10,000 Birds

AUGUST 13, 2020

Will the threatened species make it through if there are no birding tourists to make those birds and their habitats valuable to local people just the way they are (as opposed to tropical timber)? What will be left of birding tourism? I was trying to find that answer for a while and it turned into a very annoying experience.

Uganda 264

Uganda Bolivia Ecuador Thailand 264

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2013

Alfredo Begazo grew up with Peruvian Meadowlarks and Marvelous Spatuletails, and was used to waking up to the morning choruses of Pacific Doves in Lima, Peru. Alfredo, an experienced birder in Peru and well-rounded naturalist, founded a birding and nature eco-travel company , known as Surbound Expeditions (Sur=Spanish for south).

Peru 210

Peru 2011 Florida Wildlife 210

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 2, 2021

But when I felt familiar with perhaps half of the species around my town, I started to feel that my field guide is now too bulky and too hefty to carry, and that was the era before smartphones and phone apps. It is not a concept for a total beginner, more of a reminder to someone with some experience. Subspecies are not included.

Botswana 264

Botswana Africa Birds Ecuador 264

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 8, 2011

Most of these birds are small, finch-like species with thick, conical bills for cracking seeds or eating insects. Male and female Blue-black Grassquits ( Volatinia jacarina ) in Peru © David J. ” For these reasons, it is perhaps no surprise that bird bills have played a prominent role in their classification. (PDF:

2003 260

2003 Sparrows South America Family 260

10,000 Birds

APRIL 25, 2019

17%: Ecuador, Peru. While Peru was seen as the best country for “birds and ancient sites”, Ecuador was seen as “much safer” and best for its size and easiness of getting around. Yet, the fact that tiny Panama is as popular as huge Brazil, with twice as many bird species, speaks volume for Brazil’s stage of ecotourism development.

Papua New Guinea 214

Papua New Guinea America Costa Rica Sri Lanka 214

10,000 Birds

MARCH 12, 2011

As part of the Wildlife Conservation Society Birds of Brazil giveaway we asked readers of 10,000 Birds to name the bird in Brazil that they would like to see more than any other species. What follows are the responses that readers offered, a veritable aviary of sought after species. It is a really neat bird that I have not seen before.

Brazil 247

Brazil 2011 Birds Penguins 247

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2012

Pelagic birding off the Atlantic coast of Florida can be a frustrating experience, usually involving long waits of up to an hour or more interspersed with brief flurries of activity — a far cry from pelagic birding off of coasts blessed with cold water currents and nutrient rich upwelling such as California, southeast Australia, and Peru.

Florida 210

Florida United States Fish 2005 210

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2018

It was easy enough to participate, all anyone had to do was watch birds and record the number of species identified using eBird. Fortunately, they were able to extract themselves to eventually get the highest total for the day in Costa Rica, 230 plus species. We logged an awesome 225 species! More than 680 species identified!

Costa Rica 189

Costa Rica 2018 Colombia Collecting 189

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 28, 2011

Having never been to Brazil I can’t possibly speak as an expert in terms of what birds are covered or how well species that I have never seen are depicted. The species accounts are written by Robert Ridgely, one of the premiere neotropical ornithologists, and a veteran at writing excellent field guides. Talk about a win-win!

Brazil 253

Brazil Wildlife 2011 Deer 253

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2018

Covering 1,261 species with data and taxonomy current up to August 2017, the field guide is an exciting achievement. And, then there are the more familiar birds–Wood-warblers, sandpipers, hawks–some species migrants, some species with a wide range. Can you guess which of the species cited above are endemic?

America 214

America El Salvador Costa Rica Honduras 214

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2011

Getting to know the subtleties in differences between closely related species takes years of dedication and practice. Thirdly, many species of shorebirds display such vast differences in their summer and winter plumages that it is always interesting to note how some birds in the same flock are in contrasting stages of plumage.

Florida 238

Florida South Africa 2011 Africa 238

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2011

Mostly the ducks were Red-breasted Merganser and Greater Scaup , the two most prevalent species on the pond, but there were a few other birds mixed in as well. I have had similar experiences at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge and you are so right on when you say “am I ever glad that I am a birder!&# It was a great experience.

Ducks 227

Ducks 2011 Jamaica Deer 227

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2011

The countryside too is full of signature European species like European Bee-eaters, European Rollers and Great-spotted Cuckoos … Within a shortish drive of the lodge is an unusual birding spot called Pulo do Lobo or The wolf’s Leap. This is worthwhile to pick up some rocky terrain species and the scenery is stunning.

Portugal 232

Portugal 2011 Deer Africa 232

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

An associated issue is that the Belize and Costa Rica guides share many of the same descriptions of species, written by Howell. Similarly, descriptions of species repeated across volumes do not lose their accuracy with each publication. Other species are splits and lumped and have had their names changed. Why are these issues?

Costa Rica 246

Costa Rica Belize El Salvador Birds 246

10,000 Birds

MARCH 22, 2011

On the grounds, Punta Cana has preserved a 1,500 acre Ecological Park that is an excellent place to view the local endemic bird species and enjoy nature. This project has ensured that this critically endangered bird is being brought back from the brink of extinction. Though it is certainly bad news that the U.S.

Dominican Republic 242

Dominican Republic 2011 Deer Kuwait 242

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 10, 2017

He digitized and downloaded all of them, he says, in preparation for his 2015 Big Year — a whirlwind trip around the world in an effort to see 5,000 bird species in one year, something never before done. The result is his delightful new book, “ Birding Without Borders: An Obsession, a Quest, and the Biggest Year in the World.”.

Sri Lanka 187

Sri Lanka Cleveland Philippines Birds 187

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2011

This species is not only usually the earliest, but the most common. What’s remarkable about this species is what we don’t see here: the extremely long migration that this species makes, with some individuals traveling from Sub-Saharan Africa to Greenland and back every year.

Cyprus 145

Cyprus 2011 Deer New York 145

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 27, 2013

My best bird of the year is based on the sighting rather than the species. Hornbills are spectacular under any circumstances, but when a pair lands in a bush beside you at eye-level and begin mutual preening , it makes for a spectacular experience. Only trouble is, which of the seven species I saw this year do I pick?

2013 180

2013 Costa Rica Birds India 180

10,000 Birds

MARCH 2, 2011

Pochards: Last Lifer of the Trip About the Author Larry Larry Jordan was introduced to birding after moving to northern California where he was overwhelmed by the local wildlife, forcing him to buy his first field guide just to be able to identify all the species visiting his yard. Beautiful bird. Thanks for visiting!

Wildlife 178

Wildlife Sacramento 2011 Jordan 178

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2011

If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. On Sunday at Kissena Park I saw five species of sparrows. A mixed species flock of sparrows (american tree, field and chipping) was by the bike track parking lot. What was your best bird of the weekend?

2011 200

2011 New York Deer Philadelphia 200

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

Frigatebirds (Fregatidae) Five species of frigatebird ply the planet’s tropical skies and seas. Ringer Cormorants and Shags (Phalacrocoracidae) Cormorants are more speciose than other families in the order; 30-40 species range widely on every continent and many islands. Corey Mar 12th, 2011 at 8:29 pm Now wait just one second.

2011 206

2011 Pelicans Papua New Guinea California 206

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2011

Informed literature bears out my experience that most birds are seen singly or in pairs. Very interesting species. The former British colony’s Z.c. melli strain is one of as many as 12 races and shows a lighter face than many of the others. Married to a Canon? That I understand! They are most visible on the napes of passerines.

2011 236

2011 Deer India New York 236

10,000 Birds

MARCH 13, 2011

For Corey, this was a weekend without a single standout species but with many birds that were pretty darn neat. 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.

2011 133

2011 Deer Owls Birds 133

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2011

Today we are looking at two species that can be difficult to separate under typical field conditions. I have encountered this situation only one time in my birding experience. I tried on a purist attitude and chose not to ID the species. To answer this quiz, please do NOT indicate the species of either bird.

2011 124

2011 North America Deer America 124

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2011

Turkeys, 3 or 4 species of woodpeckers, all kinds of song birds grace our view constantly. Stop by our blog for some nice shots and share the experience!! We feed them year around here and are “blessed&# to have a wild variety and abundance of birds. Almost time for hummers to make there appearance. As I said, we are blessed.

2011 150

2011 Deer South Dakota Costa Rica 150

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2011

UNLESS that is you get yourself down to the internationally-renowned Tambopata Research Centre in southern Peru where literally hundreds of macaws (and other parrots) congregate around a 50 meter high clay bank. The experience is one of the ornithological highlights in the world. That’s right – birds eating clay. Scarlet Macaws.

Peru 255

Peru Parrots 2011 Deer 255

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 15, 2013

Enter the inaugural Peru Birding Rally Challenge , the first international birding event of it’s kind in the world. The Peru Birding Rally Challenge is a joint initiative between PromPeru and the Inkaterra Family of hotels. The idea is to hold the event bi-annually, once a year in the south of Peru and once in the North.

Peru 258

Peru 2012 Bears Falcons 258

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 20, 2015

This map shows the distribution of the World’s bird species, based on overlying the breeding and wintering ranges of all known species. I used to live in Botswana, where there are about 450 bird species in an area a few dozen miles from the capital; then somewhat naively moved back to Serbia with mere 250 species around the capital.

Sri Lanka 257

Sri Lanka Botswana Africa Serbia 257

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2020

I savor the timeless experience of scanning these tropical waves for storm-petrels and lost jaegers. With around 400 species recorded for the area, yeah, it’s where we might all like to quarantine for a bit! Want to see a high quality video showing 53 species only be found in Costa Rica and adjacent western Panama?

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica Birds Thailand Farming 264

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2020

The book offers numerous facts about many species, findings of hundreds of research projects, notes on trends and exceptions from the norm, but little that captures the poetry of winter bird behavior or ignites a passion for change.

Hoarding 246

Hoarding Birds Research Sweden 246

10,000 Birds

MARCH 1, 2011

One such controversial bird is the Veraguan Mango , a small hummingbird species that was, until very recently, believed to be a Panamanian endemic. Veraguan Mango by Carlos Bethancourt Although the Neotropical region supports fewer bird families than Africa, there are considerably more bird species here than anywhere else on earth.

Panama 254

Panama Costa Rica 2011 Cleveland 254

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2021

In 2012, I reviewed The Jewel Hunter , an absorbing narrative in which author Chris Goodie travelled throughout Asia, Africa, and Australasia to observe and photograph every Pitta species in the world. Hummingbird species, on the other hand, number in the hundreds.

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica Brazil Bolivia Ecuador 264

10,000 Birds

APRIL 24, 2014

The famed Neotropical biologist John Terborgh, confirmed, through long term bird studies, what earlier naturalists suspected; the tropical rainforest is highly diverse, but species occur in very low densities. In fact many are never occupied by any of these species. The birds I mention above hold static and small territories.

Birds 173

Birds South America Peru Experiments 173

10,000 Birds

MARCH 9, 2011

Like Kapiti the island is an offshore refuge for many species extinct on the mainland, with a lot of the work being done by the voluntary Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi. One species I really hoped to find on the trip was the Kokako. Saddleback ( Philesturnus carunculatus ) on the beach. A week spent on Kapiti only got us 3 of them!

New Zealand 185

New Zealand 2011 Deer Cats 185

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2012

It was a heart-pounding scene straight out of Jurassic Park, an odd experience for a laid-back pursuit like birding. This bird represented only the second documented record of this species in Florida. This may sound mundane, but my Best Bird of the Year is a species we all know quite well in one form or another.

2012 207

2012 Guatemala Birds Florida 207

10,000 Birds

MARCH 9, 2011

And I haven’t even started to write about ageing them … What are your experiences, and what is the colour of the claws on your local gull species? Ring-billed Gull - yes indeed. Nice piercing, dude! Gulls move in mysterious ways. Thanks, Wikipedia ! Get yours today!

2011 221

2011 Birds Deer Europe 221

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2024

He subsequently leaves for Peru and gets kidnapped and killed by Sendero Luminoso – the local brand of Maoists. Phoebe Snetsinger was an American birder who first passed the 8,000 species mark. Having learned from my Namibian experience I walked away briskly. She died in a car accident during a birding trip.

Mozambique 246

Mozambique Ghana Namibia Birds 246