10,000 Birds

JANUARY 7, 2014

We sing about them, we paint them, we use them as mythic and poetic symbols for our spiritual and emotional feelings, we wear them in myriad and often colorful ways, we adopt them as household pets. Cocker writes about the species within each family with a literary specificity softened by a tone of conversational patience.

Birds 205

Birds Egypt Family Eagles 205

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2012

And, to give his dream year a little more oomph, he created a grand once-in-a-lifetime goal: to track down and see every pitta species in the world in one year. Each chapter of The Jewel Hunter reads like a mini-travel novel. If you want to travel the world birding and drinking beer, The Jewel Hunter is a must-buy. And leeches.

Hunters 187

Hunters Sri Lanka Asia Solomon Islands 187

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2016

She doesn’t know the species till it emerges, almost dreamlike, from the heavy glare of the sun. There is also a third element, only hinted at in the opening–the environmental and scientific necessity of gathering this data to document the importance of keeping the Pacific Northwest waters healthy and uncontaminated by human elements.

Fox 100

Fox Albatross Geese Bald Eagle 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2012

Considering the bird survived a season in an area saturated with hunters and birds of prey, this facemelting rarity deserves our respect. This bird represented only the second documented record of this species in Florida. I’m looking forward to putting it on my year list for the third year in a row.

2012 143

2012 Birds Guatemala Florida 143