10,000 Birds

APRIL 4, 2022

A juvenile, if I am correct – and a rather rare bird in Shanghai, this being rather at the southern end of the wintering breeding range. My possible birdwatching highlight this month was Short-eared Owl at Fengxian. Despite (or because of) its slightly anti-German tone, this owl video is worth seeing.

Birds 221

Birds China Pythons Breeding 221

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 27, 2011

Many of you in the south are enjoying great sightings of Snowy Owls ( Bubo scandiacus ) this winter. Everywhere on Facebook I see friends and acquaintance posting photos of Snowy Owls , and or status updates on how they’ve succeeded or failed in their search for reported birds. Why is that? Did I mention they’re fast?

Owls 245

Owls Fox Oklahoma Soreing 245

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 1, 2012

The usual understanding of why irruptions of birds – from Red-breasted Nuthatches to Snowy Owls – occurs is that there is a shortage of food. Birders are delighted by Snowy Owls. Remember that friend of mine that saw 17 breeding pairs of Snowy Owls in a single valley? No lemmings left in the north?

United States 271

United States Owls Atlanta New York 271

10,000 Birds

MARCH 2, 2023

Wikipedia points out that the Black-winged Kite has some similarities with owls, in particular, the “owl-like forward-facing eyes with red irises” On Chongming Island, some of them seem to be relatively unafraid of people, at least by the standards of raptors. No surprise then that the species is listed as Vulnerable.

Birds 130

Birds Iraq China Ireland 130

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

These large parrots are popular in the pet trade, and that’s a likely source of the population of this species on Trinidad. The subtle white edging to the gape of this bird indicates it is near breeding time. Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl. Noisy Yellow-crowned Parrots indicated that it was time to stop the car and get out.

Trinidad 218

Trinidad Birds Parrots Falcons 218

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2014

But it is most probable that the birds are released or escaped pets. There are a lot of pet psittacines out there that escape or are released. These are extremely large stick structures (some articles compare the largest ones to the size of a car) that are usually populated by multiple breeding pairs in separate chambers.

Chicago 209

Chicago New York City New York Illinois 209