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12 countries with the greatest bird species density

10,000 Birds

The Species per Square Mile Approach. While Colombia may have almost 2000 bird species, it is a huge country with, still, complicated long-distance travel logistics. On the other hand, small countries with relatively long bird lists offer higher species densities per square mile. Why 99,999? And why 1000?

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Tiny Asian bird discovered as sole member of ancient family. Who’s next?

10,000 Birds

Big news about a small bird broke earlier this month when bird researchers from several nations announced that the species formerly known as Spotted Wren-Babbler ( Spelaeornis formosus ) — a tiny, secretive bird of montane forests from the eastern Himalayas to southeast China — is not a Spelaeornis wren-babbler at all.

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Mammals of Madagascar (Lynx Edicions)

10,000 Birds

When you bird afar and wander wide, you carry a field guide to the birds of the region you are exploring, a pair of binoculars, likely a camera, perhaps a spotting scope and a tripod too, plus clothing, medicines, toiletries, electronics, money and documents… Did you notice the missing item? Yet, those bird guides are hefty.

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The five most unique birds in the world

10,000 Birds

What are the world’s most distinctive birds? That question could be answered in several ways, but a new paper released this month — Global Distribution and Conservation of Evolutionary Distinctness in Birds (Jetz et al. The Oilbird today lives only in South America, but fossils of similar species are known from Wyoming.

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The Bee-eaters of Africa

10,000 Birds

The wonderful family Meropidae contains 27 dazzling species, of which Africa is endowed with no less than 20 species, the balance occurring across Asia and with one as far afield as Australia. We have both resident and migratory species, and this post will briefly discuss each of the 20 species of African bee-eaters.

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