10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2011

…The talons went in through the helmet.&# Or so says cyclist Charlie Newhouse, one of many victims of a Swainson’s Hawk that is vigorously defending its nest in eastern Oregon. The hawk and its behavior is the subject of an article in the East Oregonian.

Bats 154

Bats Oregon 154

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2024

Mole – gentleman in black velvet I’ve seen lots of bats, but bat identification is tricky, even when armed with a bat detector. A few are easy, such as the Egyptian Fruit Bat, the largest bat we have in Europe. They are big, impressive bats that fly high. I’ve seen them in Cyprus.

Fur 202

Fur Boars Deer Estonia 202

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2022

Much smaller but no less deadly, a Bat Falcon dines on a bat in the mid-morning perched comfortably on a roadside stump. Look carefully at the background to discern the coastline of one of Trinidad’s legally protected offshore islands, Saut d’Eau.

Trinidad 263

Trinidad Venezuela Bats Woodpeckers 263

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2021

We only saw the first two, and in our effort to scour each broken limb for a perched raptor, we stumbled upon a Bat Falcon of all creatures. Bat Falcon in the now blazing sun. We kept our eyes peeled for any birds of prey – Savanna Hawk , Grey-lined Hawk and Common Black Hawk were all expected.

Sea Turtles 251

Sea Turtles Bats Turtles Trinidad 251

10,000 Birds

JULY 15, 2014

But did you know that there is a bat that specializes in eating birds that are migrating at night? Giant Bats Snatch Birds from Night Sky. But researchers have now found evidence of a giant European bat that is plucking migrating birds out of the night sky. First, and this is OLD news, dating to several years go.

Los Angeles 172

Los Angeles Bats Feral Cats New York City 172

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2021

Ok, maybe not the vampire bat…but some of the more “cuddly” species are actually quite easy to see. That’s quite the list of charismatic and unique wildlife to add to your potential list of sightings. Expect to see Giant Anteaters at any of the fantastic lodges in the Rupununi savannahs like the Waikin and Wichibai ranches.

Guyana 278

Guyana Otters South America Colombia 278

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

And there aren’t just cool birds rocking up, migratory bats do too. A Hoary Bat. Jen and I looking at said bat (piccie by Adam Brown). Birding bats California Farallon Islands seabirds whales' It was the autumn seas I was thinking about on the bus, however. You could even smell its breath! A wave goodbye.

Whales 157

Whales Whaling Sharks Bats 157

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

The massive eyes are really evident in the hand Chuck -will’s-widows feed predominantly on insects but they have been known to prey on birds and even bats too, swallowing these whole. When you get to witness the bizarre size of its mouth its not hard to see how these nightjars take advantage of these larger meals.

Florida 236

Florida South America United States North America 236

10,000 Birds

JUNE 5, 2024

Band-tailed Nighthawk On the way back to our lodge, we enjoyed views of both Greater and Lesser Bulldog Bats as they darted over the water in search of signs of fish. Yes, these bats use echolocation to detect the ripples made by fish that are either on or just below the surface of the water.

Guyana 207

Guyana Otters Trinidad Bats 207

10,000 Birds

JULY 2, 2021

From encouraging the presence of bats in their fields to control insect pests naturally, to the use of “green” manure to avoid a reliance on artificial fertilizers, Esporão is a company for whom environmental stewardship appears just as important as the products it sells.

2019 255

2019 Blackbirds Portugal Bats 255

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 22, 2020

Strictly speaking, Mammals of South Asia is not a field guide, because some larger groups (rodents, bats) cannot be identified down to a species level following the concise descriptions and a single illustration. Still, there should be no problem with larger species that allow for longer observation time (e.g. monkeys, deer, gazelles, etc.).

Mammals 175

Mammals Asia Sri Lanka Bhutan 175

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2015

Bats flying out of the Lazareva Cave, (c) Jovica Sjenicic. That “fire” refers to the median crown-stripe, but that is something I could not see from underneath.

Bats 211

Bats Squirrels Woodpeckers Game 211

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 2, 2014

With this weekend consumed by Halloween excitement, bats were more easily encountered than birds. How did you fare? Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was a relatively common species though it was uncommonly cooperative.

2014 168

2014 Bats New York Sparrows 168

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 19, 2011

Today starts the World Series where we face the formidable bats of the Texas Rangers and hope that the starting pitchers remember how to pitch and that the bats stay hot and the relievers as cold as penguins on ice.

St. Louis 155

St. Louis Milwaukee Bats Game 155

10,000 Birds

MAY 2, 2013

Keep your eyes to the skies and you may see more than you expect (like bats against a bright blue sky !). No time to talk… it’s May! Birds are on the wing in a big way. Corey and I will both be patrolling our respective corners of New York state in search of the newest avian arrivals. How about you?

Bats 153

Bats 2013 New York Birds 153

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 31, 2012

Next time you find the light fading and resign yourself to a night sky filled with owls and bats, remember that some diurnal denizens like to stay out late too. Red-tailed Hawks have a habit of hunting well into the night if there is any available light and the getting is good. Gophers that live near streetlights beware.

Gophers 166

Gophers Bats Owls Hunting 166

10,000 Birds

MAY 29, 2014

Keep your eyes to the skies for raptors attacking bats ( it happens !). The month of May is almost over, and its passing must be considered bittersweet. For some birders, the last few weeks were nothing less than the culminating event of a long year’s anxious wait. Migration can be that brilliant.

Bats 156

Bats 2014 Birds 156

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 27, 2021

But the Macao Sanctuary is not only characterized by its high diversity in birds, there are also around one hundred species of mammals, including bats, thirty species of frogs, fifteen species of snakes, and innumerable insects such as butterflies and dragonflies.

Costa Rica 236

Costa Rica Sanctuary Bats Woodpeckers 236

10,000 Birds

APRIL 30, 2022

Watch the skies and scan the forested canyon for White Hawk, Barred Hawk, Short-tailed Hawk, Gray Hawk, Swallow-tailed Kite , and Bat Falcon perched on snags. Cinchona and other sites on the same road can also be good for raptors. Make sure to scan the vultures and check every raptor in flight.

Costa Rica 259

Costa Rica Bats Birds India 259

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 6, 2011

Which is bad news for someone like me who still struggles with the fact that bats are mammals. Advances in optics, field guides, internet resources and now, apps, mean that there really is no excuse to be a horrible birder.

Science 266

Science North America Birds Legislation 266

10,000 Birds

JUNE 20, 2020

This is the only parrot in the Central Valley with a short tail, white crown, and bat-like flight whereby the wings are flapped below the plane of the body. Large numbers can occur in green space just outside of the greater metropolitan area especially where there are guava and other fruiting trees. White-fronted Parrot.

Parrots 265

Parrots Costa Rica San Jose Endangered Species 265

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2015

Flight has evolved multiple times; it has emerged in lizards, snakes, fish, bats, maybe bats again, distant relatives of primates, regular primates, rodents, and a few other unlikely taxa, in a rather half baked fashion, not “true” flight. It has evolved in non-vertebrate animals like insects more than once.

Rodents 185

Rodents Primates Bats Science 185

10,000 Birds

APRIL 8, 2019

As Kaufman shows, however, to birds and bats, they can be death machines. Eastern red bats, for only one example, may actually be attracted to wind turbines; and unlike birds, they are often killed by “barotrauma” – their inner organs explode from the drop in air pressure as the blade sweeps past.).

Ohio 195

Ohio Bats Legislature Ducks 195

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 8, 2013

It’s not just eagles, either; other bird and bat species also fall victim to the turbines.) As mentioned earlier in these pages , wind farms and eagles don’t always go well together—the birds, which often scan the ground for prey instead of looking straight ahead while they’re flying, thus don’t see wind turbines until it’s too late.

Eagles 165

Eagles Bald Eagle Farming Obama 165

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 27, 2018

Bat Falcon. Dressed to kill, the deadly Bat Falcon eats more than bats. Brilliant little birds, it’s a good thing they are tiny because if they were any bigger and more organized, hummingbirds would undoubtedly conquer the world. Not convinced? Just spend a good half hour watching hummingbirds feed in the same area.

Costa Rica 157

Costa Rica Bats Egypt Falcons 157

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 15, 2014

But be it a mouse, bird, bat, gecko, kitten … it’s a very bad way to go, and no creature should have to suffer death by torture. “My The Carolina Wren pictured above was caught in a Walmart in a trap set for rodents.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 279

Wildlife Rehabilitation Mice Rodents Rescue 279

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2016

At least one weekend a year, bats–particularly the vampiric kind–command more attention than birds, at least from most people. Nature lovers, on the other hand, find time for wildlife watching every weekend. Just be sure to choose a Halloween costume that doesn’t obscure your vision too much!

Cattle 156

Cattle 2016 Bats New York 156

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

This is where Gila Woodpecker and Yellow-breasted Chat meet Squirrel Cuckoo , Bat Falcon , and Black-throated Magpie-Jay. As the sun began to set, a flock of Mexican Parrotlets alighted in a tree with brilliant red bark, and we all noticed a Bat Falcon watching silently from a high perch above all the action down below.

Mexico 189

Mexico Costa Rica Arizona Bats 189

10,000 Birds

JULY 10, 2021

You don’t want to miss a Bat Falcon. The more birds you check out and see, the more end up being lifers. It worked for me on several occasions in Thailand, it will also help in Costa Rica. Maybe You Do Want to Look at Shorebirds and the Sea? No matter what brings you close to the sea, scoping could always turn up something new.

Costa Rica 262

Costa Rica Transported Parrots Thailand 262

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 4, 2021

Keep birding and you might see a White-tailed Kite hovering as it hunts rodents and one of the few Bat Falcons in the Valley might dash into view. Lesser numbers of other common birds also occur; birds like the Gray-crowned Yellowthroat , Inca Doves , saltators, Groove-billed Anis , and other species.

Costa Rica 251

Costa Rica Sparrows Rodents Rats 251

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2023

Photographing the Short-tailed Nighthawks involved exercises firstly in tracking their rapid, erratic and incredibly bat-like flight, and secondly in processing the remaining images once 99.99% were deleted. Once I looked through proper glass however, all doubt was blown to smithereens – it was a Bat Falcon.

Trinidad 130

Trinidad Bats Falcons Groups 130

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2014

And sure enough, the natural reservoir of Marlburg, an unpleasant relative of Ebola, was finally identified in was indeed a bat cave I had taken my parents to in Uganda. It’s nice to have an explanation of how deforestation in Queensland has lead to bats passing Hendra to people without having to be told that this is bad.

Humane 161

Humane Animal Ukraine Africa 161

10,000 Birds

MAY 23, 2021

Jochen Roeder, a former fellow 10,000 Birds writer who lives in Germany, says according to EU nature conservation directives it’s illegal to cut down trees during the spring and summer unless they are checked by an expert for nesting birds or resting bats. The companies have to cover the costs of hiring experts and consultants. Ah, Europe!

Wildlife Rehabilitation 264

Wildlife Rehabilitation Wildlife Laws Game 264

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 15, 2020

Sometimes, this one forages for insects and bats near street lights adjacent to forest. Not common but regular at various sites with larger areas of rainforest. Black-and-white Ow. One of several beautiful owls (aren’t they all?) that are fairly common in Costa Rica. Resplendent Quetzal. Broad-billed Motmot.

Costa Rica 231

Costa Rica Birds Panama Bats 231

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2021

Of course, various species of bats as well. Over fifteen different butterflies frequent our yard now, but I’m certain there are more as I’m not that good with insects in general. I’ve noted at least nine species of reptiles and amphibians, even our native opossum and squirrel.

Opossums 264

Opossums Barn Owls Reptiles Hunting 264

10,000 Birds

JUNE 12, 2011

Platypus have bills, bats and bugs can fly, and reptiles lay eggs, but only birds have feathers. Feathers are the unique ingredient when it comes to birds.

Reptiles 183

Reptiles Bats Eggs Humane 183

10,000 Birds

JULY 27, 2023

Nacho assured me that these bats are fruit-eaters. That was a relief, since Mexico is home to all three of the world’s vampire bat species. Also, vampire bats are very small, and these guys were BIG.) … or Golden-cheeked Woodpeckers. … or Green Herons. As you can see, they were roosting in a tree, not a cave.

Bats 130

Bats Mexico ALA 2019 130