10,000 Birds

JULY 23, 2014

There are the endemics, which are odd in their own way, and then there introduced species, which are so varied in their type and origin that you get the feeling you’ve arrived at the aftermath of a small zoo that escaped. What is surprising is quite how many species did end up here, and how economically unimportant they were.

New Zealand 162

New Zealand Possums Rabbits Ferrets 162

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2014

They all went extinct since 1500 and they are only eight of the nearly two hundred species that have blinked out since then. Sure, we try not to introduce snakes, rats, cats, goats, pigs, and a host of other creatures to isolated islands. Mauritius Owl. The eight species above still exist. Ascencion Crake. Amsterdam Duck.

Mauritius 172

Mauritius Djibouti Guam Birds 172

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 13, 2014

We nature lovers, celebrants of life in all its exquisite multiformity, feel more keenly than most the loss of even the most undifferentiated species. And some of the extinctions were of small animals, like the many dwarf goats and elephants in the Mediterranean. Australia’s extinct and threatened bird species. What a horror!

Marsupials 173

Marsupials Costa Rica Elephants Cuba 173

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2020

are up next, with a wonderful Australian species: It is very hard to choose a Best Bird of the Year any year. So, I could capture it in all its owlish glory, complete with fake eyes at the back and nicely illustrating the capability of the owl to turn its head by almost 180 degrees in each direction. Clare (and Grant!)

2020 245

2020 Birds Costa Rica Germany 245

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

And of course you’ll be keen to keep an eye open for Mantell’s Moa , one of ten species you should see on your tour. This species, the smallest, is endemic to North Island and should be fairly common in the wet lowland forests. Like many of its relatives, this species was also flightless.

New Zealand 211

New Zealand Ducks Australia Mountain Goats 211