10,000 Birds

JULY 3, 2011

Yellow-crowned Night Herons have a presence about them when they are hunting that reminds me of Buddhist monks. I spent forty-five minutes in the company of the Yellow-crowned Night Heron in this post and it spent that time alternating between hunting and preening but it never even made an attempt to catch something.

Hunting 166

Hunting Jamaica South America America 166

10,000 Birds

MAY 28, 2012

They both perch hunt and hover hunt and will even hop along the ground in pursuit of prey. Whatever they are doing – hunting, chasing other birds, or just flying around – Eastern Kingbirds are fun to watch. They migrate through Central America and winter in South America, apparently almost entirely east of the Andes.

Hunting 204

Hunting Kittens South America United States 204

10,000 Birds

MAY 20, 2014

They packed up in June of 2013 and headed south from San Diego with the southern tip of South America as their destination. We hope that our journey will provide important information about many Neotropical bird species as well as inform conservation.”. Their first contribution to 10,000 Birds is here.

Guatemala 167

Guatemala Mexico San Diego South America 167

10,000 Birds

APRIL 8, 2019

More than 5,000 bird species in the world make some kind of seasonal movement. But in the fall (with plumage as in the photo on the left, above) they take an entirely different, and heroic, route, first to Massachusetts and then, after a rest, south over the Atlantic Ocean. Eighty hours of flying. More than two thousand miles.

Ohio 202

Ohio Bats Legislature Ducks 202

10,000 Birds

MARCH 7, 2012

We have just three native species of lizard in New York State ( Northern Fence Lizard , Five-lined Skink and Coal Skink ) and one introduced species ( Italian Wall Lizard ). Green Iguanas range from southern Mexico and the Caribbean islands to South America and are relatively common.

New York 167

New York Reptiles Eggs South America 167

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 30, 2011

Not that I don’t enjoy seeing new species myself, it’s just that they are an easy target and I am nothing if not lazy and mean spirited. Here in New Zealand te only potential big tick would be a lost vagrant painted snipe, and we’ve already established that I don’t enjoy that kind of vagrant hunting.

Family 164

Family Wombats Uganda Fiji 164

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2015

If this was America, we might not be concerned because starlings are an invasive species, at least in North America. But in Iraq, and more exactly, Kurdistan and Iraqi Kurdistan, they are supposed to be there (and are regularly hunted and eaten) and the fighting is not supposed to be there. BBC has the story as a video.

Science 152

Science Iraq Research Birds 152

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 23, 2014

Later, Harry Fuller, President of the Klamath Bird Observatory, led us to an open meadow where we saw a pair of Great Gray Owls hunting in a meadow. Finally, the Similan Islands are perhaps one of the most beautiful islands in the world and form a stunning backdrop to this species, one of the loveliest pigeons in the world.

2014 200

2014 Costa Rica South Africa Birds 200

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 20, 2023

On the slow crawl into the farm, the first sighting was a small group of Green Ibis – a new species for me. Endemic to the Guianan shield, this species has captivated me since I first laid eyes on a photograph of it. Most notably of which was a pair of Blood-colored Woodpeckers. I had never before seen a Limpkin do this.

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Farming Guyana Birds South America 235

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2021

From there, we entered a side tributary full of Ringed and Amazon Kingfishers , with Chestnut-fronted and Scarlet Macaws in flight… and then the noise: groans, croaks and grunts… and the smell… of this 65 million years old species, so old that the last dinosaurs must have fed on them! Black-collared Swallow by Tyler Ficker.

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Dolphins Colombia Otters Birds 264

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 26, 2016

The name “Harpy Eagle” was coined by South American explorers, and is based on the harpies of Greek Mythology. Because they like to hunt in the tree canopy , they will also eat “iguanas, parrots, porcupines, coatimundis, and raccoons.” A Harpy Eagle. Like Woods, I can’t get over their talons.

Panama 100

Panama Grizzly Bear Porcupines Eagles 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 19, 2020

Last weekend I wasn’t on the hunt for any species in particular though. Pectoral Sandpipers pass through en route to southern South America, some going as far as Tierra del Fuego. Their mysterious nature piqued my interest and it’s never waned since. Greater Yellowlegs.

Trinidad 193

Trinidad South America Blackbirds Industry 193

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 11, 2012

Another example of its staggering wealth is the fact that the 22,000 hectare Table Mountain National Park situated within the city of Cape Town has more plant species than the whole of the British Isles or New Zealand! An indication of its floral wealth is that this region covers a mere 0.5%

South Africa 246

South Africa Africa New Zealand Asia 246

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2012

But nevertheless, this part of the country is home to an astonishing variety of birds and a good number of species that are found nowhere else in the US. In fact, this sub-species was formerly classified as endangered in the US under the Endangered Species Act. A nice Ferruginous Pygmy Owl showing its rufous tail.

Owls 159

Owls Texas Arizona Pigs 159

10,000 Birds

APRIL 25, 2015

I just flew nonstop from Canada to South America and boy, are my arms tired.” Someone better tell that flamingo not to stay put and avoid Malta, where voters narrowly rejected a ban on hunting migratory birds. Help them rack up 4,000 species in 24 hours on eBird!). Props on the sweet Barred Owl call, too. “I

Malta 191

Malta Barn Owls Cyprus Fowl 191

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 132

North America Birds America South America 132