10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

These arid hills, cloaked in a mosaic of deciduous scrub and desert vegetation, form a northern outpost for several Neotropical species while also harboring several key endemics and southwestern Nearctic species. I had point blank life views of this tricky species from within a few feet.

Mexico 186

Mexico Costa Rica Arizona Birds 186

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 19, 2018

The crunch is on, and with less than two weeks left in the year, we are trying to squeeze out as many more species as possible. Last week, we quite impulsively jumped in a rental car and drove 2600 miles round trip to south Texas to pick up 34 new species. L ittle Big Year species – 1280. Bahama species – 38.

Bahamas 113

Bahamas Tucson El Paso Texas 113

10,000 Birds

MARCH 2, 2021

Ranging in color from off-white to dingy black, with pastel to gelatinous shades of yellow, orange, purple, and brown in-between, found in moist crevasses, decaying trees, rain-soaked pastures, mushrooms lack the beauty of butterflies and wildflowers cannot equal the action of bats, or flying fish, and certainly lack the spiritual zest of birds.

North America 246

North America America Species 2018 246

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2017

The guide presents 69 species and 1 subspecies, from “NEW WORLD VULTURES: Cathartiformes” to “OSPREY: Pandioninae” to “FAMILY: Accipitridae” (Kites, Hawks, Eagles, Hawk-Eagles), to “FALONIDS: Falconidae” (Falcons, Forest-Falcons, Caracaras, Kestrels, Merlin). Here’s a sample of Plate 30, Bat Falcon and Orange-Breasted Falcon (pp.

Mexico 155

Mexico America North America Falcons 155

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Many Neotropical families and genera have some of their northernmost members here, such as the spinetails ( Rufous-breasted Spinetail ), Tangara tanagers ( Azure-rumped Tanager ), and guans ( Horned Guan ). the species suffering most from deforestation). This is a fascinating area of transition. We were off to a great start.

Honduras 207

Honduras Costa Rica El Salvador Arizona 207

10,000 Birds

JULY 22, 2017

Birds with white on them are much more likely to take the form of goodies like the Snowy Cotinga , or two species of tityras. The Caribbean slope of Costa Rica also differs from the islands in having a lot more bird species. The Bat Falcon that joined us for breakfast. . I recommend staying there but what about the birds?

Costa Rica 100

Costa Rica San Jose Bats Birds 100

10,000 Birds

JULY 16, 2014

The animals aren’t quite so closely packed as Hollywood can manage, and they tend towards slightly smaller species, in general, but still, its impressive. At nighttime this allowed some impromptu spotlighting, and we found many spiders, insects, bats as well as a Lesser Mousedeer and a sleeping Malaysian Flycatcher.

Rhinoceros 167

Rhinoceros Apes Elephants Monkeys 167

10,000 Birds

APRIL 13, 2016

South Island specifically, and in fact it was the marked difference between the young birds of this species and the North Island Saddlback that alerted scientists to the fact that they were two separate species. Jackbirds are young South Island Saddlebacks. This adult still has some brown on the neck, but fully developed wattles.

New Zealand 103

New Zealand Parrots Rats Bats 103

10,000 Birds

MAY 6, 2016

Rehabbers are very responsive, although constantly living under the gun makes us sometimes vent about species that aren’t necessarily the ones in question. Bats just love to fly into human hair!” Three: Why would anyone , no matter what their species, want to become tangled in human hair? Porcupines throw their quills!

Wildlife Rehabilitation 172

Wildlife Rehabilitation Porcupines Raccoons Birds 172

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2017

When it comes to a one stop shopping for food and shelter, no other plant is as widely used as the Cardon Cactus family. Members of the genus Pachycereus , there are a couple of species which are quite prevalent here on the southern Baja. Once the fruit is ripe, it becomes a primary source for many species.

Elephants 104

Elephants Woodpeckers Squirrels Shelters 104

10,000 Birds

APRIL 13, 2015

Its great diversity of habitats hosts an incredible bird count of over 900 species, including Africa’s 2nd highest list of endemics and near-endemics (after South Africa). Quality time was spent with a friendly Hamar family at their homestead of grass huts surrounding their cattle corral. Yellow-billed Stork.

Ethiopia 235

Ethiopia Sudan Leopards Game 235

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 30, 2013

Also known as the Flyeater, this tiny bird is the only representative of the Australasian warbler family found in mainland Asia, and very similar to my own Grey Warblers in New Zealand, even their songs. Straight off the bat we found a Little Grebe and a small flock of distant Cotton Pygmy-geese !

Thailand 102

Thailand New Zealand Family Bats 102

10,000 Birds

APRIL 23, 2014

We toured the Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre after dark, and we did it by foot in a group that was just my family and a guide. We found some more sleeping birds, lots of frogs, and a Lesser Mousedeer – a new species for me! Decidedly so, you might say. Sepilok was the first, and to my mind probably the best.

Badgers 154

Badgers Wildlife Reptiles Monkeys 154

10,000 Birds

JULY 27, 2023

When you have birded a single area as much and for as long as I have birded Michoacán, it becomes progressively harder to find first-time species (“lifers”) there. I had seen several species turn up in new and unexpected places there, but none of them were birds that I had never seen before. … or Green Herons.

Bats 130

Bats Mexico ALA 2020 130

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2023

As mentioned in many other posts on this blog, the avifauna of Trinidad & Tobago consists of several species and family groups occurring very interestingly, in threes. Short-tailed Nighthawk (above and below) Overall, this species seems to be poorly known, which is understandable given its habits. Well, kind of.

Trinidad 130

Trinidad Bats Falcons Groups 130

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

That larger clade is in turn sister to a clade containing the four remaining totipalmate bird families, which do still seem to be related, and which needed a new order name once pelicans were removed. But meanwhile, let’s look at the four avian families that comprise the brand new order Suliformes.

2011 151

2011 Pelicans Papua New Guinea Birds 151

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 22, 2020

Despite depicting 540 species/56 families, it is a lightweight book of 173 pages, easy to pack and carry. Mammals of South Asia follows the latest taxonomy, describes all the species recorded within the region and provides a range map for each species. Larger species, that is, excluding dolphins and whales.

Asia 173

Asia Mammals Sri Lanka Bhutan 173

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2017

This was a wonderful re-introduction to the desert species I was seeking. I managed to get some video of this greedy thrasher before a family walked down the path, and you can view it here. As I drove through Papago Park to the Garden, I spotted coveys of Gambel’s Quail, parents herding exuberant chicks.

Arizona 102

Arizona Lovebirds Phoenix New Jersey 102

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2021

With that logic those trees, if left to grow, should produce something of use to at least one or two species of birds. It’s been some years since I’ve seen any Short-tailed Hawks as the entire valley is now overrun with concrete – but I’m trying my best to create some sort of oasis for any species.

Opossums 264

Opossums Barn Owls Hunting Reptiles 264

4 The Love Of Animals

MARCH 17, 2011

Elephants, whales, hippopotamuses, giraffes, and alligators use low-frequency sounds to communicate over long distances, often miles; and bats, dolphins, whales, frogs, and various rodents use high-frequency sounds to find food, communicate with others, and navigate. Paul says, “He would lick my face, or cry gently, or bark even.

Emotional 100

Emotional Animal Whales Whaling 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2013

We got good looks at Yellow-breasted , Crimson-breasted , Yellow-vented , and Orange-bellied Flowerpeckers along with more mundane representatives of the sunbird family, Plain Sunbird and Thick-billed Spiderhunter. Anyone considering a visit to Panti Forest should be enticed by the five different species that might be seen there.

Malaysia 170

Malaysia Singapore Monkeys Birds 170

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 18, 2016

Primates are exceptional among the mammals, living amphibians (which represent only a small part of the original amphibian family tree) are pretty noisy too. So, probably, there were things we would have to call birds that were less like modern birds in how they flew than are modern bats. The type species is Vegavis iaai.

Groups 169

Groups Collecting Primates Bats 169

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2019

beats have still managed to share 82 checklists and accounted for 737 species. Bat Falcon – Falco rufigularis. To get as close as I can to a true reflection of species collaboratively collected by the beats, I update the post just before kissing my family goodbye and heading to the airport. CR-Cariblanco.

2019 118

2019 Jamaica Eggs Woodpeckers 118

10,000 Birds

MARCH 7, 2018

I have now flown to New Zealand, in search of as many new bird species as I can track down, at a semi-pedestrian pace, mixed with some normal tourist activities. Right off the bat, there dozens of Red-billed Gulls , along with a couple of Black-billed Gulls, and several Black-backed Gulls. It’s all about March 1st. It is gone.

New Zealand 100

New Zealand Los Angeles Seattle Parrots 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 18, 2012

The lake was filled with families of Dusky Moorhens and Purple Swamphens (or Pukeko as we call them in New Zealand), all tending small groups of black chicks. Magpie-larks are neither magpies nor larks but are the largest of the monarch-flycatchers, and the most terrestrial of the family.

New Zealand 170

New Zealand Ducks Australia Japan 170

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2014

This is not to say, however, that birders on holiday are, should they choose to travel with family, friends or other assorted loved ones, resigned to seeing nothing, or even nothing except the common stuff. I was thus able to pick an off-the-shelf ecotourism route and, having selected a company, customise it to my family’s needs.

Birds 180

Birds Bats Elephants Family 180

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

This outstanding member of the wattlebird family is unique among songbirds in having different shaped beaks for each of the sexes. We’ll also keep our eyes open for several members of the New Zealand wren family. This species, the smallest, is endemic to North Island and should be fairly common in the wet lowland forests.

New Zealand 194

New Zealand Ducks Australia Mountain Goats 194