10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

I am a birder, and I love birds. I don’t mind that they share the world with other creatures, and I have even developed an appreciation for mammals, reptiles and amphibians – but only so long as watching them doesn’t collide with my finding birds. For Europe, only very few books exist that cover the topic at all.

Europe 166

Europe Mammals Animal Birds 166

10,000 Birds

MAY 27, 2021

Have you ever wondered what birds were flying overhead while you slept or what critters crept through your yard unnoticed? The Terra Project is an exciting collaboration between bird guide author Scott Whittle , wildlife tracker manufacturer CTT , and non-profit Conservation Science Global. appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

North America 264

North America Science America Europe 264

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 25, 2022

Now, it is much easier for me to achieve first-time sightings of species in Europe than it is in Mexico, at this point of the game. This bird may be “common”, but it is also stunning. The Lesser Kestrel was another bird I may have seen before, but without proof. I, of course, love a good river delta.

Spain 188

Spain Mexico Europe North America 188

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

They may be about bird eggs ( The Most Perfect Thing: The Inside (and Outside) of a Bird’s Egg , 2016), or a 17th-century ornithologist ( Virtuoso by Nature: The Scientific Worlds of Francis Willughby, 2016), or How Bullfinches learn songs from humans ( The Wisdom of Birds: An Illustrated History of Ornithology.

Dissection 235

Dissection Birds Research Europe 235

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 29, 2020

Cuba (twice), South America (twice), Europe and Morocco (once) and Bali (once). But here is the truly tragic part: I was not birding during those years! These turkey-sized birds, named for their raucous calls, can muster an impressive level of volume. The White-throated Magpie-Jay: such a beautiful bird!

Birds 166

Birds 2006 Mexico Morocco 166

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 13, 2022

The late November to early December was the beginning of a dry season and no one wore rubber boots, all birding was done in lightweight hiking shoes. In Inírida – on older maps Puerto Inírida, there is no need for cages, you can hear birds all the time! Birds The local birdlist has reached 462 species, and some 30 more are expected.

Colombia 252

Colombia Birds Cooking Fish 252

10,000 Birds

MARCH 13, 2020

Not far from its capital Lisbon lies Cabo de Roca, the westernmost point in mainland Europe. Beyond that is the entire expanse of the Atlantic Ocean, stretching some six-hundred leagues west to Newfoundland — and even further to the mainland shores of North America.

2015 159

2015 Portugal France Europe 159

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2020

When it comes to one’s most exciting bird sightings, of course, it all comes down to context. I wouldn’t change my central Mexican endemics for any other region’s birds. So my favorites for 2019 includes a good number of birds that are rather common elsewhere, but were firsts for me. But it still is not easy.

Austria 153

Austria Spain 2019 Birds 153

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2022

Thank you, goddess of birding luck and text group people).* My inner self felt stuck in an area between disbelief and total joy and the voices near me were echoing this state of mind: “Oh My God,” “I never thought I would see this bird,” “Look at that bill!” “How did that bird get here?”

Birds 263

Birds Compassion Eagles Science 263

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 5, 2023

A new book about the angelic-looking, identification-stumping birds of the oceans, rivers, and marshes has finally been published! That would be Terns of Europe and North America by Klaus Malling Olsen and Hans Larsson, published in 1995, another fantastic book, but out-of-print and in need of an update. Tern lovers rejoice!

North America 218

North America America Species Groups 218

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 1, 2021

Fittingly, this revolutionary style is a product of Europe’s Age of Revolutions, being first introduced by the Austrian brewer Anton Dreher in 1841, at the beginning of what was perhaps the most tumultuous decade of the European nineteenth century. Good birding and happy drinking! Devils Backbone Brewing Company Vienna Lager.

Boston 190

Boston Austria Industry Europe 190

10,000 Birds

MARCH 9, 2023

Here’s an example: born and bred in Europe, I do not know much about the tropics, especially the bird-rich New World tropics. Yes, I had local bird books, but only during my second tour of Costa Rica did I finally buy a mammal guide, and only after my trip to Colombian Amazon did I obtain a habitat guide.

Costa Rica 247

Costa Rica Cougars Mammals Madagascar 247

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

David Tomlinson The recent announcement by the American Ornithological Society that it intends to replace names of all birds named after people has caused quite a stir here in the UK. I have a fascinating little reference book called Whose Bird? Collecting birds was clearly a dangerous pastime. We don’t need any more.

Falcons 234

Falcons Collecting 2003 Wounded 234

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2019

That was a work trip, although I still managed to find a few mornings to bird. This month we were able to go to Europe again, for our first real vacation in a few years. So you can bet some more birding was in order. An October trip meant many European birds had already flown south for the winter.

Switzerland 115

Switzerland Austria Europe Spain 115

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2015

Known as the Great Egret in the Americas, it was commonly referred to as the Great White Heron in the Old World. You see, the Great (White) Heron/Egret is a polytypic species with four subspecies: alba in Europe, egretta in the Americas, melanorhynchos in Africa, and modesta in Asia and Oceania. Just so you know.

Asia 185

Asia Europe Germany Breeding 185

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2019

Anyone in North America might know them as Cosmopolitan Butterfly. Any individuals found in Britain are immigrants or progeny of emigrants from Europe and Africa and thus receive exalted status. The post Painted Ladies appeared first on 10,000 Birds. The Aristocrat group is not a recognised classification group.

Ireland 125

Ireland South America North America Groups 125

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 18, 2015

I was laid out with a bad back last week, which didn’t really affect my birding as I wasn’t planning any at the time. And it did so in spectacular fashion, in the form of a mixed-species feeding flock, or a bird wave. Bird waves are a feature of birds all around the world. Cardinal Woodpecker.

South Africa 145

South Africa Tortoises Woodpeckers Birds 145

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

When doing some research for a presentation on cavity nesting birds of Northern California, I came upon a reference titled “ Cavity Nesting Birds of North American Forests.” ” My presentation consisted of several photographs of cavity nesting birds as well as videos, some mine, some from the internet.

Falcons 171

Falcons Pelicans Europe California 171

10,000 Birds

JULY 25, 2012

Throughout most of North America, European Starling is a four letter word. There are groups dedicated to species like Eastern Bluebirds and Purple Martins and with extensive writings on how to keep starlings at bay and even recommendations on how to legally trap and kill them should they drive away North American birds.

North America 153

North America Europe America Livestock 153

10,000 Birds

APRIL 3, 2018

Angela Minor has lived, traveled, and birded from the southern U.S. to the Rocky Mountains and beyond, Alaska, throughout the Caribbean, and in seven countries in Europe. This is Angela’s first contribution to 10,000 Birds. And years have passed since I first started a must-see list of birding hotspots around the US.

Texas 188

Texas North America Alaska America 188

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2015

I still know my audience - this is primarily a blog read by birders in North America, who see the term “squirrel” as little more than a synonym for house sparrow, starling, pest and cholera. Germany, like most of Europe and very much unlike North America, is home to only one species of squirrel.

Squirrels 162

Squirrels North America Germany Europe 162

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2019

Birders know that the pairing of farms and birds represents more than mere bucolic romance – it’s a match borne out of a real avian dependence on these man-made landscapes. Note the two birds flying over the wheatfield on the lefthand side. Historically, saison was a beer tied to time as much as it was to place.

Vermont 121

Vermont Belgium Farming Europe 121

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2019

I’m a long-time champion of the IOC World Bird List as a standard for bird names. They give short shrift to New Zealand’s birds, lumping them with odd names no one here uses because the names are shared elsewhere and God knows America isn’t going to take a hit for us.

Iran 134

Iran Barn Owls New Zealand Europe 134

10,000 Birds

JUNE 20, 2013

Clocking more than 50,000 miles per year, the birds appear to have cornered the market on the world’s longest annual migration. Perhaps because of threats to the ecosystems of the many places the Arctic Tern visits (Europe, Africa, South America, and North America), it may be on the decline.

Bald Eagle 189

Bald Eagle Pandas Puffins Bears 189

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2015

I’ve never been one to be overly concerned about whether a bird “counts” People, and organisations, have complex and elaborate rules about whether a bird you saw or heard actually is a bird you saw or heard, which seems a very unnecessary way to add complexity to an already complex hobby. Red Lechwe.

Botswana 162

Botswana Birds Lesotho Elephants 162

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 27, 2012

Such is the burden that a digiscoping bird blogger bears when he visits the Circle B Bar Reserve in Lakeland, Florida in January. Purple Gallinules live in marshes in the southeastern United States, Central America, northern South America, and the Caribbean. The images in this post include both fully mature and first-year birds.

United States 189

United States Florida South America Europe 189

10,000 Birds

JULY 15, 2017

As an adult, he still finds fascination in watching birds swallow seemingly impossible mouthfuls. Perch are a fresh water species of fish that are native to Europe and N. The Great Crested Grebe can be seen across much of the world, but not the Americas, which is a shame because you guys would love this bird.

Fish 100

Fish Asia America Suffering 100

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

NOVEMBER 8, 2017

Isn’t it a Eurasian bird?… No, I’d remember that, I didn’t see that many birds in France. Our Target Bird . Had the bird moved to a different area? I drove up to where now only two cars were parked, and saw Steve and Isaac, two New York birding friends, stood in the middle of the median.

New York 168

New York North America France Feral Cats 168

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2012

Its natural range in Europe was restricted the the surroundings of the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea, and in Asia it ranged from Asia Minor to central China. Within its European range, it was heavily hunted until the late 19th century, and the Mute Swan was subsequently a very rare bird to encounter in the wild.

Feral 171

Feral Europe Asia North America 171

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? I am talking 600 or 700+ bird species. Why am I here?

Sri Lanka 257

Sri Lanka Botswana Africa Serbia 257

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2019

I haven’t yet been birding in Europe but whenever I occasionally skim a field guide about the birds on the other side of the Atlantic, I’m always encouraged to find that I’m already familiar with many species found over there, even though most of my birding experience has been limited to eastern North America.

2017 118

2017 Portugal Rabbits Europe 118

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2016

In front of us, the river is two miles wide… and it is paved with birds: smaller groups of Greater White-fronted and Greylag Geese , numerous Mute Swans and Mallards , plus Eurasian Teals , Gadwalls , Common Pochards , a few Ferruginous and Tufted Ducks , Common Goldeneyes and several Smews. A goose hunt sounds like a WWII battle.

Geese 183

Geese Hunting Boars Birds 183

10,000 Birds

JULY 23, 2012

After all, North America has no native hedgehogs and seeing something so outside of our normal experience was pretty exciting, even if the little guy quickly headed for cover and refused to show itself for Clay Taylor, who came upon the scene a minute too late. Fine, my best bird was a White-backed Woodpecker , alright? …

Hedgehogs 170

Hedgehogs Hungary Opossums North America 170

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2013

Mousebirds (order Coliiformes) are one of the perennial puzzles in bird systematics. They do not look or act much like any other birds (my photo above shows a Speckled Mousebird , Colius striatus , in Nairobi, Kenya). But to what other birds are mousebirds related? Birds Africa genetics taxonomy and systematics'

Kenya 177

Kenya Parrots Africa North America 177

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 26, 2017

I have just returned from Costa Rica, the country about which I knew very little, despite it coming under my radar all the way back in 1999 when the “Africa – Birds & Birding” magazine published some of John Graham’s experiences from his visit in 1993. The unspoken words “to watch birds” were left hanging in the air.

Costa Rica 190

Costa Rica San Jose Serbia Europe 190

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 18, 2018

No matter where or when we bird, we have our targets. Our bogey or nemesis species, birds that we would opt to see over others. Back in the early days of birding with optics, I wonder if such wanted species would have been birds that were much more common in present times. This bird does indeed glow.

Costa Rica 101

Costa Rica Bald Eagle Eagles Birds 101