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Although Bobolinks are a very rare migrant, lots of other birds are possible, more than enough to rack up hundreds of species over the course of the year. Each January, I hope to identify at least 600 species over the next 12 months, this year, I’m hoping that Marilen and I (aka Team Tyto ) will find 700.
One of the target bird species for birders when they visit the Broome area is Yellow Chat. The colour on this bird species is incredible and not easily hidden in the environment. For scale I will include some photographs of the Orange Chat with other bird species. It always seems odd when only one of a bird species shows up.
One of the reasons that I usually start each year’s species list with a visit to the wetlands of Lake Cuitzeo is that the site offers so many species that I can find nowhere else. And to add to my new year list, of course. There were Vermilion Flycatchers , of course. Not all the colorful species have feathers.
Over the course of the morning, I would see multiple Berylline Hummingbirds (shown above), Mexican Violetears , and Blue-throated Mountain Gems , and a newly arrived migratory Allen’s (or, just maybe, Rufous ) Hummingbird. This species loves to sing while high up in pine trees. Of course, not everything interesting is a bird.
My main interest lies in the endemic species and subspecies, trying to understand why some species got there and others didn’t. When we look at the breeding birds, they are all Palaearctic, either mainland species or endemics that evolved from mainland species. On the eastern Canaries they are Palaearctic species.
A cuckoo (don`t ask me about the species) sat in a daze on the ground, having apparently been attacked. Of course, the adult male also got angry with people discarding their trash. My favorite species is the Oriental Scops Owl , a small owl that can be almost invisible if given the right motivation (e.g., too many birdwatchers).
You’ll note the sky was still pretty dull, but of course it was still around 30c. The next bird species I photographed on a different type of streetlight that looks like it could do with a splash of paint was the Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike. As is typical of this bird species there was a bit of wing shuffling when it landed.
The islands and surrounding islets of Trinidad and Tobago boast an astounding list of almost 500 species of birds. There is a recurring theme of threes within the multitude of bird species in T&T, you can see for yourself in some previous posts I made. There are of course a few more which I intend to get to in due course.
Of course, I also go there several other times each year; I have, after all, seen 160 species at this endemic-rich site. The reason for this annual pilgrimage is a single species, the Sinaloa Martin. All sightings southeast of the species’ Puerto Vallarta-to-Los Mochis breeding area are of migrating birds.
Last weekend I ended up spending some time with a few Glossy Ibises at a nearby wetland here on Trinidad and it got me thinking about some of the other ibis species I’ve managed to see. They are the most widespread ibis species, occurring in every continent except Antarctica. Glossy Ibis. Hadada Ibis.
Award-winning free-lance science journalist Nicola Jones , most noted for her work on climate change and environmental issues, ventured into the book world with a picture book on the wildlife rehabilitation efforts for one of North America’s most endangered bird species, the Northern Spotted Owl.
Even the Latin species name soror (“sister”) indicates the similarity to another pitta species (blue-naped). The eBird description of the Small Niltava starts with the surprisingly dull statement that “size distinguishes this species from other niltavas” Who would have thought.
For several years, I had seen photos of this species posted by my friend Julio Álvarez, from the state of Jalisco, just to the west of my state of Michoacán. And while its wings move in a blur, of course, its body moves very slowly from one point to another. I have yet to take a decent photo of the species. This photo is mine.
The males can compete with Painted Buntings for their neon colors, and the females, like those of that related species, have their own subtle beauty. (It’s It is always a species they have dreamed of seeing for years.). Of course, plenty of non-endemics also turned up to have their picture taken.
This can mean some interesting birding, if you can bear the Shanghai heat … Of course, the egrets and herons described in my last post are still around. Webster`s Dictionary defines Cuculophotobia as “The fear of bird photographers to post cuckoo photos online due to the high likeliness of getting the species assignment wrong.”
The Latin species name is dissimilis (different, unlike), possibly because the female looks quite different from the male (though based on that explanation, dissimilis would have to be a very common species name). The Blue Whistling Thrush is of course named for its whistling – you can hear it here. Then it is tame.
One always wants to see as many species as possible in a single day, whether on an ocean island with few species, or in Suffolk, England. It was in this latter region that he reports seeing 60 species on his first outing of this year. But how many species can one see over a few hours in the highlands of central Mexico?
While I have visited a few birding sites around the Netherlands during the course of my Bachelor studies, I did not go birding a lot around the city where I lived, Maastricht. I was very happy about this lifer as I had been hoping to see this species in autumn during my stay on Heligoland.
Of course, the California Condor is listed as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and it has been famously subject to some of the most ambitious conservation efforts (including litigation ) ever undertaken for a bird. And some “incidental take” ( i.e., unintentional harm to a listed species) is allowed.
The Avibase China birdlist counts 7 species of minivets for China – one of which is the Ashy Minivet. For Japan, there are only two species listed – again the Ashy Minivet, but also the Japanese Minivet (mostly called Ryukyu Minivet elsewhere), a Japanese endemic which is not on the China list.
The severe drawback of course being that the birds were covered in heavy fog too. The HBW has two interesting bits of information on this species. Of course, just when we were leaving, the fog cleared up. Apparently, the location was the scene of a fight between Tibetans and Han Chinese a long time ago. At least a little bit?
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. Walking out onto the bridge we soon observed a good mixture of other bird species. Brolga had come into drink and there were all three species of Ibis present.
Of course, that means that the birds I saw on September 30 are now somewhere in blogpost limbo, not having appeared in the September post but also not legitimately belonging in the October one. If you want to pretend to combine learning Mandarin and learning about this species, watch this video. The male, of course, I am afraid.
What my previous experience had not prepared me for, was that this summer I would see many of those species for the first time all at once. Of course, several resident Warblers were also present: Crescent-chested , Grace’s , Golden-browed , and Red Warblers , and our always common Slate-throated Redstart.
As is my self-declared tradition of speaking of groups of birds within the species gamut of Trinidad & Tobago, allow me to introduce you to yet another group of three. While the entire Tyrannidae family of Tyrant Flycatchers is massive, the Myiarchus group of those recorded on these two islands comprises just three species.
The exploration of triads within the avifauna of Trinidad and Tobago has taken me through various families and species groups on this blog. On the smaller island of Tobago there are three species of woodpeckers and three species of woodcreepers – one of each is found on Tobago but not Trinidad. Red-crowned Woodpecker.
Because of this pattern, during the months of September and October you will see Mexico’s many Salvia species blooming everywhere you look. One study stated that my state of Michoacán has 75 different species of Salvia. Of course, not all of these Salvias occur at Laurelito, but I suspect there are a dozen or more species.
Western” refers to a two-species complex, the Cordilleran Flycatcher and the Pacific-slope Flycatcher. So, of course, I managed to find a bit more time before I really had to start work and I headed back to the park where the bird was quickly in my binoculars. Awesome, right? A new bird for Queens! I’m glad you asked! What could we do?
These species should all be slam-dunks for Lake Cuitzeo in the fall. Still, what is bad for one species may be good for another. And Dowitchers, of course. But, as always, new sites bring new species. Nor did I see any Green Herons , or Least or American Bitterns. Puddleglum indeed! That was to be suspected. Brine Flies.
Ducks and divers The bottom of the city is, naturally, the lowest point or course of the Danube (around 74 m / 240 ft above sea level), the best area being the confluence of the Sava and the Danube, around the War Islands Reserve. Although many of them can be found in city parks, too, at the top of Avala your chances are higher.
Not to say, of course, that there’s no point in getting out to see birds this time of year–any day is a good day for birding. He got out on both mornings and saw pretty much expected species. Mid-November holds the dubious honor of being one of the most mundane birding periods imaginable in most temperate zones.
I pointed at the bird shown below but he insisted it could not be that species – no long tail … For people of a certain age, gender and background, at some point The Smiths were the most important band in the world. I guess the whole point about this band name is to suggest -ironically, of course – utter blandness.
More than 20 species are recognized, many look similar and to throw a bit more challenging flavored sauce into the Megascops mix, there might be a few more species awaiting description. One of the more recently, officially recognized screech-owl species is the Choco Screech-Owl.
In fact, it is a perfect name, since this species has a clearly rolled “r” sound in the middle of its call. Mexican Whip-poor-wills , of course, have a Spanish accent! (As As, of course, are Vermilion Flycatchers. Fortunately, I knew that Cuerporruín is the local name for the Mexican Whip-poor-will. cuerpoRRUÍN!
Of course, this would probably get me a telling off from Mark J. Chinese Grey Shrike is now monotypic as the larger, much darker Tibetan Plateau species Giant Shrike has been split off. Population conjectured to have been in the order of 100 million birds in 1980s” The reason, of course, is the usual one: human beings.
So here are some numbers: As I write this, on March 24th, my 2022 list includes 239 species, all from within the state of Michoacán. The latest species I picked up is the Spotted Wren , a rather common endemic here that I had somehow managed to not see, until three turned up in my garden this morning.
As of mid-November 2021, the Collaborative had submitted more than 4,200 checklists (up from 1,700 in 2018) and has observed 691 species in the United States (up from 618). Thus, there are now seven states with 200+ observed species. The state with the largest increase was Arizona , with 139 species added.
Although by this time we had already clocked around a hundred species after a day and a half in Guyana, we were understandably eager to explore the famous rugged interior of the country. Unless, of course, a small aircraft is involved. It was only after reading up on the species I realised that it was not only me who thought this way.
She was attracted by the number of different species and their colors. She proceeded to take the necessary birding and English courses and has since been in demand for guiding in Ecuador. She has a very broad knowledge of species. In Ecuador, there are 1.600+ species of birds.
A very peaceful looking bird, though of course, it may have quite violent thoughts that I know nothing about. A resident in India but also included in the list of the world`s 100 worst invasive alien species. One of my favorite bird species. Which means the House Crow is first. Not really a very glamorous or exciting start.
Apparently, the species name rutila means “red, golden red, reddish yellow”, which sounds a bit like a contradiction in itself. It is well known that chicks of this morph immediately start having an identity crisis when combining the knowledge of their species name with the information gathered from a look in the mirror.
Typically, team members fan out across their region, counting as many species as they possibly can from 12:00 a.m. Of course, nothing is typical about 2020. Who would see more species? Using a small composition notebook, I kept track as each species as it streaked past my field of vision. to 11:59 p.m.
Most of the ground-feeding seed-eaters fit solidly within the Hot Country species, with really large numbers of Stripe-headed Sparrows and Blue-black Grassquits. No photos, of course… and no second chance for years, until last week! The Lesser Roadrunner … running on the road, of course.
Conceptualizing a plumage aberration such as leucism, where pigments are prevented from reaching some (or all) feathers (in the case of birds) may be a feat of the imagination that can most easily be applied to one of the more common species – maybe an American Robin , or a Rufous-bellied Thrush.
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