10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2019

For me, it’s one of the most exciting days of the year, and so I’m going to put aside the book review I’ve been crafting and talk about my favorite, best, top ten birds of 2018 (with a personal addition at the end). But, 2018 was a very special year for me, as you’ll see if you read to the end. [If,

2018 167

2018 New Jersey Michigan North Dakota 167

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2018

10 countries were birded by 9 beats and 892 species were noted from 144 checklists. 23 May 2018. 12 Jun 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 20 Jan 2018. 13 Apr 2018. 13 Apr 2018. 04 Apr 2018. 19 Jan 2018. 13 Mar 2018. 03 Apr 2018. 05 Jan 2018.

2018 100

2018 Australia Woodpeckers Los Angeles 100

10,000 Birds

APRIL 26, 2024

Tucked away at the extreme eastern end of the Mediterranean, Cyprus is regarded politically as part of Europe, but when it comes to birds it’s very much Middle Eastern in flavour, with a number of species that are hard or even impossible to find in Europe, plus a trio of endemics. The song is highly distinctive.

Cyprus 229

Cyprus Breeders Falcons Hunters 229

10,000 Birds

MAY 6, 2018

Their 185 checklists contained 951 species during April! 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 20 Jan 2018. 13 Apr 2018. 04 Apr 2018. 19 Jan 2018. 13 Mar 2018. 03 Apr 2018. 05 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 03 Apr 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 13 Jan 2018.

2018 100

2018 Australia Los Angeles Albatross 100

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2018

During March, 11 beats shared 122 checklists to accumulate 680 species from 8 countries; USA, Costa Rica, Serbia, India, Australia, New Zealand, UK and Japan. 31 Mar 2018. 30 Mar 2018. 28 Mar 2018. 28 Mar 2018. 26 Mar 2018. 25 Mar 2018. 25 Mar 2018. 25 Mar 2018. 25 Mar 2018.

2018 100

2018 Australia Los Angeles Albatross 100

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 26, 2024

Sadly, the HBW states that the species is “almost extinct in some areas in China owing to hunting and trapping for the cagebird trade and taxidermy” The Maroon Oriole looks much more interesting, though my photos do not really do it full justice. when living in suburbia. How is that for a link?

Nepal 172

Nepal Birds Owls Fish 172

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2018

They found 673 species and advanced the yearly total to 1019. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 20 Jan 2018. 05 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 13 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 06 Jan 2018. 06 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 01 Jan 2018. 06 Jan 2018.

2018 100

2018 Australia Los Angeles Albatross 100

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2018

managed to see it, his largest owl ever. I had just a split-second glimpse of this species – my only second ever – yet immediately knew what is it, but I was driving through a snowbound countryside and had another car behind me, therefore I stopped a good 50 metres later to eBird it. Ural Owl – Strix uralensis.

Owls 107

Owls Greece Serbia Woodpeckers 107

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 9, 2019

For nearly 10 days now, I have been sorting thru all of the images from 2018. In the end, I truly did set out to reduce the number of birds that I feature here from 1302, my years total species, down to 10-12. This years bird number 1300, the Whiskered Screech Owl, was found in the dark, in a snow storm, and no photo was gotten.

2018 171

2018 Costa Rica South Africa New Zealand 171

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 23, 2018

yes, scoters do deserve some interest, but this particular species is a seasonal regular in Lake Ontario. His efforts paid off when he found himself a Saw-whet Owl sitting on prey on Sunday morning at an undisclosed location. The post Best Bird of the Weekend (Fourth of December 2018) appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

2018 113

2018 Birds Ducks Owls 113

10,000 Birds

APRIL 14, 2023

Miriam Darlington determined to take on an owl quest, to immerse herself in their world, as she says, and also to find out how they are immersed in ours – to “look into the mythology, kinship, otherness and mystery that wild owls offer.”

Barn Owls 113

Barn Owls Owls Serbia Finland 113

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 26, 2018

Denizens of the temperate zones begin the calendar year in the depth of winter or height of summer, times when species diversity is sparse. The conditions under which those few available species can be found are often dreadfully hot or painfully cold. Plus, February is little better! How about you?

2018 115

2018 Birds Owls Species 115

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 15, 2018

We had persevered through four years at the top of Battery Harris Platform and could bring our experience to bear on the task of trying to record as many species as possible on a single day from that single spot. At 8:30AM we were already at 53 species and we knew we still had many more easy birds to find. Note the wet weather gear.

2018 210

2018 Bald Eagle Battery Birds 210

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 24, 2018

Eight days ago, on Sunday, 16 December, a whole big bunch of intrepid birders headed out across my fine home borough into abysmal conditions to conduct the 2018 Queens County Christmas Bird Count. A large flock of Sanderlings was scanned assiduously but there were no other species mixed in and no other shorebirds to be found at all.

2018 113

2018 Birds Bald Eagle Falcons 113

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2022

I had only seen this species once here, in 2018. Virginia Warbler: The Virginia Warbler is a common species in the thorn forest of the Balsas River Basin, so I had seen it often. Extra points for this species’ rockin’ name. How did I miss that? And then, on February 1st, I suddenly saw dozens.

Mexico 234

Mexico Birds Virginia Barn Owls 234

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 7, 2018

On Christmas Day we did a bird list around Broome and although we also found over one hundred species on both that day and on New Year’s Day the lists were quite different. Once the land flooded the birds dispersed and we could no longer find species that had been relatively easy the week before.

2018 100

2018 Ducks Barn Owls Falcons 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2021

Decades later, Richard Pough’s Audubon Bird Guide, Eastern Land Birds (I happily own the 1948 edition) included nest and egg descriptions for each species as well. And photographs of feathers in the species accounts, which surprised me. Text retrieved from the Hathitrust Digital Library. The first is accomplished well.

Eggs 244

Eggs Birds United States Sparrows 244

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 25, 2018

All manner of spring species are turning up in the Finger Lakes region, but I’m still working on winter stragglers, which makes a self-found Iceland Gull my favorite of this weekend. Now that’s a good outing and the most cooperative of the four Snowy Owls is Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend. How about you?

2018 100

2018 Iceland Owls Birds 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 4, 2022

The American Birding Association has declared that 2022 is the year of the Burrowing Owl, but if Rosemary Mosco has her way, it will also be the year of the Rock Pigeon. Yes, sure, Rock Pigeons are not a vulnerable species, unless you count the number of times they have been mocked, scorned, and shooed away.

2018 229

2018 New York City Birds Abandon 229

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

There was one odd reprint in 2018, when the Subalpine Warbler was split into the Eastern and Western species, but the changes in the guide weren’t sufficient to call it a 3rd edition, so it remained the updated reprint of the 2nd edition. I haven’t noticed changes in the few descriptions of harder to ID species that I compared.

Europe 261

Europe Birds Woodpeckers Ireland 261

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2020

Sedge Wren – There are records of this species in Queens, generally along the coast in fall. Great Shearwater – At this point, seabirds are my weakest family in Queens with the most species having reported in the borough that I have not seen. It leaves Barnacle Goose as the last remotely possible goose species for me to add. (0

2018 164

2018 2015 Birds 2019 164

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2020

The authors wrote: [Species] “are the currency of field guides and of birding, but deciding what to treat as ‘species’ is inevitably a subjective endeavour. … We have tended to a liberal (= realistic) direction when recognising species.” There are no species distribution maps, only textual descriptions.

Chile 212

Chile Birds South America North America 212

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 19, 2019

In November 2018, I spent a few days birding in Cape Town, South Africa. The species is endangered – hopefully, their appeal to tourists and the resulting revenue will contribute to its protection. The same limitation is obvious in the names of many of the bird species in this area. Here are some of my sightings.

South Africa 127

South Africa Penguins Ostriches Birds 127

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 2, 2019

It ended with little fan fare; in fact I did not even go chasing birds on the last two days of 2018, as I am just plain tired. A few nights ago, I sat out in a light snow/rain mix, in the pitch black of Madera Canyon, trying to find a Whiskered Screech Owl. With four days to go in 2018, why not try for a few more, right?

Costa Rica 138

Costa Rica Tucson South Africa Bahamas 138

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 3, 2019

Kai’s photos present a unique perspective on a very specific, under-birded area of China; you can view them on this blog, and, even more satisfying, you can view them in his book, Birds of Nanhui Shanghai , published in China in 2018 and available through NHBS, the international book distributor.

China 144

China Birds 2018 Ducks 144

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2019

A note of thanks to Corey and Mike, for their patience, while I took a break after a very busy 2018!! Now that Jeanne and I have finally settled on Tucson, Arizona at least for a while, I will pick up where I left off at the end of 2018. This area has no less than 17 eBird hotspots recorded, many of which boast nearly 200 species.

Arizona 144

Arizona Tucson Florida 2018 144

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2018

It was easy enough to participate, all anyone had to do was watch birds and record the number of species identified using eBird. Those who did so on May 5th automatically became part of the biggest day of collective birding in 2018; Global Big Day ! We logged an awesome 225 species! More than 680 species identified!

Costa Rica 174

Costa Rica 2018 Colombia Collecting 174

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2020

There are owls in New York City. Big owls: Barred Owls on Riverside Drive and down the path from Harlem Meer, a Great Horned Owl in Central Park’s Ramble. The NYC owls have little to do with the book in front of me except that it too is about birds and people. But–is that it?

New York City 198

New York City Birds Owls Fox 198

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 2021

The birdlife here is wonderful, a ten-night safari should give you over 200 species, (2018 & 2019 both gave us 242!). Hornbills, Paradise Flycatchers , day roosting Giant Eagle Owls or if we’re really lucky Pel’s Fishing Owl , the holy grail! While we look for animal tracks, you’ll see so much else as we go.

Botswana 185

Botswana Africa Elephants Angola 185

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 9, 2017

It’s not that they don’t like them, it’s just that most are fairly common and tend to grab the spotlight when you still need to focus on much rarer, less colorful species. Not so for the Yellow-eared because that fancy one is one of the rarer species. Spectacled Owl triangle.

Costa Rica 156

Costa Rica Birds Owls Tennessee 156

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 27, 2018

From now through the first week of November (2018) autumn leaves are peaking along the ridges and valleys of the Appalachians. Known as a warbler haven, 30+ species visit this bi-state park near the Kentucky and Virginia southern border. Barred Owl. Leaves and birds in the Appalachian Mountains. American Kestrel.

West Virginia 188

West Virginia Virginia Kentucky South Carolina 188

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 6, 2022

we learn) that are home to coveted boreal species, breeding wood-warblers, and two species of Grouse. There are 461 species on the Maine checklist. This field guide covers 265 species, the ones most likely to be seen–residential and migratory, almost all nesting birds, many wintering birds.

Los Angeles 210

Los Angeles Birds District of Columbia Parrots 210

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 27, 2020

BOC has 95 colour plates illustrating more than 400 species (three country endemics, Cyprus Wheatear , Cyprus Scops Owl and Cyprus Warbler , among them), with text and distribution maps on facing pages. Following the IOC taxonomy (Gill and Donsker 2018), Birds of Cyprus deals with 405 species.

Cyprus 259

Cyprus Saudi Arabia Europe Birds 259

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2019

a British expat birder who was living in Belgrade, for a suggestion: “The top species is undoubtedly White-tailed Eagle. commented further: “With a little work some species can be seen quite easily such as the divers, scaup, scoter, Goosander , Garganey and Long-eared Owl. Hence, I asked my friend B.C.,

Serbia 250

Serbia Birds Woodpeckers Breeding 250

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 28, 2018

To this tasty tropical cocktail concocted in July 2018, we added one more volatile ingredient in the form of a contingent of Americans and Hondurans sponsored by the Honduras Institute of Tourism. You know these owls are chill, if I can snap a shot this good (pardon the epiphyte!). ECO-SENDERO. Oliver, along with Yobani A.

Honduras 143

Honduras Birds Kentucky Research 143

10,000 Birds

MARCH 5, 2024

A two-page portrait of Cuban Trogon is next, its blue, green, red, and white plumage shining, then a two-page depiction of three Ruffs in male summer, male winter, and female plumage, and finally the Galapagos Short-eared Owl on the alert, facing the title page. This is NOT an image from the book. 2023m Hardcover, 248 pp.; pounds; 9.63

Australia 202

Australia Birds Europe Collecting 202

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 31, 2019

Perhaps you don’t know it yet, but with more than 1000 bird species, palm-fringed sandy beaches, developed tourism infrastructure, moderate prices and political stability, Thailand is a country you definitively want to visit. Among them are 20 endemics and near-endemics, and 58 vagrant species. And what do you need to pack?

Thailand 199

Thailand Zambia Birds Asia 199