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What is the State Bird of Alaska?

10,000 Birds

Though many people joke that the mosquito is the Alaskan state bird, in fact it is the much more pleasant Willow Ptarmigan. In 1955 – before Alaska was a state – the Territory’s leaders in charge of drafting a constitution allowed schoolchildren to choose what would eventually become the state bird.

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Birding Shanghai in February 2023

10,000 Birds

February 2023 was a slow month for birding in Shanghai, at least for me – so slow that I almost put the Spotted Dove , possibly my least favorite bird here, on the cover. Not a cover species The Black Kite is not actually black, but of course, misleading bird names are not exactly rare. Maybe those should be protected too?

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Champions of the Flyway – the Dakar Rally of Birding

10,000 Birds

In reality I’ve returned from filming the second Champions of the Flyway Bird Race. Compared to the 135 participants of this, arguably the most grueling 24-hour birding competition in the world. Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean and is a crucial stop-over for migrating birds. And I had it easy.

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Birding Shanghai in November 2022

10,000 Birds

I did not find much about this bird online except for a paper with the exciting title “A new quill mite Torotrogla emberizae sp. In contrast, the females need to make sure not to get duped into raising actual cuckoos – the buntings are a targeted host species ( source ).

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