10,000 Birds

MARCH 1, 2024

Most serious bird photographers dislike taking pictures of birds wearing rings (or what on the other side of the Atlantic you call bands). I can sympathise, as a shiny new ring, clamped to a bird’s leg, rarely enhances its portrait. The information I received didn’t indicate the age of the bird.

Lithuania 130

Lithuania Morocco Iceland Ireland 130

10,000 Birds

MAY 28, 2015

What do you think makes for a good bird hide? I have asked myself that same question many times over the last six months, until last week, when I was involved in an opening ceremony of five new bird hides at the Palic Lake, by the town of Subotica in the very north of Serbia, along the border with Hungary (all photos are from that area).

Serbia 233

Serbia Spain Birds Hungary 233

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

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. Sadly, they no longer breed in Algeria, while in Turkey no free-flying birds remain. (In

Morocco 211

Morocco Austria Algeria Germany 211

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2020

That trip was to take my wife and I to Turkey, Jordan, and southern Spain, with stopovers near Paris. My one sighting of the little-known Sinaloa Martin outside of summer had occurred on a 29th of February, and I hoped to repeat that experience. Three years of my experience shows that they most certainly do. (On

Species 156

Species Mexico Jordan Turkey 156

10,000 Birds

APRIL 18, 2024

I would be fascinating to know how many species of birds it was pointed at during its time with me, but it must have been well over 1,000. It proved strong enough to take the many knocks and falls that a hard-used scope experiences during its lifetime. Dalmatian pelicans : digiscoping flying birds is a challenge.

Poland 184

Poland Estonia India Cyprus 184

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 12, 2024

Memorable encounters with Mammals: Part I Most birdwatchers enjoy seeing mammals, but the trouble with mammals is that they tend to be much more challenging to see than birds. I remember the guide on my first Kenyan birding safari remarking that “birding groups always see far more mammals than those who come just to see animals.

Fur 173

Fur Otters Bulgaria Estonia 173

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2014

He lives at the west end of Lake Ontario which, twelve months of the year, is a very rich and varied place for birds. So he spends as much time as he can in the field and whenever possible he chases lifelong birding dreams in foreign lands. You can and should read about Peter’s daily adventures at My Bird of the Day.

Spain 167

Spain Ostriches Africa Canada 167

10,000 Birds

JULY 10, 2013

I am back home and recovered from the Birding Rally Challenge in Northern Peru (Rally). Well, I will start by saying I am not new to non-stop birding; some friends and I tried to break the 24-hour record number of birds in Florida (Big day). Photo: Peru Birding Rally. Photo: Peru Birding Rally.

Peru 256

Peru South Africa United Kingdom Birds 256

10,000 Birds

MARCH 29, 2019

While the hunting of game with trained birds of prey can be a controversial topic among birders , falconry was a valuable early source of information on birds, and its history, culture, and imagery continue to fascinate bird lovers, as we shall see.

2016 124

2016 Portugal Belgium Falcons 124

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2013

What if there was an international multi-day Birding competition? Enter the inaugural Peru Birding Rally Challenge , the first international birding event of it’s kind in the world. Think the Birding World Cup or the International Birding Open. Think the Birding World Cup or the International Birding Open.

Peru 215

Peru 2012 Bears Falcons 215

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 20, 2012

Some time after the Spanish encounter with the Turkey, birds were brought back to Europe where they were raised and became an important source of food and fancy feathers. The one case that could have been an actual Turkey was a bird spotted in Honduras, where they may or may not have been, by our friend Christopher Columbus.

Turkey 196

Turkey Columbus Spain Fowl 196

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 24, 2013

What’s not to like about big, bright red, big-beaked, birds? Just south of Port of Spain on the west coast of Trinidad, the Caroni Swamp is easily accessible and well serviced by tour companies that will take you out into the mangroves safely and efficiently. Because the Scarlet Ibis show is the best show in the country.

Trinidad 183

Trinidad Spain Cooking Hunting 183

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2019

I haven’t yet been birding in Europe but whenever I occasionally skim a field guide about the birds on the other side of the Atlantic, I’m always encouraged to find that I’m already familiar with many species found over there, even though most of my birding experience has been limited to eastern North America.

2017 116

2017 Portugal Rabbits Europe 116

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

After weeks of preparation (and not writing many 10,000 Bird posts), my wife and I are finally in Spain. Algeciras, Spain, to be specific — right around the bay from Gibraltar. And in between, you can stop at the Cazalla Soaring Bird Observatory ( Cazalla Observatorio de Aves Planeadoras ). Black Kite.

Spain 147

Spain Birds Mexico Eagles 147

10,000 Birds

JUNE 25, 2012

A cherished handful of Central and South American locations enjoy international renown as absolutely mandatory destinations for adventurous bird watchers and nature lovers. T&T is a country any birding beach-lover can gladly visit without feeling deprived or compromised. And English is the national language!

Trinidad 240

Trinidad South America America Ecuador 240

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2024

Lesser Kestrels are one of those birds that have a special fascination for British birdwatchers. They are very rare birds in Britain, but have been recorded from Scilly in the south to Fair Isle in the north. Lesser Kestrel really is an appropriate name, for they are a lesser bird than the familiar Common Kestrel.

Falcons 182

Falcons Spain Europe Portugal 182

10,000 Birds

JULY 24, 2019

It’s a rush any new birder experiences: that of every species being a lifer. Once you’ve been around the birding block a few years, your appreciation for the lifer experience deepens greatly. Which is why we all eventually turn to the one way to combine old-birder experience with new-birder opportunities: travel.

Spain 185

Spain Europe Sparrows Mexico 185

10,000 Birds

APRIL 12, 2011

We started out as a team with enthusiasm and knowledge, but little experience in book-making. reduce traffic casualties amongst Badgers , get the White-tailed Eagle back as a breeding bird, increase the number of protected plant species etc.). Take these large savannah-like areas in Extremadura, Spain, for example (the Dehesas).

Badgers 145

Badgers Ethics Africa Spain 145

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

OCTOBER 26, 2022

In fact, I was already embarrassed two months ago, when the pandemic and at-home duties had forced me to write about the same michoacano birds for a couple of years running. (It’s It’s a good thing that I can access some 300+ michoacano birds! New places, new birds! ” Of course, I birded every moment I could.

Spain 162

Spain Turkey Mexico Agenda 162

10,000 Birds

JUNE 8, 2024

The sight, the sound and the smell, coupled with the sheer spectacle of seeing so many birds at once, makes viewing a big seabird colony an avian experience that can’t be compared with any other. These birds are all cliff nesters. Incidentally, there have been no recorded cases of bird flu at Bempton this year.

Puffins 172

Puffins Eggs Fish Culling 172

10,000 Birds

JUNE 10, 2012

Some 35 years later I’m a birder and I observe birds every single day, often my birding happens almost unconsciously, at home, from the car, on the school run. It may be a bustling tourist town with a great deal to see and do culturally but it is simply a beautiful place to do some birding, with some incredible birds to enjoy.

Spain 166

Spain Birds Industry Humane 166

4 The Love Of Animals

MARCH 17, 2011

Grief, friendship, gratitude, wonder, and other things we animals experience. After publishing my stories I got emails from people all over the world who had seen similar behavior in various birds and mammals. Waterfall Dances: Do animals have spiritual experiences? by Marc Bekoff. Empathy Among Elephants.

Emotional 100

Emotional Animal Whales Whaling 100

10,000 Birds

JULY 10, 2012

Although extinction is a natural phenomenon, experts have determined that the current rate of bird extinction is somewhere between 1,000 and 10,000 times the background rate. Globally, 1,313 bird species of a total of count of 10,064 are threatened, a frightening 13% of the total.

Endangered Species 181

Endangered Species Species Morocco South Africa 181

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. Of all the birds that make the list for a given year one of those birds must be the Best Bird of the Year. We are always content bird-watching around Broome anyway!

2020 218

2020 Birds Costa Rica Germany 218

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

Birds fascinate us for many reasons. The migration stories of many of those birds is another. Or at stories of a bird like Red Knot B95, twenty-one years old and logging miles that could take it to the moon, and half way back. It is a 15,000 km round trip, for a bird that only typically weighs in at about 28 grams, or an ounce.

Somalia 190

Somalia Africa Nigeria North America 190

10,000 Birds

MAY 1, 2016

Or a bit of a PR disaster for my birding skillz if I am not correct. Alba wagtails range widely and commonly from Greenland and Spain towards the east, far and wide, to the mighty river Yenisei in Siberia. And here is the series of pictures I was able to take before the bird took off. This has two consequences.

Germany 100

Germany Sharks Morocco Asia 100