10,000 Birds

JULY 10, 2012

All the inhabited continents except Africa have experienced bird extinctions; however the 2012 update of the IUCN Red List shows a startling, but not altogether unexpected, trend in that more and more of our bird species are facing extinction. The Waldrapp’s numbers continued declining despite intensive conservation efforts.

Endangered Species 187

Endangered Species Species Morocco South Africa 187

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 1, 2013

The story of the cahow, a “Lazurus species” that was thought to be extinct for over 300 years and then discovered to be breeding on a tiny remote island in Bermuda, is part of modern birding legend. In 1951, there were 18 breeding pairs of cahows discovered on three tiny islands. These are magical experiences.

Rats 166

Rats Breeding Birds 2012 166

10,000 Birds

APRIL 5, 2012

Lovitch changes gears with the chapter “Birding with a Purpose”, in which he addresses the win-win of citizen science (called a buzzword, for some reason), gives resources for birding conservation, Christmas Bird Counts, breeding bird surveys, where to find birding job opportunities, and describes, all too briefly, the use of eBird.

New Jersey 232

New Jersey Science United States 2012 232

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 19, 2011

2011 is about to become 2012 and birders the world over are taking a look at their year lists and reminiscing about the awesome sightings and devastating dips that they have experienced. This year I watched them from the day they arrived , until two chicks successfully hatched, the northernmost breeding record for the species.

2011 179

2011 Birds South Korea North Dakota 179

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 22, 2011

Tara Tanaka described the experience of digiscoping this spoonbill as such: Tara Tanaka : Merritt Island NWR was the last stop on a 10-day Florida birding trip last winter. The 2012 Digiscoper of the Year competition will start in June, so there is plenty time to start looking for great digiscoping opportunities.

2011 227

2011 Eagles Bald Eagle Owls 227

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2016

Light blue boxes give brief facts on breeding age, strategy and lifespan. To an intermediate-level birder like me, the material in Better Birding –highly focused, detailed, based on the latest research and years of field experience– is daunting, but also fascinating. Green boxes offer Natural History and Taxonomic Notes.

Birds 190

Birds Groups 2015 North America 190

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 5, 2013

There were three profound questions my birding group discussed while we birded Trinidad and Tobago, back in December 2012: (1) How many Bananaquits could fit on a banana? (2) And, to make things even more confusing, why did Ian’s 2012 ffrench guide list the motmot under its old name, Blue-crowned Motmot? . I was confused.

Trinidad 193

Trinidad South America Birds 2011 193

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2018

The guide covers the all–1194 species in the Species Accounts, including 959 native breeding species, 219 Nearctic migrants, 8 breeding visiting species, and 5 introduced species. Of the native breeding species, 112 are endemic or “very nearly endemic.” (Can Can you guess which of the species cited above are endemic?

America 213

America El Salvador Costa Rica Honduras 213

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Steve Howell has spent decades of experience in the field studying the birds of Belize, Costa Rica, and especially Mexico. They also occasionally show breeding colonies or isolated populations, possible occurrences, and directions of range expansion. I don’t think scientific artwork holds less value when used more than once.

Costa Rica 210

Costa Rica Belize El Salvador Birds 210

10,000 Birds

JULY 3, 2012

What I didn’t know was how this relationship actually works: the mechanics of Red Knot migration, the reduced digestive systems necessary for their long flighta, the need to fatten up quickly so they can fly to the Arctic and breed, how they compete with other shorebirds and gulls and, it turns out, humans, for horseshoe crab eggs.

Delaware 178

Delaware New Jersey Eggs Research 178

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 27, 2013

As 2013 draws to a close we here at 10,000 Birds thought that it would be a great idea if we, like we did in 2010 , 2011 , and 2012 , shared our Best Birds of the Year. It was easily one of the best birding experiences I’ve ever had, even impressing my nonbirder fiance. You can read more about his experience here.

2013 167

2013 Costa Rica Birds India 167

10,000 Birds

APRIL 10, 2016

From our experience the greatest risk is when the shorebirds take off in a panic flight and clip each other’s wings and several fall into the sea. Most of the Red Knot are in very good breeding plumage now and they do stand out very well on the grey rocks.

Taiwan 100

Taiwan Breeding Japan 2017 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 11, 2018

Several years ago, I read about the enormous colonies of breeding birds in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and I did some research to satisfy my curiosity. ( Google Scholar is an excellent resource and free full-text PDFs can be located for many papers, particularly when research is taxpayer-funded. It is helpful to have a sample paper.

Transported 113

Transported 2011 Research 2012 113

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2017

The four authors, themselves field ornithologists, conservationists, birders, and writers with years of experience in southeast Asia, researched scientific studies ranging from early 19th-century descriptions of the birds of Java to the latest phylogenomic studies. Where is the Indonesian Archipelago?

Indonesia 124

Indonesia Brunei Malaysia Papua New Guinea 124

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2013

A breeding bird atlas is a special kind of book. For the nature lovers and birders who participate in breeding bird surveys, the atlas represents hours, often hundreds of hours, of volunteer time spent within a community of citizen scientists doing what they love, observing birds. So, what exactly does a breeding bird atlas contain?

Pennsylvania 225

Pennsylvania Breeding Sparrows Birds 225

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2024

They can be challenging to identify, especially if you haven’t seen one before, though with experience they are not really so difficult. On their breeding grounds in Spain, Lesser Kestrels are very much city birds, for 95% of the population nests in towns. Perhaps some females remain, too, but I didn’t see any.

Falcons 192

Falcons Spain Europe Portugal 192

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2012

As 2012 draws to a close we here at 10,000 Birds thought that it would be a great idea if we, like we did in 2010 and 2011 , shared our Best Birds of the Year. It was a heart-pounding scene straight out of Jurassic Park, an odd experience for a laid-back pursuit like birding. I wrote about the experience here.

2012 146

2012 Guatemala Birds Florida 146

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 5, 2021

Consider that Paulson’s Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East (2012) covers 336 odonate species and think about the difference in geographic size and you get a sense of the concentrated diversity in Costa Rica (though the authors note that the rate of diversity is still less than the increase in diversity for butterflies and orchids).

Costa Rica 259

Costa Rica North America Family America 259

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2011

Will it come back in 2012? Right now great flocks of wood-warblers are making their way north from the southern United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America to breed across the United States and Canada. Read about them here but also get out and experience them. Wood-Warbler Week is finally over for 2011.

United States 155

United States South America 2011 2012 155

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 1, 2023

It is home to four diverse forest ecosystems (deciduous, mixed, boreal, and lowlands), experiences seasonal weather systems ranging from cold dry Arctic winters to humid, thunder-storm filled summers, and, according to the latest official checklist, hosts four professional sports teams with bird names.* state and Canadian provinces.

North America 207

North America Birds Owls Canada 207

10,000 Birds

MARCH 1, 2012

Fortunately, Alan Tilmouth, a beat writer with pelagic experience, expressed an interest in the book as well. But the best place to observe them is from a boat or, if you are lucky, on their breeding grounds, which tend to be isolated islands. Princeton University Press, 2012, 520 pp. Here’s Alan’s review. )

North America 158

North America Albatross America California 158

10,000 Birds

MAY 7, 2013

In the past two years, our bookshelves have welcomed Jerry Liguori’s Hawks At A Distance (2011), the second edition of the classic Hawks in Flight (Dunne, Sutton, Sibley; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012), and Chris Earley’s updated edition of the excellent regional guide, Hawks and Owls of Eastern North America (2012).

Bald Eagle 208

Bald Eagle North America Falcons Owls 208

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2017

The guide covers 747 breeding residents or regular migrants, 29 introduced species, and 160 vagrants, a total of 936 species. Only one species of penguin breeds on the Australian mainland; five additional species breed on sub-Antarctic islands. These “vignettes” are sadly limited due to space considerations.

Australia 106

Australia Penguins Birds New Zealand 106

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 7, 2018

A friend of 10,000 Birds, he talked to Corey about his mission to create this guide in 2012 and wrote about his goal to create a Spanish-language version of the guide in 2017. Many birders are familiar with Gallardo’s fundraising initiatives, which included a speaking tour in the U.S., Europe, and Honduras itself. Conclusion.

Honduras 104

Honduras Birds 2015 Family 104

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

Non-bird watchers without binoculars and experience are notoriously bad sources of information. The new offspring of that year hang back and leave later, finding their way to their wintering grounds using something other than experience, and something other than being taught by their parents. More alarm calling. Apparently.

Humane 204

Humane Eagles Investigation North America 204

10,000 Birds

MAY 20, 2012

Corey, who undoubtedly spent his entire weekend in the field just to trump me, includes not just Willow but the entire suite of downstate New York breeding flycatchers – all eight of them – as his collective Best Bird of the Weekend. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment.

2012 158

2012 New York Fish Eggs 158

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2019

1985) and Seabirds of the World: A Photographic Guide (1987) that covers all species of birds that spend most of their lives foraging, feeding, and flying over and on oceans, and, when not at sea, breeding in remote, inaccessible places. This is the first book since Peter Harrison’s classic Seabirds: An Identification Guide (1983, rev.

Albatross 154

Albatross North America Birds Family 154