10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

'In the old days, I watched the Atlantic Ocean to enjoy the view—the wavering line between sky and water, the infinite shades of blue and green, the threatening height and roar of waves on a windy morning. Well, now I’m a birder and all that beauty is beside the point. My attention is focused on objects moving above the water, vaguely defined-in-the-fog shapes, some moving lyrically, some diving, occasionally flying in close enough so I can see a bit of black on the wing, red on the bill, and

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Ducks Groups Species North America 231

4 The Love Of Animals

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

'Baby is ready for Halloween thanks to the fun costume selection at PetSmart ! PetSmart has teamed up with brands like Martha Stewart, Disney Sesame Street and more, so you can find the perfect costume to match your pet’s personality this holiday. It was really hard to pick just one, but I fell in love with this Wonder Woman costume and knew right away it was “the one” for our sweet wonder pup!

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Pets Branding Dogs Animal 166

Animal Ethics

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

'My friend Mylan linked to an op-ed column by Nicholas D. Kristof of the New York Times. Let me make a few comments. Kristof says that "SeaWorld [marine park] denies the claims [of mistreatment], which isn''t surprising since it earns millions [of dollars] from orcas." This is cynicism. Kristof should address SeaWorld''s argument, not question its motives.

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Meat Morals New York Times New York 40

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2013

'This is the kind of insanity that goes on with leghold traps. A few years ago my friend Astrid called me on the phone. She had taken her border collie for a walk in the woods in the local 1200-acre state park, and her dog had stepped on a leghold trap. Astrid’s dog howled as she pried it off. Luckily it had not broken his foot, although he limped for a week.

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Wildlife Rehabilitation Rhode Island New Jersey Wildlife 229

Speaker: Steve Romanco

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10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

'The critically endangered Everglade Snail Kite ( Rostrhamus sociabilis ) is making a comeback aided by an unintended introduction of an exotic snail. Over the last weekend, I was at Lake Kissimmee in Florida, observing Snail Kites at an area kites were not present or rare just a few years ago. Kites now nest there and are fairly common. The threat of extinction of such iconic Florida bird prompted State and Federal agencies to find solutions to stop and reverse the declining trend.

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Florida South America Eggs Bolivia 219

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 16, 2013

'Though we have already covered the addition of the Nutmeg Mannikin to the official California state checklist we neglected to let you know that the ABA Checklist Committee quickly followed suit. This had bad results for Adolf Hitler, as the video above proves.

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Neglecting California Birds 216

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

'The other day, Minneapolis, Minnesota passed a feral cat ordinance. This got me wondering what other cities were doing. So I put together a “carnival” (of sorts) of Feral Cat Ordinances and Issues that samples current events across the US. Let’s start with Minneapolis, because that is what sparked my interest. From the Star Tribune : Feral cats win a round at Minneapolis City Hall. …a City Council committee voted 5-0 to recommend a new law that in essence licenses the ca

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Feral Cats Feral Cats Minneapolis 208

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 9, 2013

'Though spring migration brightens birders’ days with its colorful and singing birds after the long, cold winter I prefer the fullness of fall’s migration. Not only are there more birds because of the hordes of youngsters fresh from the nest but the plumages that birds display in autumn are far more variable and challenging. The crisp, cool air in the early morning signifies the end of another hot and humid New York City summer, the end of air conditioning, and the return of cool bre

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New York City New Jersey New York Philadelphia 206

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 15, 2013

'Spoonbills and ibises are stocky, colorful wading birds with distinctive bills: downcurved and pointed in the case of ibises, flat and paddle shaped in the spoonbills (above is my shot of Roseate Spoonbills ( Platalea ajaja ) near a breeding colony in Louisiana). Together, they are placed in the family Threskiornithidae, and they’re related to herons and egrets, pelicans, and the strange Hamerkop and Shoebill.

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Louisiana Mississippi America Pelicans 196

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

'Finally! As of 27 August 2013 the California Bird Records Committee has voted to add the introduced Nutmeg Mannikin to the state checklist. Or, as Seagull Steve puts it : The dreaded Nutmeg Mannikin has been added to California’s official state list by the California Bird Records Committee (aka Bird Police). Not only is this earth-shaking, pants-wetting news for the numerous hardcore state and county listers that reside in California, this courageous decision has implications for the enti

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California Los Angeles 2013 Eggs 196

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10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

'There are advantages to being a “Pelican Partner” for International Bird Rescue ! First, you get to tour one of their California centers , you get a special opportunity to see a Pelican getting its final medical exam and numbered leg band, plus you get the honor of releasing one, or in my case, two of their rehabilitated pelicans! International Bird Rescue is famous for their oil spill response team and saving oiled birds but many of the birds that come to International Bird Rescue&

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Pelicans Bird Rescue Rescue Birds 195

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

'I am starting to feel my age. To be clear, in my early 40′s I really am not complaining. However, I feel the wind of an increasingly fast downhill ride in my face now: I notice that I should probably get myself some reading glasses soon. My left knee occasionally hurts after a long day in the field. Overall, I can’t do things anymore that I could do just a few years ago, both physically and mentally.

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Goats Indonesia Science Experience 191

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2013

'Blakiston’s Fish Owl (image by Robert tdc/Wikimedia Commons) . Sometimes, on the bird news beat, you find gold at both ends of the rainbow. That would be the serious, thought-provoking “news” side, and the lighter, kookier, “what the heck?” side. Today’s post includes two such stories, brought all the way to you from Russia.

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Russia Owls Fish United States 190

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 19, 2013

'We tried yesterday to visit the Nekromanteio of Afyra , the very entrance of ancient Greek’s Hades, but the world of the dead was locked up (well, not really for renovation, but for further research and digging at this archeological site). Still, it is somehow reassuring to know that Hell is closed (one Albanian proverb says that there are no keys for the Hell’s Gates – they are open to all).

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Greece Serbia Hunters Cows 189

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10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

'Calling all hawkeyes! North America is in the prime of raptor migration season, with millions of hawks, accipters, and buteos flying south for the winter. But for the average birder, these soaring raptors may not always be easy to see; lots of patches that are good for seeing other birds feature trees and other impediments to the wide-open skies that are necessary for the best raptor-watching experience.

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Illinois Pennsylvania United States North America 188

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 8, 2013

'Were there any birds about this weekend? The only ones that concerned me were Ravens, Falcons, Seahawks, Cardinals, and Eagles. Welcome back, NFL football! Of course I still kept my eyes out for other types of birds. This time of year is perfect for finding juvenile Eastern Bluebirds , which I was happy to do. Corey’s BBOTW was a Blackburnian Warbler on Saturday in Alley Pond Park in Queens.

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2013 Falcons Birds Eagles 185

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 26, 2013

'If birders say they love birds ostensibly because they can fly and we cannot, then there must be no more beloved group of birds than the swallows. These aerial acrobats are among the most impressive flyers in the bird world, darting this way and that over open country in pursuit of flying insects. They’ve lived among us for millennia and we’ve appreciated their cheerful attitudes and unquenchable appetites for annoying pests , bestowing the friendliest among them with qualifiers lik

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Jordan Iowa Birds Africa 184

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 27, 2013

'So last night, for reasons that seemed good to me at the time, I decided to watch the pilot of the new Kurtzman/Orci show Sleepy Hollow (Mondays, 9/8 Central on Fox.) It wasn’t bad, if you like your horror with a wink and some eye-candy and a heaping dollop of good old-fashioned American cheese (and not so much with logic or historical accuracy.).

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Eagles Bald Eagle Fox Cows 182

Speaker: Gabriel Wagner Presenter

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 28, 2013

'As we pass the autumnal equinox, days shorten and nights become colder and longer. Many countries have celebrations to stave off the cold of approaching winter. In the UK we are eternally pleased that Guy Fawkes chose November for his fireworks party, which we commemorate annually by blowing up the Houses of Parliament. Around this time, Hindu devotees of the Goddess Lakshmi look forward to Diwali , the festival of lights.

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Owls Rodents Transported India 180

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 4, 2013

'Julia Zarankin is on her way to becoming a birder. In her other life, she is a writer, editor, writing coach, and lecturer to later-life learners in Toronto. In her former life, she worked as a professor of Russian literature and culture at the University of Missouri. She contributes regularly to Ontario Nature , reviews books for Birding, and also blogs about her misadventures in bird identification while offering trenchant analysis of avian coiffures on her own blog Birds and Words.

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Puffins Whales Whaling Bald Eagle 180

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2013

'There are bird feeders and then there are squirrel feeders disguised as bird feeders, a fact known well by those of us who have committed a part of our lives to our yard birds. I came to the art of bird feeding late, having spent my adult life in apartments that forbid the hanging of anything, even a cake of suet, from the fire escape. And, although I grew up in a house with a great yard, my parents were not of the bird-feeding persuasion.

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Squirrels Birds Factory Raccoons 179

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

'If you’re into family ticks, and into armchair ticks, well, I hope you’ve been to New Zealand, because the island just got another endemic bird family. Say hello to the Mohouidae. Whitehead ( Mohoua albicilla ) by Rosie Perera ( Creative Commons ). That the three species of mohoua (genus Mohoua ) are New Zealand’s newest family is hardly a surprise.

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Family New Zealand Birds Parrots 179

Speaker: Steve Romanco

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 24, 2013

'Birders. I’ve had the pleasure of being on a number of pelagic trips this year and I can tell you…ya’ll have a lot of work to do. Nowhere is bird misidentification more rampant than on pelagic trips. Some of them are quite novel…which is fine. Pelagic birding is often unpleasant and frustrating. If someone confuses a Scripps’s Murrelet (above) for a Common Murre and not a Craveri’s Murrelet (the proper misidentification, in this case), it’s not the end

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California Oregon Washington Species 177

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2013

'An afternoon is already growing old while I am driving downhill to the Livadi marsh at the island of Kefallonia, Greece. Behind the marsh is a quarry, in front of it the Gulf of Argostoli, a small pine wood to the right and some eucalyptus trees to the left. I am watching from the main coastal road and do not see much – several Little Egrets and Grey Herons , one Common Kingfisher … is he going to be my best bird here?

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Falcons Greece Madagascar Game 176

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 2, 2013

'I spent this weekend at my parents’ house in my hometown of Saugerties, New York, which is nestled nicely between the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson River. It is always nice to visit and give Desi a chance to have a yard to play in and cousins to play with, to say nothing of eating some of my mother’s delicious home cooking. One of Desi’s favorite things to do when we are visiting his grandparents is wander around the yard looking for bugs, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mamm

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Salamander Chipmunks Reptiles Cooking 176

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

'Or perhaps I should say “illusive.” That’s because an American architecture firm is planning what’s billed as the “world’s first invisible building” in South Korea. (Hat tip to Pat O’Donnell for the story; the image above is by GDS Architects, via CNN.) The skyscraper would apparently be cloaked in LED panels projecting an image of what’s on the other side of the building, for a pretty nifty see-through illusion.

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South Korea Chicago Minnesota Nashville 175

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10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 14, 2013

'Dubai is a huge international airport, perfectly placed for connections around the world. Many people find themselves with a few hours to kill during transit and could potentially add a few ticks to their trip list as they pass through. This post might give you a few ideas for what to see during a stop in Dubai and a few tips on where to go and how to get there.

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UAE Broker Fast Food Wounded 175

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2013

'Keep your eyes to the skies for flying pink birds like these Roseate Spoonbills , which are really ibises with big flat bills ! Excited about the equinox? One half of our global population will be surrendering minutes and then hours of daylight for darkness while the other half enjoys the inverse transaction. Those dark days of December are still far off, however, and migrants fill our skies in light and darkness.

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2013 Birds 171

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 30, 2013

'This past Friday I was out birding the coast of Long Island for most of the day with Seth Ausubel and Rich Kelly. We started at Jones Beach despite the reports of some good lingering birds at Robert Moses State Park, mostly because we wanted to find our own good birds. Sadly, despite nearly three hours of effort, we didn’t manage to pick up anything exceptional.

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Sparrows New York Birds 170

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 18, 2013

'I recently had a discussion with birding friends about the importance of a birding mentor when you’re starting–especially when you are kid. I never had that growing up, I didn’t find mentors until I was in my twenties and it was great. You learn so much that can’t be gleaned from just a field guide. You need someone out in the field with you over and over to help you figure those little peeps, sparrows and flycatchers or even the timing of certain bird species in migrati

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Birds Sparrows Species 170

Speaker: cha cha dwyer

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