10,000 Birds

APRIL 11, 2024

This week, however, we had visitors, and I had a bird-free Monday. So I had to look to a fellow 10,000 Birds writer for inspiration, instead. Thanks, Jason, for mentioning Trash Birds — even if you used the phrase in an unusual way. Central Mexico has, of course, its own trash birds. This one is a female.

Mexico 210

Mexico Portland Humane Sparrows 210

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

The Durango Highway is arguably one of North America’s great birding roads due to the great variety of habitats, the spectacular mountain scenery of the Sierra Madre Occidental, and the numerous Mexican endemics one can target. There are many dusty side roads in this area, many of which offer productive birding.

Mexico 186

Mexico Costa Rica Arizona Birds 186

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Birds of Belize by Steve N. Howell and Dale Dyer and Birds of Costa Rica by Dale Dyer and Steve N. Yet they also bring up questions, which I’m going to talk about right now before diving into the specifics of the guides themselves. Two books, two authors, two countries bursting with neotropical avian diversity.

Costa Rica 203

Costa Rica Belize El Salvador Birds 203

10,000 Birds

JULY 8, 2020

One of the ways I could describe the unique mix of birds I can see here in southwestern Mexico, would be to divide our species into five categories. We also have many species that we share with the rest of Mexico, Central America, and/or the southwest of the United States. But, once you bird beyond the U.S.

Mexico 185

Mexico Birds Honduras United States 185

10,000 Birds

MAY 11, 2016

There is little doubt in my mind, that the topic of urban birding has been well covered on this and every other birding site. Despite that, I have it in my head to jot down a few of the interesting things about birding here in La Paz, Mexico. This winter time nirvana of birding, is slowly coming to an end.

Mexico 127

Mexico Birds Pelicans Geese 127

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 18, 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. Our company is based in Guatemala but also offers tours in Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, and Mexico.

Guatemala 238

Guatemala El Salvador Belize Honduras 238

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 29, 2024

I truly do hope I am not tiring 10,000 Birds’ readers too much with my obsession with Michoacán’s ongoing drought, the disappearance of Lake Cuitzeo (Mexico’s 2nd largest lake, in normal years), and our own micro-endemic Black-polled Yellowthroat. But obsessed I am. A Marsh Wren was the first to greet me.

Mexico 206

Mexico Investigation Science Experience 206

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 15, 2017

Now that we have returned to our adopted home of La Paz, Mexico, our bones are starting to thaw out from the trip to chilly Seattle. In addition to the cactus, there is a very diverse amount of foliage that has attracted a surprising amount of birds, despite the fact that there is no standing or available water in the area.

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Mexico Sanctuary Seattle Woodpeckers 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 14, 2023

You might think that birds don’t change the world, birds are the world – but by his odd title, Ten Birds That Changed the World, author Stephen Moss means, he says, that birds have, in various ways, led to “paradigm shifts” in human history. Maybe Moss is right, and birds have changed history.

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Bald Eagle Montenegro Campaign Turkey 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2017

There are birders who watch hawks and there are hawk watchers who bird. Raptors of Mexico and Central America by William S. This is the first identification guide that I know of that covers Mexico (technically North America but rarely included in North American raptor guides) and Central America. Wheeler and William S.

Mexico 155

Mexico America North America Falcons 155

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 24, 2018

Not so with our visit to Bosque de Apache NWR in southern New Mexico. Nearly 30,000 of these acres is set aside as dry wilderness habitat for other birds, animals and other various living creatures. We returned to the visitors center to look around inside, have some lunch, and do a little birding while we there.

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New Mexico Mexico Tucson Costa Rica 113

10,000 Birds

MAY 20, 2020

I have commented before in my posts that most of our Warblers here in central Mexico never actually warble. southwest, but it is a permanent resident in western Mexico and parts of Central America. The adorable Red Warbler lives only in Mexico. The post Warblers that Warble appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

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Mexico Honduras South America America 328

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 21, 2021

Give certain, special trees the right conditions and they also take root in the shallow mud of estuaries and other coastal situations. The trees that occur, that thrive in such places are various species of mangroves and as is typical of so many other tropical microhabitats, mangrove forests have their own suite of birds.

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Costa Rica Birds Protection Panama 264

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2020

When it comes to one’s most exciting bird sightings, of course, it all comes down to context. I wouldn’t change my central Mexican endemics for any other region’s birds. So my favorites for 2019 includes a good number of birds that are rather common elsewhere, but were firsts for me. I live in Mexico!

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Austria Spain 2019 Birds 143

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 25, 2022

Now, it is much easier for me to achieve first-time sightings of species in Europe than it is in Mexico, at this point of the game. This bird may be “common”, but it is also stunning. That’s the Kingfisher at the right; on the left was one of the area’s many European Stonechats. But this time, I could.

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Spain Mexico Europe North America 172

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2022

One of those ornithologists is Jonathan Vargas, with whom I went birding on the first Monday of this month of May. Jonathan is originally from San Blas on Mexico’s west coast, a birder’s paradise I have yet to visit. Jonathan also works as a birding guide up in Baja California, if anyone is interested.).

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San Diego Turtles Mexico Sparrows 242

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2019

Back in November of 2017, I travelled to the tourist town of Puerto Vallarta, on Mexico’s west coast, to sing in a Christian event. Still, a birder’s gotta bird, so I made sure I would have one morning to check out someplace right there in town. Try to set aside enough time to bird outside the town if possible.

Mexico 115

Mexico Birds 2017 Pelicans 115

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 25, 2023

Cedar Waxwings have come back to central Mexico. Certain kinds of birds, such as finches and Snowy Owls , may go for years without travelling outside of their normal ranges. and Canada, Waxwings are clearly an irruptive species for Mexico. The Hook-billed Kite is a wonderful bird. And, gee, I do hope I am right.

Mexico 147

Mexico 2020 2012 Parrots 147

10,000 Birds

MAY 25, 2022

Down here in central Mexico, the Canyon Towhee is a constant presence in open areas, including in my garden and around our church. As I explained early on in my 10,000 Birds “career”, the first weird thing about our local Spotted Towhees is… they have no spots. Green-tailed Towhee , Tres Cerritos, March 2021.

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Mexico North America 2015 Sparrows 198

10,000 Birds

MAY 21, 2019

But for the past 25 years, I have lived in Mexico’s state of Michoacán. On my first trip there, I had the good luck to find the best sites right away. The first is a true endemic, found only in southwestern Mexico, while the second can also be seen in Central America. Those black eyes make this bird.

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Mexico Birds Nevada Sparrows 114

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2017

The down side is that I also don’t get to enjoy the kinds of birds that would be found in a typical backyard. Over the last weekend, my wife and I made a whirl-wind trip from Mexico, up to the Pacific Northwest, the Seattle area, where we stayed with the in-laws.

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Seattle Birds Mexico Laws 135

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2021

Last week I humbly offered up a totally unprofessional, possibly misinformed guide to taking bird photos that aren’t completely embarrassing, and that might even make you proud on occasion. Our focus is on seeing as many birds as possible on a given outing. What bird is this?). They each feature a perfectly centered bird.

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Birds Branding Groups Rescue 241

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

Turkey seems to be having a moment right now. And there are, amazingly enough, direct flights from Mexico City to Istanbul. And birding was definitely not the main purpose of this 5-week trip. So, we headed not into bird-heavy natural areas, but straight into the center of this two-and-a-half-millenium-old city.

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Mexico Turkey Birds Rights 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2021

We didn’t manage to make it happen the first Monday, but on the 28th of June, we birded his property together. and Canada and winter in northeastern Mexico, while the sedentary wrens of central Mexico, Central America, and South America are now to be identified as Grass Wrens. That’s 100% Barn Owl butt, right there.

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Barn Owls Owls Mexico Leopards 252

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2017

As the dog days of summer descend upon us here in Mexico, many of our avian residents have bailed out and headed back north to avoid the summertime heat. The number of bird species to be found, falls dramatically, but we can always rely on our impressive populations of Herons, egrets and even a few rails to keep our birding juices flowing.

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Mexico Birds Protection Dogs 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 29, 2019

In my last post, I introduced you to some of my favorite birds from the tiny town of Paso Ancho, Michoacán. This town sits at the edge of a river in Mexico’s Tierra Caliente (Hot Country), an inland basin between the coastal Sierra Madre del Sur and the much higher Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. If you read the U.S.

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Squirrels Birds Mexico 2013 113

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 6, 2024

Work brings me regularly to Monterrey in Nuevo Leon, northern Mexico. And if you like birding, it’s a good place to spend time before or after meetings and explore. And if you like birding, it’s a good place to spend time before or after meetings and explore. It was David’s first time birding.

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Parrots Woodpeckers Industry Fast Food 152

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2021

That highest spot is in the middle of Mexico’s Cerro de Garnica National Park. I went back to Cerro de Garnica last week, to see these birds that have since become dear friends. Like many birds, this sea-level bird in California is a very high-altitude bird down here.

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2014 California Mexico Rights 181

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2021

I have often sung the praises of the beautiful birds I can see by driving 3,000 feet / 62 km / one hour down to the little town of Paso Ancho, on the edge of what Mexicans call Tierra Caliente (the Hot Country). Birding there can often be a test of endurance. Of course, Curve-billed Thrashers are some really tough birds.

Mexico 168

Mexico Blackbirds Sparrows Owls 168

10,000 Birds

MAY 27, 2021

Have you ever wondered what birds were flying overhead while you slept or what critters crept through your yard unnoticed? The Terra Project is an exciting collaboration between bird guide author Scott Whittle , wildlife tracker manufacturer CTT , and non-profit Conservation Science Global. ” Wow, right?

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North America Science America Europe 258

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 25, 2021

To be honest, this is because the birding has been a bit slow of late. And our rainy season, which to my relief continues to be abundant, does mean that birds no longer concentrate around sources of water. These birds, however, were seen at “only” 2300 m (7550 ft). As was this Green-striped Brushfinch in el Temascal.

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Louisiana 2000 Mexico Groups 259

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2020

And while it was to be a work (ministry) trip, I had still managed to schedule it right during the migratory peak along these two major corridors. So I am writing these words on Tuesday night in my home in Mexico, rather than waking up in Paris prior to flying to Istanbul. The post Consolation species appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

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Species Mexico Jordan Turkey 157

10,000 Birds

APRIL 29, 2020

Where do you go to bird, when you know you might not be able to go anywhere else? Both are beginning to show their reproductive plumage, which is a rare sight here in Mexico. The slightly more numerous Snowy Plovers , however, will stay right here; Lago de Cuitzeo is one of the few places where this species breeds in central Mexico.

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Mexico Breeding Ducks North America 161

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 11, 2019

Double-hyphenates are birds with two hyphens in their common name, which is a characteristic that suggests a high degree of rarity or difficulty. Common birds, you see, tend to have simple names, like House Sparrow, House Finch, or House Wren. Yeah, a lot of birds like hanging around houses.)

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Sparrows Mexico United States Groups 131

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2022

In the world of birding, we have our stars, the birds that lift our spirits and provoke oohs, aahs, and admiration. These are the birds that make us race to the nearest park, scan refuge headquarter trees with anxious eyes, and turn some of us into temporary paparazzi.

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Costa Rica Nashville Tennessee Turtles 269

10,000 Birds

JULY 31, 2019

The Yellowthroat group is an odd collection of bird species. The first can be found from Mexico to Panama, while the second is endemic over a fairly large part of eastern Mexico. The Altamira Yellowthroat can only be seen in a small area of northeastern Mexico, and is something of a Holy Grail for Mexican birders.

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Mexico Bahamas South America Panama 187

10,000 Birds

JULY 17, 2019

In April of this year, I had the crazy idea of submitting this article to 10,000 Birds for their consideration. In spite of being cosmopolitan birds, found on seven of the nine continents, Black-crowned Night Herons are pretty special birds. But every once in a while, the birds actually do something that tells a story.

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Giraffes Spain Abandon Abandoning 187