10,000 Birds

AUGUST 8, 2022

For example, the Diamond Dove is the world’s second-smallest species of the columbidae order ( source ). Identifying White-eyes in Australia is easier than here in China, as the Silvereye is the only family member present in most parts of the country.

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Australia Birds Parrots Ostriches 147

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 29, 2022

The Sacred Ibis was seen as the incarnation of the god Thoth, who (with gods apparently better at multitasking than humans) was (or maybe still is, who knows?) ” Somebody should have warned the poor kites not to copy everything that humans do. Nice to encounter a quail that is not as shy as the ones here in China!

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Australia Birds Sheep Zebras 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2022

For example, the Brown Honeyeater visits more than 300 different flowers. Similar to the (fortunately now gradually changing) situation among humans in China, these birds seem to prefer males over females. So, I can only give you the sanitized version of the joke, in which humans have been replaced by birds.

Australia 147

Australia Parrots Birds Memphis 147

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2022

Maybe better not to ever meet such a “mother” (given that I have been living in China for too long to be up-to-date regarding political correctness etc., Where it is not – for example, in Japan – it will have difficulties finding a partner to mate. Of course, on Chongming, the Chinese Pond Heron is very common.

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Birds South Korea Japan Abandonment 162

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 20, 2023

In China, wherever there is one real tourist attraction (like the Great Wall), the local strategy seems to be to add some fake attractions – replicas of palaces or tombs, amusement parks, shopping centers – in order to maximize the income from tourists. Sir James McGrigor (1771-1858) Director Gen.

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China Birds Pythons Eagles 214

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 4, 2021

Being a bit older myself now, I have to point out that young human males usually do not look that good, at least to me. For example, the main article states that “At Lac de Grand Lieu, W France, birds commute 2–38 km between colony and feeding territories.” A juvenile male. The real thing: an adult male.

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LACS Birds France Japan 215

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2014

Kinabalu (at 13,455 feet the highest peak in southeast Asia), and human development that has resulted in freshwater rice fields, secondary forest, and oil palm plantations, this means that Borneo offers an incredibly high degree of biodiversity. So, we start with Megapodes (scrubfowl), Pheasants, and Partridges, then on to Ducks.

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Brunei Asia Birds China 172

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2022

For some reason that I do not quite understand myself – given that I really rather dislike children and am not too positive about the rest of humanity either – I recently put up a little display of bird photos inside my Shanghai compound, which I share (as the only foreigner) with about 1700 Chinese.

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Birds Fish Germany China 162

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2011

It is divided into small plots, mostly less than 50m 2 where the use of large machines is impractical and human labour is the main method of cultivation. Their flushing habits can be useful, with Common Snipe emitting a “dry, rasping call” (Clive Viney, Birds of Hong Kong and South China) as it rises for its zig-zaggy flight.

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Agenda China Farming Humane 170

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2023

I visited Tengchong in late 2020 and wrote about it – but I also went there earlier, in 2017, and this post shows some photos I took during that trip, along with the usual comments that seem to be much more about ridiculing my fellow humans (especially ornithologists and the like) than providing useful information on birds.

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China 2017 Birds Indonesia 174

10,000 Birds

JUNE 3, 2014

The 6 th edition of the National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America , for example, includes “extinct” and “probably extinct” species in a chapter, mixed in with accidentals.) Yangtze River Dolphin in captivity, 1988, Wuhan, China, p. Other species are less known. The photographs were never published.

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Animal Mammals Hawaii Dolphins 262

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 25, 2021

Or the Asian Barred Owlet (Hangzhou, China) – though I am happy this allows me to include some owl photos into this post. When birdwatching together, my friend Steve once pointed out that we saw the only two bird species starting with the word Amur on the same day (at Tianmushan, China, by the way). What a sad lot we are.

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South Africa China Nevada Africa 306

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 16, 2023

Shanghaibirding describes the Brown-headed Thrush as “a scarce passage migrant through northern and central coastal China, including Shanghai” – given that I only saw it once on Tianmashan, that is probably correct, though the date (January 09) seems rather late for a migrant.

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China Birds Reptiles Killing 147

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2024

While the name suggests an endemic, it is not – it can also be found in Northeastern China, parts of Russia and the Koreas (though I would probably advise against a birding trip to North Korea). For example, is there the equivalent of a “mansplaining” drum pattern only used by the males? One paper says no.

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Woodpeckers Renter North Korea Finland 174

10,000 Birds

APRIL 4, 2022

.” This should make the bird somewhat unpopular with the socially rather conservative Chinese government – maybe the birds in China do not show this behavior in order to adapt to local customs? On the other hand, given China’s low birth rate, they might serve as an example for the future.

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China Birds Pythons Breeding 194

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2023

The last time I birded Longcanggou, a national forest park in China’s Sichuan province, was in November 2021. Today, the national forest park is open to tourists – which in China means large groups of people in similarly large buses. Shame on the researchers. However, instead of a tit joke, some wren pornography.

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Eggs China Mammals Birds 162

10,000 Birds

JUNE 22, 2023

Red and yellow are the colors symbolizing several different things – for example, McDonald’s, the People’s Republic of China, Mastercard, and Kodac. If such human food is not available, the Yellow-billed Chough goes back to its original diet of (at least in Europe) grasshoppers, as described here.

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China Science Birds Mongolia 130

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2022

The falcon breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China but winters in Southern and East Africa. The Northern Goshawk gets the HBW into a slightly lyrical mode: “Whether carried afield on the fists of Japanese shoguns or by medieval falconers of Europe, Goshawks have seen much human history. Still as impressed as before?

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Falcons Japan China South Africa 229

10,000 Birds

JUNE 26, 2018

The causes were the usual reasons for island extinction—deforestation by both humans and invasive plants that crowded out native plants, hunting, and invasive rats, mongoose, monkeys, and, of course, feral cats. Is it any wonder that Pink Pigeons were on the brink of extinction when humans intervened? Passenger Pigeons, for example.

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Mauritius Stud Zoos Eggs 101

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 7, 2023

is based on a study of specimens and tape recordings collected during one visit to each of two localities in central China in 1997 and 1998 and their own tape recordings and specimens from Nepal; in all, 196 specimens were examined. In contrast, the paper by Martens et al. Meaning: we did real science, Martens did not.

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Hamburgers China Science Birds 194

Animal Person

MARCH 26, 2009

Now, mind you there are people who are actually mentally ill in the sense they 'can't get it up' without thinking of their mate as a fantasized non-human animal, I should mention this also includes mythological animals. One example is, "Bestiality happened and injured an animal, we need a law against this!"

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Breeders Legislation Laws Alaska 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 2, 2023

In somewhat dubious English, the abstract of one paper on this species by Chinese authors states that “ Pycnonotus sinens has got used to the city life and become a kind of city bird that are closely associated with human” (of course, my Chinese – spoken only anyway – is far worse than this English).

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Iraq Birds China Ireland 130

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2024

The Varied Tit is a rare species in Shanghai – this was the first time I ever saw one, even though it is relatively common further North in China. For example, they sometimes grab sunflower seeds from bird feeders in winter, take them away and store them for later consumption. What a surprise.

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North Korea Japan China 2012 177

10,000 Birds

APRIL 13, 2023

So, for example, there was ample warning of the danger of snow. The authors speculate that “human disturbance (i.e. The Great Parrotbill recently unsuccessfully petitioned to be renamed to Giant Parrotbill, citing the panda example as proof of the benefits of having this name.

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Pandas Eggs Birds China 192

10,000 Birds

JUNE 24, 2024

Kind of an innocent version of tropical China, but I guess that is a rather naive view … Most birders coming here presumably do not have babblers as their main targets, even though there are quite a few species here, and some of them are quite attractive as well. My way of squeezing more blog posts out of my birding trips.

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Vietnam Birds Woodpeckers Bangladesh 201

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 14, 2022

Look up Nabang on a map of China – it is literally at the end of a road. A few examples: the Ashy Bulbul … … Black Bulbul … … and the Grey-eyed Bubul. Long-tailed Broadbill photo in the ready-to-use bookmark version: For other examples of cartoon birds, see here. I certainly have.

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Birds Woodpeckers Kangaroos Madagascar 173

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 1, 2024

I was thinking of inventing a background story about a Chinese poet mentioning starlings (and other bird species) in one of his poems, and a rich Chinese fan of these poems pursuing the ambition of introducing all bird species mentioned therein to China, explaining the occasional occurrence of the starling in Shanghai.

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Birds Europe Science Illinois 177

Animal Person

NOVEMBER 16, 2009

The latest example of a Best article that makes me feel guilty is " Manifesto for Radical Abolitionism: Total Liberation By Any Means Necessary." Why the guilt? Because I don't take enough of a stand. I am not a fundamentalist pacifist.

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Vegan Ethics Psychology Slaughter 100

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2022

Similar to the situation among humans, among Grey-capped Greenfinches , “high-quality individuals prefer to mate with each other” ( source ). The Light-vented Bulbul used to be restricted to Southern China but has expanded its range in the past few decades. Eurasian Bitterns similarly try to stay out of sight.

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China Birds Ukraine 167

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2023

The Ashy Tailorbird is a good example of the different perspectives of describing a bird – while the English name focuses on the body of the bird, the Latin species name ruficeps refers to the rufous head. (I The paper cites the example of the Blue-footed Booby: Its foot color becomes duller when the birds are malnourished.

Woodpeckers 194

Woodpeckers Birds Eggs India 194

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 23, 2006

He clearly thinks that it is wrong to cause animals to suffer unnecessarily, but he appears to be somewhat ambivalent about killing animals (provided the killing is carried out humanely). I suspect that underlying his thinking here is a common rationalization that many of my students initially embrace. Running time: 12 Minutes.

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Factory Farm Factory Farming Morals Inhumane 40

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2022

For example, without this blog, would you know that the Barn Swallows of Nanhui are now having their own housing boom, ignorant of the overinvestment that has characterized China’s construction industry? As with Chinese male humans, having your own building is still vital to raising young. Humanity is not very human.

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Birds Sparrows Mountain Goats Protection 176

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 8, 2022

A study found that for Plain Prinia , egg characteristics in a mainland China location with many cuckoos make it much easier to spot cuckoo eggs than in a Taiwan location with few cuckoos ( source ). I thought the British see themselves as very fair sportspeople – this is definitely not a good example.

Eggs 194

Eggs Birds Bangladesh China 194

10,000 Birds

APRIL 17, 2023

Its minor claim to fame among the water towns around Shanghai is its sex museum – a bit of a rarity in traditionally prudish China. For example, to see the cute Rufous-faced Warbler whose high-pitched trilling sound can be heard frequently.

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Birds Asia Battery Woodpeckers 147