10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 9, 2019

An expanse of habitat as vast as Murchison Falls NP in Uganda, as excessively generous in beauty and biodiversity, permits endless ways to experience both its birds and animals. The 5,000 sq km of exquisite savanna and bush may hew more closely to your ideal vision of Africa than any other spot on the continent. Rock Pratincoles.

Uganda 201

Uganda Senegal Africa Game 201

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 5, 2019

In birding circles, certain stretches of road or trail attain mythical status, eliciting knowing smiles and satisfied grins when mentioned. Aficionados of American birding know all too well the wonders of Panama’s Pipeline Road. Africa boasts its own legendary birding road: Uganda’s Budongo Forest Reserve AKA the Royal Mile.

Uganda 223

Uganda Africa Monkeys Birds 223

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2021

Guyana is an Amerindian word meaning “land of many waters” but it could just as easily mean “land of many birds”. That’s because this fascinating part-Caribbean, part-south American country holds well over 800 species of avifauna making it without doubt one of my top three countries in all of the continent to visit. Wilderness.

Guyana 279

Guyana Otters South America Colombia 279

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 20, 2016

By the time this post publishes, I’ll be on an airplane heading back to the United States following a truly remarkable two week visit to Uganda as part of a group of western birders visiting there to promote the inaugural African Birding Expo. In the relatively brief period, my group had something on the order of 450 species.

Uganda 167

Uganda Africa Squirrels Tanzania 167

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 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. All very exciting, but for the birder Africa has so much more to offer. My name is Ashley Boon.

Botswana 185

Botswana Africa Elephants Angola 185

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2016

Today is the United Nations World Wildlife Day, a time to celebrate and raise awareness of the living world around us. I remember, several times while motionlessly surveying birds, I found myself being investigated by Striped Field Mice , who would dare to come to sniff me. No, birds are way too smart for that stupid trick.

Wildlife 185

Wildlife Tigers Asia Europe 185

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 21, 2015

I’ve not made spectacular progress writing up my trip to Africa earlier this year, so perhaps I should get on that. So instead let’s talk about South Africa’s best kept birding secret (at least outside of the country) Wakkerstroom. A terrible shot of Barrow’s Korhaan.

South Africa 145

South Africa Africa Falcons Family 145

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 20, 2015

And where all those birds are? This map shows the distribution of the World’s bird species, based on overlying the breeding and wintering ranges of all known species. And it raises a question: if all the birds are having a party over there, am I in the wrong spot? Which leaves only East Africa. And it shows.

Sri Lanka 257

Sri Lanka Botswana Africa Serbia 257

10,000 Birds

JUNE 12, 2012

Before self-rule it was administered by South Africa and known as South-West Africa. After a brutal colonization that included genocidal campaigns against the Herero (80% killed) and Nama (50% killed) tribes, the Germans lost control when South Africa invaded soon after the declaration of the First World War.

Namibia 260

Namibia Angola Lovebirds South Africa 260

10,000 Birds

JULY 30, 2014

Over a decade since I was last there, I am finally heading back to Africa late this year. As has been the case every time I’ve been to Africa before, I won’t be there just for play. Read most accounts of how birders see birds outside their patch and one way or another, they’re tourists.

Uganda 162

Uganda Sharks Africa New Zealand 162

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2019

This last year of the twenty-teens was a monumental birding year for me. I saw 863 species of birds, bringing my life list to 1,820. I birded Uganda, which was my first time on the continent of Africa. Such travel brings a lot of birds and the 863 species I saw this year is the most species I have ever seen.

2019 142

2019 Barbados Uganda Costa Rica 142

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2012

A former wildlife wrangler, Currie also hosts, Nikon’s Birding Adventures TV , the first bird-watching travel show in the US. James Currie is a native of South Africa; he has led wildlife and bird-watching tours for more than 15 years. The viewer will just have to watch and find out.

South Africa 277

South Africa Madagascar Wolves Lions 277

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 10, 2016

Nevertheless, only the most important news I did follow, those about the decision-making process on future sales of elephants and their ivory at a global wildlife summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, the first such meeting since 2013. We are facing a plague of poaching that is again decimating the species. One may say so.

Elephants 194

Elephants Botswana Zimbabwe Africa 194

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 23, 2014

2014 has been a good year for us at 10,000 Birds. We’ve traveled to lots of places, seen lots of great birds, and met lots of great birders. So, as we’ve done for the last several years we thought we would share our Best Birds of the Year with you. Below are our Best Birds of the Year. What was yours?

2014 197

2014 Costa Rica South Africa Birds 197

10,000 Birds

MARCH 29, 2015

(This photo is actually of a TK seen a few days later, but it was at our favorite birding gas station pit stop that we also stopped at on our first day. Excellent 10,000 Birds posts have been written about Pico Bonito and Honduras by Corey and Carlos , so I’m going to focus on some of my most memorable experiences.

Honduras 256

Honduras Birds Costa Rica Groups 256

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 15, 2017

While much of the attention that Africa’s tourism industry gets is for its (deservedly) popular national parks and game reserves, a lot of wildlife viewing is possible away from the big name places. As well as birds, the reserve holds endangered species like African Wild Dogs. I mean education.

Zimbabwe 100

Zimbabwe Botswana South Africa Endangered Species 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 12, 2015

I get that you’re really angry, I mean, he was a popular lion and yes, his cute widdle cubs will probably die to, but I can’t help feeling you’ve kind of missed the point a bit, and well, ending all hunting in Africa will not solve much and maybe make things worse and… No, no, I’m not a hunter. I’m sorry.

Lions 218

Lions Hunting Sierra Leone Buffalo 218

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2013

You may not realize it when you look at those bizarre looking waders with the massive bills and the vacant expression, but you’re looking at a group of birds that has inspired humankind for literal centuries. The group has a worldwide distribution; 28 species living and two additional extinct.

Birds 223

Birds North America Charlotte New Jersey 223

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 11, 2012

I’m sure you’ve all heard of Africa’s famous Big Five , but do you know there is also an equally fascinating Little Five ? Africa is famous for its large, charismatic mammals, and the Big Five epitomize the most sought-after of these fantastic beasts. This blog post will discuss both the Big and Little members of these quintuplets.

Buffalo 213

Buffalo Rhinoceros Elephants Leopards 213

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2013

Hence, I was quite surprised with a brave, almost exciting paper by Brown, Forbes and Symes: “Recent history of the Egyptian Vulture in Southern Africa” (Vulture News, 2000). It was not the first note I have published, but was the only one about a bird I have never laid my eyes upon!

Sudan 236

Sudan Macedonia Botswana Serbia 236

10,000 Birds

JULY 25, 2018

So, I think it is understandable that I have not done a whole lot of birding, well, until yesterday and today. We were able to find a very nice RV park, just a couple of miles from one of my all time favourite birding hotspots, Billy Frank Jr, Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. That is what birding weather should be.

New Zealand 117

New Zealand Seattle Qatar South Africa 117

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2011

These will be a series of shorter posts that will be scheduled while I’m traveling and filming for Nikon’s Birding Adventures TV. On the contrary, if you are a traveling birder, you might just find your next birding destination right here on 10,000 Birds. And this place has birds to boot!

Portugal 178

Portugal 2011 Deer Birds 178

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. Not of the birds, but the seemingly endless early mornings, rarely sleeping in my own bed, and the pressure, mostly self imposed, to find yet one more bird. South Africa Total: 219.

Costa Rica 138

Costa Rica Tucson South Africa Bahamas 138

10,000 Birds

MARCH 22, 2011

The vast majority of guests that visit these “birder-friendly&# lodges are birders and the primary target market of these places is the birding segment. This is not a birding lodge. Add to this the fact that you can be birding within 2 hours of leaving the USA and you have a pretty unbeatable birding vacation!

Dominican Republic 194

Dominican Republic 2011 Birds Deer 194

10,000 Birds

JUNE 26, 2013

If you are a migratory bird in Europe and western Asia, this is your sweet spot. It all seems like such a charmed life … until you have to fly down to Africa for the winter. This grim scenario is a fact of life for millions of migrating songbirds, raptors, and other birds each year. Fish and Wildlife Service).

Cambodia 145

Cambodia Slaughter Slaughtered Cyprus 145

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2011

My 8-year old daughter got interested in birds from a VERY early stage. By age 2 she could identify over 10 species of birds in our Johannesburg, South Africa, yard by call alone. So I guess for some people birding skills come naturally but, for others, birding skills need to be learnt.

Birds 279

Birds Game Wildlife Family 279

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2015

If I were to describe my long time wildlife nemesis, my ultimate dip of dips, I would reach for a nemesis cat, not a nemesis bird. For there is no species that I had more comprehensively failed to see than the Leopard. Leopards were problem species for me. The cats are, almost to a species, elusive. Camelopardus !

Cats 106

Cats Leopards South Africa Tigers 106

10,000 Birds

MARCH 2, 2017

The Sanetti Plateau in Ethiopia is a one of Africa’s greatest birding locations. High above the great Rift Valley, endless treeless plains stretch out as far as you can see, holding birding (and other wildlife treasures). These Chestnut-naped Francolin look like they have lipstick and heavy eyeliner!

Ethiopia 100

Ethiopia Mammals South America Rats 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / The plovers of Estero Lagoon, Florida The plovers of Estero Lagoon, Florida By James • March 8, 2011 • 1 comment Tweet Share For as long as I can remember I’ve been fascinated by shorebirds.

Florida 200

Florida South Africa 2011 Africa 200

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2016

British birders are very serious about birding and their birds. This is a very good thing; it means they publish a lot of books about birds (probably more at this point than U.S. This is a very good thing; it means they publish a lot of books about birds (probably more at this point than U.S.

Ireland 150

Ireland Birds Groups Falcons 150

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 3, 2014

As New Zealand’s beat writer I think I’ve done an okay job of discussing the birding of an entirely different island for most of the year, so it’s only fair that I keep that winning streak going by talking about my target for the trip. It’s a species that has bedeviled and bewitched me over the years.

Sharks 177

Sharks Leopards Whales Whaling 177

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2015

Ten years ago, those flocks were reduced to a few hundred birds. Nowadays, the flocks are even smaller, merely a few dozen birds. As we speak, in Serbia these birds are still hunted in August and September. Since this spring’s revision of the European Red List, the Turtle Dove is listed as a vulnerable species.

Serbia 270

Serbia Slaughter Slaughtered Turtles 270

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2014

The danger of reviewing a field guide to the birds of an exotic country you’ve never been to is that you become obsessed with visiting that country, no matter how far away and how expensive it may be. Did I dare dip my toe into this catalog of tantalizing species? I’m already looking up birding tours of Borneo and pricing airfares.

Brunei 179

Brunei Birds Asia China 179

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 8, 2011

Paging through a fieldguide, it’s always with a sense of dismay and sadness that I come across reference to an extinct species. This is particularly poignant if the bird has disappeared during the course of my birding days or “on my watch” as I like to think of it. This bird was kept in captivity until it died a year later.

Madagascar 246

Madagascar Lemurs 2006 Owls 246

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2011

If there is one thing that Kiwis care about, it’s birds. No, wait, not birds. One thing visitors love to see in New Zealand is Kiwi, the national (sort of) bird, and they also enjoy seeing some of the other birds the place has to offer. Don’t forget you can also see some wildlife on the road as you go !

New Zealand 157

New Zealand Penguins Sanctuary Birds 157

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 16, 2017

January is sort of a birding sprint – you start fresh and, all of a sudden, head for them all. In a typical birding year, no other month will bring you that many new species as January. Turacos are strictly African genus of brightly colored birds – all but one. Fish and Wildlife Service. Few hours later I gave up.

Serbia 187

Serbia Geese 2001 Ducks 187

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 26, 2021

I did that with Peacocks & Picathartes – Reflections on Africa’s birdlife (published by Penguin Random House South Africa ). In case you didn’t know, yes, there is an indigenous peacock living in Africa, the Congo Peafowl. He has authored several other books and many articles, largely on natural history.

Congo 264

Congo Africa South Africa Madagascar 264