10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2018

We had contacted the staff at the observatory, and with Jonnies help, arranged to stay right there in their newly built hostel type facility. It was an all around quality experience. Imagine my surprise, when this Common Snipe just walked right out into the open in front of the same hide the had the Spoonbills. .

South Africa 100

South Africa New Zealand Costa Rica Qatar 100

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

In my experience non-birders connect with the travel, visiting beautiful places and spectacle of birding and hawkwatching often entails all three. In my experience if you show a non or novice birder their first Bald Eagle and they will be amazed, show someone their first Thayer’s Gull and they aren’t likely to gasp (sorry, larophiles)!

Bald Eagle 239

Bald Eagle Los Angeles Connecticut Eagles 239

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2011

What species is shown? Though wood-warblers, the mostly brightly colored birds of the family Parulidae, are only found in the New World we felt that birders the world over would be pleased to see a plethora of posts about these striking and sought after species. Read about them here but also get out and experience them.

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United States South America 2011 2012 155

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 6, 2022

we learn) that are home to coveted boreal species, breeding wood-warblers, and two species of Grouse. A statue now memorializes the Great Black Hawk at its favorite place, Deering Oaks Park, but the Steller’s Sea-Eagle is alive and roaming and has intermittently been spotted in Canada, it may return to Maine soon.)

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Los Angeles Birds District of Columbia Parrots 196

10,000 Birds

MAY 7, 2011

We will have posts on a variety of individual species of wood-warblers, wood-warbler taxonomy, searches for difficult-to-find wood-warblers, and a host of other topics. Many other non-migratory wood-warbler species are living their lives across the neotropics, doing their best to survive and pass on their genes.

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United States South America Cooking Family 183

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 18, 2016

Not just birds, but also plants (Colombia boast the most orchid species, too), insects, primates, reptiles. It’s an incredible experience to see these cotton balls on stilts as they hop out from the dense mountain forest underbrush and dance around in front of you. The list goes on and on and on. It looks something like this.

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Colombia Primates Reptiles Experience 145

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2016

Here is what you need to do: Send me a brief description of the best bird you’ve ever seen in New York State–name of species, where you saw it, when, and why this is a bird that has stayed in your memory. We reserve the right to use answers in a future 10,000 Birds posting.

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New York Birds New York City Campaign 161

10,000 Birds

JULY 27, 2014

Hopefully a few photographs can help convey the experience. One of the most common species on our trip, the charming, and striking, Black Guillemot. This is big country, Kangiq is just off the right of the photo, jutting out into Lancaster Sound. Trips Arctic Canada' Ringed Seal.

Polar Bears 189

Polar Bears Seals Bears Laws 189

10,000 Birds

MAY 8, 2011

The sighting was easily the best I have ever had of the species, and it was in and out of view for about twenty minutes, foraging in small circuits but always coming back to the stand of thick brush where I had first spotted it. Read about them here but also get out and experience them. You won’t regret it!

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Tigers United States Jamaica Pennsylvania 158

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 12, 2014

Lovely Cotinga is the flagship species at Pico Bonito, where it is perhaps easier to see than anywhere else within its range. More than 400 species have been recorded at the lodge to date. Central American Pygmy-Owl is another key species at the lodge. However, for me, there were birds to be seen. Photo by James Adams.

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Honduras Monkeys Birds America 163

10,000 Birds

MAY 28, 2014

There were opportunities to go to far flung places like the islands of the Pacific or the coast of Canada or the Yorkshire Dales… Anyway, as I was obsessed by Africa at the time, I leapt at the opportunity to go to Namibia to collect samples of bat DNA for a biogeography project. Oh, and horrifying insect things were everywhere.

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Bats Birds Vanuatu Namibia 154

Critter News

JUNE 20, 2010

Instead, it brought a new bat species into the exact place in the year 2009 — twenty-five of those creatures also passed away. There were also reports that the zoo may have concentrated too hard on enhanced visitor experiences without being sure that exhibits were up to par — something that could have led to many of the deaths.

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Zoos Animal Abuse Bats Goats 100

10,000 Birds

APRIL 13, 2013

Always bringing her camera along, Erika is building her life-list by trying to check off at least one new species each week in her field guide. There were people at the basin, and the most popular species of the day, the semi-professional photographer, was already plentiful that morning. Her blog can be found at: [link].

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DC Washington Birds Geese 193

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2015

That’s right, the overwhelming benefits to the environment and the economy are generated by non-consumptive uses of the refuges like wildlife photography, environmental education, wildlife observation and interpretation, not hunting and fishing. 31 to provide inviolate sanctuary for migratory birds.

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Fish Wildlife Hunting Game 143

10,000 Birds

MAY 30, 2019

That summer of 1938, when he was ten years old, Cade read of two brothers, Frank and John Craighead, who wrote of their experiences with falcons in National Geographic. He had stalked the nest for days, waiting for just the right time when she would be on the verge of fledging, then took her into his care. And grow they did.

Falcons 179

Falcons California Condor Alaska Texas 179

10,000 Birds

MAY 23, 2023

Birders often venture into various habitats, such as forests, wetlands, grasslands, or coastal areas, to encounter different bird species. The primary objective of birding is to identify bird species based on their physical characteristics, behavior, and vocalizations.

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United States North America Birds America 147

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

Like any birder visiting a new place, I had a target species list I was hoping to seek out during the one day I had available between business commitments. The experience was marvelous — but it also weighed heavily on me. In June, I visited North Dakota for the first time. That’s one of my photos above. Black Rosy-Finch.

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Species Science Los Angeles Birds 175

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 26, 2012

Situate across a small canyon carved by a steep stream it made for excellent viewing, at eye level right across the small chasm. There are at least three species of wildflowers clinging to this cliff by the way. ” (said in a 10 year old voice that implied “Work on your observational skills okay guys”).

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Falcons Killing Fur Owls 167

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 12, 2022

In most years, that wouldn’t be all that special — the lake is normally where I can see the most species in a single day, so I usually go there first. These photos exaggerate the size difference between the two species, which is actually so minimal as to be almost useless for ID purposes.). Was it practicing?

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Falcons Abandon Abandoning Abandonment 183

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 19, 2012

In fact, experience proved that the process is actually way more cumbersome and time-consuming than it should be. Then the fun really started… The eBird interface came back saying that a whopping 251 species needed clarification. The agony of eBird is the tremendous barrier to entry to switch over from another format.

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Arizona Belize Adoptable ALA 175

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 19, 2017

While we could chase a number of local, rare residents, looking for super tough species like Pheasant Cuckoo and Tawny-faced Quail is more akin to searching and lurking in appropriate habitat and just hoping to get lucky. The guy on the right is Sergio Arias, check out his Costa Rica Birding Hotspot Stand at Birdfair.

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Costa Rica San Jose Falcons Nicaragua 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 3, 2012

I know from experience how accessible Dennis is, last year he helped me identify a damselfly I photographed in Costa Rica (Argia anceps, no common name). Although designed as a field guide, it is a hefty book, 376 pages long, covering 336 species. Many species are dimorphic, with females looking different from males.

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United States Costa Rica Massachusetts North America 233

10,000 Birds

JUNE 26, 2018

Basically, this species is so dimwitted, it doesn’t know how to survive. Because, Pink Pigeons are not capable of doing the tasks required to create and bring up children of the species. Don’t these birds care about propagating their species? Is this the type of avian experience we want? I know, that’s harsh.

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Mauritius Stud Zoos Eggs 102

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2011

Informed literature bears out my experience that most birds are seen singly or in pairs. Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada. Very interesting species. Wicked, right? The former British colony’s Z.c. melli strain is one of as many as 12 races and shows a lighter face than many of the others.

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2011 Deer India New York 182

10,000 Birds

MAY 8, 2017

The food was better than decent, which exceeds our experience of Panamanian cuisine at most other locations. In fact, we saw two species of monkey, our only sloths, lots of coatis, and my rarest ever mammal sighting—a Jaguarundi —right on site. Yes, that’s Panama City to the right. TRANSPORTATION. Summit Ponds.

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Panama 2017 Monkeys Family 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2011

Last night I saw my second plover species of the year, a Common Ringed Plover. At the same time as he was doing his study on Kumlein’s (Iceland) Gulls and Thayer’s Gulls Smith supposedly gathered data on both Common Ringed and Semipalmated Plover (which both nested in the area) and the hybridization of the two species.

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Research Europe Iceland Panama 169

10,000 Birds

MARCH 9, 2011

Like Kapiti the island is an offshore refuge for many species extinct on the mainland, with a lot of the work being done by the voluntary Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi. One species I really hoped to find on the trip was the Kokako. Wicked, right? Saddleback ( Philesturnus carunculatus ) on the beach. Hat-tip to Stella.

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New Zealand 2011 Deer Cats 148

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 9, 2022

Last week, I received an email from an American couple that has recently moved to Morelia; they found me right here on 10,000 Birds. Many studies have shown that a life rich in new experiences, and especially learning a new language late in life, can help stave off the onset of dementia. Fame suits me, I must humbly admit.)

Mexico 217

Mexico Birds Costa Rica Alabama 217

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2014

Any doubt I had about the need for a book about rare birds in the United States And Canada were wiped out on a Sunday evening in early February with two birding friends. Howell, Ian Lewington, and Will Russell, right in front of me. Rare Birds of North America covers 265 species within these parameters. And, not very often.

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North America America Birds United States 253

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2011

We spent almost 4 months crossing the USA and had an amazing time, although it was not the right time of year for Wood-Warblers. Right now great flocks of wood-warblers are making their way north from the southern United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America to breed across the United States and Canada.

South Africa 158

South Africa United States Austin Alligators 158

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2012

Not, sadly, in the sense that I’m actually sipping mai tais on a beach in Bali right now, but in the sense that it’s actually at least two distinct seasons, lumped together as one because they’re both cold. The first winter (which should probably be allowed to keep the name winter) is a downhill slide.

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Bald Eagle Montana Owls Dogs 157

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2019

They say so right here in the Preface of Oceanic Birds of The World: A Photo Guide —seabirds are “some of the most challenging of all birds to identify.” And, for many of these species, you need a boat that goes very far from shore, to extremely remote areas. Howell and Kirk Zufelt certainly think so. And, you need a boat.

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Albatross Birds North America Groups 157

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2020

Will the threatened species make it through if there are no birding tourists to make those birds and their habitats valuable to local people just the way they are (as opposed to tropical timber)? What will be left of birding tourism? I was trying to find that answer for a while and it turned into a very annoying experience.

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Uganda Bolivia Ecuador Indonesia 249