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The Fate of the Florida Anis

10,000 Birds

Smooth-billed Anis were relative newcomers as breeders to Florida, having only begun nesting since the 1930s. In any case, birders hoping to see Smooth-billed Ani in the ABA area now must hope for single strays to show up in the Florida Keys and along the southeast coast of Florida.

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Our Best Birds of 2020

10,000 Birds

However, it wasn’t until the infamous year of 2020 that I finally laid eyes on it in the marshes of Las Pangas in southern Costa Rica. Common Cuckoo is a fascinating bird, an obligate parasitic breeder that employs numerous strategies, including fraud and murder, to survive. A non-bird Best Bird of the Year? Preposterous!

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