August, 2021

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Bird Talk: An Exploration of Avian Communication–A Book Review

10,000 Birds

There was a time when I thought each bird species had its own individual song. Then I found out that there was this vocalization called a ‘call,’ so I thought each bird species had its own individual song (but just the males) and individual call. But then, somewhere along the time I saw my first Common Raven, I realized that not every bird species sang, some just called.

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I found a downed bat on my way to work (bats can’t take off from the ground if you didn’t know). He was was hypothermic and out of energy, but with the help of a local animal rehabilitation center, he made a full recovery about an hour later.

Reddit Animals

submitted by /u/ShadowLapse [link] [comments].

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“Peacocks and Picathartes: Reflections on Africa’s Birdlife”

10,000 Birds

When was the last time you chose a book by its covers? I did that with Peacocks & Picathartes – Reflections on Africa’s birdlife (published by Penguin Random House South Africa ). In case you didn’t know, yes, there is an indigenous peacock living in Africa, the Congo Peafowl. And apart from local people, primate researchers sometimes spot it, but it is a species seen by fewer than ten living birders.

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Mangrove Birds of Costa Rica

10,000 Birds

Forest doesn’t just grow in mountains, hills, and valleys. Give certain, special trees the right conditions and they also take root in the shallow mud of estuaries and other coastal situations. The trees that occur, that thrive in such places are various species of mangroves and as is typical of so many other tropical microhabitats, mangrove forests have their own suite of birds.

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Webinar & PDF Test

Speaker: Steve Romanco

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Birding with 12s: Swarovski NL Pure 12×42

10,000 Birds

“I don’t know anyone else crazy enough to try 12s,” my friend answered when told that I am about to test NL Pure 12×42. And he stood behind his words: he bought an NL 8×42. What do you think? Are 12s right for birding? Or have you ever birded with 12s? Back in the 1990s, I did. And did it mostly from a canoe, which responds to every move you make, multiplied by the river currents, making it ever harder to use the narrow field of view (a.k.a.

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It May Not Seem Like Much But

10,000 Birds

This post does not contain serious eye-candy nor riveting text. In fact it slipped me to upload this earlier as I was completely swamped with some other (bird-related) responsibilities. Over the past few years we have been rewilding our yard here in the suburbs of the island of Trinidad. Some of you who may have been either following my posts on this topic or undertaking a similar adventure yourself would be well acquainted with the exhilaration of some fruit of that labor.

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Proposed Changes to Migratory Bird Treaty Act – Part III

10,000 Birds

As described in prior posts , the Trump Administration spent four years attempting to change the interpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The changes revolved around something called “incidental take,” which is an activity that harm or kills birds incidental to its purpose. For example, wind turbines are designed to generate electricity, but they incidentally strike eagles and other birds.

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New Birding Site in Costa Rica: Snowcaps, Raptors and More!

10,000 Birds

Snowcaps are simply surreal. Not the sublime chocolate ones crowned with sugar but the live feathered ones that look like they have been dipped in choice burgundy and topped with a luminescent satin cap. The adult males sport that look; a bird created with crayons and an imaginative mind. Even better, when they zip between flower patches, the glowing white crown stands out like a miniature fairy light, one that bounces between among small tropical flowers.

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Birding Balangshan, Sichuan, China (part 2)

10,000 Birds

Balangshan is a mountainous area in Sichuan complete with a pass at an altitude of 4500 meters. And it is a great place for birding. In fact, it is so good that it merits two separate blog posts. This is the second part. White-browed Tit Warblers breed in high-altitude scrub, with a preference for junipers. Apparently, they are particularly sought after by Japanese birders – no wonder as the Japanese seem to like all things cute.

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Soda Lake Shorbs

10,000 Birds

Shorebirds – or “shorbs” for the cuteness factor (as if that needed any enhancement) – remain one of the most fascinating families of birds for me. There is something about the challenge in identification, the mysticism of the more you look, the more you see. Add to that their incredulous migration facilitated by physiological capabilities we can barely imagine.

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PDF 9.21.23

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Best Bird of the Weekend (Third of August 2021)

10,000 Birds

As August comes rushing to a close, the doldrums of the last few weeks have already started to give way to a new mass movement of birds. Move with them! Late summer in many parts of the U.S. usually signals shorebird migration, which, in turn, signals whatever passes for excitement when people see shorebirds. All the best birds in my corner of New York over the last few months have been shorebirds, which explains why I dragged myself once again to Rochester’s fabled East Spit to bag a rare

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Queensland’s First Nordmann’s Greenshank

10,000 Birds

Nordmann’s Greenshank on the Cairns Esplanade [Adrian Walsh]. Down here in Australia one can be a birder for a long time without experiencing a proper twitch. Now by a ‘proper twitch’ I mean chasing a rarity or a vagrant and going [or being] an I.D.I.O.T [Incredible Distance In Ornithological Travel]. The main reason is that, unlike the Northern Hemisphere where bird migration is rife such that rarities appear relatively commonly, Australia has far less migration and thus records rarities far

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A Lake Reborn… sort of

10,000 Birds

Those infinitely patient saints who read all my ramblings know that over the past year I have been obsessed with the gradual disappearance of Mexico’s second-largest lake, Lake Cuitzeo, just north of my home city of Morelia. This lake, with a surface area of up to 150 square miles in good years, is my go-to site for dozens of waterfowl and shorebird species, so I take its health personally.

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The Elusive Aztec Thrush

10,000 Birds

Many thrushes live or winter in Mexico, but their taxonomy is mostly quite simple. Eight of our large thrushes (the American Robin , western Mexico’s own Rufous-backed Robin , and eastern Mexico’s ubiquitous Clay-colored Thrush , among others) belong to the genus Turdus. Nine species (including the Hermit Thrush and its migratory identical-twin species, and our five non-migratory Nightingale-Thrushes ) belong to the genus Catharus.

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Birding for One Species: American Goldfinch

10,000 Birds

I settled into the wooden rocking chair on my parents’ porch at about 8 in the morning, early for some but hopelessly late for most birders. Taking a sip of coffee, I knew I had none of my usual birding accoutrements with me – no binoculars, no bird list, no field guide. In fact, if I am being 100% honest, I was in my pajamas. But for a week of mornings during a trip to Maine, none of that bothered me, because I was on the lookout for only one species: the American Goldfinch.

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Best Bird of the Weekend (First of August 2021)

10,000 Birds

The beginning of August raises all kinds of mixed feelings, especially if you live in a temperate zone north of the Equator. Are we excited that we still have a month of more of summer weather left or bummed that fall migration is still that far off? Do we feel weird about being psyched about shorebirds, at least this month? And parents are doubly conflicted… is it OK to say that you’re glad that your kids are going back to school soon (maybe not soon enough)?

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The Warbler Brewery: Canopy 2 Double India Pale Ale

10,000 Birds

For a second time in a month, we have a new double India Pale Ale featuring a species of bird famous for its appearance on the classic vintage Guinness advertisements drawn by artist John Gilroy in the 1930s and ‘40s. Two weeks ago, it was a pantless thunder goose – er, ostrich. This week’s avian star – with two appearing on the can of the Canopy 2 Double India Pale Ale by The Warbler Brewery of Delmar , New York – is the toucan, the most famous member of Gilroy’s advertising stable – er, aviary

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A juvenile Wedge-tailed Eagle

10,000 Birds

In April 2012 I wrote about A close encounter with a Wedge-tailed Eagle. I can’t use that heading again! This time the Wedge-tailed Eagle was closer and only involved ourselves and no other creatures. We were walking to the beach along a track and we suddenly got “shadowed” by something very large. We soon realised a juvenile Wedge-tailed Eagle was coming in to land just in front of us.

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Gabriel PDF Webinar

Speaker: Gabriel Wagner Presenter

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Montezuma Winery: Carbonated Rhubarb Wine

10,000 Birds

“This beautiful and singular bird, although a constant resident in the southern extremities of the peninsula of Florida, seldom extends its journeys in an eastern direction beyond the State of North Carolina. Indeed it is of extremely rare occurrence there, and even in South Carolina, my friend JOHN BACHMAN informs me that he has observed only three individuals in the course of twenty years.

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Birding Balangshan, Sichuan, China (part 1)

10,000 Birds

Balangshan is a mountainous area in Sichuan complete with a pass at an altitude of 4500 meters. And it is a great place for birding. China’s massive investment in infrastructure has indirectly benefited birders. Two sections of the old road – one short one at a lower altitude, one longer one including the mountain pass – are no longer part of the main traffic route, having been replaced by tunnels.

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Black-necked Storks close to Broome

10,000 Birds

We are very lucky here in Broome to be able to observe Black-necked Storks quite easily. They can often been found along the beaches of Roebuck Bay near the Broome Bird Observatory. They also like the grassy areas at the upper reaches of Dampier Creek, which runs behind town. In the header photo you can see some of the town buildings behind the pair of Black-necked Storks.

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What’s Going On

10,000 Birds

For the past few weeks, my posts have been thematic, rather than reporting on my latest outings. To be honest, this is because the birding has been a bit slow of late. We are too far into the year for many FOY sightings, but not quite far enough for most migratory species to make their return appearances. And our rainy season, which to my relief continues to be abundant, does mean that birds no longer concentrate around sources of water.

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Webinar 5.9.22

Speaker: Steve Romanco

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Arizona, or Central Mexico?

10,000 Birds

I got back into birding less than a decade ago, long after moving to Mexico in 1983. So I can hardly speak with authority on birding in the U.S. But even I have heard of how exciting southeast Arizona is for American birders. You fly to Phoenix, or Tucson, rent a car (or ride a bike cross-country, if you are Noah Strycker), drive to the tiny towns of Patagonia and Sierra Vista, and voila!

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Pied Oystercatchers and Sand Goannas

10,000 Birds

We have always known that Pied Oystercatchers nest in the same areas that Sand Goannas roam. We have often suspected that the Sand Goannas would steal eggs as a food source from the Pied Oystercatcher nests if they found them. There have been occasions over the years where it looks like it may have happened, but never a lot of substantial evidence. During this last week we went to check on the two pairs of Pied Oystercatchers between the Surf Club and Gantheaume Point.

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Olive-backed Orioles in Cygnet Park

10,000 Birds

We walk our neighbours’ dogs during the week to our two local parks, which are Brolga Park and Cygnet Park. It gives the dogs a chance to get some exercise and for ourselves to keep track of the different birds that move through the area throughout the year. As the native plants flower different birds arrive and there have also been some surprises over the years.

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Best Bird of the Weekend (Last of July 2021)

10,000 Birds

Weekends are like opinions: everyone has one, but you usually need to go online to find people who want to hear about yours. The same analogy applies to bird sightings, but here we are, so let’s hear what you saw this weekend! This is about the time of year American Goldfinches look their sharpest, especially when artfully staged atop one of my purple coneflowers.

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Test

Testing

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Birding Ruoergai, Sichuan, China – The Raptor Edition

10,000 Birds

The relatively flat and open grassland of Ruoergai is also good raptor country – raptor here being used in the broadest sense of the word, i.e., including owls and vultures. Fortunately for birdwatchers, many of these birds like to sit on the power and other lines, of which sometimes curiously three or four run in parallel. Rarest among the ones we saw was the endangered Saker Falcon.

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Collaborative list July 2021

10,000 Birds

Heatwaves, floods, lockdown, football and Olympics. It’s a wonder that any of the beats managed to get out and wave their binoculars at birds this July. Yet, 79 checklists were submitted by 8 beats, accounting for 366 species in 5 countries. 1 American Avocet – Recurvirostra americana 2 Neotropic Cormorant – Phalacrocorax brasilianus 3 White-tailed Hawk – Geranoaetus albicaudatus 4 Common Ground Dove – Columbina passerina 5 Violet-crowned Hummingbird – Amazili

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Best Bird of the Weekend (Fourth of August 2021)

10,000 Birds

It’s the end of August. Kids are dreading the return to school and for once, with the Delta variant out there, parents might agree with them. Wildfires are raging in the west, a hurricane is slamming the south, and the pandemic continues to rage among the unvaccinated. Fortunately, we have birds to look at, so let’s focus on them right now.

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Northern Cable Beach Pied Oystercatchers

10,000 Birds

The Pied Oystercatcher breeding season continues here in Broome along our coastline and once again the birds are not having much luck. The first pair of Pied Oystercatchers to breed this year have had a second clutch of two eggs and they had two chicks, but sadly they were lost within a few days of hatching. The second pair of Pied Oystercatchers to nest moved their chicks to Gantheaume Point and consequently lost their chicks to an unknown source as well.

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New Production Test

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