10,000 Birds

MARCH 16, 2016

It’s the only park I have ever been to that not only have I seen all five of the Big Five (Lion, Leopard, African Buffalo, White Rhino and African Elephant) in, but seen them all on the same day. Lions are boring and should be avoided on safari, but I quite liked this one, even if he had ticks.

South Africa 189

South Africa Leopards Giraffes Africa 189

10,000 Birds

APRIL 23, 2020

Having more than 1300 bird species, including over 75 endemics, it is hard to resist the lure of India – something I know from personal experience. Together with 4 bird photos and one of the Asiatic Lion , for which Gir NP is famous, there is very little text on the park. But that is not the only thing.

India 264

India Lions 2020 Groups 264

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 12, 2024

Incidentally, encounters with both aardvarks and zorillas are rare – it’s much easier to see lions and leopards. Lion – much easier to see than an Aardvark In contrast to East Africa, encounters with mammals while out birding in Europe are relatively few. We also saw a leopard, but it was the A to Z that sticks in the mind.

Fur 245

Fur Otters Bulgaria Estonia 245

10,000 Birds

JUNE 11, 2013

They have also been known as Lion Baboons and Bleeding-heart Baboons, due respectively to the males’ lion-like cape and tail, and the bare patch of red skin on both sex’s chests. Their scientific name is Theropithecus gelada, the former word meaning “beast-ape” in Greek. A harem male grooms one of his females. Photo by Adam Riley.

Ethiopia 197

Ethiopia Primates Mammals Fur 197

10,000 Birds

MARCH 3, 2019

Now that we’ve entered the third month of the calendar year, take stock: did your birding March come in like a lion or a lamb? If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. My birding was positively sheepish during this busy weekend. What was your best bird of the weekend?

2019 127

2019 Lamb Lions Jamaica 127

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2023

Galápagos: A Natural History, Second Edition by John Kricher and Kevin Loughlin gives the traveling naturalist the tools needed to fully appreciate and experience the Galápagos Islands. I wish I had read this book. They complement Kricher’s text., The 11th chapter is on research and conservation challenges.

2006 279

2006 Tortoises Sea Lions Porpoises 279

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 4, 2014

The Big Five–lion, leopard, African buffalo, elephant, and rhinoceros–are impressive, but my heart lies with the patterned mammals, giraffes and zebras. That was easily fixed by adding a post-Safari trip to Eastern South Africa, led by dashing Rockjumper guide Clayton Burne, to my itinerary.

South Africa 255

South Africa Africa Leopards Penguins 255

10,000 Birds

MARCH 5, 2017

The observation that March comes in like a lion (yes, I’m still talking about this old chestnut) generally refers to the complexion of the weather this time of year. Luckily, a Bald Eagle soared overhead while I was leaving the flagship Wegmans supermarket, further enhancing the experience at this beloved Rochester institution.

Bald Eagle 100

Bald Eagle 2017 Lions Eagles 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 13, 2011

If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Mar 19th, 2011 at 8:26 pm Corey, I am jealous of your Red-breasted Merganser experience at JBWR and the flight shots. I suspect though that once we get past the Ides of March (beware!) we might have a shot at another spring. Get yours today!

2011 133

2011 Deer Owls Birds 133

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 26, 2015

Merely a month later, I was camping in the Central Kalahari, at the unfenced site that is now closed for campers because the local lion pride became too curious. Birding a different continent allowed me to put all my experiences and knowledge into perspective and to discover how much more fun birding could be.

Serbia 190

Serbia Bosnia Lions Horses 190

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 12, 2011

Tumblr seems like it would be an ideal way to have a secondary blog feed a primary blog but Mike’s experiment with the format did not work terribly well in terms of driving traffic to 10,000 Birds. We get a slow but steady trickle from Twitter, mostly people, it seems, who get the lion’s share of their content via that medium.

Rights 215

Rights Birds Groups Lions 215

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2015

The two main chapters cover Marine Mammals (Orca; Whales; Dolphins and Porpoises; Sea Lions, Fur Seals, and Elephant Seal; Rarer Marine Mammals) and Seabirds (Albatrosses, Shearwaters and Fulmar, Strom-Petrels, Phalaropes, Alcids, Red-billed Tropicbird, Brown Booby, South Polar Skua, Jaegers, Gulls and Terns, Rarer Seabirds).

Dolphins 162

Dolphins Porpoises Whaling Whales 162

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 22, 2017

This diversity makes for a very unique birding experience. In addition to the hundred or so species of birds I regularly find here, there are Desert Foxes, Bobcats, Mountain Lions, Desert Bighorn Sheep and Mule Deer. Box canyons, long arroyos, and rolling desert vistas, accented with several different kinds of cactus.

Mountain Lions 100

Mountain Lions Mules Sheep Lions 100

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2017

Growing up in central Oregon, allowed me to experience such a diverse amount of habitat, and the wildlife that resides there. Many refuges in this part of the state, like Malheur refuge, Summer Lake Refuge, and Tule lake Refuge all get the lion’s share of acclaim, and publicity, and deservedly so.

Sheep 173

Sheep Mules Oregon Livestock 173

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 30, 2015

If I want my children to be birders, or at least to appreciate birding, I need them to have good experiences doing it with me. After we’d looked at this plain gray bird long enough, we headed to the nature museum and gawked at Black Bears and River Otters and search unsuccessfully for the Mountain Lion.

North Carolina 145

North Carolina Mountain Lions Otters Lions 145

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 18, 2018

(How do you find lions in Africa? I counted them very roughly, but I do have a lot of experience estimating flocks. Watch for parked 4x4s! This was pretty much the same thing.) With one Black Stork near them, some 80 LWfG were foraging in the distance, where the sun was just now clearing the mist.

Greece 190

Greece 2017 Pelicans Geese 190

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 7, 2011

At sea there are also New Zealand Sea Lions and Southern Right Whales. Whangarei New Zealand’s most northerly city and smack bang in the middle of the Northland region, those seeking to experience wild New Zealand have a dizzying array of choices here. Also within reach are the greatest surviving expanses of kauri forests.

New Zealand 157

New Zealand Penguins Sanctuary Fur 157

SalesFuel

OCTOBER 6, 2024

He is the founder and CEO of Curious Lion, a company dedicated to high-performance leadership and learning. His innovative approach to corporate training is heavily influenced by his experience as a mentor in the 'Write of Passage' writing course, which he describes as the best cohort-based training program he has ever been a part of.

Emotional 52

Emotional Lions Research Experience 52

10,000 Birds

JULY 22, 2014

She turned, looked, and by the expression on her face I guessed she was thinking “Goodness, I’m glad that was not a lion.”. Have you ever seen the Dryfus Lion? I new him because we enlisted his Dryfus Lion and one of his tigers to carry out experiments with bones (this is something archaeologists do).

Feral Cats 257

Feral Cats North America Feral Cats 257

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 27, 2011

They’re looking to win their first championship in 21 years, against the heavily favoured BC Lions. I have faith and I’m sure that my brother, the Lion fan, will be wearing a Winnipeg Blue Bomber “Swaggerville” t-shirt after I win my bet. They seemed to relish the run as much as the dogs and my children.

Lions 227

Lions Game Birds Dogs 227

10,000 Birds

APRIL 13, 2015

Recent publicity about these remarkable tribes has resulted in tourists wanting to experience this wild land and its attractions for themselves. This is largely due to the remoteness and prior near inaccessibility of the area, forming a natural barrier to modernization and the detribalization of the Omo Valley. Yellow-billed Stork.

Ethiopia 255

Ethiopia Sudan Leopards Cattle 255

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2012

This allowed them to carry out experiments such as giving some bones to the hyenas to see what they would look like after being munched on for a while. This allowed the Blumenschine crew to carry out experiments that involved every possible series of events, using animals of different sizes. Photo by Mikebaird.

Humane 165

Humane Lions Buffalo Hunting 165

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2014

Seeing a wild Snow Leopard is every wildlife enthusiast’s dream, probably the ultimate and most elusive wildlife experience on the planet. Knowing this, we were certainly far from disappointed by our experience but we of course all dreamed of a closer view. View of our camp in the Rhumbak Valley.

Snow Leopard 279

Snow Leopard Leopards Hunting Sheep 279

10,000 Birds

MAY 8, 2012

Marabous have also learnt another trick, and that is to follow vultures and scavenge off the remains of Lion and other large predator kills. It is quite a sight to experience hundreds of Abdim’s Stork dropping out of the skies from seemingly thin air, to gorge on burnt or fleeing insects and rodents.

Africa 250

Africa Tanzania South Africa Uganda 250

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 7, 2016

It’s the same reason so many people now cut up their plastic six-pack holders — because the connection between their soda and the strangled sea lion becomes obvious, visual and intimate. If the experience of handing over that box can be transformative instead of alienating or shaming, there’s a possibility of change.

Cats 223

Cats Stray Cat Stray Los Angeles 223

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

Visiting this area for the first time after seeing it for month was a crazy experience. California Sea Lions porpoised through the clear water. It’s a liberating feeling on a tiny island. A view from the West End, an area completely closed even to the biologists during the summer. And there where whales.

Whales 157

Whales Whaling Sharks Bats 157

10,000 Birds

JULY 10, 2012

One of Africa’s truly exhilarating experiences is watching and listening to a honking flock of these massive birds as they appear out of the early morning mists over a wetland, to land nearby and start their wing-flapping and jumping displays. Rueppell’s Vulture scanning for a carcass at Ndutu, Tanzania by Adam Riley.

Endangered Species 238

Endangered Species Species Morocco South Africa 238

Animal Person

AUGUST 5, 2009

And animal rights isn't focused on what happens in the world outside of us that we aren't directly profiting from and that isn't happening because of us (that last one is nearly impossible, as you can trace many problems other animals experience back to something human animals have done to them or their habitat or their food).

Gazelles 100

Gazelles Slaughter Slaughtered Deer 100

4 The Love Of Animals

JULY 11, 2011

Steve dons a camouflage suit for a once-in-a-lifetime experience that gets him closer to a wild leopard than he ever hoped. At night, he catches up with a pride of lions to witness their hunting and killing skills in the dark, proving just how deadly and vicious lions are. And, who says small spiders are harmless?

Cats 100

Cats Leopards Namibia Lions 100

10,000 Birds

JULY 24, 2016

The following pictures were taken at Hannover Zoo recently, showing just that – feeding and preening, for a family-friendly birding experience. No, the usual birding opportunity at zoos and parks is one of watching feeding and preening behaviour, or parenting and social interactions. Beware of Crocodiles.

Zoos 100

Zoos California Condor Germany Lions 100

4 The Love Of Animals

MARCH 17, 2011

Grief, friendship, gratitude, wonder, and other things we animals experience. Sea lion mothers wail when watching their babies being eaten by killer whales. If she’d been left alone, she would have fallen prey to a lion or other predator. Waterfall Dances: Do animals have spiritual experiences? by Marc Bekoff.

Emotional 100

Emotional Animal Whales Whaling 100

4 The Love Of Animals

JULY 3, 2010

Four lions, rescued by Animal Defenders International (ADI) from a Bolivian circus when the country banned the use of animals in circuses have a new home, and a life of luxury at the ARK 2000 sanctuary in Calaveras County. These lions really are home for the holidays.””. What a way to start memorial weekend.

ADI 100

ADI Animal Defenders International Bolivia Lions 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 14, 2011

During the filming of this production, I got to experience “dirt hawking&#. Take lions, wolves, hyenas to name a few. The rabbit is dispatched in seconds Although I’m sure that there are readers that will disagree with my sentiments, I must confess to being enthralled by my experience with Harris Hawks.

League Against Cruel Sports 270

League Against Cruel Sports Rabbits Falcons Hunting 270

10,000 Birds

APRIL 19, 2012

By “super carnivore” I mean top-of-the-food-chain kinds of critters, like lions or wolf packs, etc., Consider this thought experiment. Ask yourself this question: Why don’t the super carnivores in a given ecosystem just eat all the prey? and in the world of birds, a pair of eagles qualifies.

Eagles 232

Eagles Bald Eagle Coyotes Mississippi 232