10,000 Birds

JULY 3, 2019

One of the things I love about birding around Morelia, in central Mexico, is the wide variety of habitats I have nearby. Now, something odd happens when you go really high in central Mexico: the countryside begins to look more and more like the United States’ Pacific Northwest.

Mexico 127

Mexico Washington Birds United States 127

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 28, 2016

When we sailed to Mexico, I discovered a whole new species, the American Oystercatcher Haematopus palliatus. From Southern California, thru Mexico to Chile. The Atlantic Coast birds tend to have a bit more white on the wings and rump, than the western Mexico birds do.

Mexico 154

Mexico Chile Florida California 154

10,000 Birds

APRIL 19, 2024

Still, I did manage to see a decent 65 species in 6 hours, and many of them stayed quite close to me, allowing for some nice photos. It looks frustratingly similar to the Rufous-crowned Sparrow of the western United States and Mexico, but is much larger and has a heavier bill. I am always down for the day when I get home.

Mexico 209

Mexico Squirrels Turtles Sparrows 209

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2019

For most avian migrants heading south towards Mexico, Central and South America, crossing thru the Arizona desert areas can provide very few water, food and resting areas. If they are passing thru Pima County, and the Tucson area, Arivaca Lake is the last stop for water before crossing the US/Mexico border.

Mexico 132

Mexico Tucson Arizona Ducks 132

10,000 Birds

MARCH 28, 2024

It took up residence for part of each year in the Parque Metropolitano of the city of León, Guanajuato, to the northeast of Guadalajara and well northwest of Mexico City. American Flamingos do occur naturally in Mexico, but only on the Yucatán peninsula in the country’s extreme southwest. Flamingos !”

Mexico 191

Mexico Cuba Chile South America 191

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

I have been lucky enough to get close views of two massive Old World Vulture species, the Eurasian Griffon and the Egyptian Vulture. Here in Mexico, I can almost always count on Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures to pad each outing’s list by two species. Black Vultures are a bit smaller than all these other species.

Turkey 197

Turkey California Condor Mexico Meat 197

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2017

Raptors of Mexico and Central America by William S. 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. Wheeler and William S. Clark and N. That’s a lot of visual information!

Mexico 162

Mexico America North America Falcons 162

10,000 Birds

JULY 3, 2015

Back in early March, Andrew Spencer asked me if I would like to go birding in western Mexico with him and another friend in May. Before I knew it, it was late May, and I was on the road in Colima, Mexico with Andrew Spencer and Nathan Pieplow on a birding adventure! I could not refuse. Time flew by. Photo by Nathan Pieplow.

Mexico 174

Mexico Owls Birds Sparrows 174

10,000 Birds

APRIL 11, 2024

But, as most of our readers know, the phrase “trash birds” usually refers to those species that one sees so often that they become tiresome. Central Mexico has, of course, its own trash birds. This is a species that has very much learned to cohabit with humans, causing its population to explode into new areas.

Mexico 184

Mexico Portland Humane Sparrows 184

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2023

I even made one trip with the specific purpose of birding on Mexico’s much wetter eastern coast, visiting different sites along the very stretched-out state of Veracruz. That is because, like the skin of the gringos who visit Mexico’s beaches, the Palo de Gringo’s bark is red, and peels.

Mexico 167

Mexico Woodpeckers South America Species 167

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 15, 2017

Now that we have returned to our adopted home of La Paz, Mexico, our bones are starting to thaw out from the trip to chilly Seattle. This small bit of arid land that has been set aside to display, and preserve the various species of cactus from this region is about a 45 minute drive from La Paz. Ahh, what a difference a week can make!

Mexico 100

Mexico Sanctuary Seattle Woodpeckers 100

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

These arid hills, cloaked in a mosaic of deciduous scrub and desert vegetation, form a northern outpost for several Neotropical species while also harboring several key endemics and southwestern Nearctic species. Mexico is great for those who love biogeography! Think Arizona meets Costa Rica with a Mexican twist.

Mexico 191

Mexico Costa Rica Arizona Birds 191

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2024

Last week, I failed to produce a post, because I was getting ready to spend a week in Mexico’s tropical state of Tabasco. I saw 32 species here in my first 24 hours, some of them exciting ones. Two classic birds of Mexico’s east coast are also present. … And sometimes that’s a lot.

Barn Owls 207

Barn Owls Mexico Parrots ALA 207

10,000 Birds

MAY 11, 2016

Despite that, I have it in my head to jot down a few of the interesting things about birding here in La Paz, Mexico. What is it that makes this area different from any other urban setting, which might play host to a nice selection of migrant and non-migrant species?

Mexico 132

Mexico Birds Pelicans Geese 132

10,000 Birds

JUNE 16, 2022

Last week, I wrote about my recent trip from my current home of Morelia, Mexico to my childhood home of the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States, and how several species can be found in both places, in spite of how far apart they are, and yet look quite different in each place. west coast and in central Mexico.

Mexico 194

Mexico San Francisco California United States 194

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

In 2022, the 10,000 Birds eBird Collaborative submitted 1,837 checklists from 9 countries ( Australia , China , Costa Rica , Mexico , Saint Lucia , Serbia , Trinidad and Tobago , United Kingdom , and the United States ) and observed 1,273 species. The Collaborative life list increased to 4,140.

Saint Lucia 195

Saint Lucia Costa Rica United Kingdom Trinidad 195

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 29, 2024

I truly do hope I am not tiring 10,000 Birds’ readers too much with my obsession with Michoacán’s ongoing drought, the disappearance of Lake Cuitzeo (Mexico’s 2nd largest lake, in normal years), and our own micro-endemic Black-polled Yellowthroat. But obsessed I am. And it brought friends.

Mexico 215

Mexico Investigation Science Experience 215

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2022

In March 2022, the Collaborative submitted 184 checklists from 4 countries ( Costa Rica , United States , Mexico , and the United Kingdom ) and they included 637 species. Mexico ranks sixth on the Collaborative’s country list with 425 species observed. The top eBirder has seen a remarkable 1,027 species!

Costa Rica 193

Costa Rica United Kingdom United States Mexico 193

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 24, 2018

Not so with our visit to Bosque de Apache NWR in southern New Mexico. The second half of the week was spent near the town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. The Little Big Year numbers up to this point are as follows: Little Big Year species – 908. US species – 243. eBird.org submissions – 312.

New Mexico 113

New Mexico Mexico Tucson Arizona 113

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2024

I have seen few species with the word “House” in their English names ( House Sparrow , Wren , and Finch ), as well as a couple of “Barn” birds ( Barn Swallows and Owls ). I had waited so long to meet you: In May and June, I made a pair of work trips to Mexico’s tropical state of Tabasco. But it was close.

Morocco 171

Morocco Birds Turkey Mexico 171

10,000 Birds

JULY 1, 2020

One of the reasons Mexico is such a great birding area is that, while it shares all sorts of bird groups with the United States and Canada, it also is home to some of the northernmost representatives of neotropical and genera that do not (or just barely) reach that far north, such as Woodcreepers, Tityras, and Trogons.

South America 264

South America Mexico America United States 264

10,000 Birds

JUNE 21, 2017

I am sure there are many reasons why these nasty pools of varying degrees of “black” water seem to be magnets for a large number of species. The La Paz, Mexico waste treatment plant is actually quite near to town, mostly due to the residential growth creeping closer and closer.

Ducks 113

Ducks Mexico Livestock Bears 113

10,000 Birds

MAY 4, 2021

Adventures of a Louisiana Birder: One Year, Two Wings, Three Hundred Species is an enjoyable memoir about birding, birding strategies, birding people, community, life and death, and Louisiana (with some Alabama thrown into the mix). Adventures of a Louisiana Birder: One Year, Two Wings, Three Hundred Species. by Marybeth Lima.

Louisiana 264

Louisiana Species Mississippi Alabama 264

10,000 Birds

APRIL 28, 2021

As I mention each year at this time, the beginning of the birding year, up north, is the end of Mexico’s peak birding season. Only a month ago, a good morning spent gazing at my garden could yield 20 species; but now, suddenly, my goal is 10. So how did the winter of 2020-2021 shape up down here?

Mexico 256

Mexico Trafficking Sparrows Virginia 256

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2020

Whether you happen to be more interested in music or birds, you may love “A Guide to the Birdsong of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean” Since this is a music project rather than an actual guide of bird vocalizations, there won’t be a catalog of antbird trills and toucan yelps.

Costa Rica 233

Costa Rica Nicaragua Cuba Mexico 233

10,000 Birds

JULY 8, 2020

One of the ways I could describe the unique mix of birds I can see here in southwestern Mexico, would be to divide our species into five categories. The invasive species are few, but, unfortunately, very numerous. But there is a final group of species here, about which I have not written very much.

Mexico 192

Mexico Birds Honduras United States 192

10,000 Birds

JUNE 30, 2021

After 38 years of life in Mexico, I rarely have the sort of stomach trouble tourists supposedly get here. My first trip into non-touristy Mexico, I was so worried about the Tijuana Two-Step that, let’s just say, I had the opposite problem for a week. It’s always nice when Mexico gets its due.

Mexico 264

Mexico Groups Birds Species 264

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2015

These and several other species might end up being armchair ticks if and when we take a closer look at their evolutionary history. Taxa that could end up being split into one species occurring north of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, and one south of the isthmus. (2). Two subspecies of the same species that differ within Costa Rica. (4).

Costa Rica 211

Costa Rica Species South America America 211

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 29, 2023

As I mentioned last week, the world seems to have turned upside down lately, at least here in central Mexico. One of my companions said that in his region of Mexico, this type of rain is called a “ mojapendejos ” rain. And indeed, it did rain just enough to keep us consistently wet, but we were too pendejo to seek shelter.

Birds 158

Birds Mexico Shelters Species 158

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 25, 2023

Cedar Waxwings have come back to central Mexico. Most years, there are no more than a few dozen reports of this species across the region. and Canada, Waxwings are clearly an irruptive species for Mexico. Which brings us to the species in this post’s title. This year, the sightings are less, so far. (I

Mexico 147

Mexico 2020 2012 Parrots 147

10,000 Birds

APRIL 21, 2013

King Rails occur widely in eastern North America, in eastern and central Mexico, and in Cuba. So, Maley suggests recognizing four species, instead of the two currently recognized. I should also note that the abstract for the Condor paper proposes five , not four, species. The full study is fascinating and well worth a read.

Species 218

Species North America Cuba Louisiana 218

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2023

If asked, we would answer, “We’ve come from Mexico.” But mostly, planning this trip was hugely stressful because I had to renew my passport beforehand, and it turns out that process is tremendously backed up here in Mexico. and Mexico won’t allow them to be shipped here. ” It’s not a lie.)

Mexico 183

Mexico Morocco Cuba Jordan 183

10,000 Birds

JUNE 24, 2020

This sort of biozone mixing can create a tremendous richness of species. Each of these habitats attracts its own group of species. I mentioned last week the Jamaican Nettletree, whose tiny fruit was attracting all kinds of species — even some I thought did not eat fruit or seeds. This one was a true lifer for me.

Mexico 241

Mexico Lamb Nicaragua Sparrows 241

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2022

In February 2022, the Collaborative submitted 127 checklists in 7 countries ( Costa Rica , United States , Mexico , Trinidad and Tobago , United Kingdom , and Serbia ). The Collaborative’s all-time country with the most species observed is Costa Rica , with 784 species, out of 911 observed on eBird overall!

Costa Rica 216

Costa Rica United Kingdom Trinidad United States 216

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2022

During the second quarter of 2022 (April, May, and June), the Collaborative submitted 581 checklists from 7 countries ( China , Costa Rica , Mexico , Trinidad and Tobago , Saint Lucia , the United Kingdom , and the United States ). The 2022 year list is up to 1,124 species. 4,115: Lesser Antillean Flycatcher (Saint Lucia).

Saint Lucia 147

Saint Lucia United Kingdom Costa Rica United States 147

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2015

Walking along a dirt track next to a prairie, my friend and I were on the look-out for different sparrow species when a large bird suddenly darted into the clearing. In fact, they are central to many Mexican and Native American spiritual beliefs, and have been named the state bird of New Mexico.

New Mexico 101

New Mexico Mexico Coyotes Rattlesnake 101

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2022

During the third quarter of 2022 (July, August, and September), the Collaborative submitted 212 checklists from 3 countries ( Australia , Costa Rica , Mexico , and the United States ). July: 81 checklists and 318 species. August: 54 checklists and 195 species. September: 82 checklists and 259 species.

San Diego 153

San Diego Costa Rica United States Cooking 153