10,000 Birds

JULY 22, 2021

Note: Erika is the Communications Director for Audubon Florida. During a chilly Florida day (yes, we have those) a few months ago, I drove thirty minutes outside of Tallahassee to a co-worker’s house for the singular purpose of checking out her bird feeders. They’re not alone on my bird list. The birds connect us!

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Florida Breeding Birds Sparrows 264

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2013

Smooth-billed Anis were relative newcomers as breeders to Florida, having only begun nesting since the 1930s. According to the Florida Breeding Bird Atlas, the first confirmed breeding record was in Miami in July of 1938. During this time, southern Florida was in a state of ecological chaos. Petersburg area and Cape Canaveral.

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Florida Virgin Islands Miami Breeders 235

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2013

A friend of mine told me, she has been seeing small groups of Swallow-tailed Kites ( Elanoides furficatus ) in the general area; in south Florida. At one of the biggest migration roost in Florida, not far from where we live, kites begin to gather by mid June. Swallow-tailed Kite near the Lake Okeechobee roost in Florida.

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Florida Cuba Colombia 2004 262

10,000 Birds

MARCH 27, 2014

Florida is known as the Sunshine State. Exotic species are animals that did not historically occur in Florida. Most were introduced, meaning they were brought to Florida by humans. However, captive-reared mallards are being unlawfully released by humans in large numbers in Florida.

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Florida Ducks New Zealand Feral 259

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 27, 2012

Razorbills ( Alca torda ) have invaded the coastal waters of Florida on an unprecedented scale this December of 2012. The impacts of such enormous hurricanes and their accompanying surge on marine ecosystems are not well studied or understood but it may be related to the unprecedented invasion of Razorbills in Florida.

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Florida Cuba Bahamas 2012 244

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2012

Back in January I finally completed the North American scrub jay trifecta – Western Scrub Jay , Island Scrub Jay , and Florida Scrub Jay. Florida Scrub Jays are having a hard time of it, what with habitat fragmentation, degradation, and eradication.

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Florida Wildlife California Birds 253

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 23, 2013

The current situation with exotic bird species in Florida is in a state of flux, particularly southeast Florida where the bulk of exotic bird diversity in the United States resides — and much of it “uncountable.”

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Florida Miami Bolivia Alligators 235

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 23, 2012

This migration season in Florida is fast coming to a close but it has not been without its high points. The Florida Keys Hawk-watch broke the world record for number of Peregrine Falcons recorded in a single day – a stunning 651 birds! We have had a record season for these birds and have banded 27 to date this fall.

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Florida Philadelphia 2002 2005 230

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2014

The birding in Florida is so easy that a kid can do it. There are Double-crested Comorants , of course, but it’s not Florida unless you have Anhingas bellied up to the shoreline drying their wings like absurdly proportioned chickens. What sets Florida apart, besides the diversity, is the proximity.

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Florida Alligators Birds United States 191

10,000 Birds

APRIL 14, 2015

Florida is one of America’s great avian hot spots, renowned for its impressive bird diversity. The official Florida checklist counts over 500 species, and thus Florida citizens had a wealth of State Bird candidates to choose from when they named the Florida state bird in 1927. The striking Snail Kite?

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Florida Arkansas Legislature Mississippi 194

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2015

Interestingly, they made their own way to the Florida panhandle, colonizing from the Texas population, but they were also introduced further south in Florida for some unknown reason. Mammals armadillos Florida Nine-banded Armadillo Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival' A quick Google search gave me the answer.

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Florida Coyotes Wildlife Mammals 195

10,000 Birds

JULY 31, 2014

The end of July marks the end of the Least Tern’s ( Sterna antillarum ) nesting season in Florida. Young Least Terns , some still begging for food, begin to appear on Florida beaches and will soon continue their flight south eastern South America. But making it to a flying age in Florida is an accomplishment in itself.

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Florida Raccoons South America Eggs 213

10,000 Birds

JUNE 18, 2015

You may not have heard about the Florida Bonneted Bat (Eumops floridanus) , and that is fine, not many know this bat even existed. This bat is rare and range-restricted in South Florida, which are some of the reasons it was recently listed as an endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Florida Bonneted Bat roosting in Palm Tree.

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Bats Florida Endangered Species Cuba 179

10,000 Birds

MAY 2, 2014

It is also a good description of the birding in southernmost Florida. Sure, Miami and the Florida Keys do not boast any endemics ( ‘Cape Sable’ Seaside Sparrow is close) at the species level. Few birders realize how many warblers actually do winter in southernmost Florida — even long time birders within the state.

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Florida Miami Stray United States 184

10,000 Birds

MAY 2, 2016

Of course, I contacted Carlos Sanchez , alleged south Florida birder extraordinaire, to maximize the returns on what time I could spend. From the bulbuls we went in search of another introduced species that has taken to south Florida like home. Let me get out of the car before making me look at birds! What is it with this guy?

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Florida Miami Birds Owls 175

10,000 Birds

JUNE 9, 2018

As the Caribbean’s emerald waters fell away below our seaplane, I had no idea what to expect from my visit to the Dry Tortugas, 70 miles west of Key West, Florida. Sooties, noddies, and where to find them.

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Florida Marine Life Turtles Humane 187

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 19, 2016

Take the Florida Scrub-Jay. Photo above by Louise Hunt, courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology) At just about 5,000 individuals, Florida’s only exclusive endemic is Endangered. And with the bird’s oak scrub habitat rapidly disappearing , scientists are searching for ways to preserve the species.

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Florida California Hunting Research 183

AVMA News

JANUARY 22, 2024

Merck Animal Health released findings from its most recent comprehensive veterinary wellbeing study on January 15 at the 2024 Veterinary Meeting & Expo (VMX) in Orlando, Florida. The 2023 Merck Animal Health Veterinary Wellbeing Study IV, conducted by Brakke Consulting Inc.

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2017 Rights Florida Animal 450

AVMA News

JULY 11, 2024

The Alabama VMA (ALVMA) held its Emerald Coast Veterinary Conference from May 29-June 2 in Miramar Beach, Florida. The ALVMA presented awards and seated new officials.

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Alabama Florida 382

AVMA News

JANUARY 17, 2024

Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets announced the launch of its Pro Plan Veterinary Support Mission on January 15 at the 2024 Veterinary Meeting & Expo (VMX) in Orlando, Florida.

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Medical Florida Animal 418

AVMA News

APRIL 3, 2024

This year's awards were presented on March 16 during a ceremony in Jacksonville, Florida. The National Academies of Practice, an interdisciplinary organization of health care practitioners and scholars, accepted 15 new fellows of the Veterinary Medicine Academy.

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Jacksonville Florida 411

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 23, 2015

The ABA checklist committee has recently added the Egyptian Goose to the official ABA checklist, based on an established population in southeastern Florida. Others, like the Records Committee of the Florida Ornithological Society, are now hiring. Others, like the Records Committee of the Florida Ornithological Society, are now hiring.

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Florida Fur Lions Elephants 160

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 26, 2013

So what’s so special about seeing the resident re-introduced Whooping Cranes in Florida? One of the last remaining Whooping Cranes in the non-migratory Florida flock. Whooping Cranes occurred naturally in the eastern United States until the late 1940s, and there are records of Whooping Cranes in Florida until the 1930s.

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Buffalo Florida Louisiana 2004 262

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2014

Sure, we also have Common Myna and Boat-tailed Grackle which would be pretty special to most who do not live in Florida. Gray Kingbird perched on a Gumbo Limbo Tree, another typical West Indian species native to South Florida. They are my preferred birding symbol of spring and summer in southern Florida. Until next year.

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Dominican Republic Puerto Rico Miami Florida 258

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2014

That will be the opening day of the 18th Annual Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival in Titusville, Florida. Florida is a great place to bird in January because in addition to the year-round species there are a host of birds that winter in the relatively balmy climate that Florida has in winter. Have I missed anything?

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2015 Wildlife Florida Honduras 255

10,000 Birds

JULY 5, 2013

I always like to see the look of surprise on a visiting birder’s face when I tell them that the Prairie Warblers and Yellow Warblers in southern Florida are restricted to mangrove habitats. Everyone, I would like you to meet the ‘Florida’ Prairie Warbler ( S.

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Florida Miami Breeders Tampa 244

10,000 Birds

APRIL 12, 2013

The populations in the southern United States and northern Mexico are migratory, and it is presumed that the birds that show up annually in south Florida are derived from these populations. In Florida, the species shows up annually (and in multiples!) What is their pattern of occurrence in the sunshine state?

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Florida United States Texas Alligators 240

10,000 Birds

MAY 25, 2020

Note: Erika is the Communications Director for Audubon Florida. At Audubon Florida, we opted to change a typical Birdathon to bring not only our staff together, but our whole Florida birding community. At the same time, our Audubon Florida community would bird for a week, still staying at home. The covid-19 alteration?

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Florida 2020 Shelters Ducks 252

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 3, 2014

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville, Florida, is an amazing destination to see a wide variety of wildlife including, of course, birds! Florida Scrub-Jays are, of course, endemic to Florida. Roseate Spoonbills are one of my favorite Florida birds. So, if you see one that you like, click it!

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Wildlife Florida Birds Ducks 269

10,000 Birds

JUNE 19, 2019

Fast becoming one of my all time “Go To” spots, Florida Canyon, just a few miles north of Madera Canyon has yielded yet another great bird. I was shut out on the cuckoo, but discovered a group of Bushtits , which made them a first time for Florida Canyon for me. Here is another shot of this very cool bird.

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Florida Arizona Texas 2014 113

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2015

I recently returned from my family’s annual spring trip to Florida, and unlike years previous I didn’t get any special time set aside to bird this time round. I’m not that old, but I have been in this birding game for 20 years and even I can remember when Wood Stork was a choice bird in central Florida.

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Florida North America Neglecting South America 235

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 2, 2015

Birding in Florida is unique in that so much of that state’s plenty is evident even to the casual observer. I’ve spent the last week in southwest Florida. It’s a family vacation, sure, but there’s always time for birding and in Florida, the birding often finds you.

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Owls Tenant Florida United States 249

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2018

My husband and I hooked up our boat to the trailer and set off to the Santa Rosa Sound in Florida’s Panhandle around 3 p.m., The post A Relaxing Big Day in Florida appeared first on 10,000 Birds. hitting the water just before 4 p.m. – a late start by any measure. That was just icing on the cake.

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Florida Alabama Kansas Pelicans 113

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2015

Having an up-close-and-personal photo shoot with a Florida Red-shouldered Hawk. Enjoying the endemic-to-Florida Florida Scrub-Jay is always a highlight of the festival. The story behind each can be reached by clicking on the image. Watching a Bald Eagle catch and eat a Blue-winged Teal at Viera was amazing.

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2016 Wildlife Bald Eagle Florida 241

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 19, 2021

Note: Erika works for Audubon Florida. The data are in: the nesting season proved successful for some species of Florida’s wading birds and… less so for others. Wood Storks in particular had a tough year in Southwest Florida; forced to nest late, an early rainy season wiped out many nests.

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2020 Florida Science Birds 264

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 23, 2013

The cup runneth over with good birding at the Space Coast Birding and Nature Festival in Titusville, Florida. Viera Wetlands is one of those Florida institutions, not only for birders, but also fans of civil engineering (you know who you are).

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Bald Eagle Florida Eagles Ducks 244

10,000 Birds

JUNE 4, 2013

Broward County has one of the highest densities of Burrowing Owls in Florida. The Florida sub-species of Burrowing Owl is now classified as a threatened species in Florida and it is one of the rarest sub-species of Burrowing Owls. This is unfortunately an all too common problem for these owls in Florida.

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Owls Florida Raised Coyotes 252