article thumbnail

The Hidden Qualities of House Sparrows

10,000 Birds

The genus Passer has several well-recognized and recognizable species in Europe, and still holds several enigmas. These subspecies can be divided into two major clades, the domesticus group and the indicus group, with the indicus group occupying south and parts of central Asia.

Sparrows 224
article thumbnail

The other Great Egrets

10,000 Birds

Recent research however has shown it to be more closely linked to Ardea -herons. 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. But we’re far from done with the confusion.

Asia 183
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Trending Sources

article thumbnail

Yellow-billed Kites in South Africa

10,000 Birds

It is now treated as its own species, confined to Africa and the tip of Arabia (Black Kites also migrate here from Europe and Asia). I was told by some researchers that in Botswana trackers watch for this species when looking for Painted Wolves (or African Wild Dogs) as they follow packs to snatch up prey and scraps.

article thumbnail

15 expat-friendly countries for a birder to move to

10,000 Birds

I live in the southeast of Europe, for a while lived in the south of Africa and also have extensively birded western and central India. Here where I live – in one of the bird-richest corners of Europe, but I miss the species diversity of my yester years. Map by BirdLife International. I am talking 600 or 700+ bird species.

Sri Lanka 257
article thumbnail

Common Gallinule, the lost Moorhen

10,000 Birds

I felt like I needed to do some research into why this change occurred. The Common Gallinule , is the most wide spread of all the members of the rail family, being found from Canada, to Chile, Europe, Asia, Africa, much of the Pacific, and the Galapagos Islands. That is all I have ever known them to be.

Chile 100
article thumbnail

Birding Hongbenghe, Yunnan

10,000 Birds

It seems that this is another species for which the standard phrase of scientists anywhere, “more research needed”, applies. One would think that for a species as common in Europe as the Grey-headed Woodpecker , the HBW would spend some effort to update the species entry.

Birds 147
article thumbnail

The Domestic Turkey and the First Thanksgiving

10,000 Birds

Some time after the Spanish encounter with the Turkey, birds were brought back to Europe where they were raised and became an important source of food and fancy feathers. This is where they got their name. They became known as “Turkie Fowl” (spelling varies) because they were coming from the general direction of Turkey. According to R.D.

Turkey 208