10,000 Birds

MAY 4, 2021

Marybeth Lima tells her birding and personal stories in straightforward, honest language that never skimps on detail (sometimes a bit too much detail) but never overflows on emotion. Adventures of a Louisiana Birder: One Year, Two Wings, Three Hundred Species. by Marybeth Lima. LSU Press, 2019, 272 pp.

Louisiana 264

Louisiana Species Mississippi Alabama 264

10,000 Birds

MARCH 10, 2021

(The White-tipped Dove is actually called, in Spanish, the Paloma Arroyera , or “Gully Dove” And sorry, I have yet to get a photo of this shy species. Like most of the species on this list, this tiny highland bird prefers to make its presence know by singing, rather than by being seen. You do want to see it.

Trinidad 191

Trinidad Emotional Transported Mexico 191

10,000 Birds

APRIL 14, 2021

Since it was the first link in this chain, Pino Real was where I met many of Michoacán’s flagship species. As I look back at my eBird species list, it is astonishing how many of my lifers were first seen there. To my shock, I had a wonderful outing, with 63 species seen in six hours. That chain continues to this day.

2013 166

2013 Emotional Abandon Abandoning 166

10,000 Birds

JUNE 10, 2020

But I would never have imagined how important it would be to my emotional well-being to have a bird-friendly garden during lockdown. And while Dogwoods and Eastern Redbuds may be great options in Massachusetts, they won’t grow for me in Morelia, Mexico. Those who follow my posts know by now that I love gardening.

Birds 159

Birds Woodpeckers Madagascar Nashville 159

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 29, 2014

That’s when the state and feds demand that we fill out complicated forms detailing every bird we’ve taken in during the year, supposedly using the North American Ornithological Society’s abbreviation for each species. Sorry, that was gratuitous – HAWRs are Happy Wrens , and they live in Mexico.). Here’s an example.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 243

Wildlife Rehabilitation Wildlife Mice Vet 243

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 224

Birds Egypt Family Eagles 224

10,000 Birds

MARCH 30, 2024

There was a large raft of hundreds of American Coot , an American White Pelican and lots of duck species. Hearts racing and tears of emotion welling up in our eyes! The emotional high of the owl was never going to give this lake a fair chance but even so I would say this spot was the least attractive of the day.

Ducks 162

Ducks Emotional Cattle Owls 162