10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 10, 2020

On the northern birding calendar, October is a time for sparrows, cool weather, and tired fall leaves. It’s when Orange-crowned Warblers share the Goldenrod with lisping and chirping sparrows, when hardy Yellow-rumped Warblers dominate the Parulid scene. In Costa Rica, the tenth month is when birds pass through in droves.

Costa Rica 269

Costa Rica South America Colombia Paraguay 269

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2022

While this is a very charismatic bird, the Southern Grey-headed Sparrow emphatically is not. On Quora , one question asked (presumably not by a sparrow) is “What does he mean by I have a beautiful soul?” ” This sparrow does not want to hear it has a beautiful soul.

Zimbabwe 147

Zimbabwe Birds South Africa Benin 147

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2019

Start with Eurasian Tree Sparrow , an unlikely high-ranked target for anybody watching birds in Shanghai. Still, a bird that has its moments – and I am always surprised how this sparrow really seems to enjoy human presence, however destructive it may be.

Latvia 124

Latvia Birds Sparrows Abandon 124

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Yesterday I saw a Dark-eyed Junco while I was walking my dog. No feeder at all, in fact, no American Goldfinch , no Song Sparrows even unless I go looking for them. A Chipping Sparrow came up to see us once. It was the Slate-colored form, of course.

Montana 181

Montana 2014 New York Sparrows 181

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2019

Back in the old place, there were more birds in the nearby coffee farm but it wasn’t easy to bird because I couldn’t see it from my door and there were stray dogs. The bird we hope most to see is the endemic Cabanis’s Ground-Sparrow although Mary wants to see a Barn Owl just as much.

Costa Rica 172

Costa Rica Barn Owls Stray Dog Blackbirds 172

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 12, 2013

I wandered around a large field as the sun crept onto the grasses and saw a bunch of sparrows. White-throateds of course, but also Song , Field , Dark-eyed Juncos , Eastern Towhees , and a couple Chipping Sparrows. There are more Field Sparrows than one can possibly need to see. Song Sparrows are thick here. Not too bad.

North Carolina 167

North Carolina Sparrows Fox Dogs 167

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

The current incarnation of this birdbath rests on a large pot, putting it out of reach of our curious small dog. Unfortunately, during much of the year, most of those birds are from among the House Sparrows that nest in the vines that I planted along the three-story building next door.

Nashville 168

Nashville 2015 Mexico Turkey 168

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2016

Africa: Two more shadows in the spotlight, two of the most endangered carnivores of the sub-Saharan Africa are coming along the road, toward us: African Painted Dogs (Wild Dogs). We are observing a Dhole, also called Asiatic or Indian Wild Dog. A hundred metres down the track, several more Dholes await us, totalling eleven dogs.

Wildlife 180

Wildlife Tigers Asia Europe 180

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

All four seasons had something to enjoy, from impressive neotropical migration shows in the fall and spring, to scrub filled with sparrows in the winter, to nesting Prothonotary Warblers and Yellow-breasted Chats in the summer. Dogs were not allowed. It was not paved, so it was blessedly free of runners, walkers, and bicyclists.

North Carolina 167

North Carolina Salamander Farming Tennessee 167

10,000 Birds

MAY 24, 2013

Over the years you may have learned to know better but it’s spring and you’re hopeful and maybe this time it’s an unfamiliar sparrow of some kind… but after maneuvering carefully around to a line of sight, it’s that furry little air-raid siren the Eastern chipmunk again. You sigh and move on.

Chipmunks 182

Chipmunks Squirrels Rodents Montana 182

10,000 Birds

JULY 28, 2011

Whether I am speaking about Henslow’s Sparrows and Upland Sandpipers of the east and Midwest that occupy tall-grass prairies or birds like Ferruginous Hawks and Mountain Plovers of the western short-grass prairies; all deserve our attention. You may say this is cynical, but I consider it logical. Not too bad eatin’, huh?

Prairie Dogs 163

Prairie Dogs Colorado North Dakota Soreing 163

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 19, 2018

Two full days at Hart Mountain Wildlife Refuge, three days at Dog Lake, and a short visit to Upper Cottonwood Lake brought back many great memories, in addition to a nice list of birds. The first part of the week, we parked the RV at a campground right on the water, of Dog Lake, 20 miles southwest of Lakeview, Oregon.

Oregon 115

Oregon Owls Wildlife Barn Owls 115

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 16, 2012

Already I had dodged the pack of wild dogs (seriously), spotted a flock of American Pipits , sorted through a huge flock of Snow Geese , and flushed four Eastern Meadowlarks and a Wilson’s Snipe. Then, while walking along a phragmite-lined ditch, a small sparrow flushed, flew a few feet, and dropped back down.

Sparrows 141

Sparrows Dogs Rights New York 141

10,000 Birds

MAY 10, 2013

To deal less in lofty generalities, a few days after I finally saw the Baikal Teal I went birding on my usual, casual route along the riverfront trail near my apartment, accompanied only by my dog. And I saw a Lesser Goldfinch. I didn’t have my camera. And yet, somehow, it was a greater personal accomplishment.

California 158

California Sparrows Fish Wildlife 158

10,000 Birds

MAY 3, 2016

And, although these days I like to switch it around, sometimes using National Geographic or Stokes or a specialty guide or my Sibley phone app, that creased, dog-eared, red library tape bound book is still the field guide I keep in my car or slip into my suitcase for a trip to anywhere east of the Rockies.

North America 162

North America 2003 Birds America 162

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 22, 2016

Sure, the traffic noise was horrible and the only birds I could hear over the traffic were House Sparrows but it is getting increasingly hard to add a bird to my Queens list – my last addition was Bar-tailed Godwit in May of last year – and it felt good to finally get another.

Puerto Rico 122

Puerto Rico Geese Canada Porpoises 122

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2012

I am accustomed to seeing a Coyote or two on each visit I make to the park in the early morning before bikers, dog-walkers, joggers, and humanity in general get out and about. (I averaged forty species on my visits and I imagine that if my ear was more attuned to the chip notes of southern California birds I could come up with more.)

Coyotes 101

Coyotes California Mammals Sparrows 101

10,000 Birds

JULY 27, 2012

Not quite Coney-Island bold, they picked their ways across the strands too rocky for tourists, too precipitate for the locals and their dogs. The gulls themselves, who do not speak Latin, did what they always do in my eyes: They improved an otherwise dull landscape. They soared above the boats.

Portugal 164

Portugal ALA 2007 Sparrows 164

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2018

When a witness, an experienced birder, claims to have been looking for a Bittern, Jejeune knows that he’s lying: there is insufficient cover, in that locale, for the secretive Bittern; the fellow has (as no birder would) a dog with him, splashing through the marsh; and (as Jejeune explains) “anyone looking for a crepuscular species would have been (..)

Collecting 116

Collecting Abandon Abandoning Abandonment 116

10,000 Birds

JULY 30, 2012

What other birds can you find in summer’s dog days? Sparrows are missing; wood-warblers vamoose. Seeing a godwit, plover, sandpiper? I’d rather be blasted to the belt named Kuiper. Stilt Sandpipers. What birds can you pick out from the heat and the haze? Who wants to spend time with a Canada Goose ?

Downers 164

Downers Kangaroos Breeders Canada 164

10,000 Birds

MAY 3, 2012

The old runway in particular is excellent shorebird habitat, and the open wet woodlands growing up from, for lack of a better word, fields, elsewhere on the property shelter nesting Warbling Vireos , Orchard and Baltimore Orioles , Yellow Warblers , Common Yellowthroats , Tree Swallows , Song Sparrows , and other species.

New York City 153

New York City New York Birds Homelessness 153

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2018

Each one was followed up by a litany of dog barks, some high in pitch, others low, far-carrying woofs. Orange-billed Sparrow – Arremon aurantiirostris; El Tapir, 1-Jan. White-eared Ground-Sparrow – Melozone leucotis; Santa Barbara de Heredia, 4-Jan. Olive-backed Euphonia – Euphonia gouldi; El Tapir, 1-Jan.

Costa Rica 158

Costa Rica Birds Parrots Woodpeckers 158

10,000 Birds

APRIL 16, 2011

These infamous bird dogs added a few young guns to the arsenal with Brian Bielfelt, Andy Bankert, and David Simpson. Searching for Nelson’s Sparrow I had the privilege of accompanying the Swarovski Roadside Hawks for the first half of their avian odyssey.

Texas 169

Texas Birds 2011 Florida 169

10,000 Birds

JUNE 14, 2011

In the case of fox hunting (a true bloodsport), dogs are domesticated animals that are killing, not for food, but for sport. Falconry birds are essentially free to come and go as they choose when they are hunting (unlike bloodsports like cock fighting and dog fighting).

League Against Cruel Sports 270

League Against Cruel Sports Rabbits Falcons Hunting 270

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2022

The Eurasian Tree Sparrow is another bird that is very common in our compound. It sometimes makes a rather strange croaking noise, a bit as if a dog tries to bark but does not know how to do it properly. Fortunately, it is still quite common in Shanghai, particularly in some areas near the coast. This bird likes to stay close to water.

Birds 162

Birds Fish Germany China 162

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 5, 2013

An Indian city is chock full of disturbances, not just an endless stream of people walking down the street, but random packs of stray dogs poking about and trucks whirling by seemingly free from any semblance of traffic laws, so this happens frequently.

India 156

India Stray Dog United States Stray 156

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2013

Down the beach it continued to make its way past other people and even dogs, though I hope for its sake it eventually took wing – it was a very long line of hotels. Oblivious to its human surroundings, the egret was carefully picking its way down the grass between the hotels and the sand. Great Egret.

Florida 165

Florida DC Washington Birds 165

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

We remember starlings not skylarks, House Sparrows not Eurasian Tree Sparrows , Cattle Egrets not… well, whatever we’ve forgotten because it didn’t do as well as the Cattle Egrets. It’s just that the exceptions are so much more attention-grabbing.

Montana 135

Montana 2011 New York Bahamas 135

10,000 Birds

MARCH 13, 2011

Olive Sea Snake that has had a dog visit it on the beach Olive Sea Snake with obvious bulge Stoke’s Sea Snake Stoke’s Sea Snake with wounds Dubois’ Sea Snake Dubois’ Sea Snake being returned to the sea! And that was one lucky dog, ey? I hope you enjoy these photos! Jochen Mar 15th, 2011 at 5:25 am @Clare.

Australia 151

Australia 2011 Sharks Deer 151

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2018

By most reckonings, the Northern Hemisphere is in the middle of the so-called dog days of summer. The dog days were thought by the ancients to be vexed by heat, storms, bad luck, pestilence, and madness – the perfect season for the perverse pleasures of playing tricks on the mind. I’m glad that Collective Arts Brewing agrees.

Collecting 100

Collecting St. Louis Dogs Sparrows 100

10,000 Birds

JULY 23, 2014

They took dogs to Australia, chickens across the Pacific, rabbits to England, horses to the New World, and then brought potatoes back. The first to do so was the humble House Sparrow, which was brought to help control caterpillars but soon reached such numbers it was the subject of control itself.

New Zealand 161

New Zealand Possums Rabbits Ferrets 161

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2011

my dog is named Phoebe so I see her everyday — all day. I think that both are correct, but the eastern phoebe usually only passes through the NYC area during spring, while tree sparrows nest here and stay over summer. Audrey Mar 20th, 2011 at 1:17 pm and PS. Joseph Mar 20th, 2011 at 10:17 pm “who is right?

2011 183

2011 Deer New York Philadelphia 183

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 2, 2014

We soaked in the sight of two male Munias, a few feet from the dog run. A Spotted-Towhee and a Thick-billed Fox Sparrow lurked in the bushes (another Catherine spot). This was quickly followed by Wilson’s and Orange-crowned Warblers , several Rufous/Allen’s Hummingbirds , Western Bluebirds , and twittering Lesser Goldfinches.

Los Angeles 171

Los Angeles Woodpeckers California Birds 171

10,000 Birds

JULY 14, 2021

Unfortunately, the Cañada’s ease of access also makes it accessible to many other people, who use it to jog, walk their dogs, and ride mountain bikes. The Rusty Sparrow is a bird of Mexico and Central America that looks remarkably like the Rufous-crowned Sparrow , but is considerably larger.

Mexico 226

Mexico Sparrows United States Virginia 226

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 24, 2014

In honor of fall, and of the Chipping Sparrow that just smacked itself (thankfully not too hard) against my balcony window, here’s a blast from the past: Oct. There’s a movement at the corner of my eye, and an off-leash dog bounds towards me (not an issue you have to deal with on pelagics much.) Dawn is getting later and later.

San Diego 173

San Diego Sparrows Breeders 2009 173

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Dr. Dog – Cuckoo. Finally, Big Thief have better songs than “Sparrow” – but “Shark Smile” does not mention any bird species … A Russett Sparrow , Tianmushan, China. A Large Hawk Cuckoo (Nanhui, China). Magnetic Fields – Absolutely cuckoo. Red-chested Cuckoo (Mkuze, South Africa).

South Africa 228

South Africa China Germany Birds 228

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2023

The same can be said, to a lesser extent, for the shorebirds, New World sparrows, warblers, and many other families. Sure, the dog didn’t count for our eBird list. For example, of the 9 duck species we saw, 7 are winter-only. Wetter : The length of my list is greatly influenced by the presence or absence of water.

Blackbirds 147

Blackbirds 2020 Ducks Mexico 147