10,000 Birds

JUNE 13, 2022

Honeyeaters are a large bird family (190 species) with a strong presence in Australia. Their name refers to their habit of eating nectar and pollen, though most of them also eat insects and/or fruit. The name Miner is not actually a reference to the mining of minerals or coal, which are of limited use to birds.

Australia 189

Australia Birds Feral Cats Kangaroos 189

10,000 Birds

MAY 24, 2020

North America is home to many amazing bird species, including several which require a special effort to see and appreciate. Trogons and quetzals are an ancient, colorful bird family that occurs in forests and other wooded habitats from the American tropics to Africa to Southeast Asia. Elegant Trogon by Homer Gardin.

America 261

America Arizona North America Texas 261

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 1, 2018

Recently, while guiding on the slopes of Poas, without too much effort, we had more than a hundred species. Such a birdy day and yet, one that still lacked quite a few species. Poas itself seems to be pretty straightforward but I wondered how far down both sides of the mountain should be included in my species list. Two hundred?

Costa Rica 100

Costa Rica Species San Jose Birds 100

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

With 500 pages, this guide is a bit on the heavy side, but still not too much, having in mind that half of the region falls into the tropics and the edition is dealing with almost a thousand species (989 to be exact). The next page contains an alphabetical Quick Reference. association with other species and similar).

Africa 264

Africa South Africa Swaziland Lesotho 264

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2021

Pough “with illustrations in color of every species” by Don Eckelberry, Doubleday, 1946. The National Audubon Society Birds of North America covers all species seen in mainland United States, Canada and Baja California. The press material says it covers over 800 species, so you know I had to do a count.

North America 278

North America America Birds California Condor 278

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2022

Instead, they usually just describe species seen at a specific location, with the vague notion that these descriptions might be interesting to other birders. It looks quite distinct compared to some of the other recently discovered species. I guess my sympathy is more with the Plain Bunting, if such a species existed.

China 199

China Birds Vietnam Asia 199

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 2, 2021

Where a birder goes in the Caribbean determines which birds are seen including toy-like todies, Carib hummingbirds, cool pigeons, quail-doves, unique avian families and outrageous woodpeckers. In birding circles, we refer to the northern and eastern part of Costa Rica as the Caribbean Slope. Roosting Great Potoo and Crested Owls!

Costa Rica 263

Costa Rica Puerto Rico Birds Owls 263

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2022

Not bad given that the 5 families in the inner circle of the laughingthrush family have a combined number of about 68 species. The Hainan version is sometimes considered a separate species, in which case it is classified as Near Threatened. 36, if my counting is right and there has been no very recent split or lump.

San Diego 200

San Diego Malaysia China Zoos 200

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2023

Rolando told me this tree was commonly referred to, by the locals, as the Palo de Gringo , or the Gringo Tree. If you have much interest in birds, you may well have seen videos of the very comical mating dance of male Red-capped Manakins , a species whose range stretches from southeast Mexico to South America.

Mexico 162

Mexico Woodpeckers South America Species 162

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2021

Some other members of the shrike family were a bit less testosterone-driven at Nanhui – like this Bull-headed Shrike … … this rather attractive-looking Tiger Shrike … … or one of the many Brown Shrikes passing through Nanhui on migration. It certainly does not refer to the status of Nanhui. ” Hm.

Birds 221

Birds LACS France Japan 221

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 25, 2021

Species formerly referred to as P. One recent study found that this species was sister to P. perdix , and also that race przewalskii (sometimes subsumed within suschkini , but generally paler) was basal to other taxa included within the present species. barbata , but present name has priority.

China 242

China Birds Austria ALA 242

10,000 Birds

MAY 5, 2020

A Field Guide to the Birds: Giving Field Marks of All Species Found in Eastern North America was published in 1934 by Houghton Mifflin (note–Peterson was 26 years old), after being rejected by four publishers. Adding the 76 new species in the Hawaii section, this makes coverage of approximately 884 species.

North America 201

North America America Hawaii Birds 201

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2020

That is because we receive so many extra species from up north, which can double the number of potential species in many of our most important avian families: Ducks, Hummingbirds, Wood Warblers, New World Sparrows, Tyrant Flycatchers, and many others. I was tempted to insert a Sir Mixalot reference here, but will control myself.)

Game 155

Game Lions Africa Family 155

10,000 Birds

JUNE 26, 2019

Belonging to the family “Sulidae” , which includes both the Boobies and Gannets, in 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson introduced the genus “Sula”. In most cases, it is thought to come from the Spanish word “Bobo” referring to stupid, or ignorant. What could be wrong with a Blue-footed Gannet?

Iceland 121

Iceland Family Birds Groups 121

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2017

Apostlebirds have several nick-names and they are all well-suited to the species and the antics they get up to. Grey Jumper, Happy Family, Lousy Jack and Twelve Apostles are names that can refer to them.

Australia 102

Australia Groups Family Species 102

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 30, 2022

Lees and Gilroy delineate vagrancy status and trends for every bird family worldwide, highlighting examples, synthesizing research, and framing it all with their own thoughts and conclusions. It’s a unique title; twitchers and naturalists interested in migration will find it fascinating reading and valuable for future reference.

Sri Lanka 219

Sri Lanka Malaysia Birds Suriname 219

10,000 Birds

JUNE 20, 2022

Or would be, had I encountered more of them – so far, I have seen only a very small share of the approximately 233 woodpecker species, and got decent photos of an even smaller number – not much more than 10% of all of them. So, writing a post about them is easy.

Woodpeckers 224

Woodpeckers South Africa China Singapore 224

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

The text goes far beyond just those two birds, however, as Doug works his way through the puzzles presented by the incredibly wide diversity of bird behavior, even within species, citing current research and new and old theories, reasoning out the most likely and unlikely answers. The six middle chapters are my favorite reading. ” (p.

Science 207

Science Albatross Research Birds 207

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

Now that we’re officially into autumn as of yesterday afternoon, there may be a few swallows lingering along the riverways and reservoirs here, and some may be found here and there into October, but by and large, the several species of swallows we see around here are birds of the summer.

2016 233

2016 Europe New York Africa 233

10,000 Birds

APRIL 30, 2017

Way back in the days when blog posts still got a lot of comments, I wrote a piece on why field guides that arrange species in a more or less strict taxonomic order regularly frustrate me. Taxonomy is constantly changing and so does the order of species in field guides. Order of bird families, non-songbirds. I see a problem.

Brunei 151

Brunei 2009 2016 2014 151

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2021

Similarly, the Alpine Leaf Warbler is one of the more attractive species in an otherwise almost indistinguishable family of identical leaf warblers. (“But the difference in wing bars, Kai!”). As in many bird species, the less attractive female is easier to photograph. We also got a few other species there as well.

Birds 231

Birds North Korea China Woodpeckers 231

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 7, 2014

It’s relatively easy to classify birds into family groups based on physical characteristics. We view them as our enemies when they eat our crops and as an extension of our family when we see them at our feeders. Remarkably, there are 59 bird families that have very little cultural significance; these are listed in Appendix III.

Birds 207

Birds Egypt Family Eagles 207

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2013

This group — dubbed the bombycillids , from the waxwing genus and family name — appears to fall near kinglets and a large group containing thrushes and muscicapids (Old World flycatchers and chats) in the passerine tree. Here’s the only known video footage of that species: Kauai Oo. Spellman et al. Spellman et al.

Saudi Arabia 209

Saudi Arabia 2008 Indonesia Groups 209

10,000 Birds

JUNE 29, 2019

Does anybody know which part of the Great Blue Heron, Ardea herodias is referred to that entitles it to use the colour blue in its name? … Most birds were named by now dead white men who didn’t appreciate that most of the species they were “discovering” had already been discovered and had names. Well, no more!

Family 119

Family Birds Species Rights 119

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

This is “the deep cradle of Western ornithology: the birthplace of bird study,” he tells us as he writes about gazing at the 8,000-year old depictions of “flamingos, herons, raptors, avocets and many other species” (p. The listing of birds in the text (common and scientific names and cross-references) is a puzzle.

Dissection 212

Dissection Birds Research Europe 212

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2015

I’m happy to say that Laura Erickson and Marie Read have written a book, Into the Nest: Intimate Views of the Courting, Parenting, and Family Lives of Familiar Birds , that is not too cute and that does not anthropomorphize. Some chapters focus on one species (Yellow Warbler), some on several related species (Chickadees and Nuthatches).

Eggs 263

Eggs Family 2006 New York 263

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 27, 2020

It seems to me that Lynx Edicions must know Vedran, too, and it was with him in mind that their authors, David W Winkler, Shawn M Billerman and Irby J Lovette, chose the “Bird Families of the World: A Guide to the Spectacular Diversity of Birds” as the full title of their new edition. Families perhaps?

Family 289

Family Birds South America Breeding 289

10,000 Birds

MAY 5, 2015

Birding by Impression is a conscious, deliberate method of identifying and recognizing birds based on the study and evaluation of “distinctive structural features and behavioral movements” and comparison with nearby and similar species. It is not a handbook, though it approaches species from a collective viewpoint. So say Kevin T.

Birds 169

Birds New Jersey Science Groups 169

10,000 Birds

MAY 25, 2023

Note to other species: better do not rely on mature primary forests, as this may lead to extinction. This says more about my inability to differentiate between warbler species than about the rarity of the bird – but the bird was kindly singing. Also, do not smoke as it is not good for your health.

Birds 130

Birds Raised Cattle Mammals 130

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 11, 2018

They are all recognisable from their families in Africa and are simply referred to by prefixing with “Seychelles” With most species being the only representative of their family, it made identification easy. White Tern , Brown Noddy , Lesser Noddy and Lesser Frigatebird brought four more lifers.

Seychelles 100

Seychelles Madagascar Africa Zebras 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 27, 2015

Since we’ve covered some generalities already, once a month I’ll be exploring how a species, genus, or family of birds got its name, and how those names fit in with our larger understanding of, and relationship with, birds. At the request of blog management, I’m embarking on a series of posts on the names of birds.

Falcons 259

Falcons Eagles Meat Geese 259

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2020

That’s pretty amazing–Bolivia has more bird species than India! The source of this ranking, BirdLife International, lists Bolivia as currently having 1,439 bird species, including 18 breeding endemics. The guide covers 1,433 species, the number of birds documented at the end of 2014, the cutoff point for the book.

Bolivia 169

Bolivia Birds Brazil Switzerland 169

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

That is, of course, dependent on me finishing a manuscript in a timely way by the end of February which I am well on my way to doing, having completed over one hundred species accounts thus far. In the meantime, I have whittled down the number of birds I want to include to 298 species, which is still a bit more than I am supposed to include.

New York 194

New York New Jersey Colorado Pennsylvania 194

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 23, 2021

Needed to get a reference to them into this post. In fact, this is probably a species that has substantially expanded its original range through the pet shop route and the resulting escapees. In fact, it seems to be one of the species employed by past ornithologists to establish their own monument in the shape of a subspecies.

South Africa 225

South Africa Africa Lesotho Nigeria 225

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 8, 2022

I was surprised that this species is named for its vocalization – which sounds like laughter. For example, the Diamond Dove is the world’s second-smallest species of the columbidae order ( source ). The Latin species name haematonotus (“blood-backed”) sounds a bit more exciting but not necessarily more accurate.

Australia 147

Australia Birds Parrots Ostriches 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2017

The guide presents 69 species and 1 subspecies, from “NEW WORLD VULTURES: Cathartiformes” to “OSPREY: Pandioninae” to “FAMILY: Accipitridae” (Kites, Hawks, Eagles, Hawk-Eagles), to “FALONIDS: Falconidae” (Falcons, Forest-Falcons, Caracaras, Kestrels, Merlin). That’s a lot of visual information!

Mexico 157

Mexico America North America Falcons 157

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2016

Shrikes by the numbers: The family Laniidae is composed of 31 species of shrike, around the globe. The most common species here in North America is the Loggerhead Shrike , Laniidae ludovicianus which has 11 subspecies. Each nesting pair will have 4-8 eggs, and there is some reference to location being a factor on that quantity.

Butcher 113

Butcher Birds North America Mexico 113