10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 16, 2020

It was the month of March, 2017, when I went to Lake Cuitzeo to check up on our migratory waterfowl and shorebirds one last time before they travelled north to breed. But that time, I was shocked to find that about half the birds I had expected were missing — along with half the lake. But this one was more fun.

Rights 259

Rights 2017 2020 Blackbirds 259

10,000 Birds

JULY 19, 2020

Our first Pied Oystercatcher eggs for this year’s breeding season were laid early and were due to hatch last weekend. They are a large chunky bird with substantial legs when they hatch out. This is a sad outcome for the first attempt at breeding this year for Pied Oystercatchers. However, this is far from unusual.

2020 167

2020 Eggs Feral Cats Breeding 167

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

For several years I lived and birded in the south of Africa , and still have my battered second edition (1997) of the Sasol Birds of Southern Africa, the most trusted local field guide. Now, I am holding the 5th edition (2020) in my hands – what has changed in the meantime, especially in the 9 years since the 4th edition?

Africa 264

Africa South Africa Swaziland Lesotho 264

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 14, 2021

Still, again with the help of the guides from Alpinebirding , we managed to get to the right places to see birds. One of the easiest birds to see around the lake is the Bar-headed Goose , which somehow I am always afraid I will one day misname as Bar-coded Goose (though that name would also work as a decent description, I think).

China 207

China Birds Fish 2006 207

10,000 Birds

MARCH 1, 2024

Most serious bird photographers dislike taking pictures of birds wearing rings (or what on the other side of the Atlantic you call bands). I can sympathise, as a shiny new ring, clamped to a bird’s leg, rarely enhances its portrait. I photographed the Black-tailed Godwit in my photograph ( above ) on 18 September 2020.

Lithuania 130

Lithuania Morocco Iceland Ireland 130

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 27, 2022

When you think of the best birding in the south of Asia, it is Malaysia that comes to mind, although you are likely not to even think of the country as such: you are dreaming of the (Malaysian) province of Sabah, in the north of the island of Borneo. And yet, it easily fits the largest pocket of my reporter’s vest.

Malaysia 229

Malaysia Singapore Asia Birds 229

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

10,000 Birds is running a series of articles by and about tour guides, tour companies, eco-lodges, and other birding travel organizations. We want to help the birding tourism industry come back strong from the COVID pandemic. 140 birds). In 2020, due to Covid19, your presence was missing. My name is Nikos Gallios.

Greece 262

Greece Wildlife Boars Otters 262

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2020

They looked out their windows and across their patios and up from their apartment terraces and saw–birds. copyright @2020 by David A llen Sibley. copyright @2020 by David A llen Sibley. copyright @2020 by David A llen Sibley. As Sibley tells us in the Preface, he originally intended to write a children’s book.

2020 262

2020 Birds Groups North America 262

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2023

It is home to four diverse forest ecosystems (deciduous, mixed, boreal, and lowlands), experiences seasonal weather systems ranging from cold dry Arctic winters to humid, thunder-storm filled summers, and, according to the latest official checklist, hosts four professional sports teams with bird names.* state and Canadian provinces.

North America 199

North America Birds Owls Canada 199

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2022

Although Henslow’s had been reliably found in nearby Sharon Springs for many years, the last documented sighting was in 2008, and the sighting startled longtime birders, waking them up to the fact that breeding sites in the state were rapidly being lost.

Birds 261

Birds Sparrows Connecticut New York 261

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 15, 2021

It is also a great place for the birder for the fish have brought the birds and the island has supplied places to nest. No-one visiting the island can ignore the birds. Every daylight hour, every where you look there is a bird flying through your view. Other birds? They are everywhere. Brown or Common Noddy.

Sea Turtles 240

Sea Turtles Birds Marine Life Fish 240

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2023

I visited Tengchong in late 2020 and wrote about it – but I also went there earlier, in 2017, and this post shows some photos I took during that trip, along with the usual comments that seem to be much more about ridiculing my fellow humans (especially ornithologists and the like) than providing useful information on birds.

China 175

China 2017 Birds Indonesia 175

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 6, 2020

A bird of prey showed up in the tiny park across the boulevard from me yesterday, setting himself down on a park bench and ignoring a crowd of socially-distanced smart phone wielding photographers. Sadly, I did not, which is probably why I think a field guide to birds is a must in every household. ” people proclaimed.

North America 217

North America America 2020 Hawaii 217

10,000 Birds

MAY 21, 2020

The coronavirus has locked us all in, literally, doing something that was totally unthinkable only a few months ago: it has prevented us from birding abroad! I am talking of the very heart of the Balkans and the final birding frontier of Europe: Serbia. Birding overview. Belgrade – weekend birding break. Top-20 birds.

Serbia 317

Serbia Sanctuary Birds Bosnia 317

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 6, 2021

2020 was the worst of years, through and through. And there were moments during the year when I thought birding was a lost cause. But I would have some great birds to report! I did, however, manage one work trip to Acapulco, back in January, when we thought the wildest thing about 2020 would be the U.S.

Mexico 161

Mexico 2020 2019 Turkey 161

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2020

However, we have learned over the years that until a bird can fly it is not completely safe from predators. The fully fledged Pied Oystercatcher chick is the bird on the right. Non-breeding Pied Oystercatchers join flocks either to the north or south of Gantheaume Point. They do not attempt to breed for about seven years.

2020 221

2020 Family Eggs Breeding 221

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 24, 2022

The Siberian Rubythroat seems to somewhat lack a proper inbuilt GPS system – while it breeds as far west as the Ural Mountains and winters as far est as Central India, it does not migrate through central Asia in large numbers (even though this would be the shortest way). So better not let a rubythroat bite you. .

Russia 204

Russia Asia Philippines Taiwan 204

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2022

Last week, Corey opened the “Top Ten Birds for 2021” season here at 10,000 Birds. He lamented that he had barely been able to travel during the year — only one trip from New York to California, poor boy — and then went on to give an impressive list of vagrants and first-of-state birds. In my garden!

Mexico 208

Mexico Birds Virginia Barn Owls 208

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 25, 2022

With the end of the year approaching you could consider where you would like to go birding in Australia in 2023. As you well know we are a huge continent with many outlying islands and a huge variety of bird-life. Wherever you dare to go in Australia you won’t be disappointed by the birds that you encounter.

Australia 147

Australia Singapore Birds Battery 147

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2021

Audubon guides to birds have been around since 1946. The first guide bearing the National Audubon Society imprint was Audubon Bird Guide; Eastern Land Birds , written by Richard Hooper Pough, and illustrated by Don Eckelberry. Plate 28 from Audubon Bird Guide, Eastern Land Birds, by Richard H. Knopf, 1994/97.

North America 278

North America America Birds California Condor 278

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2021

The first words describing this species in Wikipedia are “poorly-documented” Before 2015, when I first saw it in Paso Ancho, it had only been reported twice on eBird outside of its Sierra Madre Occidental breeding range: once from Taxco, Mexico, and another report from Nicaragua. Are those enough Orange-breasted Buntings ?

2016 259

2016 2015 Nicaragua Mexico 259

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2021

What I didn’t realize, at the time, was that this pulp is also enjoyed by many bird species. I go there every year around this time, because in 2016 I saw Sinaloa Martins migrating north to breed. The action was fast and furious, and many of the birds feeding are singularly attractive. Thanks, Guamúchil!

2016 270

2016 2020 Mexico California 270

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2021

Once upon a time, bird field guides included nests. 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. There are many reasons to inquire about bird nests (and eggs) and how to identify them. Harrison. (A

Eggs 218

Eggs Birds United States Sparrows 218

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2022

I came back from a Monday birding trip and told my wife, prior to reviewing my photos, that I saw a bird that was either 1) interesting, or 2) historic. And the bird in question even allowed me some great photos! So yes, this appears to be a breeding population.]. I’m feeling pretty good about myself right now.

Mexico 208

Mexico 2018 Ducks Breeding 208

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2020

Be careful how you Google ‘bird of paradise’! It’s the bird family that most people don’t know is a bird family. It’s the bird family that most people don’t know is a bird family. For many years it was thought the two bird families were related taxonomically.

Guinea 260

Guinea Birds Papua New Guinea Family 260

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 25, 2020

I first saw this bird in 2018 and seek it out whenever I visit the city. Each time, I worry that its bright plumage will have made it the target for a bird of prey. Other people have noticed the bird, so I conducted an internet search to see if anyone else had published pictures or posts about it. Concalves Jr., Concalves Jr.

2005 163

2005 South America Brazil 2018 163

10,000 Birds

JUNE 9, 2021

Last year there was a spate of books specifically about bird “behavior” – though one might well say that every book about birds, from field guides on up, is about behavior in some way or another. The page or two of text for each bird has some good stuff, not all pertaining to migration. A “broad spectrum,” indeed.

Alaska 196

Alaska Breeding Kenya Africa 196

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 22, 2022

It is not particularly big but has a reported 430 bird species including migrants, though during my short stay it seems I missed most of the key attractions among them. It goes like this: While fishing, the bird tucks its head down and uses its wings to create a shady area. Pel’s Fishing Owl, where were you?

South Africa 147

South Africa Africa Birds Research 147

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 3, 2020

There are few bird names that will elicit great big smiles and Penguin is one of them. Other contenders are Kookaburra, Shoebill, and Umbrellabird, but people smile when they hear these names because they know a song or because they can’t believe these are real names of real birds. <pause> Do I have your attention now?

Penguins 277

Penguins Georgia New Zealand Albatross 277

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 9, 2020

If I am ever reborn as a bird, I wish it will be as an owl – but somehow, reincarnation as a Grey Nightjar seems more likely (Nanhui, October 2019). A Chinese Pond Heron in its full breeding plumage glory. A male Japanese Paradise Flycatcher is one of those birds that can easily make your day. But I digress).

2019 143

2019 China Industry Birds 143

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 4, 2021

And yet, less than halfway through our 2020-2021 winter dry season, Lake Cuitzeo had essentially dried up. I am sure this means millions of individual birds were displaced by this drought event. And are the birds returning with the water? A single Laughing Gull turned up in his breeding plumage, several months early.

San Francisco 263

San Francisco 2018 Mexico Ducks 263

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 27, 2020

For the last two decades, Europe and the greater Mediterranean have been covered by one of the best field guides anywhere: “Collins Bird Guide” by Lars Svensson et al., published in the US by Princeton as “Birds of Europe”. Unlike “Collins Bird Guide” (CBG) with 416 pages and 1.7 And my first impression is: Wow!

Cyprus 242

Cyprus Saudi Arabia Europe Birds 242

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2023

I’ve been fortunate to encounter many owls in my birding life, sometimes because I’m looking for them, sometimes happily by happenstance. It’s also about human-owl interaction on an individual level and a wider sociocultural level, and ultimately how we can use all this for habitat and bird conservation.

Owls 199

Owls Science Barn Owls Penguins 199

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 14, 2021

This is the second post in the Birding crème de la crème series (the first, focused on southern Asia, is here ). The bird-richest region of Africa is its equatorial East: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi (unlike the rest, the last one, Burundi, is politically unstable and not recommendable). Lake Nakuru.

Africa 189

Africa Kenya Uganda Tanzania 189

10,000 Birds

MAY 2, 2023

Flight Paths is a splendid but risky title for a book about bird migration. It could easily be mistaken for a book about aviation or space navigation or even a flight simulator game if you don’t read the long, adjective-filled subtitle: How a Passionate and Quirky Group of Pioneering Scientists Solved the Mystery of Bird Migration.

Science 180

Science Illinois Investigation Research 180

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2024

Empire Penguins (Aptenodytes forsteri) are the largest living penguin species, almost four feet tall (taller when they stretch), and the least likely to be seen on birding or nature trips. I was surprised to find out that the Penguins studied by Kooyman at the Ross Sea have no need to do a march since they breed so close to the water.)

Penguins 151

Penguins Seals Leopards Research 151

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 6, 2022

At the end of 2022, let us celebrate the local field guide, a sub-genre that many of us feared would die, the victim of technology, development, and globalization, but which still shines bright, fewer in number but brilliant in quality, thanks to birders and birding organizations that believe in knowing your patch and your state.

Los Angeles 184

Los Angeles Birds District of Columbia Parrots 184