 5, 2016

As it was when a small pod of Gervais’ Beaked Whales, small whales that look like bulked up Bottlenosed Dolphins tolerated our approach and allowed us to have a surreal experience with this mysterious marine mammal. Up until the middle of last century, this species of whale was only known from the remains of beached individuals.

Whales 100

Whales Whaling North Carolina Mammals 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 1, 2014

Nick finds a bird-shaped protrusion at the top of the rock – Black-eared Wheatear , not exactly a species I expect to observe from a boat deck. On our way back, three Common Bottlenose Dolphins show right next to the boat and, some time later, a Painted Lady ( Vanessa cardui ) butterfly appears some 300 metres downwind from the shore.

Greece 242

Greece Malta Croatia Birds 242

10,000 Birds

APRIL 17, 2012

Oil begins to wash up on the beaches throughout May and June of 2010 May 6, 2010 Oil washes ashore on the Chandeleur Islands off the Louisiana coast, an important nesting and breeding area for many bird species. Officials reported 48 marine mammals, mostly dolphins, and 87 dead sea turtles during the first two months alone.

2010 245

2010 Louisiana 2012 2011 245

10,000 Birds

JUNE 13, 2015

The country has a healthy list of pelagic species. Not a bird that one would normally visit Costa Rica to see, we nevertheless were very anxious to lay eyes on this Humboldt Current species. “Costa Rica borders two oceans. There are no pelagic trips” That ironic pseudo-haiku almost sums up pelagic birding in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica 157

Costa Rica Birds Dolphins Rescue 157