10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2014

More than 99% of the population of Tricolored Blackbirds ( Agelaius tricolor ) live within the state of California and form the largest colonies of any North American passerine bird 1. The Results of the 2014 Tricolored Blackbird Statewide Survey confirm that this species is in rapid decline. Click on photos for full sized images.

Blackbirds 187

Blackbirds California 2014 2013 187

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 3, 2013

Southern California is loaded with parrots. Many escapes and introductions have taken place over the years and some species have found the warm, dry climate to their liking. Quite a few species are well-established and breeding from San Diego to Los Angeles and beyond. Skylarks in Brooklyn , anyone?

Parrots 218

Parrots California Los Angeles San Diego 218

10,000 Birds

MAY 3, 2018

According to Macauley Library’s migration map the overwhelming breeding activity for this species occurs north of the state of California. I guess we will find out as the eBird maps change in the future, but until then, here is another photo of one of the males hanging out here in Northern California.

California 100

California 2012 Breeding Species 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2014

You can see that the male of the species has a bright red mustache not present on the female. But we are seeing them in California. Note the bright red crescent on this bird’s nape, the field mark of a yellow-shafted sub-species. Birds California Intergrade Northern Flicker woodpeckers'

California 166

California North America Woodpeckers America 166

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 31, 2011

The California Quail ( Callipepla californica ) is the California state bird, inhabiting scrub, broken chaparral and woodland edges primarily in California, Oregon, Washington and Baja California. All New World Quail are highly gregarious, typically found in coveys or flocks except during breeding season.

California 219

California Eggs Gophers Rattlesnake 219

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

As of 27 August 2013 the California Bird Records Committee has voted to add the introduced Nutmeg Mannikin to the state checklist. Or, as Seagull Steve puts it : The dreaded Nutmeg Mannikin has been added to California’s official state list by the California Bird Records Committee (aka Bird Police). punctulata.

California 196

California Los Angeles 2013 Eggs 196

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2024

Osborn, a passionate field biologist who participates to the core of her being three re-introduction projects aimed at saving three very different, endangered species: Peregrine Falcon, Hawaiian Crow (‘Alala)*, and California Condor. This is the most intense, tragic section.

California Condor 176

California Condor Falcons California Birds 176

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2013

After all, California Audubon’s site states that “This is a conservation award. We’re particularly interested in recognizing bird species that were of significant conservation interest in 2013, but that also had a compelling story and rallied the public around it.” How does that sound for a headline?

California 209

California Owls 2013 Factory 209

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2012

The newest bird on the brink to capture her fertile imagination is the California Condor, on which she graciously shares her research and ruminations: Sometimes as a writer you recognize there’s been something overlooked in your midst—something quietly abiding. My first view of them was at a distance. And they continue to ingest lead.

California Condor 207

California Condor California Idaho North America 207

10,000 Birds

JUNE 16, 2022

Last week, I wrote about my recent trip from my current home of Morelia, Mexico to my childhood home of the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States, and how several species can be found in both places, in spite of how far apart they are, and yet look quite different in each place. California Towhee. Canyon Towhee.

Mexico 194

Mexico San Francisco California United States 194

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

I have been lucky enough to get close views of two massive Old World Vulture species, the Eurasian Griffon and the Egyptian Vulture. Here in Mexico, I can almost always count on Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures to pad each outing’s list by two species. Black Vultures are a bit smaller than all these other species.

Turkey 197

Turkey California Condor Mexico Meat 197

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2014

I didn’t know what species of woodpecker it was, but I knew it was just in the clearing on the other side of the road. Black-backed Woodpeckers are non-migratory, although there have been documented intermittent irruptions of the species outside their normal range. Point Reyes Station, California. Siegel and, D.

Woodpeckers 170

Woodpeckers California South Dakota Chad 170

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 30, 2017

We conduct four Christmas Bird Counts in our part of Northern California, the first of which is the Fall River Christmas Bird Count coming up in just about two weeks. Did I forget to mention seeing California Quail ( Callipepla californica ) … and Black-billed Magpie ( Pica pica ) on the way into the lake?

California 103

California Sparrows Birds Philadelphia 103

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2022

July: 81 checklists and 318 species. August: 54 checklists and 195 species. September: 82 checklists and 259 species. The 2022 year list is up to 1,188 species. The life list rises by 2 , to 4,126 species : 4,125: Townsend’s Storm-Petrel (California, US). 4,126: Cook’s Petrel (California, US).

San Diego 153

San Diego Costa Rica United States Cooking 153

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2014

Northern California’s Christmas Bird Counts started out with a bang this year. The final tally for this thirty year old count circle was 123 species. The final tally for this thirty year old count circle was 123 species. 1 California Gull (6th time on the count). 1 California Gull (6th time on the count).

California 167

California Blackbirds Turkey Birds 167

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2021

Not only did I pick up that little brown job, but I found plenty more species that looked verrrry much like it. Corey is loving the California birds but his Best Bird of the Weekend was a bird that doesn’t really belong in southern California. Good times!

California 264

California New York Birds Experience 264

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 24, 2012

What that means is that for Christmas I got to spend one day, all day, birding, while we are in southern California staying with relatives. We had several target species for our trip but none were more important to both of us than the juvenile Gray Hawk hanging out along the 101 Freeway in Santa Barbara County.

California 154

California Arizona 2012 Raised 154

10,000 Birds

APRIL 21, 2013

Clapper Rails , as currently defined by the AOU, occur along the coasts of North and South America and Caribbean islands, and inland in southern California and Arizona. In California and Arizona, however, Clapper Rails are brightly colored and occur in both salt and freshwater environments.

Species 218

Species North America Cuba Louisiana 218

10,000 Birds

MARCH 5, 2024

In fact, the overwhelming majority of federal land is in just 11 western states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming). BLM land is particularly important for conservation of the Greater Sage-Grouse and other sageland species.

Virgin Islands 209

Virgin Islands Alaska United States Endangered Species 209

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 10, 2016

The Vermilion Flycatcher ( Pyrocephalus rubinus ) is usually found near the US – Mexican border but we were fortunate this year to find an adult male in northern California! The female of the species is beautiful in her own right but only the male had been seen here. Click on photos for full sized images. I was not disappointed!

California 109

California Sacramento Wildlife Groups 109

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 29, 2021

I spent Saturday recovering from my red eye back from California but I did get out to coastal Queens on Sunday morning, though I didn’t see much. Fortunately, we have an expansive view of weekends here at 10,000 Birds so I can choose one of the birds I saw in California on Friday before I flew out as my Best Bird of the Weekend.

Alaska 224

Alaska California Birds New York 224

10,000 Birds

JUNE 29, 2022

My recent brief trip to California made this strategy especially easy. First, California is two time zones further west, so I was able to get out the door at 8 a.m. We were going to get together with my niece on our last evening in California, but she cancelled. California is weird. San Mateo time).

San Francisco 147

San Francisco California Battery Ducks 147

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2021

My first visit there, in June of 2014, was short and apparently just good enough to make me want to go back again, with a mere 12 species seen. My visit the next month produced 20 species; but many of them were great ones! Like many birds, this sea-level bird in California is a very high-altitude bird down here.

2014 188

2014 California Mexico Rights 188

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012

When I worked for a bird observatory in California I learnt quite a lot about this, for example that the ABA had to change the rules about whether birds counted if you heard them. As for introduced or reintroduced species it would only count if it was third generation reintroduced. Merely that some might.

Species 179

Species New Zealand Zoos Chickens 179

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2014

There are only approximately 23 million people in the whole country, which is about 10 million less than the state of California. The lack of people does not mean we have any less extinct or threatened bird species than other countries. Since European settlement there has been the loss of at least 23 species and sub-species of birds.

Species 175

Species Australia Birds Parrots 175

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2024

Being a westerner — raised in California, and now living in western Mexico — I was perhaps most excited about the migratory birds that breed in eastern North America. This was only my fourth encounter with the species (all on the east side). Although, truth be told, this species does seem to be a rarity in Tabasco.)

Mexico 194

Mexico Birds Raccoons Baltimore 194

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 13, 2021

Some 50 species of salvias grow in Michoacán, according to one estimate. And I have personally observed 16 species of hummingbirds in the state. Like Salvia mexicana , this species is common in open areas close to (and in) Morelia itself; but it loves steep slopes, while S. I don’t know the latter’s species.

Mexico 224

Mexico California Morals Species 224

10,000 Birds

MAY 20, 2023

Pelee National Park – Ohio Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge – Texas These locations offer a variety of habitats including marshes, wetlands, forests, coastal areas, and deserts, attracting numerous bird species throughout the year. Please note that the availability of specific bird species may vary depending on the season.

United States 162

United States Michigan Texas Virginia 162

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2021

COVID kept me from traveling internationally, and my only major domestic trip of the year was to California where I have birded quite a bit already. Mountain Quail , 12 August, Lake Tahoe, California (2nd sighting and first in over a decade). Ruff , 21 August, Upper Santa Ana River, California (really cool bird).

New York 256

New York Birds California Owls 256

10,000 Birds

JUNE 13, 2021

This may seem like government agency hair-splitting, but the calls needed to be made not to the wildlife division of the wildlife agency, but to the exotic species division of the wildlife agency. The bird is a captive-bred Peregrine/Gyrfalcon hybrid owned by people with an Exotic Species Permit.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 262

Wildlife Rehabilitation Tethering Giraffes Alabama 262

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 14, 2021

As of mid-November 2021, the Collaborative had submitted more than 4,200 checklists (up from 1,700 in 2018) and has observed 691 species in the United States (up from 618). Thus, there are now seven states with 200+ observed species. The state with the largest increase was Arizona , with 139 species added.

United States 197

United States West Virginia Puerto Rico Minnesota 197

10,000 Birds

APRIL 25, 2024

In between now and then, I will spend a week and a half in California, in the land where birding may mean walking on paved paths, or even on a wooden boardwalk built through the middle of a salt marsh. Black-chinned Sparrow , a flagship species for this site. Clay-colored Sparrows In about a month, I will have my 66th birthday.

130

130

10,000 Birds

JUNE 23, 2022

Any California-raised person knows that it just doesn’t rain in California in June. After all, in California in June, how much could it rain? It would have been a typical rainy California day for, say, the month of January, with steady drizzle punctuated by more substantial showers. Should I go anyway?

San Francisco 147

San Francisco San Jose California Battery 147

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 21, 2023

I, however, am still a California boy, in spite of not living in that state for four decades now, and I still keep track of the weather there. There seems to be two kinds of California weather these years: those with half the normal rain and historic wildfires, and those with 50% more rain than normal, and historic flooding.

Ducks 130

Ducks Mexico California Fish 130

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 2, 2020

I do have a vague memory of the last Barn Owl report in my home county of Albany dating to the Carter administration (before my birth), so I’m not holding out much hope for finding a nest of this species around here anytime soon. Alexander Brown , a California label whose proprietor is the country musician Zac Brown.

2017 234

2017 Barn Owls Rodents Owls 234

10,000 Birds

MARCH 24, 2024

The festival headquarters is located on the southwest side of Mission Bay, overlooking a marina with nearby Black-crowned Night Herons and frequently plays host to several falcon species, and a short walk to the San Diego River. Granted, it is a large county spanning many different habitats, but San Diego County garners 515 species.

San Diego 200

San Diego Sea Lions Lions Birds 200

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 21, 2020

This week’s featured wine at Birds and Booze isn’t our first pinot noir , nor is it our first Barn Owl (in fact, this marks the third appearance of this species on a bottle here). Alexander Brown of California, a winemaking project by the musician better known as Zac Brown. It is, however, our first wine from Z. The 2017 Z.

2017 152

2017 Barn Owls California Owls 152