10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2012

The newest bird on the brink to capture her fertile imagination is the California Condor, on which she graciously shares her research and ruminations: Sometimes as a writer you recognize there’s been something overlooked in your midst—something quietly abiding. Their hallmark: They don’t kill.

California Condor 208

California Condor California Idaho North America 208

10,000 Birds

JULY 5, 2016

I love condors and vultures. They get a bad rap due to their dependence on carrion to survive, but I look at it a different way: these species do not have to kill in order to thrive! Columbia has chosen one of the world’s most massive flying species as its national bird: the Andean Condor. Most humans cannot say that.

California Condor 100

California Condor Livestock Endangered Species Killing 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 8, 2013

The Cherokee nation called them “Peace Eagles” owing to the fact that they never killed a living thing – and also that they tended to show up in numbers after battled when peace treaties were being signed, though admittedly that may have been for a slightly more macabre reason. California Condor , photo by Sheridan Woodley.

California Condor 181

California Condor Turkey North America Jordan 181

Animal Person

NOVEMBER 21, 2010

And managing means killing them, breeding them, and otherwise fiddling with their populations. Here's the good news: This is a very readable explanation of how animals in the Hundred Heartbeat Club (there are 100 or fewer individuals in the wild today) got to be in the club. This is all very unveganly, but I went for it nevertheless.

Polar Bears 100

Polar Bears California Condor Bald Eagle Lions 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2020

Elizabeth Bradfield’s “Buried Birds” muses on seabirds as a way of understanding feelings of difference, giving one of the book’s finest quotes: “We resonate with certain animals, I believe, because they are physical embodiment of an answer we are seeking.

New York City 187

New York City Birds Owls Fox 187