10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 8, 2022

Hopefully, the winter time in Shanghai gives the Black-faced Buntings some time to relax from the challenges of the breeding season. In contrast, the females need to make sure not to get duped into raising actual cuckoos – the buntings are a targeted host species ( source ). Maybe there is some justice in this world after all.

Birds 196

Birds Eggs Bangladesh China 196

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2017

Ka’ena Point is also a breeding ground for the Federally protected Laysan albatross, where 45 nests were being carefully monitored by the non-profit Pacific Rim Conservation. The oldest Laysan albatross was last seen raising a chick on Midway Atoll in 2016, at age 66. They are docile and devoted parents who will not leave their nests.

Albatross 214

Albatross Honolulu Hawaii Killing 214

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2022

Studies on improving ostrich egg hatchability. Also, I learned that in the US , ostrich eggs are priced at $40-$75. Each fresh egg weighs 4 pounds and is the equivalent of 24 chicken eggs. . Each of these ‘families’ consists of a single mating pair and 1-5 ‘helpers’ who assist in raising the young.

Ostriches 147

Ostriches Parrots Birds Eggs 147

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2022

I have written about the interesting sex life of these jacanas a few times already (short version: female mates with male, lays a bunch of eggs for him to incubate and raise the chicks, leaves him, finds another male, repeat). Black-naped Orioles are breeding in Fengxian. Here is a presumed pair.

Birds 147

Birds China Eggs Breeding 147

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2023

The latter is even captured in a somewhat gruesome video , in which the hornbill plucks a caged bird out of its cage and kills and eats it. At 15h59, the female picked up the fourth chick and killed it by repeatedly crushing it with her beak. One paper describes them breeding in a human settlement in abandoned clay jars.

Rhinoceros 124

Rhinoceros Singapore Transported Hunting 124

10,000 Birds

MAY 25, 2023

During the breeding season, some Cattle Egrets look like teenage girls who have just discovered the existence of make-up, and consequently massively overdo it. While having somebody else raise your chicks like an attractive strategy to me, it is not without dangers. It is probably all downhill from here. What’s next?

Birds 130

Birds Raised Cattle Mammals 130

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2023

What the Owl Knows is organized into nine chapters: introduction, adaptation (including vision and flight), research and researchers, vocalization, courtship and breeding, roosting and migration, cognition, and two chapters on owls and humans–captive owls (not zoos, educational owls) and owls in our cultural history.

Owls 199

Owls Science Barn Owls Penguins 199