10,000 Birds

JANUARY 18, 2020

The prospect of identifying a certain number of species in a given amount of time pushes us to pay more attention to birds no matter what the circumstances (although I suggest keeping the exclamations about species identifications to yourself during such solemn situations as funerals, graduations, and watching episodes of The Sopranos).

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica 2020 Morals Farming 264

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2021

9 beats from 8 countries (Australia, USA, UK, Serbia, Costa Rica, China, Trinidad and Tobago and Mexico), shared 138 checklists for 703 species. The year list to date is 1015 species and 7 have been added to the life list ( 4059 ) from Costa Rica, China and Trinidad and Tobago. 10 Wood Duck – Aix sponsa.

Woodpeckers 203

Woodpeckers Sparrows Ducks Parrots 203

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2020

149 checklists were submitted, accounting for 465 species. Wood Duck (Aix sponsa). Eastern Spot-billed Duck (Anas zonorhyncha). American Black Duck (Anas rubripes). Mallard x American Black Duck (hybrid) (Anas platyrhynchos x rubripes). Mallard x American Black Duck (hybrid) (Anas platyrhynchos x rubripes).

2020 156

2020 Sparrows Niger Woodpeckers 156

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 2, 2021

The year list ends on a provisional 1803 species from 1608 checklists submitted by 12 beats from 16 countries. Most species-prolific was Patrick in Costa Rica, followed by Paul from Mexico. December’s beats found 609 birds after submitting 116 checklists from 8 countries (USA, UK, Costa Rica, China, Mexico, Serbia and Australia).

2020 247

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Parrots 247

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 16, 2021

Watching Baltimore Orioles consort with Blue-gray Tanagers as Great Kiskadees throw down their wings and yell is the perfect start to any day. We have nearly 930 species on the official list and with some effort, 700 in a year is a feasible goal. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis; Tirimbina, 9-Jan.

Costa Rica 171

Costa Rica Birds Parrots Woodpeckers 171

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2021

9 beats submitted 140 checklists from 7 countries (USA, UK, Costa Rica, Serbia, Australia, Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago) during October to account for 585 species. 2 Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. 3 Fulvous Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna bicolor. 11 Wood Duck – Aix sponsa.

Woodpeckers 255

Woodpeckers Sparrows Blackbirds Ducks 255

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 4, 2021

They birded 7 countries during August and recorded 542 species. The year list remains sluggish at 1489 , but the life list received a boost from the eBird taxonomy reshuffle and now includes 4076 species. Stay vigilant and safe. 10 of the beats have submitted 124 checklists which are collated below for your perusal.

Woodpeckers 225

Woodpeckers Sparrows Blackbirds California 225

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2020

The 83 checklists submitted during July contained 459 species. Fulvous Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna bicolor. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa. Eastern Spot-billed Duck – Anas zonorhyncha. American Black Duck – Anas rubripes. American Black Duck – Anas rubripes.

2020 160

2020 Sparrows Blackbirds Woodpeckers 160

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 2, 2021

11 beats have been out this month and have submitted 136 checklists from 7 countries ticking 634 species. 2 Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. 3 Muscovy Duck – Cairina moschata. 421 American Black Duck – Anas rubripes. 422 Ruddy Duck – Oxyura jamaicensis.

Woodpeckers 230

Woodpeckers Sparrows Parrots Blackbirds 230

10,000 Birds

APRIL 3, 2021

Our brave beats have been putting themselves at risk for your vicarious listing pleasure and 10 of them submitted 151 checklists for 692 species, 2 of which made it onto the life list. Please be careful, Corvid is still out there. Marsh Grassbird and Rufous-faced Warbler come to you all the way from China and bring the life list to 4061.

Sparrows 164

Sparrows Woodpeckers Blackbirds Ducks 164

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 23, 2016

On the other side of the weather coin, now that I live in Costa Rica, the first month of the year also means warm sunny days punctuated by windy weather, and migrants like Yellow Warblers and Baltimore Orioles sharing green space with Blue-gray Tanagers and other avian locals. American Black Duck – Anas rubripes; Niagara county, 2-Jan.

Costa Rica 102

Costa Rica 2016 San Antonio Sparrows 102

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2019

In the following year, American telegraph pioneer Samuel Morse encountered such difficulty in his original plan to lay underground telegraph cable between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. But history doesn’t seem to have recorded which species of bird first dared to land on an electrical wire.

United States 120

United States Game North America New York City 120

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 14, 2018

He quickly starts pointing our different species that are all around us, with exceptional and obvious knowledge. This pair of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks hung around just long enough for a quick photo before heading out quickly. Costa Rica species – 273. eBird submissions – 347.

Costa Rica 113

Costa Rica Falcons Mexico Groups 113

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2024

And the Baltimore Oriole is an iconic eastern bird, which winters along Mexico’s east coast, but never in the west. This was only my fourth encounter with the species (all on the east side). He should have visited my home last month, when both species were visiting my birdbath almost daily. And yet, there it was.

Mexico 221

Mexico Birds Raccoons Baltimore 221

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2019

To surpass a challenging number of species, the planning, the conniving for major birding should have begun back in the past, in 2018. Every day counts and to seriously maximize the species total, a birder needs to maximize time in the field at the most productive places during the most productive times and then some.

Costa Rica 113

Costa Rica 2019 Parrots Woodpeckers 113

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 9, 2020

For, in birder lingo, a split occurs when subspecies are determined to be, in fact, entirely separate species. If you happen to have seen both species, your life list can increase without you even leaving the house. Two former species can also be joined into one, the same way. These are a male and a female Mexican Ducks.

San Diego 194

San Diego San Francisco Mexico Baltimore 194

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 4, 2020

They contributed 150 lists accounting for 1032 species and more than 36,000 individual birds. Thus 100 species were missed by the time he woke up and noticed that eBird had reset the counters at midnight(do you guys have nothing better to do?). White-faced Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna viduata. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa.

2019 190

2019 Chile Texas Sanctuary 190

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2018

The pressure is on if you can only get certain species during the first month of the year but if you just want to add any old birds to the year list, everything is fresh! Since I’m in no big hurry to reach any number of species in 2018, my year birding is going to be a fresh one hopefully touched with a good dose of Zen.

Costa Rica 175

Costa Rica Birds Parrots Woodpeckers 175

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2019

beats have still managed to share 82 checklists and accounted for 737 species. Long-tailed Duck – Clangula hyemalis. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa. Baltimore Oriole – Icterus galbula. Indian Spot-billed Duck – Anas poecilorhyncha. American Black Duck – Anas rubripes. 01 Jun 2019.

2019 125

2019 Jamaica Eggs Woodpeckers 125

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2014

A Baltimore Oriole peers out of her hanging basket nest at her mate, while a male Indigo Bunting sings from his cup-like nest balanced in the branches of a shrub. So, the Eastern Kingbird ”is one of the Tyrant Flycatchers, Tyrannidae –America’s largest bird family–365 different species.”

Betty Crocker 170

Betty Crocker Birds 2008 2007 170

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2019

They accounted for 562 species at this sluggish time of year. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. Fulvous Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna bicolor. Muscovy Duck – Cairina moschata. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa.

2019 123

2019 Sparrows Woodpeckers Idaho 123

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 21, 2017

Nevertheless, I still have over 232 species including the latest addition- a Striped Owl heard from my bedroom window as it called into a moonlit night. With luck, this bird list will also see species from other countries, I hope “wherever else” ends up referring to Colombia and Brazil!

Costa Rica 106

Costa Rica 2017 Woodpeckers Parrots 106

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2020

At time of writing (usually a couple of days early to avoid the deadline panic), UK is fielding 63 species. 1 Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. 8 Wood Duck – Aix sponsa. 14 American Black Duck – Anas rubripes. 17 Tufted Duck – Aythya fuligula.

2020 166

2020 Costa Rica Blackbirds Sparrows 166

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2020

They noted 719 species between them. 2 Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. 3 Fulvous Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna bicolor. 9 Muscovy Duck – Cairina moschata. 10 Wood Duck – Aix sponsa. 20 Mexican Duck – Anas diazi. 21 American Black Duck – Anas rubripes.

2020 297

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Blackbirds 297

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 2, 2019

172 lists were shared and 1004 species were seen, both records for October, so well done beats! African Black Duck – Anas sparsa. White-faced Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna viduata. Mandarin Duck – Aix galericulata. Tufted Duck – Aythya fuligula. American Black Duck – Anas rubripes.

2019 126

2019 China Battery Jamaica 126

10,000 Birds

MAY 1, 2021

9 beats submitted 172 checklists from 7 countries (UK, USA, Costa Rica, Australia, Serbia, China and Trinidad and Tobago) for 640 species. The list for the year has reached 1276 and the life list has been stretched to 4066 with red ticks from China, Australia and Trinidad and Tobago, thanks to Kai, Claire and Grant and Faraaz respectively.

Woodpeckers 158

Woodpeckers Sparrows Blackbirds Ducks 158

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 7, 2020

They submitted 124 checklists for 671 species of bird. In particular 272 species were noted from 14 checklists submitted on October 17th, eBird’s October Big Day. 158 Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. 159 Muscovy Duck – Cairina moschata. 233 Falcated Duck – Mareca falcata.

2020 132

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Parrots 132

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 20, 2015

The warm, sunny climate beckons a wide variety of passerines, raptors, and shorebirds to spend the winter, inflating the species diversity to the extent that Miami-Dade can go toe-to-toe with counties in Texas and Arizona during this season. Can we hit 200 ABA-countable species in four days next year? Muscovy Duck (Domestic type): 322.

Miami 171

Miami 2015 United States Birds 171

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

“Birding Over Time” compares the number of species recorded over a month with that month from previous years. Fulvous Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna bicolor. Mexican Duck – Anas diazi. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa. Eastern Spot-billed Duck – Anas zonorhyncha. Management ?)

2020 152

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Blackbirds 152

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2021

The beats are famed for their inclusion on the nice side of the ledger and this month 9 of them shared 163 lists from 7 countries (Australia, Costa Rica, USA, UK, Serbia, China and Trinidad and Tobago) and accounted for 735 bird species. Mike doubled up with “smushed”, a new addition to the adjective list.

Sparrows 208

Sparrows Woodpeckers Ducks Parrots 208

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 2, 2021

The year list ends on a provisional (some beats will be birding ’til the final whistle to try and salvage a ravaged year) 1803 species from 1602 checklists submitted by 12 beats from 16 countries. Imagine that, 13 lists per year where once there were only 12.

2020 241

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Ducks 241

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2019

Whatever it was, Corey was found at his keyboard 2 hours later, covered in blood and snot and sporting a cut lip, having announced that he and Mike would rescue the failing list by taking personal responsibility for adding 300 species. Blue-billed Duck – Oxyura australis. Musk Duck – Biziura lobata. calle jocote.

2019 146

2019 Farming Sparrows Charlotte 146

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2020

This shows the top birders, by species or checklists submitted. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna autumnalis. Muscovy Duck – Cairina moschata. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa. Maned Duck – Chenonetta jubata. Pacific Black Duck – Anas superciliosa. La Selva (OTS Reserve).

2020 166

2020 Wildlife Reserve Tigers Wildlife 166

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2019

In publishing the most current thinking, eBird have become the month’s biggest contributor to the life list, expanding it by 7 brand new species and pushing it to 3774. 7 species were added to the life list in the time-honoured fashion of actually identifying the birds in the field. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa.

2019 120

2019 Arizona Ghana Tucson 120

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2019

A gathering of the beats at the “Hot Duck” barbeque. The engaged and generous beats ( 10 of them) have shared 188 checklists during January and have accounted for 859 species from 8 countries (USA, Australia, Costa Rica, Brazil, Argentina, UK, New Zealand and Serbia. Plumed Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna eytoni.

2019 113

2019 Australia Jamaica Sparrows 113

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2017

Last year they shared over 1200 checklists and managed to achieve a stunning total of 2647 species from 32 countries. Last year’s magnificent total of 2647 species is the target to beat, but other results could prove interesting. 1499 species were seen in the eastern hemisphere in 2016. Wood Duck – Aix sponsa.

2017 100

2017 Australia Sanctuary Woodpeckers 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 4, 2019

April was a busy time for the beats with 10 of them contributing 164 lists to accumulate 744 species from 7 countries; Costa Rica, USA, Australia, Serbia, UK, Brazil and Barbados. Plumed Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna eytoni. Pacific Black Duck – Anas superciliosa. Pink-eared Duck – Malacorhynchus membranaceus.

2019 113

2019 Australia Ghana Woodpeckers 113