10,000 Birds

JUNE 8, 2019

Growing up birding in Western New York was also a time when the old woods of the Niagara Gorge were punctuated with the songs of hidden Red-eyed and Warbling Vireos and the lazy notes of Eastern Wood-Pewees. Thanks to guiding, I have identified around 620 species six months into the year and Mary has a list of more than 530.

Costa Rica 198

Costa Rica Species Birds New York 198

10,000 Birds

JULY 16, 2020

A Field Guide to the Birds of Mongolia by Dorj Ganbold and Chris Smith (2019) offers more than 500 species in one neat edition. I say “more than” because I am not certain what number of species is covered: on page 8, 512 bird species are mentioned, while on the back cover that number rises to 521.

Mongolia 271

Mongolia Falcons Birds 2019 271

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2014

“Here’s an idea for a blog,” wrote Donna Osburn, a wildlife rehabilitator from Kentucky. What’s your best misidentification of a bird?”. Rehabbers are constantly receiving birds misidentified by their finders; and on occasion some of us even receive birds we misidentify ourselves. This is a great topic. I have no idea!

Wildlife 248

Wildlife Wildlife Rehabilitation Falcons Pit Bulls 248

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2021

As sad as I am to say it, I must: 2021 was one of my worst years for birding since I started looking at feathered creatures with intent in 2006. COVID kept me from traveling internationally, and my only major domestic trip of the year was to California where I have birded quite a bit already. All that said, 2021 was not a total loss.

New York 254

New York Birds California Owls 254

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

Not all birds are created equal. These are the kinds of birds even those barely cognizant of nature recognize, appreciate, and aspire to. These are the kinds of birds even those barely cognizant of nature recognize, appreciate, and aspire to. Central Africa has one of those birds. Lesser Striped Swallow.

Uganda 258

Uganda Africa Birds Penguins 258

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 25, 2018

I think most of you know how important our National Wildlife Refuge system is to me. After all, I have written several posts on wildlife conservation and the Wildlife Conservation Pass that my co-founder Ingrid Taylar and I have been encouraging for years. I hope you enjoy it. Click on photos for full sized images.

Wildlife 101

Wildlife Sacramento Bald Eagle Falcons 101

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 29, 2014

To civilians who may have been puzzled by the wildlife crowd’s tossed-off references to peefas, modos or mice cubes, here is a beginner’s guide to Rehabberspeak. Some abbreviations roll off your tongue and are thus quite helpful – Mourning Doves are MODOs, Peregrine Falcons are PEFAs, Mississippi Kites are MIKIs.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 229

Wildlife Rehabilitation Wildlife Mice Vet 229

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? That is how I feel.

Uganda 245

Uganda Bolivia Ecuador Indonesia 245

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2020

No matter where you happen to be, you can’t really go wrong when beginning a new year of birding. Birds are everywhere and if you keep the mind open to appreciation, even the most common of familiar birds are incredible, beautiful creatures. That said, more birds are always better and ones infrequently seen even more so.

Costa Rica 190

Costa Rica Falcons Birds Philadelphia 190

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 17, 2015

That place is the fabled home of shorebirds, both common and rare, the East Pond of Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. Saturday saw me squelching through the mud at the north end of the pond and Sunday had me leading a field trip for the Queens County Bird Club from the south end of the pond. Gull-billed Terns are classy birds.

Jamaica 162

Jamaica New York City Wildlife New York 162

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

Set in an abandoned oil refinery where wildlife is slowly regaining control save for the desperate attempts of golfers to retain all eighteen holes, industrial ghosts loom over rolling freshwater lakes bordered by fifty foot tall trees. The subtle white edging to the gape of this bird indicates it is near breeding time.

Trinidad 199

Trinidad Birds Parrots Falcons 199

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 29, 2023

My British total was a mere 172 species – not bad, but not very good. However, I have to put it in perspective by explaining that during the year I hardly ventured out of East Anglia, and almost every bird was seen in Suffolk or Norfolk – I live on the county boundary. My 100th species was a Spoonbill.

Estonia 222

Estonia Portugal Greece Barn Owls 222

10,000 Birds

APRIL 28, 2017

As far back as the late ’70s he’s been entertaining and enlightening birders with his essays and books on the hows and why of birding. The latest from his pen is Birds of Prey , a hybrid between an identification guide and an essay collection, a book of lore that provides a comprehensive overview of the raptors of North America.

North America 102

North America Falcons America Eagles 102

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 27, 2021

10,000 Birds is running a series of articles by and about tour guides, tour companies, eco-lodges, and other birding travel organizations. We want to help the birding tourism industry come back strong from the COVID pandemic.

Costa Rica 236

Costa Rica Sanctuary Bats Woodpeckers 236

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 8, 2017

This is not to say that there wasn’t a little birding time snuck in here and there. Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. This wonderful piece of birding real estate can be found 8 miles east of Olympia, and an hour’s drive south of Seattle Washington, right along the I-5 corridor.

Wildlife 104

Wildlife Seattle Bald Eagle Geese 104

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2021

His second book on migration is a tale of many birds and many research studies all connected by the theme of migration and by his thoughtful narrative voice. In fact, early, photographic versions of several chapters appeared in Living Bird and Audubon Magazine (see the above links). is through the personal and the specific.

Cyprus 248

Cyprus Slaughter Slaughtered Research 248

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2018

My own trip was not an intensive birding experience, and August is clearly not the most productive month. I chalked up 132 species in a pretty relaxed eight days, during which birds shared the agenda with culture. With 154 eBirded species, the Beljarica shares the 4th place on the list. What has changed in the meantime?

Serbia 154

Serbia Birds Bulgaria Farming 154

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 9, 2019

An expanse of habitat as vast as Murchison Falls NP in Uganda, as excessively generous in beauty and biodiversity, permits endless ways to experience both its birds and animals. The Masindi Hotel holds the distinction of being the oldest and most historic hotel in Uganda and has some terrific birds on premises. Mind boggling, I answer!

Uganda 182

Uganda Senegal Africa Game 182

10,000 Birds

JULY 25, 2013

In a move that’s sure to stir controversy far beyond the borders of California, federal officials have announced that h enceforth, fledgling Peregrine Falcons won’t be relocated from nests built on bridges in the state. But it also means that some baby falcons are likely to plunge into a watery grave. What do you think?

California 181

California Endangered Species Falcons Jordan 181

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2012

When you live in Queens and you only have one morning of an August weekend to go birding there is only one place to go – the East Pond of Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. Even a bad day on the East Pond in August is better than a good day at other locations that can be reached from Queens or a morning’s birding.

Jamaica 178

Jamaica Wildlife New York City Falcons 178

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

These are the neighborhood raptors that make do, even thrive, by preying on the wildlife of an urban landscape. Yes, it’s the same species that so many North American birders have looked for around the San Pedro River (myself included) and like those Arizona birds, our urban Gray Hawks likewise use riparian zones.

Costa Rica 290

Costa Rica Mice Arizona Squirrels 290

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 17, 2013

If I had my druthers I would be birding the East Pond of Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge pretty much every day from July until September. Can you tell which of the birds in the two photos above is the Long-billed Dowitcher ? If you can’t figure it out you have to turn your binoculars in and give up birding.

Jamaica 170

Jamaica Wildlife Falcons Family 170

10,000 Birds

MARCH 27, 2015

At the request of blog management, I’m embarking on a series of posts on the names of birds. Since we’ve covered some generalities already, once a month I’ll be exploring how a species, genus, or family of birds got its name, and how those names fit in with our larger understanding of, and relationship with, birds.

Falcons 259

Falcons Eagles Meat Geese 259

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 2021

10,000 Birds is running a series of articles by and about tour guides, tour companies, eco-lodges, and other birding travel organizations. We want to help the birding tourism industry come back strong from the COVID pandemic. I am a wildlife artist based in the UK, I have never had a real job! My name is Ashley Boon.

Botswana 173

Botswana Africa Elephants Angola 173

10,000 Birds

MAY 10, 2012

Cuero y Salado Wildlife Refuge, Honduras, March 2009 After our trip to the Cuero y Salado Wildlife Refuge was rained out on our first morning at The Lodge at Pico Bonito we rescheduled our visit for our second and last morning at the lodge. It turned out to be pretty cool.

Honduras 157

Honduras Wildlife Monkeys Transported 157

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 18, 2014

Fish and Wildlife Service has listed the “Rufa” population of Red Knot ( Calidris canutus rufa ) as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The other sub-species, Calidris canutus roselaari , migrates along the Pacific Coast and breeds in Alaska and the Wrangel Island in Russia. Birds in Delaware Bay.

Endangered Species 160

Endangered Species Protection Delaware Species 160

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2015

And so on… not much of a birding day, heh? I am inside the city of Belgrade, checking the theoretically possible Peregrine Falcon site. Yet, not a trace of a falcon. ” Falcons do hunt pigeons, we all know that, but what is a Kamikaze pigeon? Conservation Peregrine Falcon poisoning Serbia Switzerland'

Switzerland 191

Switzerland Serbia Feral Falcons 191

10,000 Birds

MARCH 30, 2012

Around thirty miles from Missoula in the Bitterroot Valley lies the Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge. My specific goal was to see Trumpeter Swans , which, let’s just say it’s lucky that they’re not my new nemesis species – we spotted a group of three from the parking lot as soon as we got out of our cars.

Wildlife 166

Wildlife Montana Geese Bald Eagle 166

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2018

It actually makes a lot of sense, the geographic features of the isthmus between North America (including Mexico, because Mexico is part of North America) and South America cut across political lines, as do birds. It is the first bird field guide to every country of Central America (plus the islands governed by those countries).

America 213

America El Salvador Costa Rica Honduras 213

10,000 Birds

JULY 8, 2015

The house , along with being my home for all that time, was as fine a place to enjoy urban wildlife as any I have ever seen. I had the pleasure of having four yard birds that are globally threatened or near-threatened; the Kaka , Stitchbird , Saddlback and New Zealand Falcon.

New Zealand 157

New Zealand Sanctuary Falcons Wildlife 157

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2015

After birding Port Melbourne Beach I continued on along the coast to Sandridge Beach, which did not offer the number of Pacific Gulls or Silver Gulls that had been present earlier. The first birds that I observed were Superb Fairywrens and they are abundant in the park. I then took the trail beside Todd Road to get to Westgate Park.

Birds 162

Birds Industry 2015 Ducks 162

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 9, 2014

For mankind to snatch away a species’ very existence is wrong on so many levels that I can’t begin to explain them. However, despite our best efforts to wipe them off the face of the earth, some of the more vulnerable species have managed to hang on. Fish and Wildlife Service. this species breeds.

Albatross 201

Albatross Endangered Species Geese Alaska 201

10,000 Birds

JULY 24, 2021

“Gamebirds” to some, cool, cryptic understory birds to the birding people, grouse crouch protected as unfettered winds sway the top of the tall prairie grass. Then there are the ones that live in PA , the state bird, “the grouse” that a great many non-birders are aware of, my Uncle Fred was one of them.

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica Chickens Pennsylvania Litter 264

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 9, 2015

Our recent birding and camping trip along the Duncan Road included some extended exploring at the Behn River, which is 63 kilometres down the Duncan Road from the Victoria Highway in the Northern Territory. So, any birds we saw at the Behn River are in Western Australia! Glossy Ibis. Radjah Shelduck.

Marsupials 155

Marsupials Birds Australia Fur 155

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2015

I only had a few days in California while visiting my brother at Berkeley, but we couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to visit one of the most famous birding sites in the country: Point Reyes National Seashore. Add those life mammals to the life birds I already expected to see, and I was practically vibrating with excitement.

Seals 183

Seals Elephants Whales Whaling 183

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2016

British birders are very serious about birding and their birds. This is a very good thing; it means they publish a lot of books about birds (probably more at this point than U.S. This is a very good thing; it means they publish a lot of books about birds (probably more at this point than U.S.

Ireland 142

Ireland Birds Groups Falcons 142

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2011

My 8-year old daughter got interested in birds from a VERY early stage. By age 2 she could identify over 10 species of birds in our Johannesburg, South Africa, yard by call alone. So I guess for some people birding skills come naturally but, for others, birding skills need to be learnt.

Birds 278

Birds Game Wildlife Family 278