10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

Not all birds are created equal. These are the kinds of birds even those barely cognizant of nature recognize, appreciate, and aspire to. These are the kinds of birds even those barely cognizant of nature recognize, appreciate, and aspire to. Central Africa has one of those birds.

Uganda 295

Uganda Africa Penguins 2019 295

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 16, 2024

There’s nothing like an unexpected bird to get the pulse racing, as I was reminded on a recent warm and sunny summer’s evening. The farm in question is large – 1,000 acres – and mainly arable, though a small herd of Redpolls (not birds, but a distinctive breed of cattle native to Suffolk) are a new addition.

Cattle 246

Cattle Farming Breeding Birds 246

10,000 Birds

JULY 1, 2024

The Black-winged Cuckooshrike is breeding in several Shanghai locations – I suspect that some trees near the Nanhui hotel might be another one, given the vigorous singing of this bird. The Silver-throated Bushtit is a species in which the juvenile birds seem to be more colorful than the adults, in a reversal of the typical situation.

Giraffes 230

Giraffes Rabbits Birds Breeding 230

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 23, 2017

Lots of the migrant birds are starting to return to Mexico. Some in great numbers, some, just a single bird or two. None of these birds are rarities, and would never be considered a species to get all twitter-pated about. None of these birds are rarities, and would never be considered a species to get all twitter-pated about.

Cattle 100

Cattle Mexico Cows Game 100

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 28, 2012

I am having a wonderful time at the 15th Annual Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival. Remember that all of these birds, like the Common Gallinule to the left, are wild and free to go about their business. Remember that all of these birds, like the Common Gallinule to the left, are wild and free to go about their business.

Cattle 196

Cattle Florida Wildlife Birds 196

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 12, 2024

So my birding buddy who is a botany professor lives on his family’s seven hectares (17 acres), a mere ten minutes’ drive from my house. The south-facing slope was once used to grow corn and graze cattle, but now sports three ecological homes, and is beginning a process of reforestation.

Cattle 238

Cattle Family Birds Mexico 238

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2015

A manicured green lawn in front of the building and an iridescent blue bird on a smallish aloe tree. It was June 1999 and I was observing my first ever bird on African soil. The next bird was some crow-like UFO observed from the shuttle bus. I asked the bus driver about the bird and he asked me back: “The bi’d?” “Umm,

Africa 242

Africa Botswana Europe Birds 242

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 7, 2021

We have observed huge flocks of Galahs there on previous visits and other times there are more bird species, but only one or two of each species. Last Sunday we stopped as usual and we were able to observe a good selection of birds from the bridge. As soon as you get out of your vehicle you can hear birds at this location.

Cattle 296

Cattle Ducks Zebras Australia 296

10,000 Birds

APRIL 13, 2015

Ethiopia, a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa, has firmly established itself as one of Africa’s top birding destinations. Its great diversity of habitats hosts an incredible bird count of over 900 species, including Africa’s 2nd highest list of endemics and near-endemics (after South Africa).

Ethiopia 254

Ethiopia Sudan Leopards Cattle 254

10,000 Birds

MAY 7, 2020

Like many of you, I had plans for this year’s spring migration: to bird the very best tour of the Balkans, heading for northeastern Greece. From there some 200 km to the Kerkini Lake National Park with its 310+ bird checklist, stopping en route at the Mt. And off birding I went. The next day, the wind was swaying the treetops.

Greece 278

Greece Bulgaria Serbia 2000 278

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2012

Have you ever enjoyed one of those brilliant birding expeditions, the outing where every target species takes its cue with machine precision? Of course we’ve all experienced the excruciating opposite of such an excursion, but when waves of new birds practically clamor for attention in quick succession, the feeling is exhilarating.

Trinidad 200

Trinidad Cattle Fast Food Blackbirds 200

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2024

Though the birding around Lake Kerkini may be outstanding, it’s inevitably the lake itself that is the centre of interest. The Greylags are interesting, as they are of the eastern race, rubrirostris , with distinctive pink legs and beaks, unlike the orange of our birds at home in Britain.

Pelicans 234

Pelicans Greece Fish Bulgaria 234

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2022

Whenever we make a trip to Derby we pull over seven kilometres before we get to town at Myalls Bore and the 120 metre long cattle trough. We have seen the cattle trough enough times to know there is not a lot of bird-life using it, because it is easier for the birds to use the water that overflows from the bore to make a wetland.

Cattle 249

Cattle Species Rights Birds 249

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2021

Construction is still ongoing at Nanhui, there are constant rumors that key birding sites will be made inaccessible … you have to take every Nanhui visit as it is your last (yes, another clichee). Still, there were a few birds there this September. Still, there were a few birds there this September. A juvenile male.

LACS 261

LACS Birds France Japan 261

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 27, 2015

This year was my third year helping to lead trips at the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival. The Whooping Crane I hoped to see is one of the few remaining birds from the effort to introduce a non-migratory flock of cranes to central Florida, an effort that did not pay off. It is no wonder that the project was discontinued.

Cattle 230

Cattle Bald Eagle Florida Endangered Species 230

10,000 Birds

MARCH 7, 2022

Anyway, the strange swampy area close to Dongfangs main drag and its associated real and fake Playboy stores has a number of interesting birds – fortunately, none of them displaying any embarrassing brand names. I guess the red bill is the bird’s equivalent of wearing Playboy branded clothes.

Micronesia 222

Micronesia Branding Buffalo Rabbits 222

10,000 Birds

MARCH 22, 2011

home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds , Terminology / Cow Birds Cow Birds By Rick • March 22, 2011 • 1 comment Tweet Share So what do Buffleheads and Bitterns and Hornbills have in common? They’re all named for livestock.

Cows 146

Cows Cattle 2011 Deer 146

10,000 Birds

MAY 29, 2012

At least, thought I, Florida would produce some superior birds. So I packed my binoculars thinking that, even if the trip wouldn’t be as bird-rich as my last trip to the Sunshine State (for the mighty, mighty Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival ), at least a few crackers would wing my way. Not Sea World.

Florida 191

Florida Alligators Birds Turtles 191

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 2, 2015

The sharp strings are a menace to passing birds – especially kites and other raptors – who cannot see them and sometimes suffer grievous, if not fatal, wounds. The first injured bird Nadeem and Mohammad ever found was a Black Kite.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 263

Wildlife Rehabilitation India Rescue Wounded 263

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2016

At least one weekend a year, bats–particularly the vampiric kind–command more attention than birds, at least from most people. I saw lots of different kinds of woodpeckers this weekend, but that big, honking Pileated always wins out over the others for Best Bird honors. What was your best bird of the weekend?

Cattle 160

Cattle 2016 Bats New York 160

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2013

It was not the first note I have published, but was the only one about a bird I have never laid my eyes upon! That was not all, a few days later, by one village rubbish dump, not far from Ahmedabad, we had more than 100 Egyptian Vultures (above); plus 20 more at the dead cattle dumping site at the outskirts of the city.

Sudan 250

Sudan Macedonia Botswana Serbia 250

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 9, 2019

An expanse of habitat as vast as Murchison Falls NP in Uganda, as excessively generous in beauty and biodiversity, permits endless ways to experience both its birds and animals. The Masindi Hotel holds the distinction of being the oldest and most historic hotel in Uganda and has some terrific birds on premises. Mind boggling, I answer!

Uganda 230

Uganda Senegal Africa Game 230

10,000 Birds

JULY 29, 2021

The very best wetland birding around Belgrade, Serbia, is not to be found in the locally famous and tourist-promoted Obedska or Carska Bara Ramsar areas, but at Beljarica Backwaters and the fish farm triangle of Centa, Baranda and Sakule villages, in the Tamis River floodplain.

Farming 264

Farming Fish Birds Boars 264

10,000 Birds

JULY 13, 2023

Lake Kerkini National Park in the north of Greece is the very best birding area in the Balkan Peninsula and definitely among the top ten hotspots of Europe. Some 320 species have been recorded here, and in springtime it is possible to observe more than 150 bird species in a week. The lake lies at a mere 35 m / 115 ft a.s.l.

Greece 246

Greece Pelicans Stray Dog Tortoises 246

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2020

No, I am not going to tell you about some blood-sucking bird with hypnotic powers. But the bird is cool, and I need the photos to prove my points. Instead, they lay their eggs in other species’ nests, and let those nest-making birds (often significantly smaller than the cowbirds) raise their young. Starling -numerous.

Blackbirds 167

Blackbirds Mexico Birds Cattle 167

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 13, 2014

Instead of going on about zip lines and other modern, adventure tourism attractions, the birding crowd talks about taking photos of Resplendent Quetzals , seeing dozens of hummingbird species, and the seemingly odd absence of raptors in Costa Rica but nope, we don’t really talk about extinction. Must be a joke, right?

Costa Rica 252

Costa Rica Species Panama Falcons 252

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 27, 2014

CR being the highest category in the Red List , if I want to see some of those birds, I better hurry! Locals being vegetarians, why are there no birds? That can be traced back in time to 1875, when Alfred Brehm wrote that he had found Sociable Lapwings only alongside the domestic cattle. At first, we observe from afar.

Sudan 252

Sudan India Ukraine Camels 252

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2021

Have you ever birded a place so young that birds still have no names ? … – part 2 – Once I finish this writing, with a strange mix of emotions I will put the Lynx field guide Birds of Colombia to the bookshelf for the first time, more than half a year after I received it. Cerros de Mavecure, photo by Juan Carlos.

Dolphins 264

Dolphins Colombia Otters Monkeys 264

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 23, 2014

The day before we headed south to Perth to circumnavigate Herdsman Lake and see the amazing bird-life there we did a short drive out of town at home in Broome. The road north was closed beyond a certain distance, but the road south remained open and always offers excellent birding opportunities when this happens.

Barn Owls 162

Barn Owls Seals Cattle Birds 162

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 28, 2013

Unlike other birds that drink one sip at the time and raise their heads to swallow, pigeons and sandgrouses drink like asses, lowering their beaks into the water and taking as much as they like. Rao Travel, and the post-conference bird tour by Arpit Deomurari. Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis. Acknowledgements.

India 252

India Birds Boars Eagles 252

10,000 Birds

JULY 27, 2011

One of the things I do to earn a living is bird surveys, some for the federal government, some for private companies that want to assess an area for construction (like a wind turbine). There’s something very relaxing and calming sitting in one spot for four hours at a time and only focusing on birds, no email, no paperwork just birds.

Birds 164

Birds Cattle Blackbirds North America 164

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 8, 2023

By Martin Garwood Martin has been interested in birds from an early age and has traveled extensively in pursuit of different species. But then again, it seemed such a shame to be driving past a really excellent bird reserve on my way home from working nearby, and not paying it a visit, however brief. It was a male Kestrel.

Shelters 245

Shelters Cattle Wildlife Hunting 245

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 8, 2019

Birdwatchers tend to like the rare, the exotic – yet many common birds are exciting as well. With that in mind, I would like to introduce what might be the 20 most common birds of Shanghai. If the Black-crowned Night Heron wasn`t fairly common in Shanghai, I think local bird watchers would plan weekend trips around it.

Germany 149

Germany Cattle Blackbirds Birds 149

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2021

The highway across Roebuck Plains heading south continues to offer great birding opportunities. They are ground-dwelling birds and there is plenty of food for them at ground level. If I zoom in on the larger flocks of Whiskered Terns you only get to see a handful of the thousands of birds! Whiskered Terns feeding.

Cattle 264

Cattle Breeding Family Rights 264

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 17, 2021

I often find myself discussing this subject with my birder friends in other regions of Mexico, when they excitedly comment on seeing a bird that I could see any day, anywhere — or vice versa. Cattle Egrets are very common outside of the most urbanized areas. As I commented above, these are dime-a-dozen birds down here.

Woodpeckers 360

Woodpeckers Mexico Cattle Turkey 360

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2015

I only had a few days in California while visiting my brother at Berkeley, but we couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to visit one of the most famous birding sites in the country: Point Reyes National Seashore. Add those life mammals to the life birds I already expected to see, and I was practically vibrating with excitement.

Seals 217

Seals Elephants Whaling Whales 217

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2013

Whilst the birds are usually associated with clearing ticks and dead skin, they are not averse to a bit of blood-letting. A study showed that a herd of cattle from which ox-peckers were shooed away over a prolonged study period showed no significant reduction in ticks compared to a herd which were allowed to host the birds.

Rhinos 160

Rhinos White Rhinos South Africa Wounded 160