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Best Bird of the Year 2014

10,000 Birds

The experience, the place, and the bird combine to make this my BBOTY. But at any rate, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that was just incomparable; I hope I never repeat it, but was glad to have had it happen, just to enjoy the amazing encounter and horror movie–type buzz. Carlos’s BBOTY – the Nicobar Pigeon.

2014 183
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The Domestic Turkey and the First Thanksgiving

10,000 Birds

There are a lot of other large Galliforme birds around the world, and before the Spanish were busy conquering the New World, one of these, from Central Asia most likely, was already being imported as a food product and as live birds into Europe. The Spanish Colonial Experience and Domestic Animals. This is where they got their name.

Turkey 198
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What the Owl Knows: The New Science of the World’s Most Enigmatic Birds: A Book Review

10,000 Birds

I’m sure many of you have had similar experiences. I’m wondering as I write if you are shaking your head, uneasy that all these FACTS will interfere with your love of observing owls, an experience that easily borders on the mystical for some of us. But what do we know beyond these commonly seen and heard behaviors?

Owls 200
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The Glitter in the Green: In Search of Hummingbirds–A Hummer Book Review

10,000 Birds

In 2012, I reviewed The Jewel Hunter , an absorbing narrative in which author Chris Goodie travelled throughout Asia, Africa, and Australasia to observe and photograph every Pitta species in the world. Like all talented travel writers, Dunn is adept at drawing us into his experiences.

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Birds of Paradise and Bowerbirds: An Identification Guide?A Book Review

10,000 Birds

Also of use, as Gregory points out in the Introduction, is his experience with painting birds of iridescence, having painted a whole book on sunbirds! The material is meticulously documented with citations of monographs by Clifford and Dawn Frith and Bruce Beehler plus additional research papers and materials. and Sicklebill Safaris.

Guinea 260
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Pulling Birds at Panti Forest in Malaysia

10,000 Birds

Asia is home to all kinds of cuckoos, but none are as elaborately colorful as malkohas with those gaudy faces and painted bills. All in all, a memorable Malaysian experience. Con is a master at his craft and an uncanny resource on the birds of Singapore, Malaysia, and much of Asia. Bats under a rocky overhang.

Malaysia 170
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The Jewel Hunter: A Book Review About One Birder’s Quest for Pittas and Beer

10,000 Birds

I get my own idea of the lunacy of Gooddie’s quest when I talk to a friend who has birded Asia and Africa. Beer looms large in Gooddie’s daily routine, and much text is devoted to finding beer in the middle of rural Asia and evaluating its quality. I’m reading a book about a man who is doing a Pitta Big Year,” I say.

Hunters 187