10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

Odd habitats attract odd birds. Or rather, I should say that out of place habitats attract lost birds. Although Costa Rica is noted for tropical forests and their subsequent wealth of birds and biodiversity, us local birders also have our own, out of the way habitat hotspots. Birds that Would Have Flown Over and Kept on Going.

Costa Rica 162

Costa Rica Ecuador North America Peru 162

10,000 Birds

MAY 5, 2012

If you are thinking about visiting the Amazon, and enjoying great birds, a bit of luxury, relaxation, and good food, then you should consider coming to Ecuador and gliding over the Napo River on the Manatee Amazon Explorer. They offer multiple packages and we took a five day trip that took us right down to the border with Peru.

Ecuador 177

Ecuador Peru Birds Parrots 177

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2015

On the series “North American birds with Neotropical Counterparts”, this time I introduce the Andean Gull. This gull inhabits the high Andean plateau of Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina at elevations ranging from 3300 to 4400 m (10827 to 14436 feet). A few vagrant birds are reported at coastal lagoons and estuaries.

Chile 161

Chile Bolivia Peru Argentina 161

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 10, 2014

Let’s say you’re a bird wrapping up your breeding season in the north of Scotland—where do your thoughts turn when winter beckons? the Caribbean islands, and Ecuador and Peru. If you’re like most, you head southeast, meeting up with your continental cousins near the Mediterranean or Arabian Seas.

Iceland 191

Iceland South America Ecuador Stray 191

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 13, 2017

Given the scavenger feeding habits of the Turkey Vultures , the small mammals and birds that are on the menu for the Zone-tailed hawks are lulled into complacency by the lack of threat from the vultures. The tail bands on the adult birds consist of three bands with the third, or lower band much wider and cleaner white.

Tail Banding 100

Tail Banding Turkey Paraguay Mexico 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2013

In early December we had the privilege of filming the inaugural Peru Birding Rally Challenge , a six day, five night event where teams from around the world compete to see the most species of birds. The bears hung around the next day too and some of the birding teams risked losing a few species to enjoy the sighting.

Bears 171

Bears Mammals Peru South America 171

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2015

Black-throated Magpie-jays are common in Nayarit and are also regarded as endemic to Mexico – except for a small disputed population in southern California which most experts regard as originating from escaped captive birds. Our crew enlisted the support of the local huichol community to find the birds. A Tufted Jay poses nicely.

Mexico 162

Mexico Ecuador Peru Science 162

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2012

Colombia is not only home to nearly 20% of all avian life on the planet but this birding mecca also accommodates an incredibly high percentage of highly sought after species. The best place to see the bird is without doubt Rio Blanco in Colombia Colombia holds some 120-plus different tanager species.

Colombia 250

Colombia Ecuador South America North America 250

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2015

Birders head to Costa Rica to see stunners like Resplendent Quetzal , Three-wattled Bellbird , Orange-collared Manakin , fancy hummingbirds , tanagers, and literally hundreds of other birds. This bunch of possible Costa Rican crypto birds can be grouped into four main categories: (1). Bird species that require further research.

Costa Rica 217

Costa Rica Species South America America 217

10,000 Birds

APRIL 15, 2011

Here are the clues: 1. Some references indicate that this country has nearly 900 different species of birds. 2. It is at the top of my list of countries to visit specifically for birding. 6. On one list, it is the 27th country with the most number of different bird species. No plans yet, sigh.

2011 150

2011 Myanmar Bolivia Venezuela 150

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 20, 2015

And where all those birds are? This map shows the distribution of the World’s bird species, based on overlying the breeding and wintering ranges of all known species. And it raises a question: if all the birds are having a party over there, am I in the wrong spot? I am talking 600 or 700+ bird species. Why am I here?

Sri Lanka 257

Sri Lanka Botswana Africa Serbia 257

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 8, 2017

Like all of the esteemed writers and loyal followers of this site, I spend nearly every available moment out in the field birding. The highlight of this is that I get to keep learning, learning more and more about birds. New birds, new behaviors, new countries and even new continents. as well in my photographs.

Bolivia 100

Bolivia Ecuador Peru Washington 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 12, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Asides / Bird Banding Codes Demystified Bird Banding Codes Demystified By Mike • March 12, 2011 • No comments yet Tweet Share Ever run into trouble trying to assign a 4-letter code to a North American bird?

Deer 140

Deer 2011 Birds New York 140

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 31, 2015

” Without diminishing the importance of any local Big Days, although Big Day birding has been popular and reaching new heights in North America for more than a decade, major attempts at truly breaking the world record have only taken place the past few years. Talk about mega birding (and mega skills of course)!

Costa Rica 167

Costa Rica South Africa Kenya Ecuador 167

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2020

One of these days, Jeopardy will feature a category called “Field Guides” and the first clue will be: “This landlocked South American country finally got its own bird field guide in 2016, but it wasn’t available in the United State until 2019.” Bolivia doesn’t come up much in discussions of birding travel.

Bolivia 176

Bolivia Birds Brazil Switzerland 176

10,000 Birds

JUNE 15, 2011

The order Suliformes holds a lot of special birds from anhingas and darters to cormorants and shags as well as frigatebirds, pelicans, and tropicbirds. As is often the case in birds, teenagers, and other living creatures, these charismatic colors play a prominent role in the booby’s breeding rituals. sula ) and Nazca Booby ( S.

Ecuador 186

Ecuador Peru Hunters Pelicans 186

10,000 Birds

APRIL 10, 2015

In February of 2013, I wrote a piece outlining my thoughts on which exotic bird species should be added to the American Bird Association (ABA) checklist. The 10,000 Birds readership also suggested Scaly-breasted Munia ( Nutmeg Mannikin , Lonchura punctulata ) as another likely choice for the next ABA-countable exotic.

Los Angeles 154

Los Angeles Miami San Francisco Florida 154

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 24, 2024

I recently found out that on this planet of ours there exist people, actual living, walking, breathing people, who claim that birds are robotic drones used by the governments around the world for the purpose of espionage. Birds were basically everywhere around me. Which is exactly what I did. It was so easy, no neck straining!

Ecuador 179

Ecuador Colombia Birds Panama 179

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2011

These will be a series of shorter posts that will be scheduled while I’m traveling and filming for Nikon’s Birding Adventures TV. On the contrary, if you are a traveling birder, you might just find your next birding destination right here on 10,000 Birds. And this place has birds to boot!

Portugal 175

Portugal 2011 Deer Birds 175

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 27, 2023

A rather small black bird moved about, making short hops to and fro until finally it stopped for a couple of seconds, lowering its head to the side watching us inquisitively. That’s how it is with most smaller Amazonian birds. He then pointed to a dense patch of tangles about a meter above the ground. But still new species are found.

Solomon Islands 223

Solomon Islands Ecuador Colombia Brazil 223

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / Spring is for Wheatears Spring is for Wheatears By Dan • March 18, 2011 • 3 comments Tweet Share What is true in the Mid-Atlantic region of the US holds true for Cyprus as well: Spring is prime-time for Passerines.

Cyprus 145

Cyprus 2011 Deer New York 145

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

Which, naturally, got me to thinking about the newly erected order Suliformes, a development I mentioned in my December column, 2010′s Top 10 Developments in Bird Taxonomy and Systematics , but which I thought deserved further examination, for it’s one of those stories that defines the era in which we are living and birding.

2011 154

2011 Pelicans Papua New Guinea Birds 154

10,000 Birds

MARCH 1, 2021

We here at 10,000 Birds dedicated the month of February to highlighting a variety of birding tourism companies, destinations, and guides. After all, there are a lot more birding tourism operators who we haven’t posted about yet! Birding Experiences. Bird Uganda Safaris. Birding Expeditions. Costa Rica.

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica Uganda Greece Ghana 264

10,000 Birds

APRIL 25, 2019

Ecuador or Botswana, respectively). 17%: Ecuador, Peru. Interestingly, the respondents felt no need to further elaborate why, presuming that everyone knows why they should bird Costa Rica. Australia is understandable: good infrastructure, moderate prices and easiness of finding birds, combined with 350 endemics.

Papua New Guinea 214

Papua New Guinea America Costa Rica Sri Lanka 214

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2021

Collins Birds of the World is “ a must for the travelling birder ,” as the BBC Wildlife Magazine reviewer has put it. When I moved to Botswana, to learn my birds I got myself the thickest local field guide. The book covers all the world’s birds. And I cannot agree more. The book ends with English and scientific name indexes.

Birds 250

Birds Botswana Africa Ecuador 250

10,000 Birds

MARCH 16, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / Stalking a Kiwi Icon Stalking a Kiwi Icon By Duncan • March 16, 2011 • 1 comment Tweet Share Most people, if asked, would confidently name what they thought the National Bird of New Zealand was.

New Zealand 147

New Zealand 2011 Deer New York 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2021

If you had your choice of one bird family to pursue, to seek out and observe and photograph and kvell over, which one would you choose? A passion for one bird family is also very useful. It provides goals and a definite direction for your birding travels and thoughts; sometimes it even becomes the basis of a book!

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica Brazil Ecuador Bolivia 264

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

And reports of birds nesting – not owls, of course, those weirdo snow fetishists, but other birds nesting – light up my life. Most exotics, at least in the bird world, stick close to their point of arrival and barely hang on – or don’t – over the generations. In 1998 W. And of Wyoming.

Montana 136

Montana 2011 New York Bahamas 136

10,000 Birds

JULY 17, 2014

Knowing what to expect in a particular habitat type is important in identifying birds. Tropical ecosystems pack a relatively high number of birds at a single locality. Rusty-breasted Warbling-Finch occurs in scrub habitat in the western Andes of Peru. Being able to describe habitat types accurately is a challenge.

Peru 168

Peru Ecuador Birds 168

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 11, 2014

Nineteenth and early twentieth century naturalists collected birds on long and arduous exploratory expeditions in the New World. A Guan was collected in 1876 in a mangrove forest near the border between Peru and Ecuador. A large and striking bird like this would be hard to neglect in a museum collection.

Collecting 270

Collecting Peru Neglecting Hunting 270

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2024

One night while camping in the Himalayas, the birding friend hears a Satyr Tragopan calling. He leaves the camp to look for the bird, and has never been seen again. Birders will ask: did he see the bird? Is birding a dangerous sport, an extreme sport even? She died in a car accident during a birding trip.

Mozambique 225

Mozambique Birds Ghana Namibia 225

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2023

(My Shoebill photographs, incidentally, were digiscoped from a small boat, so they’re not as sharp as they could be, but they are great reminders of an encounter with an extraordinary bird). Tawny Owl , one of the first birds I remember seeing (at the age of five) Like most of us who watch birds, I enjoy listing.

Sri Lanka 238

Sri Lanka Kenya San Francisco Greece 238

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2020

Will bird tour agencies, guides, eco-lodges survive? Will the threatened species make it through if there are no birding tourists to make those birds and their habitats valuable to local people just the way they are (as opposed to tropical timber)? What will be left of birding tourism? Colombia 1959 bird species 2.

Uganda 253

Uganda Bolivia Ecuador Indonesia 253

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2011

But you are here for the birds. The curse of forest birding - a bird drought. Maybe the birds will come to you. They are the only birds able to fly backwards and the 340-odd species come in many different forms. Fantastic caterpillars, otherworldly insects, ghoulish spiders, tiny scattering creatures.

Colombia 279

Colombia Ecuador Bolivia Peru 279

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 10, 2021

Last week’s excellent 10,000 Birds holiday gift guide compiled by Mark made me realize that we’ve gone through nearly all of 2021 without reviewing a single distilled spirit here at Birds and Booze. Good birding and happy drinking! We’ve had plenty of beer and wine this year, but no liquor. Dip averted.

Chile 230

Chile South America Peru Bolivia 230