10,000 Birds

MARCH 7, 2022

While rails are generally described as secretive, the Common Moorhen – also a member of the rail family – certainly is not. Here, nervous Cattle Egrets trying to quit smoking pace restlessly on buffalos. Fine with me – I am always for reducing complexity, whether it makes sense or not.

Branding 186

Branding Micronesia Birds Buffalo 186

Animal Person

AUGUST 10, 2010

I'm not one of those people who thinks family is composed of only humans or humans who are biologically related. That's one of the reasons adopting wasn't a stretch for me at all mentally. The idea of family is currently being used by the dairy industry in a series of commercials with the tag line: "99% of dairy farms are family owned."

Family 100

Family Factory Farm Factory Farming Cows 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2019

I pushed for Wikipedia to adopt them, and then to follow the taxonomy, and given the dominance of Wikipedia in Google search results, this is no small thing. Similarly when the Hoopoe and Cattle Egret were split, these are widespread birds with huge ranges even after the split. I’m not blind to the list’s faults, though.

Iran 131

Iran Barn Owls New Zealand Europe 131

10,000 Birds

MAY 8, 2013

Old World Vultures are nestled within the family Acciptridae along with the hawks and eagles. It’s actually a pretty classic example of convergent evolution, wherein two unrelated families of lifeforms evolve to fill the same niche independently. Thailand’s Adopt a Vulture Program – YC Wee, Bird Ecology Study Group.

California Condor 185

California Condor Turkey North America Jordan 185