10,000 Birds

JUNE 22, 2011

It’s not fecal material, but parts that are not digestible like fur, bones and the exoskeletons of insects. For example, since eagles and hawks tend to rip their prey apart and have stronger digestive acids, their pellets look like wads of fur. Oehlenschlager apologized that he couldn’t say the exact species of bat.

Bats 214

Bats Dissection Owls Minnesota 214

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2013

This was the local name meaning “ugly” used for these primates by the people of the Gonder area in northern Ethiopia when the German naturalist Rüppell “discovered” this species for science in the 1830’s. Males sport a larger heart-shaped bare batch encircled by pale fur, that shows off their dominance status.

Ethiopia 161

Ethiopia Primates Mammals Fur 161

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 20, 2012

The National Audubon Society tells the story best: Prior to the turn of the century, people engaged in a holiday tradition known as the Christmas “Side Hunt”: They would choose sides and go afield with their guns; whoever brought in the biggest pile of feathered (and furred) quarry won. So began the Christmas Bird Count.

North America 129

North America Birds America South America 129