10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 29, 2019

I recently despaired of ending this calendar year without seeing a single Wild Turkey when that species used to be so reliable in my part of New York. Luckily, we spied a large flock of turkeys from the highway between Syracuse and Binghamton. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment.

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2019 Nevada Turkey New York 204

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 23, 2011

Anyway, I was more partial to the few Turkey Vultures still sticking with us up here as temperatures drop along the shores of Lake Ontario; in no time at all, even these birds will be making their tippy way down south. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Good times!

2011 240

2011 United States Turkey Birds 240

10,000 Birds

JUNE 21, 2020

My kids humored me with a fun Father’s Day hike, but my best bird was spotted en route in the form of a roadside Wild Turkey (not to be confused with a Roadside Hawk ). If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Oddly for Father’s Day weekend, Corey didn’t get out birding too much.

2020 235

2020 Turkey Birds Experiments 235

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 5, 2024

But here goes, a list of my favorite sightings for 2023: You stole my heart, you rascal you: We made a major trip to Europe, North Africa, and Turkey in late October, November and early December, combining work with some down time. In 2022, while in Turkey for our first time, I saw my first Dipper , a White-throated Dipper.

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Morocco Turkey Mexico Birds 242

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 2, 2022

Going back to that assumption that birds don’t have a sense of smell, it can be traced to John James Audubon (of course), who performed several experiments with Turkey Vultures and concluded that the vultures used sight, not scent, to find food. 241) that contribute to a bird’s odor.

Science 264

Science Research Turkey 2006 264

10,000 Birds

MAY 3, 2024

My only other experience with an Audubon Club field trip anywhere, on a cold October morning in the American Midwest, was frankly kind of a bust. But this one was a wonderful experience. To my shock, I had also never included a Wild Turkey on an eBird list before Tuesday. Both were welcome additions.

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San Francisco California Woodpeckers Turkey 246

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 1, 2013

Now that Thanksgiving is over, we can ease up on the turkey talk. I do regret that I saw no Wild Turkeys this weekend, only subdued, succulently prepared ones. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend?

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2013 Turkey New York Owls 154

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 25, 2015

Corey, on the other hand, had several stellar birds this weekend, including a Sora at Central Park, a Vesper Sparrow at Willow Lake Preserve, an Orange-crowned Warbler at Jacob Riis Park, and a Broad-winged Hawk and five Turkey Vultures from the hawkwatch platform at Fort Tilden. What was your best bird of the weekend?

2015 174

2015 Turkey Birds Woodpeckers 174

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Just a week later, I had a similar experience with an Olive-sided Flycatcher. Slate-throated Redstarts are called “Pavitos” (little turkeys) here in Mexico, because of their habit of spreading their tails turkey-style. I could actually hear a “crack!

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Mexico South America Birds Turkey 226

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2022

Both Black and Turkey Vultures dominate the skies on the larger island; any vulture seen on Tobago is a reportable species. The Turkey Vulture at its lower right seems bemused at the antics of a displaying Crested Oropendola (which unlike the rest of birds mentioned in this article, is also found on Tobago). American Flamingo.

Trinidad 279

Trinidad Turkey Squirrels Cows 279

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 26, 2022

A surplus of quality birding experiences kept me from making my reports, which is embarrassing. I will start by telling you about encounters in Turkey with two special bird families. But no, I had to travel to Turkey to meet them in the wild. Turkey can get really hot in the summer. (It

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Spain Turkey Mexico Agenda 162

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 13, 2013

The long Columbus Day weekend still sails on here in the United States, so if you haven’t found a worthy bird to report for the weekend yet, you may still have time… This weekend also marks the point in the year where I stop taking Turkey Vultures for granted, which made me enjoy the many spotted soaring overhead.

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Columbus 2013 United States Turkey 157

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

I don’t consider my little garden to be a terribly birdy patch, although years of observation have resulted in my seeing 59 species there (64, if you count the White-throated Swifts , Black and Turkey Vultures, Red-tailed Hawks and Common Ravens that may fly high overhead).

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Nashville Mexico Turkey 2015 245

10,000 Birds

APRIL 11, 2023

Indeed, even though I just celebrated 40 years of living in Mexico, we have never been to Cabo San Lucas, and our only experience with Cancún was going though immigration in that city’s airport. These turkey-sized birds were everwhere! Further inland, the West Mexican Chachalaca is often heard, but rarely seen.

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Mexico Birds Turkey Sparrows 264

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2014

People asked me what target birds I had in mind, but really I had very few; I’m not a list-ticker and my goal was to experience the raptor migration. As a child and teen, growing up in England, I had an informal mental list of birds I’d seen in books but which I believed to be out of my reach.

Spain 225

Spain Ostriches Africa Canada 225

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 18, 2021

The following examples are some of the birding experience that awaits on Poas Volcano, Costa Rica: The Voices of Understory Birds. This shimmering mega species is regular on Poas and, when feeding, is often joined by the Black Guan , an arboreal black turkey-like bird with a blue face.

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Costa Rica Birds Cows Hunters 264

10,000 Birds

MAY 13, 2020

This large, arboreal turkey-looking bird is endemic to Trinidad and recent estimates put their total numbers at around 300 individuals. What birders value most in this village does not frequent the shore, however. After stopping for afternoon coffee, our two-hour journey to Grande Riviere was made in pouring rain.

Trinidad 264

Trinidad Turtles Turkey Fish 264

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 19, 2015

Most interesting is that one’s knowledge of important things like where to find food (or danger) was based on experience not on general principles. So an Efe off his trail, or another trail he knew about, was not much better than, say, me (after a couple of years gaining my own experience) at having a clue.

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Minnesota Detroit Congo Laws 237

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 7, 2021

If you do happen to see one way up there in the canopy, since it’s more like watching a dark bug flying around than admiring the shifting colors of a dark velvet chocolate hummingbird, the Snowcap experience deserves to be enjoyed at ground level. King Vulture is regular and various other species are also possible, hawk-eagles included.

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica San Jose Birds Farming 264

10,000 Birds

MAY 15, 2012

Few experiences birding get me more excited than adding a new bird to my Queens list. Black Vulture - Despite a marked increase in Turkey Vulture sightings – nine since March of 2011 when I had my first in Queens - Black Vultures remain stubbornly absent from the borough (only two sightings reported to eBird in Queens since 2008).

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Connecticut 2011 Jamaica 2012 231

10,000 Birds

JUNE 20, 2020

The week before I had tried to walk this trail with my parents and son in the baby jogger, but the constant need to veer off the pathway to avoid those less observant of CDC guidance made the experience more stressful than enjoyable. Overhead soared Purple Martin s, Turkey Vultures, and Anhingas.

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Georgia Horses Transported Fish 200

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2013

Hundreds of both Glossy and White Ibis commute overhead, along with Great and Snowy Egrets , Little Blue and Tricolored Herons , and Black and Turkey Vultures. Suddenly, the entire trail system comes alive as birds begin their day. Snail Kite may also be spotted leaving their roosts near this trail during this time of year.

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Wildlife Alligators Miami Florida 189

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 21, 2018

Asking for a friend… Though I was unable to mount any sustained outdoor activity this weekend, I couldn’t help but notice a few Turkey Vultures tipping and teetering about. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. What was your best bird of the weekend?

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2018 Downers Turkey New York 138

10,000 Birds

MARCH 8, 2012

Now, he’s sharing some information sure to improve your experience of American historical sites… When I’m not writing about sports teams and bird logos , birding ephemera , or stumbling into first state records , I’m helping protect Civil War-related national parks with the non-profit National Parks Conservation Association in DC.

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Mississippi Vermont Birds Nebraska 225

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2019

I found myself in fine company on the hawk watch platform at Braddock Bay, where streaming flocks of Turkey Vultures were infiltrated by a variety of hawk species. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Did you join the party? What was your best bird of the weekend?

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2019 Turkey Birds Experiments 127

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 20, 2015

If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. The count totaled 119 species, which is historically a very good number. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend? What was your best bird of the weekend?

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Bald Eagle Nashville 2015 Pelicans 124

10,000 Birds

APRIL 10, 2012

On the ride there we spotted a Ruffed Grouse almost getting run over by the truck in front of us (not surprisingly it kept running so no picture) and a single Wild Turkey that we almost squished. Jeff was nice enough to give us an idea as to where to look at our next birding destination, the Sabattis Bog.

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Oregon Birds 2007 Protection 221

10,000 Birds

MARCH 17, 2019

The first Turkey Vulture of the year is definitely the best one! If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. Of course, a green bird wouldn’t fare well in these parts, where the trees are still leafless and rimed with frost. What was your best bird of the weekend?

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2019 Asia Turkey Parrots 127

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2017

As for me, I’m just glad Turkey Vultures are back to Western NY. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend? Tell us in the comments section about the rarest, loveliest, or most fascinating bird you observed.

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2017 Turkey Owls Birds 124

10,000 Birds

JUNE 1, 2023

As such, it offers some unique birding experiences. Since I have limited experience with eastern Mexico, and even less experience with tropical species, I enthusiastically accepted. On the way to Jonuta Road, Rolando informed me that in this region, Lesser Yellow-headed Vultures are common, but Turkey Vultures are unusual.

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Mexico Tigers Cows Birds 130

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2017

Corey’s Best Bird of the Weekend was the coolest turkey he’s ever seen, the Ocellated Turkey of Central America, seen in a wonderful place: Tikal in Guatemala! If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment. How about you? What was your best bird of the weekend?

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Guatemala 2017 Turkey Birds 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2013

Along this journey from pass to valley and back again, we spotted Wild Turkey and Western Wood Pee-wee , Ravens and Red-tailed Hawks , mule deer and elk, even the white-striped tail of a Dark-eyed Junco disappearing into the shadow of the trees. But the highlight, of course, was the camas fields.

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Idaho Mules Wolves Buffalo 199

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 14, 2018

During the sit there were lots of good birds as is only to be expected but the one he nominates for his Best Bird of the Weekend was any of the three unexpected Turkey Vultures that came soaring through near the end of the day, mostly because they were so unlikely and came directly over the platform. What was your best bird of the weekend?

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2018 Turkey Falcons Birds 113

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 1, 2020

Most of the chapters in The Bird Way focus on one or two scientists who has done extensive research on ‘outlier behavior.’

Science 264

Science Birds Costa Rica Research 264

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 30, 2012

Standing at the hawkwatch at Kiptopeke State Park, as I did for a significant amount of by visit to Virginia, was a humbling experience, not just for the word-class birding raptor watching but for the enormous numbers of passerines passing overhead at any moment.

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Virginia North Carolina DC Louisiana 202

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 31, 2011

Kirby Adams had a magical experience with his Best Bird of the Year and he blogged about it on his blog, Sharp Tern. While I had heard Yellow Rails in North Dakota in 2010, to see this Ohio Review Species fly, not once but twice, right in front of me was an incredible experience.

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2011 Ohio North Dakota Bald Eagle 185

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 25, 2012

One of the two, Krüper’s Nuthatch , is only found in Turkey, Russia, Georgia, and on Lesbos. Many thanks to Swarovski Optik for inviting me along and letting me experience both some awesome new optics and the natural wonders of the wonderful country of Hungary. ……… …

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Hungary Europe Portugal Russia 164