10,000 Birds

JUNE 24, 2013

The ride from Prisoner’s Harbor, where we had spent our day, to Scorpion Anchorage, was uneventful, though Desi did fall asleep and I did enjoy pretty good views of breeding-plumaged Pigeon Guillemots. This picture actually has three species of shearwater in it - Pink-footed , Sooty , and Black-vented. It was amazing.

Whales 164

Whales Whaling Dolphins California 164

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2012

It was a Benguela Nino year, and pelagic seabirds were in super-abundance in the south eastern Atlantic, with the total of species by variety and number exceeding all expectations for the birders on the inaugural trip as we pitched and wallowed about in the rolling swells on our way out to the trawling grounds.

Albatross 241

Albatross Penguins Dolphins Whales 241

10,000 Birds

MAY 1, 2014

Nick finds a bird-shaped protrusion at the top of the rock – Black-eared Wheatear , not exactly a species I expect to observe from a boat deck. This shearwater is a Mediterranean endemic, breeding from Sardinia and Corsica to the Adriatic and the Aegean. The Sun already sets and I haven’t seen a new species in a while.

Greece 252

Greece Malta Croatia Italy 252

10,000 Birds

MARCH 2, 2011

Almost as soon as we were clear of the shore we encountered a pod of Short-nosed Common Dolphins and large flocks of Fluttering Shearwaters, Flesh-footed Shearwaters and Buller’s Shearwaters. The final large petrel species is another gadfly petrel, albeit a much larger one than the Cook’s Petrel.

New Zealand 212

New Zealand Albatross 2011 Cooking 212

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2016

Marlborough Sounds has a pretty special endemic, the King Shag , a species that isn’t just endemic to New Zealand but endemic to just the Sounds. The reason Alan had come was to film another endemic, a critically endangered species, the Orange-fronted Parakeet. Then came Blumine Island, and my number one target for the day.

Charlotte 173

Charlotte New Zealand Fur Seals 173

10,000 Birds

MAY 2, 2016

We immediately headed to an undisclosed location where Carlos had breeding Mangrove Cuckoos staked out. The reason the location is remaining undisclosed is that reliable Mangrove Cuckoos are difficult to find in the American Birding Association area and are a very sought after species. We needed countable species! He was right!

Florida 178

Florida Miami Birds Owls 178

10,000 Birds

JUNE 25, 2022

Even so, in the short term, it can be hard to accept that hundreds of species are close to being extinguished from this irreplaceble tapestry of life, that hundreds more are headed for the same eventual abysmal stop. We would see how species that used to be common, even abundant, became remnants of their former, robust populations.

Costa Rica 279

Costa Rica Parrots Albatross Protection 279

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 21, 2016

So close to the pole only a handful of bird species can survive, and even so, death toll is very high, hence their populations must be huge (millions). There are 11 species of birds that breed in the Ross Sea region. On the Balleny Islands Antarctic Fulmar , Antarctic Prion and Cape Petrel also breed. And the Mammals.

Russia 189

Russia Penguins Whales Whaling 189

10,000 Birds

APRIL 17, 2012

Oil begins to wash up on the beaches throughout May and June of 2010 May 6, 2010 Oil washes ashore on the Chandeleur Islands off the Louisiana coast, an important nesting and breeding area for many bird species. Officials reported 48 marine mammals, mostly dolphins, and 87 dead sea turtles during the first two months alone.

2010 269

2010 Louisiana 2012 2011 269

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 16, 2014

According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service , there are about 10 billion breeding birds in the US. The maximum population size may be closer to 20 billion in the fall, and 10 billion at the start of the Spring breeding season. These are the dolphins in your tuna fish, for example. Cats are not the same thing as windmills.

Killing 274

Killing Cats Fish Feral Cats 274

10,000 Birds

JUNE 5, 2018

So many species that change eye color or leg color as they age. This encyclopedic identification guide covered 43 species in 608 pages, and was illustrated with both Hans Larsson’s exceptional artwork and color photographs by multiple photographers. So many birds of white and gray touched with black. Not to mention the hybrids.

2004 189

2004 North America America Europe 189