10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 16, 2019

There’s so much more that can be said about this group of birds but that’s the first description that comes to mind. However, as DNA and morphological studies have indicated, despite the barbets of Asia and Africa looking quite like the ones in the Americas, they aren’t closely related to each other.

Costa Rica 175

Costa Rica Colombia South America Ecuador 175

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2014

By checking my Facebook feed on a daily basis, I had a broad idea about birds arriving into different countries in Central and South America. I have Facebook friends and belong to multiple bird related Facebook groups throughout South America. Black-throated Blue Warbler. This is by no means an exact science. Cerulean Warbler.

South America 162

South America Colombia Peru Chile 162

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2013

A friend of mine told me, she has been seeing small groups of Swallow-tailed Kites ( Elanoides furficatus ) in the general area; in south Florida. Of all migratory birds breeding in North America, Swallow-tailed Kites are among the first to leave for the wintering grounds. Then, they keep flying south overland to western Colombia.

Florida 241

Florida Cuba Colombia 2004 241

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2020

Its historical year-round range stretches from extreme northwestern Colombia to northern Mexico, with migration into the southwestern United States in the summer. In fact, this is not even a particularly large group. This is a rather typical group size for Bronzed Cowbirds. So there you are. Native versus invasive species?

Birds 156

Birds Blackbirds Mexico Cattle 156

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2015

This bunch of possible Costa Rican crypto birds can be grouped into four main categories: (1). A species that lives in both Costa Rica and South America but might be two separate species. (3). However, the paper didn’t deal with birds from southern Central America. A Common Chlorospingus from Costa Rica.

Costa Rica 219

Costa Rica Species South America America 219

10,000 Birds

APRIL 9, 2013

A Long-tailed Sylph, one of the America’s many long tailed hummingbird species, photographed in Colombia by Adam Riley. They have been classified in various groups, from Australian honeyeaters, to starlings, sunbirds and babblers, before finally being placed in their unique family. Other long tailed birds.

Papua New Guinea 245

Papua New Guinea South Africa Africa Zimbabwe 245

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2013

Waxwings and their relatives are a small, interesting group of songbirds that have seen some interesting taxonomic changes in the last few years. The Palmchat has long been grouped with waxwings and silky-flycatchers based on morphological similarities, and genetic work has confirmed the relationship. Meet the bombycillids: Palmchat.

Saudi Arabia 222

Saudi Arabia 2008 Indonesia Groups 222

10,000 Birds

APRIL 15, 2011

It is not limited to North America, as many of my other quizzes are. EXTRA CREDIT Name a guide or a group that you would recommend using when visiting. This week’s quiz is geographically GLOBAL in nature. Your objective is to determine the correct country and then answer the questions shown at the bottom of the quiz.

2011 150

2011 Myanmar Bolivia Venezuela 150

10,000 Birds

JULY 20, 2019

How about Steely-vented Hummingbird in Colombia? Split from birds in northern Central America (the White-faced Ground-Sparrow ), the Cabanis’s becomes a very special bird. Split from the Three-striped Warbler of South America, yet another species is added to the list of birds only found in the mountains of Costa Rica and Panama.

Costa Rica 202

Costa Rica Birds Owls South America 202

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 6, 2011

Approximately 2,300 bird species inhabit Africa, however as impressive as that sounds, much smaller South America boasts nearly 1,000 species more. I cannot but admit that South America is the “bird continent” but as Peter Kaestner, one of the world’s top listers, so eloquently put it, Africa is nevertheless the “birding continent”.

Papua New Guinea 227

Papua New Guinea Madagascar Africa Equatorial Guinea 227

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2020

Like a shy stepchild, it’s always eclipsed by the wonders of Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, etc. But, the numbers are quite large, and the birds organized in groupings that, for the most part, make it an easy process to figure out which Antwren (or Woodcreeper or Seedeater) is which.

Bolivia 178

Bolivia Birds Brazil Switzerland 178

Animal Person

AUGUST 6, 2009

In writing my new book Hoodwinked (Random House, Nov 2009 publication date), I recently visited Central America. Memories are short in the US, but not in Central America. Romeo Vasquez, who led it, is an alumnus of the United States' School of the Americas (renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation).

Honduras 100

Honduras Los Angeles Obama 2009 100