10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2019

This month we were able to go to Europe again, for our first real vacation in a few years. We stayed with friends in the tiny French town of Cessy, and there I saw my second European woodpecker species, the handsome Great Spotted Woodpecker. Some of my readers may recall that my wife and I went to Spain a few months ago.

Switzerland 121

Switzerland Austria Europe Spain 121

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 23, 2021

For some reason that is hard for me to fathom, there is no such bird as a Cape Woodpecker. The Common Waxbill looks like it belongs in a pet shop rather than in the wild. In fact, this is probably a species that has substantially expanded its original range through the pet shop route and the resulting escapees.

South Africa 257

South Africa Africa Lesotho Nigeria 257

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2021

Once I observed a man walking his two small dogs here, passing by a perched White-tailed Eagle but looking down at grass and not noticing the largest raptor in Europe at all. People came to see what it was all about, with their children and pets, rambling around the green oasis for the first time. Photo by Vesna Petrakovic.

Otters 264

Otters Protest Protesting Protesters 264

10,000 Birds

JUNE 23, 2022

Assuming that the (North American) Imperial Woodpecker and the Ivory-billed Woodpecker are both extinct, the Great Slaty Woodpecker is the largest woodpecker species alive. One would think that for a species as common in Europe as the Grey-headed Woodpecker , the HBW would spend some effort to update the species entry.

Birds 147

Birds Myanmar China Chicago 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 23, 2012

There are seventeen species of hedgehog found across Europe, Asia, and Africa, the only places where hedgehogs are native. europaeus , found throughout most of western Europe and parts of northern Europe as well, though the hybrids that are often sold in American pet stores might be even more familiar.

Hedgehogs 171

Hedgehogs Hungary Opossums North America 171

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2012

This is what happens when people choose their pet birds on visual factors alone without taking vocalizations into account. Schloßpark Schwetzingen (“palace gardens of Schwetzingen”) in Schwetzingen – obviously – are a very good area, and also good for woodpeckers and generally common park/garden birds.

Germany 254

Germany Netherlands Zoos Geese 254