10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 23, 2023

This is how it looks like: Or at sunset: A species I did not come for from Shanghai is the Black-crowned Night Heron. Its species name graydoni is in honor of Philip Newenham Graydon (1864-1940), a British planter in Sabah. Why that makes Mr. Graydon worthy of having a bird species named after him is a mystery to me.

Birds 240

Birds Eagles Elephants Rhinoceros 240

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 20, 2023

Even the Latin species name soror (“sister”) indicates the similarity to another pitta species (blue-naped). The eBird description of the Small Niltava starts with the surprisingly dull statement that “size distinguishes this species from other niltavas” Who would have thought.

China 254

China Birds Pythons Eagles 254

10,000 Birds

APRIL 4, 2022

Other research (cited on the rather straightforwardly named website www.genderinclusivebiology.com) found that 80% of gay swan couples successfully fledge their young, compared with only 30% for straight couples. The species is listed as Vulnerable, with severe degradation of the wintering lake habitats in China cited as an important factor.

Birds 238

Birds China Pythons Breeding 238

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 10, 2022

For this reason, the species is evaluated as Vulnerable.” The Rufous-tailed Robin used to be called Swinhoe’s Robin but apparently, somebody decided that there were already too many bird species (6, according to the HBW) named after him. The Eurasian Hobby was another notable raptor of the month.

Birds 223

Birds China Eggs Owls 223

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 30, 2015

One of my favourite Monty Python sketches involves a rather enthusiastic documentary into the sordid sex lives of the mollusks. But I had pictures of moorhens to show and luckily for me I did find something to write about for this species. They may breed as a group, but monogamy is the general rule.

Pythons 165

Pythons Guinea Breeders Australia 165