10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2011

It won’t be long before the drake Ruddy Ducks are all in their breeding finery and doing their displays for the females so I thought I would take the time this past weekend to try to get some decent shots of the males that are still in basic plumage. Get yours today!

Ducks 143

Ducks 2011 New York New York City 143

10,000 Birds

JUNE 12, 2016

Weird birds seem to pop up in many parts of the world with an unpredictability that is somewhat predictable. No judgment either way, but don’t forget that birding is supposed to be fun! Case in point: Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was the one he headed out west to meet me for, the first New York record of Garganey !

New York City 100

New York City 2016 New York United States 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 28, 2019

There are few places in Queens that I like birding in winter more than Baisley Pond Park. Baisley Pond Park is the place to find Ring-necked Ducks and Redheads in New York City, it usually hosts the largest flock of wintering American Coots , and the Canada Goose and Ring-billed Gull flocks sometimes hide a rarity among them.

Ducks 114

Ducks New York City Geese Canada 114

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 29, 2018

This past Sunday I led a birding outing in Queens for New York City Audubon. The focus of the trip was ducks and we hit a couple of hotspots in central Queens, Baisley Pond Park and Willow Lake Preserve, and then we took a quick stop at World’s Fair Marina to track down a few more species.

Geese 115

Geese New York City Ducks Jamaica 115

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 26, 2014

The Sunda Teal is a brown duck. This may make it very popular amongst European birders who can relate, but it doesn’t make it much of a deal within such an illustrous group as the dabbling ducks. Now, for comparison’s sake, New York City has around 8 million people on 800 square kilometres, or 10,000 / km².

New York City 165

New York City Los Angeles Timor Indonesia 165

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2020

In this post, we’ll share the most positive of the positives, at least for those who write for 10,000 Birds who decided to share. For a birder every year is a blank slate on which to write a new list. Of all the birds that make the list for a given year one of those birds must be the Best Bird of the Year.

2020 241

2020 Birds Costa Rica Germany 241

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 6, 2022

At the end of 2022, let us celebrate the local field guide, a sub-genre that many of us feared would die, the victim of technology, development, and globalization, but which still shines bright, fewer in number but brilliant in quality, thanks to birders and birding organizations that believe in knowing your patch and your state.

Los Angeles 205

Los Angeles Birds District of Columbia Parrots 205

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 22, 2018

A regional rarity around New York City, Tundra Swans are only regular at Hook Pond in Suffolk County, way out on the eastern end of Long Island. I was psyched to see the one that had been reported but first I had to do some other birding on Sunday morning to keep my year list moving along. No Tundra Swan.

Jamaica 106

Jamaica Wildlife New York City Ducks 106

10,000 Birds

MAY 31, 2012

Do you toss the bird your leftovers? And if you have a small kid and are in the vicinity of some ducks and geese? Do you feed the birds then? It seems like the people that run an awful lot of parks don’t want you feeding the birds. Wild birds should not be coming up to people looking for food.

Birds 248

Birds New York City Fast Food Geese 248

10,000 Birds

APRIL 11, 2014

Andrew Revkin recently described in his Dot Earth blog how he watched, amazed, as a white pigeon raced the traffic on the Palisades Parkway, heading north from New York City. Say what you will about pigeons – they’re among the most extraordinary athletes in the bird kingdom. You mean he swam like a duck?”.

New York City 164

New York City Vet Zoos Ducks 164

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 24, 2015

My visit on Saturday morning was meant to be a quick stop to scan the ducks, geese, and gulls to see if anything interesting was around. The Ruddy Ducks looked miserable but the grebe and the coots seemed to be doing fine. Such a cold Ruddy Duck. Common Mergansers are classy birds. I kind of felt bad for him.

Geese 183

Geese Iceland New York City Ducks 183

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2015

2014 was a great year for birding! Read on if you want to indulge me in reliving my version of it… In 2014 I birded in three countries (United States, Canada, Costa Rica), four states (New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida), and forty-two counties. (I’m Now we need to top that number next year!

2014 244

2014 Costa Rica New York New Jersey 244

10,000 Birds

JULY 5, 2013

I’ve seen Yellow Warblers in the low shrubs of Western New York pastures, the river valleys of Missoula, and the trees of abandoned industrial sites in New York City. Chuk makes his quip about the Black-winged Yellow Bird; my friend Molly insists that everything is a duck, a pigeon, or an owl.

Connecticut 180

Connecticut Baltimore North America New York City 180

10,000 Birds

APRIL 28, 2014

On Thursday, 24 April, Eugene Nichols was minding his own business, birding along the shore of Lake Ontario on Point Peninsula, in the far northern reaches of New York State. He found an all white bird that didn’t belong and eventually deduced that he was looking at a Willow Ptarmigan.

New York 238

New York New York City South Dakota Bald Eagle 238

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2019

Happy New Year, 10,000 Birds readers and writers, listers and photographers, friends and fellow travelers near and far! Writing a post scheduled for January 1st for a birding blog is a big responsibility. On the first of the year, every bird is a new bird! Audubon, one with the Queens County Bird Club).

2018 163

2018 New Jersey Michigan North Dakota 163

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 5, 2011

In New York City so far this year we have only had a dusting from the Halloween storm that wreaked so much havoc elsewhere and since then the weather has been mild. The lack of cold and snow has not deterred snow birds from showing themselves this year. In December in the northeastern United States you expect snow.

United States 197

United States Jamaica Birds Owls 197

10,000 Birds

MAY 23, 2014

But in listing the dangers of creeping nostalgia, to the best of my knowledge no one has ever mentioned what happens when the birds change. This year has brought a lot of new birds at the Olde Homestead. I chalked up similar sentiments in April when my mother emailed to tell me that there was a Ring-necked Duck on the pond.

New York 158

New York New York City Ducks Baltimore 158

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 21, 2012

Behind the Outback Steakhouse at Edgewater Commons, a shopping center across the Hudson River from New York City, is a rusted pile of wreckage that is gradually falling apart and into the river. Despite its unaesthetic look to people it seems that ducks and gulls have no such problem with it. Places like paved paths.

New Jersey 159

New Jersey New York City Ducks New York 159

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2012

The American Acclimatization Society was a group founded in New York City in 1871 dedicated to introducing European flora and fauna into North America for “both economic and cultural reasons. 1 ” By 1877 New York pharmacist Eugene Schieffelin, an avid admirer of Shakespeare, was the society’s driving force.

North America 196

North America United States New York City New York 196

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 2, 2014

What that meant for me, birding wise, is that I could get out for a few hours in the morning and then get home and get to it on my laptop without having to worry about things like showering, getting dressing, or commuting. The first bird that came into view made me think. It wasn’t a duck. It wasn’t a gull.

New York City 203

New York City New York Battery Experience 203

10,000 Birds

MAY 5, 2015

New Croton Dam, located just outside of New York City, is an enormous feat of construction. At New Croton, the water spills directly over the side of the giant stone structure, and yet the cormorants swam less than a few feet from the precipice!

New York City 160

New York City United States New York Canada 160

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2013

In fact, the last one was back on 15 May 2012 when my Queens list stood at 289 and I guessed what my next eleven birds would be that would get me to 300. Note that starred birds are birds that have since been seen and are not indicative of how well I predicted each time.). John’s the Divine Cemetery.

2012 158

2012 2013 New York City Jamaica 158

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Seven birders, a boat for hire, and a cruise around lower New York Harbor and vicinity looking for good birds. We made our way from our boat’s berth out to and around the tip of Breezy Point, seeing the typical and expected ducks like Long-tailed Duck and Red-breasted Merganser. What could possibly go wrong?

New York City 164

New York City New York Jamaica Seals 164

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2013

It had been a long time since I birded Central Park. Birders can chase and lure, scrutinize and organize, but we can’t control the weather, and so like all weather-dependent activities birding is a vital reminder of our lack of omnipotence, both humbling and liberating. Birding Central Park tatto'

Montana 165

Montana New York City New York Nashville 165

10,000 Birds

JUNE 13, 2016

Fortunately (for me) Anthony Collerton had made an attempt on the bird earlier in the week but had dipped, only to learn that it was seen several hours after he left. We were in no rush to get to Montezuma as the bird was typically spotted in the afternoon because the sun made for horrible viewing in the morning hours. Time went past.

New York 100

New York Bald Eagle New York City Kazakhstan 100

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2017

This past Saturday, 07 October, was the day for the Queens County Bird Club Big Sit, our fourth year of counting every species we could see from the hawk watch platform at Fort Tilden, in southwestern Queens. But the first bird of the morning was not a bird most would consider nocturnal. It was so bad I never even blogged it.)

Birds 111

Birds Dolphins Canada Sparrows 111

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2017

The Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North America by Nathan Pieplow is innovative, fascinating, and challenging. The guide covers 520 species of birds regularly found in the eastern United States and southeastern Canada, including, interestingly, a number of exotic species. But, first the basics.

North America 175

North America America Birds New York 175

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Asides / Does This Make My Mom A Bird Blogger? Does This Make My Mom A Bird Blogger? These Blasts From The Past New York City Canada Goose “Kill Zones&# Revealed Help Save Migratory Birds!

2011 140

2011 Deer New York New York City 140

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 30, 2013

Long-tailed Duck is one of my favorite birds that we see on the Christmas Bird Count. Participating in a Christmas Bird Count is tiring but essentially simple. Participating in a Christmas Bird Count is tiring but essentially simple. No muss, no fuss.

Birds 163

Birds New York City New York New Jersey 163

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2019

The tendency of birds to alight onto the wooden posts, steel towers, and metal wires that constitute our power and communications infrastructure turns any car ride into exciting and endless game of drive-by identification. A common sight to all birders: the bird on the wire. As Daniel L.

United States 118

United States Game North America New York City 118

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 2018

In a recent post, Corey listed five things to do when it is too cold to go birding and one of those things is planning birding travel. Here in Portland, Oregon, it is more frequently too rainy rather than too cold to go birding, at least comfortably. Thus, my “good birds” are likely the opposite of an eastern birder.

San Francisco 100

San Francisco Portland United States Puerto Rico 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2011

Melanerpes lewis is, to put it simply, a really cool bird. Second of all, Lewis’s Woodpeckers are birds of the west and they rarely stray to New York State. In fact, the bird is the fifth recorded in the history of the state,* and the first spotted in the Empire State since 2001. What a bird!

New York 200

New York Woodpeckers Jordan 2011 200

10,000 Birds

APRIL 11, 2011

Now that I have added ten more birds to my Queens life list we must revisit the list and predict my next ten birds in Queens (and see how my last set of predictions turned out). Queens, the finest borough in New York City, as I may have mentioned before, is where I have now seen a whopping 279 species!

Jamaica 157

Jamaica Owls 2010 New York City 157

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2017

Here are some facts to keep in mind about Good Birders Still Don’t Wear White: Passionate Birders Share the Joys of Watching Birds: (1) This is not a dress code. (2) 2) This is a NEW book edited by Lisa A. explore the diverse joys of birding. White and Jeffrey A. Gordon, illustrated by Robert A. Braunfield.

2017 147

2017 Costa Rica 2007 Hunters 147

10,000 Birds

MARCH 16, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / Tree Swallows Return, It Must Be Spring Tree Swallows Return, It Must Be Spring By Larry • March 16, 2011 • 8 comments Tweet Share Whenever I see Tree Swallows ( Tachycineta bicolor ) I know that Spring is upon us.

2011 205

2011 Jordan Deer New York 205

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / First Phoebe of 2011 First Phoebe of 2011 By Corey • March 20, 2011 • 11 comments Tweet Share My first sighting of an Eastern Phoebe each year is, for me, when spring officially begins.

2011 188

2011 Deer New York Philadelphia 188