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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. See Birdchick’s post here.
Blackbirds, as a family, often have those simple descriptive names that are easy to mock ( Yellow-rumped Warbler , ugh) until a non-birder comes describing such a species to you and asking for an ID. Which is not to say that the creeping hand of ornithological nepotism has never touched the blackbirds.
For a birder, a sighting of a Tricolored Blackbird is a treat. Add in habitat loss, and the population of Tricolored Blackbirds has plunged enough to necessitate listing it as a Bird of Conservation Concern on the U.S. federal level, and a Species of Special Concern in California. (For
Blackbirds are blackbirds. In the new world all meadowlarks and blackbirds, along with grackles, cowbirds, orioles, oropendulas, and some others, are members of the family Icteridae , the New World Blackbirds. adult male Red-breasted Blackbird showing off its namesake. female Red-breasted Blackbird.
A new paper out this month attempts to paint the most comprehensive picture yet of the origins and diversification of the American sparrows, wood-warblers, blackbirds, cardinals, tanagers, and their kin, an enormous group of birds more than 800 species strong. Burns, John Klicka, Scott M. Lanyon, and Irby J.
The national bird of Sweden is the Blackbird Turdus merula , otherwise known as the Common Blackbird or Eurasian Blackbird , though, of course, in Sweden it is not known by any of those names but as Koltrast.* The Blackbird became the Swedish national bird as a result of a newspaper poll in 1962.
For those of us in the Americas, nine-primaried oscines are among our most familiar and beloved birds: finches; sparrows, juncos, and towhees; warblers; blackbirds, meadowlarks, and orioles; cardinals and grosbeaks; and tanagers. Icteridae : New World blackbirds, orioles, meadowlarks, etc. Zeledoniidae : Wrenthrush. Barker et al.
On an island, species are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures and only two of the nine species of native seedeaters in T&T persist today in isolated pockets. While the Ruddy-breasted Seedeater is one of the two seedeater species still holding on, Lined Seedeaters are austral migrants. Green-rumped Parrotlet.
So, to cut things short, there is sickness all around me, and I have thus decided to have my February post whistle to that tune as well and give an update to the mysterious die-off amongst our Eurasian Blackbirds that occurred around my home turf in Heidelberg last summer – blogged about here.
Most bird species cannot live by black oil sunflower seed alone. Another time to consider taking your feeders down for a limited time is if you get a blackbird takeover when their young leave the nest. The other thing that baffled me is that birds are the most colorful in the summer–all that crazy breeding plumage.
Ten species of these iridescent ebon irritants, most in the genus Quiscalus , are distributed throughout the New World. The banner blackbird of most of Mesoamerica as well as much of the southwestern United States is the Great-tailed Grackle. The grackle is the ultimate American bird, adaptable, intrepid, and obstreperous.
This park protects the largest remaining tract of dry deciduous forest in the west of India, offering visitors 37 species of reptiles, 38 species of mammals and, not to be forgotten – almost 300 bird species. It belongs to the same species as those in Europe, but a smaller subspecies ( Sus scrofa davidi ).
The week on the cusp between March and April was the first week in which failed to pick up any FOY species for the year 2022. This following week, in which I did take a longer trip, I again picked up four FOY species.). Brewer’s Blackbirds are rare treats down here in Michoacán.
Big news about a small bird broke earlier this month when bird researchers from several nations announced that the species formerly known as Spotted Wren-Babbler ( Spelaeornis formosus ) — a tiny, secretive bird of montane forests from the eastern Himalayas to southeast China — is not a Spelaeornis wren-babbler at all.
Its mood is not helped by the ambiguous review on eBird: “Although not actually pale, this brownish songbird is one of the plainer thrushes in its range” The Latin species name of the Dusky Thrush is eunomos (I guess that is Greek, but whatever) – meaning well-ordered. One page is dedicated to the Long-tailed Shrike.
But something happened, and it happened many times: Something has been killing our Blackbirds. We interrupt this blog post for an important message: This is the kind of Blackbird I am talking about, the Eurasian thrush that is Turdus merula, and not the American group of iconic Icterids you might have had in mind.
Stuff wanders in, others things wander out and in the meantime, birds like Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl , two species of caracara, flycatchers, Clay-colored Thrushes , doves, and others make themselves at home. In typical blackbird fashion, this common garden bird gave occasional, loud, ringing calls. Right at home. These were. These were.
Worst off were the Red-winged Blackbirds. It seems odd for a species so associated with ponds and sloughs that they are almost honorary water-birds, but actual exposure water made them notably ragged. ” “It’s a Red-winged Blackbird!” Birds rain Red-winged Blackbirds' ” (laughs at me).
They help me start the day, make a beautiful new beginning to each morning and even if many are the same species as the previous day, I am thankful for their presence. Hoffmann’s Woodpeckers are a common, everyday sight, similar to the Golden-fronted Woodpecker , they use the same snags as a larger species, the Lineated Woodpecker.
My target at the start of the year was 200 species in the UK and 300 in Europe, so I’ve achieved the latter, while the chances of reaching the former are pretty good. One tends to take woodies for granted Brown but not boring: a Meadow Pipit An everyday bird it might be, but the c**k Blackbird’s song is one of the best.
It’s also the high season for birding and with good reason; there are hundreds of birds waiting to be seen, some of them migrants from the north but the majority resident tropical species that are easy on the eyes. One of six toucan species in Costa Rica, fairly common at sites with rainforest. Red-headed Barbet. Masked Tityra.
Have you ever enjoyed one of those brilliant birding expeditions, the outing where every target species takes its cue with machine precision? But ranches, as you may know, can offer extremely benevolent birding, especially when it comes to grassland species. Every few yards into Aripo encouraged another species to show itself.
states and thirty-seven counties, and added a whopping ninety-two species to my life list. Despite that, I managed to see 511 species in 2013 , which is not half-bad. Hopefully I will see at least that many species in 2014! Checking out Red-breasted Blackbirds at the Aripo Agricultural Research Station. My life Gyrfalcon.
Gazetted as the “nature monument” in 2013, one of the few remaining – Bojcinska Forest by the village of Progar covers 670 ha / 1650 ac, with around 108 bird species and some 60 species of mammals. And that is where Q. and I were heading this morning. We had a Common Cuckoo and several Northern Lapwings by the roadside.
However, there are those species which have a hard time bringing attention to themselves such as Yellow-shouldered Blackbird , Giant Nuthatch , and Vinaceous-breasted Parrot. Regardless of their popularity, these species and the threatened ecosystems they inhabit are equally spectacular. Curassows are such stately birds.
While the P-a-P Wildfowl Trust’s main thrust is the breeding and release of five duck species, the habitat encourages a number of native wetland birds to inhabit and proliferate the area. From Yellow-hooded Blackbirds to Purple and Common Gallinules , there are almost too many birds to focus on!
However, there are those species which have a hard time bringing attention to themselves such as Yellow-shouldered Blackbird , Giant Nuthatch , and Vinaceous-breasted Parrot. Regardless of their popularity, these species and the threatened ecosystems they inhabit are equally spectacular.
A Jamaican Tody on Ecclesdown Road Ecclesdown Road is one of the best sites to see the declining and rare Jamaican Blackbird Crested Quail-doves are most active at dusk and dawn.
However, there are those species which have a hard time bringing attention to themselves such as Yellow-shouldered Blackbird , Giant Nuthatch , and Vinaceous-breasted Parrot. Regardless of their popularity, these species and the threatened ecosystems they inhabit are equally spectacular.
The final tally for this thirty year old count circle was 123 species. There has been a high count of 130 species in the past with an average species count of 115 and lows of 95 species on two occasions. There were also new high counts of the following species: Green-winged Teal 412 birds with a previous high of 237.
Yes, we do have warm, tropical weather and a fancy assortment of resident and wintering species. Nor is there any trudging through snow in search of extra hardy species or visits to feeders with the hope of finding a grackle or Red-winged Blackbird that failed to fly south. These were some of the highlights. The Count Meeting.
My life list has increased by 33 which, considering I tallied 137 species during the trip (out of the 160 that the group got), is a pretty significant total. My year list also jumped by a whopping 122 species! But there was more than birds – there were great mammals, insects, landscapes, food, and people.
Flocks of Bushtits made their noisy way through the bushes and a large number of Yellow-headed Blackbirds , which easily increased by ten-fold the number of Yellow-headed Blackbirds I had ever seen, flushed from one reed-bed to another. Later in the season more species show up.
Two species of icterids populated the area, the presence of either was a direct indicator of the degree of water present. Red-breasted Meadowlarks controlled the drier sections while Yellow-hooded Blackbirds occupied the more flooded areas. Retreating hastily, I reverted to my clumsy ways and flushed the heron. Great Blue Heron.
I am only responding to my subjective impression of a single species’ appearance here; specifically, that of the Bronzed Cowbird. Instead, they lay their eggs in other species’ nests, and let those nest-making birds (often significantly smaller than the cowbirds) raise their young. Native versus invasive species?
There are 154 species of cuckoos in the world, and they’re all a fascinating bunch. It’s not a species you are likely to overlook, either, as it is extremely noisy, its cackling call carrying great distances. Blackbirds and Wrens are common, and you will find Grey Wagtails on the streams.
Yellow-hooded Blackbirds and Yellow-chinned Spinetails were ubiquitous as expected, along with a few shorebirds in some isolated ponds. The area is known for being a breeding area of the enigmatic Rufous Crab-Hawk and it was the first place I saw the species, many years ago. Rufous Crab-Hawk. Maybe another time.
A Eurasian Blackbird is checking for the remaining maize seeds. A Common Chaffinch is singing, while one male Blackbird chases the other from his precious maize seeds. There are more than 1100 plant species, the most valuable being the 76 endemics. The longer I sit, the more focused I become. The waiting is on.
In fact, I have way more photos of Whooping Swans ( Cygnus cygnus ) – a species I almost never see – than of Mute Swans. But none of my local birds here in the Alps got quite so neglected as the Blackbird ( Turdus merula ) – I do not seem to have a single photo of a Blackbird in my library.
As is typical of urban birding in Costa Rica, we had small flocks of this species fly over and good looks at the White-crowned Parrot , the other most common parrot in the valley. But, they still occur, the most common species being Black Vulture , Turkey Vulture , Gray Hawk , Short-tailed Hawk , and Yellow-headed and Crested Caracaras.
SUPER STARLINGS Tanzania plays host to a wide variety of Starlings, over twenty species in fact. This is the Ruppell’s Long-tailed Starling , a glimmering blue-black bird with a creamy white eye, reminiscent of the Brewers Blackbird but comparatively a little more scarce. It is a showstopper, and for many, a car-stopper.
And I decided to search it for the forest species: Eurasian Sparrowhawk , Syrian Woodpecker (okay, not truly a forest sp.), And I decided to search it for the forest species: Eurasian Sparrowhawk , Syrian Woodpecker (okay, not truly a forest sp.), And at the beginning of February, my list is still ridiculously low at 55 species.
When they turn into fledglings feather color plays a part, although the feathers of fledglings differ markedly from those of their parents, which differ from those of their species a year old, two years old, in non-breeding plumage, in winter/summer plumage, etc. Blackbird mentality. Hence: Name That Bird. Here’s a gaping shot.
A recent comment thread on Facebook about absurdly high counts of some species in the eBird database got me curious. What is the most of any one species that has ever been reported at one time? The most of any species ever reported is 76,000,000 Brown-headed Cowbirds. Who has seen the most Green Herons at one time? Gyrfalcons ?
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