10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2012

And, I started daydreaming about encountering something a little different, maybe a Horned Frog, Ceratophrys cornuta, a large, squat green and brown frog of South America, with a wide mouth large enough to eat other frogs as well as reptiles. A book about all the frogs and toads of the world is an ambitious undertaking.

Reptiles 185

Reptiles Madagascar Family New York City 185

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 1, 2022

At the very least appreciated for their hard-shell adaptation, the way they quietly survive in ponds, rivers, oceans, islands, forests, even, for a few species, deserts, and, if you are of a certain age, their cultural depiction as ninja warriors. Or that tortoises and terrapins are considered part of the turtle family.

Turtles 199

Turtles Tortoises Family Terrapins 199

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2011

Found throughout South America in ever-dwindling numbers these extremely beautiful birds – threatened by habitat destruction and collection for the wild bird trade – are often difficult to see and hard to find. That’s right – birds eating clay. Scarlet Macaws.

Peru 255

Peru Parrots 2011 Research Center 255

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 20, 2014

The magnificent history and diversity of birds on Earth came into sharper focus this month with the publication of 28 new scientific papers in Science and other journals. processed the entire genomes of 48 bird species and compared nearly 42 million base pairs of DNA (Hackett et al. American Flamingo photo by Dick Culbert).

Family 279

Family Parrots Birds 2014 279

10,000 Birds

JUNE 23, 2014

Proving that cruelty knows no bounds, some (language unsuitable for a family blog) in Virginia Beach is shooting blow darts at birds. Meanwhile, an Oregon farmer caught a beating from a neighbor irritated by his loud “bird cannons.” (Who Who knew there was such a thing?).

Science 194

Science Hawaii South America 194

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 22, 2013

And now we enter into a family of birds more or less unknown to non-birders. And truth told, over the years they’ve been something of a square peg for ornithologists too, not fitting precisely into any of the known families of birds. I would never have believed it, but if the science says so who am I to argue otherwise?

Jordan 193

Jordan Guatemala Birds South America 193

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 13, 2011

My home country of South Africa can only be described as a birding paradise! Originally considered monotypic, two species are now recognized. Cape (or Rufous) Rockjumper is a true South African endemic and restricted to the southwest Cape. Males of this species are more brightly colored in their non-breeding winter plumage.

South Africa 224

South Africa Lesotho Africa Swaziland 224

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 25, 2011

crossing the Carribean and winding up in South America? Unless you are nothing but the lowly diehard lister, for which you should feel much shame and embarrassment for, birders and biologists alike frequently want to understand birds on a deeper level than how to identify the age, sex and species of a certain individual.

Emotional 206

Emotional Science Birds Mammals 206

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2022

I’ve never known quite what to do with the two Cardinal sightings I have had near our church in Morelia, since that species is not supposed to be seen there, or to be migratory, but both sightings occurred in winter. I have seen two Godwit species at Lake Cuitzeo. These images may not be a big deal to many of our readers.

Mexico 222

Mexico 2018 Ducks Breeding 222

10,000 Birds

JUNE 5, 2018

So many species that change eye color or leg color as they age. Gulls of the World: A Photographic Field Guide is a successor, or companion, as the author terms it, to Klaus Malling Olsen’s classic guide, Gulls of Europe, Asia and North America (Helm, 2004*). So many birds of white and gray touched with black.

2004 151

2004 North America America Europe 151