10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2023

These two Muscovy drakes brutally battled for about ten minutes right in front of us. For me, there is little difference between this experience and another where the birds are habituated to human presence, pelicans coming in to grab bycatch from fishermen or storks at a landfill even.

Trinidad 257

Trinidad Birds Ducks Fish 257

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 18, 2018

I am scoping Great Cormorants roosting in their colony in the (now dry) flooded forest, there is one… eagle to the right of them. I am right, Kostas confirms, it is a Greater Spotted Eagle. Further south, heading towards the dam, is a cove from where Nikos Gallios sails out for Dalmatian Pelican photography tours. Sure, why not.

Greece 176

Greece 2017 Pelicans Geese 176

10,000 Birds

APRIL 22, 2018

I dropped in at Montezuma NWR before the errant American White Pelican could pull itself away from the carp-filled canal. Only the awesome rarity and pelican pulchritude of this vagrant could top the other amazing birds at Montezuma right now.

2018 100

2018 Pelicans Birds Experience 100

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2018

Blue Jays called near the boat ramp, and a lone, juvenile Brown Pelican paddled lazily in the lapping waves. More pelicans buzzed the surface looking for an early dinner, while Willets and Sanderlings patrolled the sand for smaller meals. . – a late start by any measure. To just observe egrets without binoculars.

Florida 113

Florida Alabama Kansas Pelicans 113

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2013

Pink-backed Pelican. Africa has two resident pelican species, the huge and widely distributed Great or Eastern White Pelican and the smaller Pink-backed which is restricted to Africa, the southern Arabian peninsula and Madagascar (where it may now be extinct.) Pink-backed Pelican by Markus Lilje/Rockjumper Birding Tours.

Africa 202

Africa Somalia Pelicans Mozambique 202

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

Right, smack dad in the middle of Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge. Not another person for miles, and a pair of friendly, well, almost, Great Horned Owls living in the tree right above us. Hundreds of Black-necked Stilts were around the refuge, this group passed right by me on a short morning walk. Now that is a first.

Blackbirds 119

Blackbirds Mules Beavers Wildlife 119

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2019

Let’s get right into it, shall we? Number 8 – Brown Pelican. During my favorite birding event of the year, the annual Big Sit at Fort Tilden in Queens in October , we had hit a lull and were desperately trying to scrape up a few more species when Matthieu spotted a pelican and all was right with the Big Sit once again.

2019 137

2019 Barbados Uganda Costa Rica 137

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2017

Exercise-wise, I had other options as I work right next to the beach, and I slipped on my walking shoes to take a stroll down the sand. Brown Pelicans and Double-crested Cormorants were dark silhouettes as they flew against a fire-colored sky, and the rough outline of Common Loons were visible every now and then as they bobbed on the waves.

Pelicans 100

Pelicans Rights Birds Florida 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2020

Brown Pelican – This is a bird that will just take some luck while I am staring at the ocean. Either way, the odds of actually getting a Brown Pelican in Queens are pretty low. Western Tanager – Pretty unlikely but a guy can dream, right? I just have to be at the right place at the right time. 5 out of 8!).

2018 157

2018 2015 Birds 2019 157

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 4, 2017

We have found a spot that is right at the place where a very large arroyo meets up with the Sea of Cortez. This allows me to see frigates, boobies, terns and pelicans on the saltwater side. Even when scouring the sandy desert floor, looking for seeds and what not, they would scratch and bounce they way right up to me.

Sparrows 114

Sparrows 2017 Battery Mexico 114

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 29, 2016

To reach Prespa Lakes, from Niki continue through Florina, from there right for Albania and veer right for the lakes. If heading to the Kerkini, two kilometres after the border take the left turn for Serres and drive until you spot the lake on you right hand side. Head for the sea only when you fully recharge your batteries.

Greece 176

Greece Albania Macedonia Europe 176

10,000 Birds

APRIL 29, 2020

Almost all the flying birds in the heading photo above are Dowitchers (with American White Pelicans behind them), and those are only one part of the total I saw along both lake shores. The slightly more numerous Snowy Plovers , however, will stay right here; Lago de Cuitzeo is one of the few places where this species breeds in central Mexico.

Mexico 161

Mexico Breeding Ducks North America 161

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 8, 2017

My binoculars were on the seat right next to me, so close and yet, so far. Of course I wanted to go scalloping, which involves snorkeling through the seagrass before plucking the shellfish from the ground and cleaning them right then and there – but I always want to bird. I was itching to get out of the car and bird.

Wildlife 100

Wildlife Florida Pelicans Fish 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 10, 2017

You see I am sitting here typing this with one functioning finger on my right hand. This is because I have torn the ligaments in my right, and I might add, very dominate wrist. The few that are not, are usually hanging around the feeders right out side my office door.

Birds 100

Birds Sparrows Pelicans Rights 100

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 15, 2015

Driving north along the Ionian seacoast through the city of Igoumenitsa, there is a place where the main artery takes you right, further away from the sea – follow it for 150 metres (500 ft) and then turn left just before a small stadium. The rest of the road follows the sea for some 3.5 eBird hotspots of the Kalamas Delta. Recommendation.

Greece 227

Greece Dogs Pelicans Fish 227

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 22, 2017

One where you get to enjoy the many different local desert birds, right along side the birds that make the warm salt waters they home. Brown Pelicans. This, all bordered by the crystal clear waters of the Sea of Cortez. This diversity makes for a very unique birding experience. Here are a few of the birds we spotted last weekend.

Mountain Lions 100

Mountain Lions Mules Sheep Lions 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2019

We look at the Six Pelicans who rest at night and see Brown Pelicans because we already know what pelicans look like. ‘Six Pelicans Rest at night. I do wonder, however, if Harper’s birds are too minimally visual for a toddler’s eyes. Or, maybe this is how toddlers see birds! Seven Finches Stand apart.

New York City 142

New York City Pelicans Birds New York 142

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

This shaggy, slaty, storklike creature possesses a proboscis preposterous enough to put it in league with pelicans, toucans, and curlews. That honor goes to the Gray-crowned Crane , a very sexy species in its own right. Central Africa has one of those birds. Nothing on Earth quite resembles the Shoebill.

Uganda 252

Uganda Africa Birds Penguins 252

10,000 Birds

JUNE 16, 2015

Right off the bat I could watch the two cute birds, unobstructed by anything other than some low sand vegetation. Turns out, it took me almost 30 minutes to leave the parking lot! The dunes beside the lot – roped off – boasted not only Willets and Great Egrets , but also not one but two Wilson’s Plovers.

South Carolina 154

South Carolina Bats Pelicans Fish 154

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 27, 2017

Mule Deer have always been pretty common in this area, but I got quite a surprise when I cleared a small hill in the road, and nearly ran over a male Pronghorn Antelope , right in the middle of the road. Finally we came to a cross road, where I went straight, and he turned right.

Dogs 102

Dogs Mules Deer Oregon 102

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2019

Still, a birder’s gotta bird, so I made sure I would have one morning to check out someplace right there in town. I practiced on these Brown Pelicans. A quick eBird check suggested that the best option would be Boca de Tomates, which is the area by the mouth of the river separating the states of Jalisco and Nayarit.

Mexico 115

Mexico Birds 2017 Pelicans 115

10,000 Birds

JUNE 21, 2016

This turned out to be much easier than I had planned, with just a little patience, be in the right spot, have the right lighting (in order to get a great photo) and get just a little cooperation from the birds. As I had promised last week, I will touch on my success trying to photograph a Mangrove Warbler.

Mexico 100

Mexico Pelicans Rights Birds 100

Critter News

MAY 5, 2010

Right now, there are still no confirmed deaths due to the spill, but rescue groups are gearing up for the worst. The animals threatened most by the spill are bluefin tuna, sea turtles, brown pelicans, shrimp and sharks. That's when the full impact of the oil spill on wildlife will be seen.

Sea Turtles 100

Sea Turtles Endangered Species Sharks Turtles 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 2, 2015

These owls don’t live in a state park or any sort of protected area, they live in the neighborhoods, right next door to stucco middle-class Florida homes, going about their business in a landscape of manicured lawns and screened-in porches. There were three burrows, each with a tenant.

Owls 194

Owls Florida Tenant United States 194

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2021

I never did get around to writing that post until today, and I lost track of those notes long ago, but none of that matters now: it was exactly the right beer for a perfect moment and that’s how I remember it. I know I dutifully took tasting notes on the Albion Amber Ale, too, which I intended to turn into a 10,000 Birds post someday.

San Francisco 219

San Francisco 2020 California Blackbirds 219

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 8, 2017

Gulls, pelicans, oystercatchers, and a few sparrows. In addition, there is an actual ” right leg, left leg, above and below the knee” set of marking patterns. I have over 200 waterfowl that I have recorded those shiny bands on. I would guess that at least half of all Trumpeter Swans I have seen have had neck collars.

Bolivia 100

Bolivia Ecuador Peru Washington 100

10,000 Birds

APRIL 16, 2013

Years ago it was pointed out by somebody, probably Tinbergen or Lack or Wynn-Edwards or one of the other great bird-savvy ethologists of the day, that young Pelicans would blackmail their parents by biting their own wings, a very self defeating activity for a bird with a huge and powerful beak. ” they seemed to be saying.

South Africa 182

South Africa Fowl Africa China 182

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 31, 2016

The topography looks like it is right out of an early John Wayne movie. We saw lots of Brown Pelicans, Osprey, Magnificent Frigatebirds, Yellow-footed Gulls, Brown and Blue-footed Boobies as well as a some terns that were fishing too far out to get a proper identification. After you pass the mine, things change quite a bit.

Zebras 100

Zebras Birds Sparrows Mexico 100

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 19, 2018

Then, to finish the week, we visited the famous, and not necessarily for all the right reasons, Malhuer Wildlife Refuge. The first part of the week, we parked the RV at a campground right on the water, of Dog Lake, 20 miles southwest of Lakeview, Oregon. There was a large population of Western Grebes on the lake. The bunny got away.

Oregon 114

Oregon Owls Wildlife Barn Owls 114

10,000 Birds

MAY 17, 2017

In the 45 minutes we were on the property, we identified 19 species, two of which are endemics, and located my first ever nesting pair of Phainopeplas right there on the property. Brown Pelicans. This is looking down at one of the neighbors. The Phainopeplas alone were enough for me to make up my mind. Xanthus’s Hummingbird.

California 100

California Pelicans Turkey Eggs 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 11, 2016

Remnants of several old rock breakwaters are slowly being absorbed back into the sea, but provide spectacular resting sites for pelicans, gulls, and many kinds of shorebirds. At the farthest end of the bay is the termination of nearly 30 miles of Mangrove shoreline.

Mexico 127

Mexico Birds Pelicans Geese 127

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

It was a very hot day and there had been a bush-fire right to the reserve border only a few weeks prior to our visit and as such we did not have particularly high hopes for a lot of birds. It was getting late in the day, but there were Pelicans soaring over the dam and Red-tailed Black Cockatoos called across the sky as they flew by.

Litter 162

Litter Pelicans Wildlife Australia 162

10,000 Birds

MAY 3, 2022

It stops those thousands of migrating birds flying across the Gulf of Mexico and directs them right onto the trees, fields, sanctuaries, beaches along the Bolivar Peninsula, where they hopefully find food and fresh water. Multitudes, hundreds of Brown Pelicans and Terns–Least, Common, Foster’s, Sandwich, Royal, and Caspian.

Houston 201

Houston Texas Sanctuary Sparrows 201

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

Brown Pelicans , and the northernmost Brown Booby breeding colony on this side of the Pacific. Ringer Anhingas and darters , cormorants and shags , frigatebirds , gannets and boobies , pelicans , and the tropicbirds all share a characteristic found in no other living bird: Their feet are totipalmate. Wicked, right?

2011 151

2011 Pelicans Papua New Guinea Birds 151

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 16, 2013

Though Brown Pelicans were in the air, gulls wheeled and wheedled, and the shorebirds continued to forage I did manage to tear myself away from the birds and have some quality family time. Not a bad shorebird haul, right? Black Turnstone Arenaria melanocephala. Marbled Godwit Limosa fedoa. Snowy Plover Charadrius alexandrinus.

California 134

California Family Pelicans Rights 134

10,000 Birds

JUNE 25, 2011

Consider who the rightful owner of this rich resource might be and weigh the consequences of hasty action. Now a car manufacturer might suggest that you remove the caustic substance immediately with a soft cloth, but are they really the right people to be giving advice on such a sensitive issue? Now where have I heard that before?

Bolivia 184

Bolivia Chile America Spain 184

10,000 Birds

APRIL 1, 2017

In wildlife refuges and reserves in many parts of the world, all you need is a scope, time, and the right overlook and you can walk away with easy, prolonged studies of ducks, herons, waders, grebes, and lots of other marsh birdies. While we scoped and scanned those birds, our main target suddenly appeared… American White Pelican!

Costa Rica 100

Costa Rica Birds Ducks Pelicans 100