10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2019

Recently, I moved to a new place in Costa Rica. Although it was nothing like going from New York to California or even Buffalo, New York to North Carolina, a change of location, however slight, can bring new birds especially in Costa Rica. I also saw the other, most common Columbid in Costa Rica, the Red-billed Pigeon.

Costa Rica 164

Costa Rica Barn Owls Stray Dog Blackbirds 164

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2011

This one was seen in a parque in Mexico City and I thought that it would be a lifer until I got home and found that the chestnut-capped form from Costa Rica was already on my list. It’s distribution is wider than that of the other two and it can even stray into the southernmost states of the USA on occasion.

Costa Rica 198

Costa Rica Mexico Taiwan Honduras 198

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 13, 2014

When Costa Rica becomes a topic of conversation, we don’t usually hear the word “extinction” being thrown around. But how about when the Costa Rica conversation involves a birder? It’s easy to bedazzle the bins with this one when birding in Costa Rica. Must be a joke, right?

Costa Rica 213

Costa Rica Species Panama Birds 213

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 5, 2020

So I lowered my threshold to 500 and that worked well… for Costa Rica and South America, that is (especially Peru). Other wildlife includes Asian Elephant , Tiger and Gaur (highway 37 passes through the park and the rhinos and wild elephants can be spotted straying near the road).

Asia 267

Asia Malaysia Papua New Guinea Thailand 267

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2013

In any case, birders hoping to see Smooth-billed Ani in the ABA area now must hope for single strays to show up in the Florida Keys and along the southeast coast of Florida. Some have even suggestions that pesticides being used to control mosquitoes are partially responsible for wiping out these dark birds.

Florida 185

Florida Virgin Islands Miami Breeders 185

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2020

However, it wasn’t until the infamous year of 2020 that I finally laid eyes on it in the marshes of Las Pangas in southern Costa Rica. But in 2020, with all my travel plans cancelled and pretty much everything shut down, I wasn’t straying too far from Albany, New York for birding. A non-bird Best Bird of the Year?

2020 224

2020 Birds Germany Costa Rica 224