10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2018

I would wake up in darkness, gather my camera and binoculars and drive to Alabama for a birding tour along a river. In fact, even with the tern and waterfowl species designations I only made it to 11 avian varieties. Originally, I had big plans for the October Big Day. Driving the boat.

Florida 113

Florida Alabama Kansas Pelicans 113

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 30, 2014

There’s a new proposal before the American Ornithologists’ Union’s North American Classification Committee to split Painted Bunting into two species (yay! — maybe, more later) and to name the new species “Eastern Painted Bunting” and “Western Painted Bunting” (no!).

Mississippi 274

Mississippi Mexico Alabama North Carolina 274

10,000 Birds

JULY 5, 2013

Although both species are widespread in North America as breeders in shrubby edge habitats, that is not the case in the southern half of the sunshine state (the more northerly race of Prairie Warbler is an uncommon breeder in the panhandle). Everyone, I would like you to meet the ‘Florida’ Prairie Warbler ( S.

Florida 192

Florida Breeders Miami Tampa 192

10,000 Birds

APRIL 17, 2012

Oil on the beaches of Gulf Shores, Alabama I covered the spill for several months for a special TV series on the Gulf Disaster. Oil begins to wash up on the beaches throughout May and June of 2010 May 6, 2010 Oil washes ashore on the Chandeleur Islands off the Louisiana coast, an important nesting and breeding area for many bird species.

2010 243

2010 Louisiana 2012 2011 243

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 13, 2018

As of mid-October 2018, the Collaborative had submitted more than 1,700 checklists and observed 618 species in the United States. The heat map is revealing: Unsurprisingly for a site founded and run by two New Yorkers (one of whom literally wrote the book on birding New York), the Empire State boasts the highest number of species (316).

Rhode Island 114

Rhode Island United States West Virginia Puerto Rico 114

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2021

We also meet more fascinating people: some familiar names like pelagic leaders Brian Patteson and Kate Sutherland, some names that we should know, like Theunis Piersma, the Dutch ornithologist who has done pioneering research on Bar-tailed Godwits, Red Knots and other shorebirds (and who we first meet studying Spoon-billed Sandpipers on the Yellow (..)

Cyprus 258

Cyprus Slaughter Slaughtered Research 258

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2011

Over the winter, the universe lost four whooping cranes to what appears to be recreational shooting: three gunned down together in Georgia on December 30, 2010, and another in Alabama on January 28, 2011. It may be as sick as deliberately targeting an endangered species for death. Speculation is useless in acts of vandalism.

2011 243

2011 Hunting Kentucky Hunters 243

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 9, 2022

Every year, the top birders in Mexico surpass the species totals of their counterparts in the United States, and double the totals of Canada’s best. More telling still, they are finding higher numbers of species in a country that is only one-fifth the size of its northern neighbors. border in twelve hours, or fly there in three.

Mexico 229

Mexico Birds Costa Rica Alabama 229

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 22, 2018

Although I didn’t make any efforts to chase birds or attain a big year list, regular guiding and birding in various parts of the country still rewarded me with more than 640 species in Costa Rica. I didn’t see many species actually. It’s not that often that I add a species to my country list. Shorebirds.

Costa Rica 176

Costa Rica 2018 Birds West Virginia 176