10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2013

And so, when Salvador Ramirez left, there were feral goats on the island of San Clemente, the southernmost of the Channel Islands off the coast of California. No wait, they were, but they had experienced so much genetic drift and selective pressure that they now constituted a unique breed in their own right.

Goats 165

Goats Bald Eagle Fox Feral 165

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2019

Two hundred yards further, the first Common Goldeneye and Smew started to appear and, while counting Smew and geese, a Great Bittern took flight from one stand of reeds to another, right in front of us. And I didn’t pay enough attention because one very dark eagle flew by at the same time, an adult Greater Spotted Eagle.

Geese 163

Geese Serbia Birds Estonia 163

10,000 Birds

JUNE 12, 2014

When discussing this topic for local media, I often say that because of their White-tailed Eagles , the Scottish island of Mull makes 2 million pounds per year from birders alone. By the end of a day, the best bird was the White-tailed Eagle that caught and ate a fish right in front of us – a species they have seen in the UK only once.

Serbia 192

Serbia Eagles Birds Sparrows 192

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 31, 2017

You can hear its song in spring, but even then, it is a rare privilege to have one posing at the very ends of willow branches right next to one’s car. A pair displaying at the end of August, well after the breeding season? Pairs are monogamous during each breeding season, but may change mates from year to year.

Serbia 129

Serbia Breeding Woodpeckers Feral 129

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 4, 2014

They range from the successful eradication of feral cats from Marion Island (hear that, Corey?) to the ongoing conservation of breeding Lesser Flamingos at Kimberley’s Kamfers Dam to the Albatross Task Force, which works with fishermen to find solutions to seabird bycatch (birds caught in fishermen’s nets).

South Africa 255

South Africa Africa Leopards Penguins 255