10,000 Birds

MAY 13, 2015

It can’t have escaped your notice lately that the blog has been overrun with articles about North America’s pseudo-warblers (or wood warblers, as some people, apparently unaware the name is taken by a proper European species, call them), and, even worse, no small amount of poetry. And they are always a pleasure to see.

Africa 175

Africa Feral Ethiopia Tanzania 175

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2012

Contradicting this relentless shooting were efforts to establish feral populations in many regions of Europe, both within and outside its natural range. Starting in the 16th century, the species was released widely on ponds and parks and rivers throughout Europe where it flourished remarkably and continues to do so to this very day.

Feral 170

Feral Europe Asia North America 170

10,000 Birds

JUNE 21, 2019

Its holiness may not be in question, but from the label drawing, I’m not quite sure which species of the family Columbidae the Sainte-Colombe pigeon belongs to. The Château de Colombe estate was purchased in 2012 by Henry Lathwaite, scion of the famed English wine merchant family and a trained winemaker in his own right.

2017 115

2017 France Lifestyle Feral 115

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2019

The week of President’s Day this year found me, my family, and some close friends spending a week in a beach house on Tybee Island, a low-lying, barrier island just east of Savannah. How did I find so many species? One massively negative aspect of birding Tybee Island is the sheer volume of feral cats and outdoor cats.

Georgia 186

Georgia Cats Neutering Birds 186

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 6, 2015

Gordon, president of the ABA, an Introduction, Species Accounts, Acknowledgements, Image Credits, a Checklist of the Birds of the state, and a Species Index. Species Accounts in both titles are arranged loosely in ABA Checklist order, with some flipping around of order within each family.

Colorado 243

Colorado Florida Birds New Jersey 243

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 172

New Zealand Ducks Australia Japan 172

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 9, 2013

I wish for a federal law prohibiting domestic and feral cats from roaming free outdoors. Why is there no state or federal money available to care for federally protected species? Monte in California agreed: “I’d like some time just to watch healthy wild families.”. Change in Law. That’s easy!” wrote Veronica in California. “I

Wildlife 250

Wildlife Wildlife Rehabilitation Oklahoma New York 250

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2013

As we wandered along the trail we soon encountered family groups of both White-winged Fairywrens and Variegated Fairywrens. There was evidence of the mussels that would be a source of food for many species in the receding water line. Feral pigs. Orange Chat. Australian Pelicans soaring in the thermals. Turtle shell.

Feral 149

Feral Pelicans Ducks Pigs 149

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 24, 2012

In the event I’m in a life or death struggle with an Oregon Junco or a particularly feral Dunnock I’d rather my birding companion was at least nominally on my side. Sometimes nests are destroyed or even pairs are shot, but the highly individual nature of the species has actually led to improvements here as well.

New Zealand 154

New Zealand Birds Australia Kangaroos 154

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2013

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. Even wiping out one species, like possums, or stoats, or hedgehogs is probably beyond current methods.

New Zealand 122

New Zealand Possums SPCA Cats 122

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 5, 2013

First published in 1973 in association with the Asa Wright Center, the book focuses on species descriptions, with illustrations grouped together in plates positioned in the center of the book. It is organized taxonomically, with families identified by first scientific and then popular name. The AOU has not accepted that split.

Trinidad 201

Trinidad Birds South America Research 201

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 18, 2011

I have a day in Sydney with my sister and family and then go home to Broome… hopefully not delayed by the threat of a Qantas baggage handlers strike starting Tuesday morning as I try to fly north-west. I am proud to say that I have managed to see over 60 species of birds in my 6 weeks in Busan and that is a lot more than I had expected.

Chipmunks 154

Chipmunks Eggs Feral Squirrels 154

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 8, 2018

Every single species, even the European Starlings above, count as one bird on the year’s checklist. Sadly, though I managed to sneak out of the house while friends and family entertained each other, the goose had flown the coop. On January first my year list, just like every other birder’s year list, reverted to zero.

Ducks 101

Ducks Litter Feral 2017 101

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2014

In a funny twist of fate, it seems that 2014 will be much the same as 2012 and 2013 have been, with family trips to somewhere in France and business trips to Indonesia and Kazakhstan. I will also likely scale back on my birding madness in Germany, and might therefore see less species than I did in the last two years. The Birding Diary.

2014 145

2014 France Germany Indonesia 145

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2011

Feral Turkey are also quite common. 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.

New Zealand 177

New Zealand Birds Thailand Falcons 177

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2014

For the moment I’ll stick with the split babbler families although I may relump the laughingthrushes, ground and tree babblers per Molye et al (2012). Since I’m the New Zealand beat writer I’ll be using their names for their species, but for clarity I will give other commonly used names if a species has them.

2014 150

2014 New Zealand Singapore Rhinoceros 150

10,000 Birds

MARCH 13, 2011

Every March, hope springs anew that I’ll cross paths with one of these feral fluffballs, but as April ends, so do another year’s delirious dreams. Driving along ice-choked inlets off Lake Ontario, admiring Mute Swans and scaup species, my commitment to nail this nemesis never wavered. I finally saw a saw-whet ! Donna S.

2011 170

2011 Owls Deer New York 170