10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2017

In Costa Rica, we have more than our fair share. In keeping with high diversity in other aspects of the avian kingdom, including falcons and excluding owls, this small country has a raptor list that tops fifty species. There might be a lot of species, but competition and other factors result in fewer individuals of each species.

Costa Rica 100

Costa Rica West Virginia Eagles Monkeys 100

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2016

Costa Rica is situated right between two oceans. The proximity of both slopes also facilitates seeing a lot of different species in a short span because the montane barrier has resulted in differences in terms of species and habitats. To the north of this mountainous isthmus, we have the Atlantic.

Costa Rica 166

Costa Rica San Jose Panama Birds 166

10,000 Birds

JULY 22, 2017

As with peninsulas and places situated on an isthmus, Costa Rica has more than one coast. White-crowned Pigeon might be on the list, but that rare prize for Costa Rica is far from regular. Birds with white on them are much more likely to take the form of goodies like the Snowy Cotinga , or two species of tityras.

Costa Rica 100

Costa Rica San Jose Bats Birds 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 24, 2015

If you thought that migrant traps and spring in south Texas were birdalicious (and they can indeeed be spectacular), how does an ecosystem with 400 and even 500 plus species tickle your birding fancy? This brings us to the first obvious upside of rainforest birding in Costa Rica; a chance at a lot more species than other habitats.

Costa Rica 173

Costa Rica Birds Texas Cattle 173

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 12, 2015

Although this tradition started in the temperate zone, we also celebrate it in Costa Rica with counts that are more like organized events featuring vendors, talks, sponsors, and, best of all, an awesome birding tee-shirt. The Arenal forests are very good for this species. A Nightingale Wren singing in the rain.

Costa Rica 101

Costa Rica Farming Louisiana 2014 101

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2019

To surpass a challenging number of species, the planning, the conniving for major birding should have begun back in the past, in 2018. Every day counts and to seriously maximize the species total, a birder needs to maximize time in the field at the most productive places during the most productive times and then some.

Costa Rica 113

Costa Rica 2019 Parrots Woodpeckers 113

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 23, 2011

Costa Rica enjoys an international reputation as an iconic birding location, bursting with epic Neotropical species and breathtaking natural attractions. Understandably, certain lodges have, over the years, come to be associated with the Costa Rican birding circuit.

Costa Rica 173

Costa Rica San Jose Sanctuary Protection 173

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2018

The pressure is on if you can only get certain species during the first month of the year but if you just want to add any old birds to the year list, everything is fresh! Since I’m in no big hurry to reach any number of species in 2018, my year birding is going to be a fresh one hopefully touched with a good dose of Zen.

Costa Rica 165

Costa Rica Birds Parrots Woodpeckers 165

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 21, 2017

It’s going to take a while but if I can expend time and energy (aka birding kung-fu) in the right places, I can certainly make that happen for Costa Rica. Nevertheless, I still have over 232 species including the latest addition- a Striped Owl heard from my bedroom window as it called into a moonlit night.

Costa Rica 104

Costa Rica 2017 Woodpeckers Parrots 104

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 29, 2021

One was to piggyback on Patrick O’Donnell’s interesting article about winter warblers in Costa Rica, since his list is quite different from my list for central Mexico. (I But these Cattle Egrets didn’t seem to mind. A hand-painted sign told not to enter with a dog. It was really very early.

Los Angeles 202

Los Angeles San Francisco Costa Rica Birds 202

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2020

But in bigger news, could this be the month that UK outbirds Costa Rica? At time of writing (usually a couple of days early to avoid the deadline panic), UK is fielding 63 species. Costa Rica has also submitted 63. Costa Rica v UK is bino a bino and UK has never before beaten The Man. UK El Campeón!

2020 161

2020 Costa Rica Blackbirds Sparrows 161

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2013

It is one of three species of ani ( Groove-billed and Greater Anis are the other two) and together form a unique branch in the cuckoo family. From the 1940s to the 1970s, the species rapidly spread from the southern tip of the peninsula to areas north of Lake Okeechobee including the Tampa-St. Petersburg area and Cape Canaveral.

Florida 200

Florida Virgin Islands Miami Breeders 200

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 23, 2016

On the other side of the weather coin, now that I live in Costa Rica, the first month of the year also means warm sunny days punctuated by windy weather, and migrants like Yellow Warblers and Baltimore Orioles sharing green space with Blue-gray Tanagers and other avian locals. Cattle Egret – Bulbulcus ibis; House, 7-Jan.

Costa Rica 101

Costa Rica 2016 San Antonio Sparrows 101

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 4, 2021

My birding list for November totals 15 species. Thank goodness that the rest of the beats have been busily birding,that’s what they like to do… 9 of them submitted 114 checklists via eBird and amassed 525 species from 7 (China, Australia, Mexico, Costa Rica, UK, Serbia and USA) countries during November.

Sparrows 215

Sparrows Woodpeckers Parrots Costa Rica 215

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2017

1,712 species, 12% of which are endemics. News flash–I just received the trip report from Carlos, and the tally is 419 species recorded, of which 16 were heard only; plus Ian and I saw an additional species before the tour started, courtesy of Paulo Boute. And, of course, Pat sees Jabiru every year in Costa Rica.

Brazil 158

Brazil Birds Los Angeles Tigers 158

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 2, 2021

December’s beats found 609 birds after submitting 116 checklists from 8 countries (USA, UK, Costa Rica, China, Mexico, Serbia and Australia). The year list ends on a provisional 1803 species from 1608 checklists submitted by 12 beats from 16 countries. If you wish to see a full list for 2020, you can find it here. .

2020 234

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Parrots 234

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2021

9 beats from 8 countries (Australia, USA, UK, Serbia, Costa Rica, China, Trinidad and Tobago and Mexico), shared 138 checklists for 703 species. The year list to date is 1015 species and 7 have been added to the life list ( 4059 ) from Costa Rica, China and Trinidad and Tobago.

Woodpeckers 190

Woodpeckers Sparrows Ducks Parrots 190

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2020

7 beats contributed their sightings from 7 countries (Hong Kong, UK, China, USA, Serbia, Australia and, of course, Costa Rica). 149 checklists were submitted, accounting for 465 species. Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis). The total for the year has been pushed to 1478 , whilst the life list has reached 4009.

2020 154

2020 Sparrows Niger Woodpeckers 154

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2021

9 beats submitted 140 checklists from 7 countries (USA, UK, Costa Rica, Serbia, Australia, Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago) during October to account for 585 species. 184 Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 184 Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 1 Little Tinamou – Crypturellus soui.

Woodpeckers 245

Woodpeckers Sparrows Blackbirds Ducks 245

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2022

8 of them sent 153 lists, noting 645 species of bird across 7 countries (Mexico, UK, USA, Serbia, Australia, Costa Rica, Colombia). It has not resulted in extraordinary numbers of sightings personally, but the beats have been busy on their respective patches and have sent me their lists to collate.

Sparrows 243

Sparrows Woodpeckers Parrots Owls 243

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2020

11 beats collaborated to enter 163 checklists from 8 countries (UK, USA, Costa Rica, Australia, Serbia, China, Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago). They noted 719 species between them. 217 Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 217 Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 3 Fulvous Whistling-Duck – Dendrocygna bicolor.

2020 293

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Blackbirds 293

10,000 Birds

MAY 1, 2021

9 beats submitted 172 checklists from 7 countries (UK, USA, Costa Rica, Australia, Serbia, China and Trinidad and Tobago) for 640 species.

Woodpeckers 155

Woodpeckers Sparrows Blackbirds Ducks 155

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2021

The beats are famed for their inclusion on the nice side of the ledger and this month 9 of them shared 163 lists from 7 countries (Australia, Costa Rica, USA, UK, Serbia, China and Trinidad and Tobago) and accounted for 735 bird species. Mike doubled up with “smushed”, a new addition to the adjective list.

Sparrows 195

Sparrows Woodpeckers Ducks Parrots 195

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 7, 2020

7 countries (Costa Rica, China, USA, UK, Mexico, New Zealand and Serbia) were birded by 11 beats during October. They submitted 124 checklists for 671 species of bird. In particular 272 species were noted from 14 checklists submitted on October 17th, eBird’s October Big Day. 646 Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis.

2020 130

2020 Sparrows Woodpeckers Parrots 130

10,000 Birds

APRIL 3, 2021

Our brave beats have been putting themselves at risk for your vicarious listing pleasure and 10 of them submitted 151 checklists for 692 species, 2 of which made it onto the life list. Checklists came in from 7 countries (USA, UK, Serbia, China, Mexico, Costa Rica and Australia) and brought the year list for 2021 so far to 1143.

Sparrows 160

Sparrows Woodpeckers Blackbirds Ducks 160

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2020

This shows the top birders, by species or checklists submitted. The year has started well with 10 new birds from India, China, Hawaii, Mexico and Costa Rica. 12 beats birded 10 countries (Costa Rica, USA, Brazil, China, India, Serbia, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Mexico), submitting 187 lists and spotting 902 birds.

2020 161

2020 Wildlife Reserve Tigers Wildlife 161

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 4, 2020

Incidentally, Uganda ( 510 ) leap-frogged Australia ( 475 ) to become the list’s fourth most prolific country behind Costa Rica ( 763 ), USA ( 654 ) and Brazil ( 555 ). They contributed 150 lists accounting for 1032 species and more than 36,000 individual birds. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 02 Dec 2019.

2019 177

2019 Chile Texas Sanctuary 177

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2019

During July, 11 beats birded 11 countries (USA, UK, Australia, Spain, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Japan, UAE, Mexico, China and Saudi Arabia) and submitted 82 checklists. They accounted for 562 species at this sluggish time of year. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. These are the numbers. Alphabetic Taxonomic.

2019 120

2019 Sparrows Woodpeckers Idaho 120

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2019

In publishing the most current thinking, eBird have become the month’s biggest contributor to the life list, expanding it by 7 brand new species and pushing it to 3774. 7 species were added to the life list in the time-honoured fashion of actually identifying the birds in the field. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis.

2019 118

2019 Arizona Ghana Tucson 118

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2019

The engaged and generous beats ( 10 of them) have shared 188 checklists during January and have accounted for 859 species from 8 countries (USA, Australia, Costa Rica, Brazil, Argentina, UK, New Zealand and Serbia. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. Cattle Tyrant – Machetornis rixosa. Alphabetic Taxonomic.

2019 113

2019 Australia Jamaica Sparrows 113

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2019

beats have still managed to share 82 checklists and accounted for 737 species. Our two newest contributors have shared from Mexico and China, bringing the countries birded this month (also including; Costa Rica, Greece, Serbia, USA, UK, India, UAE and New Zealand) to 10. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 01 Jun 2019.

2019 121

2019 Jamaica Eggs Woodpeckers 121

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2020

9 beats visited 9 countries (China, Costa Rica, USA, UK, India, Australia, Jamaica , Serbia and Japan) and submitted 151 checklists when they got back. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. You may notice that the list only reaches as far as 879 even though I claimed that there were 928 species recorded during February.

2020 156

2020 Sanctuary Australia Sparrows 156

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2017

Submissions for February have been received from Austria, Australia, UK, Japan, Costa Rica, Serbia, Mexico, USA, The Bahamas and Lichtenstein. Submissions for February have been received from Austria, Australia, UK, Japan, Costa Rica, Serbia, Mexico, USA, The Bahamas and Lichtenstein. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis.

2017 100

2017 Australia Sanctuary Woodpeckers 100

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 2, 2019

172 lists were shared and 1004 species were seen, both records for October, so well done beats! Visited this month were; Germany , France , Austria, South Africa, Hong Kong, USA, UK, Serbia, Costa Rica, Australia, China, Indonesia , Switzerland and Singapore). Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. has reached 54.

2019 119

2019 China Battery Jamaica 119

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2019

Whatever it was, Corey was found at his keyboard 2 hours later, covered in blood and snot and sporting a cut lip, having announced that he and Mike would rescue the failing list by taking personal responsibility for adding 300 species. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. Their Ugandan contribution reached 258 before contact was lost.

2019 142

2019 Farming Sparrows Charlotte 142

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2019

9 countries were visited during March by your tireless beats ( 11 of them); India, UK, USA, Serbia, Costa Rica, Japan, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. 978 species were tallied this month from 163 checklists. Only 123 species appear on both sides of the life list. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. 15 Jan 2019.

2019 113

2019 Ghana Australia Woodpeckers 113

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2019

In reverse order, the medals were awarded for “most species seen in a country”, to Australia with 420, USA got the silver, scoring 556 while the runaway winner was Costa Rica with 646 species. Cattle Egret – Bubulcus ibis. Cattle Tyrant – Machetornis rixosa. El Centenario Tidal Flats.

2018 113

2018 Australia Woodpeckers Sparrows 113