10,000 Birds

APRIL 16, 2013

Mark Kirk and Alisha Belo are doing a southern Africa big year, trying to see 800 species. You can follow along at their blog, The ’800 Challenge’ – Southern Africa. Ali Iyoob is sitting pretty at 230 species in his North Carolina big year during which he is trying to break the state record of 351.

2013 189

2013 New Jersey North Carolina Canada 189

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2021

Anyway, I’m happy the image is in the book, but sad that more isn’t said about its background and that the photographer is also the scientist who did his dissertation research on Pin-tailed Whydah parasitism of Common Waxbills in South Africa. I find it fascinating tracing the publishing roots of these titles.

North America 279

North America Research Birds Groups 279

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2011

Off the coast of North Carolina, and indeed anywhere in the southeastern United States, the surface is broken up with vast expanses of sargassum and gulfweed, species of brown algae that floats on the water in great aggregations looking like nothing so much as a perfectly manicured lawn.

United States 157

United States North Carolina Fish North America 157

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2014

There were ten students in total that had signed up for the spring break “Seabirds” course in Dry Tortugas National Park, and after long drives down from North Carolina we had all made it right on time. There was no time to be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of sound coming from the thousands of birds – it was time to band!

Birds 181

Birds Florida Groups Breeding 181

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2012

The name has always seemed to apply to a rather motley group of birds, from the exquisite Scissor-tailed Kite of east Africa, to the grotesque Hook-billed Kite of Central America, and various and sundry examples in between. We in the south are stuffed silly with kites. This is a bird that does not mess around.

Mississippi 159

Mississippi North Carolina Raleigh Groups 159