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The Domestic Turkey and the First Thanksgiving

10,000 Birds

This is the time of year that we rightfully contemplate the noble Turkey. Thus, the cattle we raise for meat and dairy are sometimes called Bos taurus while the extinct wild form is always called Bos primigenius. Photograph of a Wild Turkey at Flatrock Brook Nature Center, in Englewood, New Jersey, by Corey.

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The return of the Old Man

10,000 Birds

There’s something wonderfully primeval about the Northern Bald Ibis: it has the look of a bird that really ought to be extinct. The fact that it’s not is quite surprising, as this curious bird has come very close to the brink. Nesting is now confined to Morocco, irregularly in Boghari in Algeria and in Birecik, Turkey.” (The

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Planning and executing birding plans in the times of corona-virus

10,000 Birds

Like many of you, I had plans for this year’s spring migration: to bird the very best tour of the Balkans, heading for northeastern Greece. From there to the nearby Evros River Delta, at the very border with Turkey, with more easterly species such as the Spur-winged Plover. And off birding I went.

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The Usual Suspects

10,000 Birds

I often find myself discussing this subject with my birder friends in other regions of Mexico, when they excitedly comment on seeing a bird that I could see any day, anywhere — or vice versa. Cattle Egrets are very common outside of the most urbanized areas. As I commented above, these are dime-a-dozen birds down here.

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I and the Bird: What is a Vulture?

10,000 Birds

Birds are supposed to have feathers and birds without feathers look incomplete, like they left home with shaving cream on their ear and toothpaste spots on their shirt. The smellier the better, particularly as, unusually for birds, many species can boast a robust sense of smell. Griffon Vulture , photo by Alan Tilmouth.

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Rancho Naturalista Lodge, Costa Rica, or in the Land of Coffee and Chocolate

10,000 Birds

On that glorious day, I observed ten critically endangered birds, representing 8% of their Costa Rican, or 2% of their global population!! In my previous post , I dealt with Rancho Naturalista Lodge itself and birding within their private reserve. But, let’s start at the beginning.

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Pat’s 2020 Bird List, Mostly from Costa Rica

10,000 Birds

And this doesn’t mean you are obsessed or a little bit too much into birds because keeping track of a year list actually comes with some side benefits. Yeah, many of us living the birding life do so anyways because we can’t help it. Go birding! Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis; Tambor, 3-Jan.