10,000 Birds

AUGUST 7, 2011

It is the featureless nature of the sea of blue, spanning from horizon to horizon, its neglect of offering a foothold to the wandering eye that binds my thoughts. Sure, every season has its typical set of birds. The species is quite common within settlements indeed, and the inner cities are a favoured haunt. They have gone.

Elephants 167

Elephants Neglecting Europe Birds 167

10,000 Birds

JUNE 30, 2018

And yet…take a closer look and you won’t find any hummingbirds acting like cute little singing birds ready to perch on the finger of some lost, happy princess. And that begs the question, anthropocentric comparisons aside, what makes a bird a jerk? So easy to love, admire and cherish! Maybe even pyschos.

Humane 168

Humane Neglecting Investigation Birds 168

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / The plovers of Estero Lagoon, Florida The plovers of Estero Lagoon, Florida By James • March 8, 2011 • 1 comment Tweet Share For as long as I can remember I’ve been fascinated by shorebirds.

Florida 190

Florida South Africa 2011 Africa 190

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2023

(Boring bureaucratic note to dissuade casual readers: This post covers birds seen in Shanghai in January 2023, except for those seen at Tianmashan – these are shown in a separate post. End of note) Probably the most interesting bird in Shanghai this month was a Barred Cuckoo-Dove choosing a small downtown park to feed on berries.

Birds 147

Birds Geese Fish Industry 147

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 14, 2023

Having come back to the blog in whatever form and persistency, the overarching subject of language in birding seemed to be a suitable and deserving theme since bird names were part of my original beat. How have birds infiltrated our everyday language, even of non-birders? No birds required.

Germany 182

Germany Birds Hunters Owls 182

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2020

No, I am not going to tell you about some blood-sucking bird with hypnotic powers. I am only responding to my subjective impression of a single species’ appearance here; specifically, that of the Bronzed Cowbird. But the bird is cool, and I need the photos to prove my points. I hope you will forgive my rather lurid title.

Birds 155

Birds Blackbirds Mexico Cattle 155

10,000 Birds

APRIL 15, 2020

After being home for just over a month, I’ve been doing two things to keep my birding sanity. Firstly, I’ve been birding the heck out of our backyard, and encouraging people to do the same (both here and elsewhere ). Having seen this species well a few days prior, our eyes were fixated elsewhere.

Kenya 229

Kenya Owls Hunters Ostriches 229

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 11, 2014

The story of the White-winged Guan , in some ways resembles the re-discovery of some species thought to be extinct. Nineteenth and early twentieth century naturalists collected birds on long and arduous exploratory expeditions in the New World. A large and striking bird like this would be hard to neglect in a museum collection.

Collecting 269

Collecting Peru Neglecting Hunting 269

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2016

Johnsgard blends a scientific and a poetic regard for these birds and the habitats they depend on in a way that’s reminiscent of Aldo Leopold — a higher compliment than which I cannot think to bestow. His prose is elegant and vivid without shading to purple or neglecting to communicate actual facts.

North America 124

North America America Nebraska Neglecting 124

10,000 Birds

JULY 20, 2012

Most people think of brood parasitism and two kinds of bird spring to mind: the cowbirds (most often the Brown-headed Cowbird ) and the Old World cuckoos (most often the Common Cuckoo ). But the honeyguides, indigobirds, and a single species of duck all do the classic cuckoo strategy (obligate interspecific brood parasitism) as well.

Eggs 155

Eggs Neglecting Adoptable Hunting 155

10,000 Birds

MAY 5, 2014

Reports abounded of a huge variety of birds, from thrushes to nightjars, terns to vireos. I spent as much time as I could out and about in the parks of Queens and enjoyed every single second, spotting twenty-two species of wood-warblers. But I had two birds in particular that stood out for me this weekend. And was it ever!

New York City 172

New York City New York Kentucky Abandon 172

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2014

But there was one trip I wasn’t going to miss, a midweek excursion by the Cumberland Bird Observers Club , the people to go out with in Sydney if you want birds. Another nice find by the assembled birders was a Bar-shouldered Dove , a species I had only seen in Queensland before this point. Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo.

Owls 177

Owls Birds Neglecting Hawaii 177

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 31, 2012

In fact, I have way more photos of Whooping Swans ( Cygnus cygnus ) – a species I almost never see – than of Mute Swans. But none of my local birds here in the Alps got quite so neglected as the Blackbird ( Turdus merula ) – I do not seem to have a single photo of a Blackbird in my library.

Neglecting 145

Neglecting Blackbirds Birds Species 145

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2015

I recently returned from my family’s annual spring trip to Florida, and unlike years previous I didn’t get any special time set aside to bird this time round. My “birding”, such that it was, consisted mostly of morning walks with my young daughter in her stroller. The birds were what you’d expect.

Florida 178

Florida North America Neglecting South America 178

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2018

He pointed out that Illinois had been sadly neglected up to this point, so Redgannet made a special visit to Chicago to redress this oversight. 8 beats shared 126 checklists accounting for 704 species. They birded 6 countries; USA, UK, Costa Rica, Serbia, Australia, and Mexico. Gray Go-away-bird – Corythaixoides concolor.

2018 113

2018 Australia Woodpeckers Sparrows 113