10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2017

This is the first identification guide that I know of that covers Mexico (technically North America but rarely included in North American raptor guides) and Central America. Like Peterson’s Hawks of North America, 2nd edition (Houghton Mifflin, 2001), which Clark co-authored with Brain K.

Mexico 157

Mexico America North America Falcons 157

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2014

More than 99% of the population of Tricolored Blackbirds ( Agelaius tricolor ) live within the state of California and form the largest colonies of any North American passerine bird 1. The Results of the 2014 Tricolored Blackbird Statewide Survey confirm that this species is in rapid decline. Click on photos for full sized images.

Blackbirds 185

Blackbirds California 2014 2013 185

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2015

The Brown Pelican and the Peruvian Pelican are closely related and once were considered the same species. The Brown Pelican occurs in both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America and northern South America. The species reached pre-pesticide numbers by the late 1990s and was fully delisted in 2009.

Pelicans 157

Pelicans North America Peru Fish 157

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 1, 2021

If you live north of the Rio Grande, Meiburg says, you may not be familiar with the birds (although – see the last paragraph of this review – they themselves may be changing that circumstance in the near term). The Northern crested caracara, below, was photographed in Skycomish, Washington, 45 miles east of Seattle, in 2014.)

Guyana 234

Guyana South America Washington DC 234

10,000 Birds

JULY 25, 2012

Throughout most of North America, European Starling is a four letter word. There are groups dedicated to species like Eastern Bluebirds and Purple Martins and with extensive writings on how to keep starlings at bay and even recommendations on how to legally trap and kill them should they drive away North American birds.

North America 152

North America Europe America Livestock 152

10,000 Birds

JULY 5, 2022

I put it in a small box for several hours, where it appeared to recover, but studies have shown that internal injuries from a strike usually kill the bird. Photographs of window-killed birds from Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) Copyright © 2021 Daniel Klem, Jr. The more glass, the more bird kills. ©2012 Donna L.

New York City 249

New York City Birds Illinois Science 249

10,000 Birds

MAY 8, 2013

The smellier the better, particularly as, unusually for birds, many species can boast a robust sense of smell. In any case, our hang-ups with vultures clearly stem from our own issues rather than any inherently bizarre trait of the species themselves. Vultures famously feed on carrion. Dead things. Here’s the kicker though.

California Condor 177

California Condor Turkey North America Jordan 177

10,000 Birds

APRIL 26, 2016

Since then their range has spread across the United States and southern Canada, and they remain a sought-after game species. During some seasons, millions of male pheasants are killed. While the females are much drabber by comparison, their gold/tan color and black spotting makes them stand out from other species as well.

South Dakota 100

South Dakota Hawaii United States North America 100

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 27, 2013

Indeed, the Chukar was and is being widely introduced to many parts of North America (not necessarily always for birding purposes), where it is regularly found out West but pops up here and there in the East as well. Chukars of North America can tell you a lot about the mind-set of birders roaming that particular continent.

Kazakhstan 173

Kazakhstan Tennessee North America Sparrows 173

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

This is “the deep cradle of Western ornithology: the birthplace of bird study,” he tells us as he writes about gazing at the 8,000-year old depictions of “flamingos, herons, raptors, avocets and many other species” (p. The difference seems to be that Selous had previously killed birds and she had not.

Dissection 212

Dissection Birds Research Europe 212

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2017

Being charismatic species, Snowy Owls are the focus of the nature-loving community during the winter. Species have value. Most arguments for conserving a species focus on things that we can measure in dollar amounts, such as ecotourism, medical benefits, etc. Snowy Owls have value. However, there is too much focus on “likes.”

Ethics 137

Ethics Owls New York North America 137

10,000 Birds

MAY 13, 2015

It can’t have escaped your notice lately that the blog has been overrun with articles about North America’s pseudo-warblers (or wood warblers, as some people, apparently unaware the name is taken by a proper European species, call them), and, even worse, no small amount of poetry. The cute dead little Wildebeest?

Africa 174

Africa Feral Ethiopia Tanzania 174

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2013

The group has a worldwide distribution; 28 species living and two additional extinct. Both extinct species were island-dwelling and flightless, suggesting a propensity of the group to disperse over long distances , a characteristic that any birder in late summer is familiar with. Scarlet Ibis , photo by Natalia Ocampo-Peñuela.

Birds 206

Birds North America Charlotte New Jersey 206

10,000 Birds

JUNE 20, 2012

Cliff Swallows migrate to North America from their wintering grounds in South America to nest in large colonies, sometimes numbering in the thousands. Because I am a local Audubon board member, I was recently contacted by a bird lover who witnessed Cliff Swallow nests being destroyed at the marina where they dock their boat.

San Diego 165

San Diego illegal California South America 165

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 17, 2014

The North American Model of Wildlife Conservation (NAMWC) is often held up as the best system of wildlife management and conservation in the world. Developed in the post-frontier era, the NAMWC helped put a stop to wanton wildlife destruction in an era where many species were being hunted and trapped ruthlessly to the brink of extinction.

Wildlife 234

Wildlife Coyotes Hunters Wolves 234

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2014

The idea of Lost Animals was conceived after the publication of Extinct Birds (2001), a 400-page, four-pound book on 75 extinct species. Lost Birds looks at photographic representations of 28 species, 21 of which are birds. Some document one of the last views of the species, others are of the last representative of the species.

Animal 265

Animal Mammals Hawaii Dolphins 265

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 7, 2014

The second edition of the National Geographic Complete Birds of North America, 2nd Edition has one of the longest book names in bird bookdom: National Geographic Complete Birds of North America, 2nd Edition: Now Covering More Than 1,000 Species With the Most-Detailed Information Found in a Single Volume.

North America 177

North America America Birds Family 177

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 28, 2015

The previous set up made sure that you discounted 20 years of working in difficult jungle in remote countries to better understand and conserve rare and interesting species, and gets you ready to treat him like the truly arrogant monster he undoubtedly is. The unique behaviors this mysterious species might exhibit?

Collecting 157

Collecting Papua New Guinea Science Birds 157

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2014

There is another area of the Queens County CBC where a team will also likely see Monk Parakeets , Myipsitta monachus , but I am seriously determined to count that bird for my area, Coastal Flushing, a section of northeast Queens, New York, that includes Whitestone, home of one of the loudest invasive bird species in the U.S.

Chicago 196

Chicago New York City New York Illinois 196

10,000 Birds

APRIL 21, 2015

And, of course, the reputation of certain species of birds as troublemakers for humans is a problem in bird conservation, so this is worth watching. H5N2 is a subtype of Influenza A, and infects many species of birds including those mentioned as well as ducks (domestic and wild). Will H5N2 Kill Wild Birds?

Mississippi 174

Mississippi Fowl Turkey Minnesota 174

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. The potpourri covers some interesting bird related science of the last few weeks, and the promise is this: I’ll get to that other stuff soon, I promise!

Science 151

Science Iraq Research Birds 151

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2012

The largest flying land birds in North America, they appear like folded umbrellas at first, their wing feathers draped blanket-like, enveloping bodies that naturally weigh about 20 pounds at maturity. Their hallmark: They don’t kill. Their size doesn’t escape you. You think of turkey dressed in black.

California Condor 204

California Condor California Idaho North America 204

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 28, 2012

This post is old news to those who pay attention to what I say on Facebook but I am still pleased as punch to point out that I have finally reached the 500-bird milestone in the American Birding Association area (basically North America north of Mexico). How did I finally reach this lofty peak?

San Marino 104

San Marino Los Angeles Birds Laws 104

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2012

Or, one of the 145 species of Glass frogs living in the Cental and South American rainforests, I could look through the transparent skin on their undersides and see their internal organs. All species of frogs and toads share the fact that they are amphibian creatures, they have two types of skin gland, four legs, and, well, they jump.

Reptiles 182

Reptiles Madagascar Family New York City 182

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

… Matthew Anderson [of Audubon] said proponents of colonies are putting the interests of one invasive species — cats — over the hundreds of other native ones that are their prey. Cats are domesticated animals that are not indigenous wildlife in North America.

Feral Cats 203

Feral Cats Feral Cats Minneapolis 203

10,000 Birds

MARCH 4, 2011

Among these white-headed/dark-winged gulls formerly lumped into the genus Larus , there were 18+ recognized species the last time I checked, sharing similarities that make telling them apart for the amateur birdwatcher very difficult. 1998), then the proper name for this species is L. fuscus – should be separated as species.

2011 157

2011 Cyprus Deer Species 157

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2012

It’s the warbler that is often the last unchecked species on birders’ life lists and, whether you list or not, for most of us observing it is a once in a lifetime experience. Fish and Wildlife Service endangered species list. The warbler is on the road to being delisted from the Endangered Species List.

Michigan 223

Michigan Bahamas Endangered Species Research 223

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 9, 2014

It is the 100th Anniversary of the extinction of the species known as the Passenger Pigeon and writers are paying attention. Errol Fuller’s The Passenger Pigeon is a beautifully illustrated, elegantly written “celebration” of the passenger pigeon and the artists who illustrated and photographed the species.

2014 159

2014 Killing Michigan Kentucky 159

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 17, 2012

American Crow carrying a road-killed bird Some birds die anonymously on their long trek – unmourned, unloved, and unknown. No other predator that I know of in North America kills and sometimes leaves its prey entirely intact, uneaten. But even more dangerous are cars.

Feral Cats 181

Feral Cats Cats Killing North America 181

10,000 Birds

JUNE 18, 2013

“The birds” as a whole will be “fine” but many individual species will not. ” Here’s the information I have on it: With 2012 breaking records as America’s hottest year ever, America’s migratory birds face unique challenges because of their long journeys and need for multiple habitats.

Maryland 217

Maryland Birds Penguins Wildlife 217

10,000 Birds

MAY 16, 2018

The Aliens Among Us: How Invasive Species Are Transforming the Planet – and Ourselves (Leslie Anthony, Yale). • Shakespeare was, supposedly , the reason starlings, house sparrows, and other non-native birds were introduced to North America. • Inheritors of the Earth: How Nature is Thriving in an Age of Extinction (Chris D.

Humane 103

Humane Species North America Sparrows 103

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2011

The sandhill crane has the lowest recruitment rate (average number of young birds joining a population each season) of any bird now hunted in North America. Kills in Canada, Alaska and Mexico are not included in the count. Initiating a hunting season on a large, charismatic species like a crane is no way to resuscitate hunting.

2011 241

2011 Kentucky Tennessee Hunting 241

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2018

There’s always a chance that we could ingest something bad for us, something that might even kill us – a peril we face anytime we swallow anything, in fact. I suspect this will be the first and last time we’ll see a beer featuring this species, an introduced Old-World songbird best known in North America from its St.

Collecting 100

Collecting St. Louis Dogs Sparrows 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 28, 2015

Without further ado, here are our Best Birds of the Year for 2015… Jochen makes us all jealous with a bird that most of us would kill to see. During my previous five trips to Indonesia, I only heard but never caught a glimpse of three species. Now my tally stands at four species seen and a fifth heard-only.

2015 182

2015 Costa Rica Birds Sparrows 182

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2018

The definition of the word HUNT is “to chase or search for game or other wild animals for the purpose of catching or killing.” One is defined as catching or killing and the other as keeping from injury. Why would any human being think that killing a Giraffe ( Giraffa ) is a good idea? A newly created U.S.

Hunting 109

Hunting Hunters Gorillas Wolves 109