10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 3, 2020

I’ve been fortunate to see two Penguin species in the wild (African and Galapagos) and have dreamed of seeing more–maybe even all!–especially The goal of Around the World For Penguins is simple: Describe the 18 species of penguin and their breeding grounds “from the perspective of a traveller.”

Penguins 278

Penguins Georgia New Zealand Albatross 278

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2021

Pough “with illustrations in color of every species” by Don Eckelberry, Doubleday, 1946. The National Audubon Society Birds of North America covers all species seen in mainland United States, Canada and Baja California. The press material says it covers over 800 species, so you know I had to do a count.

North America 279

North America America Birds California Condor 279

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2015

I’m happy to say that Laura Erickson and Marie Read have written a book, Into the Nest: Intimate Views of the Courting, Parenting, and Family Lives of Familiar Birds , that is not too cute and that does not anthropomorphize. And of eggs and nests and birds on nests. Oops, the curmudgeon in me slipped.) And of birds courting and mating.

Eggs 263

Eggs Family 2006 New York 263

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2021

Some other members of the shrike family were a bit less testosterone-driven at Nanhui – like this Bull-headed Shrike … … this rather attractive-looking Tiger Shrike … … or one of the many Brown Shrikes passing through Nanhui on migration. It certainly does not refer to the status of Nanhui. ” Hm.

Birds 242

Birds LACS France Japan 242

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

The text goes far beyond just those two birds, however, as Doug works his way through the puzzles presented by the incredibly wide diversity of bird behavior, even within species, citing current research and new and old theories, reasoning out the most likely and unlikely answers. The six middle chapters are my favorite reading. ” (p.

Science 228

Science Albatross Research Birds 228

10,000 Birds

MARCH 25, 2024

Interestingly, these juveniles look more similar to another species, the Pale-billed Parrotbill, than the adult babblers – and they sometimes are part of the same flock. If you want to see how this species builds its nest, see here.) These roads are much less of a hindrance for the Pin-striped Tit-babbler , a mid-story bird.

Burma 205

Burma Birds Vietnam Laos 205

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2020

It didn’t occur to me till I started reading The Falcon Thief: A True Tale of Adventure, Treachery, and the Hunt for the Perfect Bird that there was also a possible threat to the eagle herself: poachers, who steal raptor eggs and chicks. McWilliam realizes he’s dealing someone special, a career falcon egg-thief.

Falcons 224

Falcons United Kingdom Zimbabwe Eggs 224

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2023

” Writing about owls means writing about roughly 250 species (I counted 245 on the 2022 Clements spreadsheet, but I might have missed a few, and we all know that each classification system is different). These are behaviors that are most likely to vary across species and topics that make for compelling stories.

Owls 224

Owls Science Barn Owls Penguins 224

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

They may be about bird eggs ( The Most Perfect Thing: The Inside (and Outside) of a Bird’s Egg , 2016), or a 17th-century ornithologist ( Virtuoso by Nature: The Scientific Worlds of Francis Willughby, 2016), or How Bullfinches learn songs from humans ( The Wisdom of Birds: An Illustrated History of Ornithology.

Dissection 234

Dissection Birds Research Europe 234

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 29, 2024

The species name athertoni is derived from Lt. Unfortunately, there is not much literature on the species except for the inevitable analysis of the mitochondrial genome. As usual in China, there are some anonymous Leaf Warbler species – but who cares, apart from Bella of Alpinebirding ?

Squirrels 141

Squirrels Birds China Bears 141

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2022

Colorful bills and heads seem quite popular among Letaba’s bird species – see the African Jacana (blue and black) … … the Striated Heron (yellow and blue) … … and the Yellow-billed Stork (yellow and red). The Latin species name vermiculatus (worm-like) refers to the markings on the upperparts.

Zimbabwe 147

Zimbabwe Birds South Africa Benin 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 25, 2022

Gisela Kaplan has written a book about the species, and how they seem unperturbed by humans: “It’s one of their most successful defense strategies. When these birds breed, this can lead to highly cringeworthy announcements, for example from Adelaide Zoo : “We have egg-citing news!” This is what killed James Dean.

Birds 242

Birds Australia Ducks Mountain Goats 242

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2016

Shrikes by the numbers: The family Laniidae is composed of 31 species of shrike, around the globe. The most common species here in North America is the Loggerhead Shrike , Laniidae ludovicianus which has 11 subspecies. Each nesting pair will have 4-8 eggs, and there is some reference to location being a factor on that quantity.

Butcher 120

Butcher Birds North America Mexico 120

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 31, 2011

They are part of a family of New World Quail which includes Gambel’s, Mountain, Scaled and Montezuma Quail, as well as the Northern Bobwhite. In California, coveys break up and pairs begin forming in February or March, followed by nest building and egg laying in May or June. References: 1 Baicich, Paul J.

California 231

California Eggs Gophers Rattlesnake 231

10,000 Birds

MAY 25, 2023

Note to other species: better do not rely on mature primary forests, as this may lead to extinction. This says more about my inability to differentiate between warbler species than about the rarity of the bird – but the bird was kindly singing. Also, do not smoke as it is not good for your health.

Birds 130

Birds Raised Cattle Mammals 130

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2018

There are important details within that dictum that we will ignore here, but this has to do with knowing when a characteristic doesn’t really tell you about the relative position of species on a “tree of life” vs when the characteristic works for that purpose. Rather, cladistics is a way of looking at the process of evolution of species.

Monkeys 144

Monkeys Gorillas Whales Whaling 144

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 4, 2021

There’s even been speculation that all of the first seven gifts are meant to be birds, with the “five gold rings” really referring to “five goldspinks,” an archaic term for the goldfinch. Colombia is one of those countries that Dragan’s dreams are made of: it has 1,965 bird species – more than any other country in the world.

Birds 246

Birds Colombia Collecting Bald Eagle 246

10,000 Birds

JULY 13, 2016

Every time I travel into a new area, I try to do my due diligence and have a pretty good idea of what bird species I might expect to find. A few weeks ago, when we traveled to Guadalajara, Mexico, I researched the many different species, especially the hummingbirds. In mid June, the sun was out, and it was a beautiful day.

Mexico 107

Mexico Reptiles Research Dogs 107

10,000 Birds

JUNE 23, 2022

I saw two Pitta species at Hongbenghe, both among the slightly less glamourous among the pitta family: The Blue-naped Pitta … … and the closely related Rusty-naped Pitta. It seems that this is another species for which the standard phrase of scientists anywhere, “more research needed”, applies.

Birds 147

Birds Myanmar China Chicago 147

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2017

The guide covers 747 breeding residents or regular migrants, 29 introduced species, and 160 vagrants, a total of 936 species. Within each group, birds in the same family are grouped together and birds in the same genus “usually occur consecutively.” 210-531), indicated by brown page tabs.

Australia 109

Australia Birds Penguins 2015 109

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2015

Picidae, Woodpecker, is one of those charismatic bird families that everybody gets excited about. Woodpeckers of the World: A Photographic Guide is the first major guide to family Picidae in 20 years. This is a comprehensive, handsome reference book that is likely to become the standard for many years.

Woodpeckers 252

Woodpeckers 2002 Europe Research 252

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2013

I couldn’t wait to give names to all my new species. I tried using the Internet, but found it frustrating for all the usual reasons; websites either didn’t include all species or were difficult to use for identification. Each species account is 2-pages long, one page of text and one page of photographs.

Ireland 180

Ireland France Breeding Eggs 180

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2018

That year Congress passed the Lacey Act, followed by the tougher Weeks-McLean Act in 1913 and, five years later, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which protected not just birds but also their eggs, nests, and feathers 1. References: 1 Why the Passenger Pigeon Went Extinct , 2 Trump Wildlife Protection Board Stuffed with Trophy Hunters.

Hunting 115

Hunting Hunters Gorillas Wolves 115

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 29, 2012

Both the male and female of the species have a bright red crown. Most Acorn Woodpeckers are cooperative breeders and live in family groups of up to a dozen or more individuals. Within a group, 1–7 male co-breeders compete for matings with 1–3 joint-nesting females who lay their eggs in the same nest cavity.

Woodpeckers 186

Woodpeckers Breeders Groups North America 186

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2012

Or, Pygmy leaf-folding frogs, Afrixalus brachycnemis, from Tanzania, tiny climbing frogs who lay their eggs in leaves and then fold the leaves over them for protection, sealing the nest with secretions. There is a large family of frogs, Bufonidae, that includes most of the warty, hoppy creatures we think of as toads.

Reptiles 190

Reptiles Madagascar Family New York City 190

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2014

Did I dare dip my toe into this catalog of tantalizing species? Not a great place for a family vacation, though I think Duncan will disagree. The Indexes show images of the most common birds of the area against a painted background, with page references to species accounts. Now, I’m not so sure. Back to the field guide!

Brunei 179

Brunei Birds Asia China 179

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

MAY 3, 2012

Although designed as a field guide, it is a hefty book, 376 pages long, covering 336 species. Many species are dimorphic, with females looking different from males. Many species also differ with age. And, there are some odonate species that include andromorphs, females which look like the males. Yes, 675 photographs.

United States 241

United States Costa Rica Massachusetts North America 241

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 15, 2011

Artists rendition of Inkayacu paracasensis There are 17 living species of penguins, which make up their own Linnean family (Spheniscidae), which is the only family in the order Sphenisciformes. Penguins are flightless, but some species locomote over long distances on antarctic ice to travel between breeding grounds and the sea.

Penguins 198

Penguins Seals Peru Science 198

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 5, 2014

32, 1887) and Egg collection (no. It omits Audubon’s uneven business history, his bankruptcy, and the fact that Lucy, his wife, eventually had to support the family through teaching. There are many unexpected goodies here. Who knew that you could purchase a DNA Thermal Cycler at auction for $150?

Collecting 173

Collecting Mauritius Egypt Cyprus 173

Animal Person

OCTOBER 26, 2009

He always refers to himself and his wife and his child as "vegetarian." Yet he spends time describing the miserable deaths of day-old male chicks and understands what happens in dairy production, and I assume he doesn't partake of anyone's eggs or milk. He is against it for himself and his family. He never says he is.

Factory Farm 100

Factory Farm Factory Farming Animal Vegan 100