10,000 Birds

MARCH 7, 2011

I recently heard from Chris Kirkby, the Managing Director and Principal Investigator at Asociacion Fauna Forever , a Peruvian not-for-profit organisation based in Lima and Puerto Maldonado, about a series of bird-banding workshops being held this June and November in the rainforests of Tambopata in south-eastern Peru. Hat-tip to Stella.

Peru 194

Peru 2011 Deer Birds 194

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 22, 2015

As our Gypsy comes to a halt, one Oriental Honey Buzzard is investigating the new arrivals. He has earned his tip. There’s a Three-striped Palm Squirrel by the side of the track, while Jungle Bush Quails are running across it in front of our Maruti Gypsy, almost the official safari vehicle of India.

Tigers 243

Tigers India Killing 2012 243

10,000 Birds

MAY 22, 2012

.” How else to explain the highly suspicious European Bee-Eater Turkish authorities are currently investigating. Hat-tip to Suzie Gilbert ! ) Damning evidence includes an Israeli bird band and unusually large nostrils. Birders of the world: if you see something, say something. (

Investigation 145

Investigation Birds 145

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

I am looking for some shade to park and find an old Fig tree by the beach… only to hurriedly leave the car following one strange bird, a smallish gull with ghost-white wing-tips, without a slightest trace of black. (A It appears similar, but smaller with narrow black stripes at wing-tips and, I believe, dark beak.

Greece 224

Greece Falcons Madagascar Africa 224

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2011

Years of follow-up research conducted by one of Earthwatch’s principal investigators on the Tambopata Macaw project, Dr. Don Brightsmith, shows, however, that within the study area of the clay lick the birds tend to choose the soil with the highest sodium content over soils that are best for neutralizing toxins. Hat-tip to Stella.

Peru 255

Peru Parrots 2011 Research Center 255

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2021

When they surface, the tips of the snout, biosonar “melon” and dorsal fins appear simultaneously, the tail rarely showing before diving. Am I over-confident in my thinking that we were so interesting that they were investigating us for a good half an hour, until we moved further upriver? Photo by Paul Maury.

Dolphins 260

Dolphins Colombia Otters Birds 260

10,000 Birds

APRIL 25, 2015

After a long hiatus that included a new cat, a new apartment, and enough time with the in-laws to last me quite awhile, here’s a rundown of April’s bird news: Funny, sad, and thought-provoking … an African-American ornithologist’s video tips for birding while black. Scientists investigate the DNA of Hawaii’s free-roaming fowl.

Malta 183

Malta Barn Owls Cyprus Fowl 183