10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 21, 2012

Cinnamon Teal ( Anas cyanoptera ) pair by Larry Jordan (click on photos for full sized images) Winter is the time to visit the National Wildlife Refuges in California. Fish and Wildlife Service; they serve as resting and feeding areas for nearly half the migratory birds on the Pacific Flyway.”

Sacramento 166

Sacramento Wildlife United States North America 166

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2013

Sales of duck stamps have funded the preservation of wetlands and other wildlife habitat, which in turn has supported an increase in waterfowl populations. This has benefited both the waterfowl hunters and everyone else who likes ducks and their kin.

Ducks 207

Ducks Hunters Hunting Wildlife 207

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2011

Mostly the ducks were Red-breasted Merganser and Greater Scaup , the two most prevalent species on the pond, but there were a few other birds mixed in as well. Either way, it was a heck of a sight and another example of why Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge is the best place in New York City to see amazing wildlife spectacles.

Ducks 169

Ducks 2011 Jamaica New York 169

10,000 Birds

MARCH 9, 2011

I briefly entertained the idea that I had found a rare species never before seen in New York but quickly came to my senses and realized that I was dealing with a leucistic individual. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy, their son, Desmond Shearwater, and their two indoor cats, Hunter and B.B. Thanks, Corey! I for one missed it.

Ducks 150

Ducks 2011 Jamaica Deer 150

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2011

So, one might surmise, it’s OK if they get shot by hunters thinking they’re sandhill cranes? What could motivate gunmen (I cannot call them hunters) in two states to deliberately kill North America’s tallest and most critically endangered bird? It may be as sick as deliberately targeting an endangered species for death.

2011 240

2011 Hunting Kentucky Hunters 240

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2012

This bird spent the 2011-2012 winter at Colusa National Wildlife Refuge in northern California, migrated someplace exotic and distant in February, and returned to the same pond at the beginning of this month. This bird represented only the second documented record of this species in Florida. What better way to start a birding day?

2012 144

2012 Birds Guatemala Florida 144