10,000 Birds

JUNE 5, 2024

A pair of Jabiru were locked in a chase, one tucked in its eight foot wingspan and made a dive not too dissimilar from that of a falcon. The sounds of the night intensified, and we were lucky to catch a Band-tailed Nighthawk hunting overhead as we were unmooring ourselves.

Guyana 218

Guyana Otters Trinidad Bats 218

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2015

I am inside the city of Belgrade, checking the theoretically possible Peregrine Falcon site. Yet, not a trace of a falcon. APRIL 12: Second flight of a b h and then she hunts. ” Falcons do hunt pigeons, we all know that, but what is a Kamikaze pigeon? One Feral Pigeon. A Great Tit. And a war to extinction??

Switzerland 196

Switzerland Serbia Feral Falcons 196

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2024

Some of us are captivated by the fierce stares of hawks and the raptorial majesty of a diving falcon. It was like so many other places where the young birds were stolen from nests, habitat was destroyed, and adult macaws occasionally hunted. A fair subset of birders are even crazy about gulls (!).

Costa Rica 245

Costa Rica Birds Parrots New York 245

10,000 Birds

JUNE 2, 2022

Also, there was a Black Kite awaiting us, as well as one Red-footed Falcon sitting on a dead oak branch. King Alexander I of Yugoslavia was known for his hunting forays into this forest, only months prior to his assassination during a 1934 state visit to France. Photo by Surcin Municipality.

Croatia 232

Croatia Serbia Shelters France 232

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2013

Clearly the flock was being attacked by one of the local Peregrine Falcons , which is a common occurrence but it usually happens so high up in the air that I scarcely get to notice it. I would have expected this group to also get away from the falcon as quickly as possible, as the big flock had done. And the small group of five?

Falcons 215

Falcons Buffalo Lions Groups 215

10,000 Birds

MARCH 22, 2019

While the hunting of game with trained birds of prey can be a controversial topic among birders , falconry was a valuable early source of information on birds, and its history, culture, and imagery continue to fascinate bird lovers, as we shall see. During the hunt, Mary’s horse lost its footing, throwing her from the saddle into a ditch.

France 113

France Hunting Horses Falcons 113

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2021

At night, we keep our eyes out for the passage of the neighborhood Barn Owl , oftentimes a Tropical Screech-Owl would hunt insects from a low perch on our almond tree. Sometimes this Merlin ‘s mate comes to check him out, but for most of the northern winter he hunts solo.

Opossums 264

Opossums Barn Owls Reptiles Hunting 264

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

As I neared the shore, I spooked a hunting Striated Heron who in turn spooked a Neotropic Cormorant hunting the shallow water. I had never seen a Peregrine Falcon soaring with Black Vultures before – interestingly enough I would later see the very same occurrence two days later on another part of the island. Black Vulture.

Trinidad 209

Trinidad Birds Parrots Falcons 209

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 19, 2013

If this Red-tailed Hawk was wearing a T-shirt, it might say, “I’d rather be hunting nuisance birds.” ” Garrulous gulls and stealing starlings, beware: the falcons are coming. (No, No, not those Falcons from Atlanta. The benefits to the falconers, according to the article, include generous fees.)

Ethical Treatment 167

Ethical Treatment Atlanta Falcons Chicago 167

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2019

The Gyrfalcon ( Falco rusticolus ), the largest falcon in the world, is as sought after by falconers as it is by birders – and for many of the same reasons: namely, the rarity with which these imposing raptors of the Arctic visit us residing in more temperate climes.

2016 100

2016 Iceland Falcons Egypt 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 30, 2021

Because of that, the bird has a manure-like odour and is only hunted by humans for food in times of dire need” [ Source ]. Instead of a Pterodactyl, we had one rare Orange-breasted Falcon by the mountain top, which greeted us in the scope-view. Left to right: my guide Edson Moroni and the local shop keeper Daniel Luis.

Dolphins 262

Dolphins Colombia Otters Monkeys 262

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 4, 2021

Keep birding and you might see a White-tailed Kite hovering as it hunts rodents and one of the few Bat Falcons in the Valley might dash into view. Lesser numbers of other common birds also occur; birds like the Gray-crowned Yellowthroat , Inca Doves , saltators, Groove-billed Anis , and other species.

Costa Rica 257

Costa Rica Sparrows Rodents Rats 257

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

Once the private hunting preserve of the Maharaja of Bharatpur, this fabulous wetland gave us a list of over ninety species in a very relaxed day on a recent trip! Here we look for sandgrouse, bush-quails, francolins, wheatears, shrikes, Laggar Falcons , eagles, buzzards, and the endangered Stolikza’s Bush Chat.

India 193

India Wildlife Tigers Rhinoceros 193

10,000 Birds

JUNE 26, 2014

Keep your eyes to the skies for hunting falcons ! Is it that time already, when a young birder’s fancy turns to, um, non-birds ? Indeed, those long hot stretches between migratory periods can try a bird watcher’s soul as surely as a cold, dark, birdless winter.

2014 181

2014 New York Falcons Hunting 181

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2024

If you see a flock of kestrels in southern Europe, then the chances are that they will be Lessers, for the Common Kestrel never flocks, though occasionally in summer you will see a family hunting together. Watching flocks of these attractive little falcons feeding is aways a delightful sight.

Falcons 202

Falcons Spain Europe Portugal 202

10,000 Birds

JUNE 8, 2012

Red-tailed Hawks often hunt through dusk in San Francisco. Peregrine Falcons frequent the sheer rock faces of Tennessee Valley. Carrizo Plain harbors shrikes, meadowlarks, eagles, falcons, etc… oh, and flowers. Varied Thrush habitat on Mount Tamalpais. I imagine them beaming through this shortcut too.

San Francisco 186

San Francisco Tennessee Falcons Owls 186

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2021

Great Frigatebirds engage in “unihemispheric sleep” on hunting trips of six to ten days, never landing, sleeping less than an hour in a 24-hour cycle, often keeping one-half of their brain awake while the other slept. Many of these stories will be known to avid readers of environmental news items and social media.

Cyprus 255

Cyprus Slaughter Slaughtered Research 255

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

Of course, we did, soaking in that slate blue beauty long enough to observe a successful hunt and more of its rangy, awkward flight. Our primeval quarry flashed that cold, knowing smile and flew off, daring us to track it down for better looks. The mighty Shoebill.

Uganda 268

Uganda Africa Penguins 2019 268

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 3, 2015

Yet, one other hunting attempt in the same area I do remember. The next memorable hunt came from winter 2006/07. … To everyone’s delight, a Saker Falcon soon appeared, offering excellent views as it banked in a long stoop after a hapless distant passerine. But no, that sighting is no longer in my head, only on paper.

Serbia 251

Serbia 2004 Eagles Chickens 251

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 29, 2023

I always undertake a number of short timed surveys for the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust’s Big Farmland Bird Count in February, and though the counts didn’t add anything to the year list, they were memorable for finding big flocks of finches and buntings, while a daylight-hunting Barn Owl was a pleasing sight. Where had it bred?

Estonia 230

Estonia Portugal Greece Barn Owls 230

10,000 Birds

APRIL 7, 2020

It didn’t occur to me till I started reading The Falcon Thief: A True Tale of Adventure, Treachery, and the Hunt for the Perfect Bird that there was also a possible threat to the eagle herself: poachers, who steal raptor eggs and chicks. McWilliam realizes he’s dealing someone special, a career falcon egg-thief.

Falcons 215

Falcons United Kingdom Zimbabwe Eggs 215

10,000 Birds

MAY 30, 2019

That summer of 1938, when he was ten years old, Cade read of two brothers, Frank and John Craighead, who wrote of their experiences with falcons in National Geographic. I knew no falconers. ” Falcons could be taken from the nest just before they were able to fly or caught wild after maturity. The concern possessed him.

Falcons 184

Falcons California Condor Alaska Idaho 184

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 13, 2014

Orange-breasted Falcon : Since there aren’t any specimens of this regal neotropical Falco from Costa Rica, we actually aren’t even sure if it used to live here. Hope for a vagrant comes in the form of an Orange-breasted Falcon sighting from west-central Panama.

Costa Rica 222

Costa Rica Species Panama Falcons 222

10,000 Birds

MAY 28, 2015

And that is why the hides are where they are, not to admire the scenery (or shoot at it – hunting is prohibited in the reserve and the ban is enforced). The hide overlooking the breeding colony of Red-footed Falcons. Only, this time it has nothing to do with the part of the town but with the neigbours, the feathery ones.

Serbia 248

Serbia Spain Birds Hungary 248

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 21, 2015

One thing you must do is hire a local guide, as while you can hunt for yourself you’ll see a hell of a lot more with one. And watching this from above was a Lanner Falcon. While the skies and every wire fence and electricity cable were filled with Amur Falcons , it took some skill to finally find a Red-footed Falcon among them.

South Africa 145

South Africa Africa Falcons Family 145

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

His musings on falconry in Medieval times begin with the Bayeux Tapestry, which tells the story of the Norman Conquest and is full of birds, including hawks and falcons on the wrists of the main contenders. With Birkhead, you never know what’s going to come next.

Dissection 226

Dissection Birds Europe Eggs 226

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 27, 2014

Sociable Lapwings breed in several areas along the Kazakhstani – Russian border and overwinter in Iraq, Sudan and northwest India.

Sudan 248

Sudan India Ukraine Camels 248

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 5, 2014

But a falconer did legally trap a snowy, I saw the picture on his Facebook page before he deleted it after a firestorm of controversy exploded. When I looked at lists of birds allowed for falconry in Minnesota years ago, I asked some of my falconer friends, “Really, owls?” I learned that I knew nothing of falconry.

Wisconsin 246

Wisconsin Falcons Owls Hunting 246

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 9, 2014

Not only were they a common bird, they were a common bird nearshore; indigenous peoples hunted them up and down the coast. North American Peregrine Falcons have also enjoyed an impressive population rebound in recent years. With a six-figure population now, Cackling Geese are an abundant visitor the west coast and the Aleutians.

Albatross 209

Albatross Endangered Species Bald Eagle Alaska 209

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 6, 2014

Get to my early morning birding destination while it was still dark, sit in the car with the radio on to prevent the inadvertent identification of a run-of-the-mill bird by voice, and wait for a Short-eared Owl to fly past on the hunt. Amazingly, it worked! Short-eared Owl is a great way to start off a birding year!

2014 159

2014 Fox Birds Owls 159

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 12, 2018

Once we were checked in, we headed straight out to begin our hunt. Aplomado Falcon. Alamo is, for what we could ascertain, just about dead center of a huge number of high quality birding hotspots. My wife Jeanne, was willing to make this trip, but not if we were going for just a few birds. McCown’s longspur. White-tailed Kite.

Texas 132

Texas Tucson San Antonio Owls 132

10,000 Birds

JULY 27, 2012

The maintenance man declared that his father was a falconer, and that he would take her home so he could care for her. She taught them how to hunt, and when they were released in the fall she stayed on her perch, dozing in the sun. She wasn’t about to leave her rabbit, and the driver figured something was wrong, so he picked her up.

Rabbits 242

Rabbits New Jersey Neglecting North America 242

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 16, 2018

On December 7th an odd looking Peregrine Falcon was observed in Broome at the Sports Ova l. In Australia we often observe Peregrine Falcons and they are the subspecies Falco peregrinus macropus. The Peregrine Falcon at the Sports Oval has been perching on the light towers and is easily observed, but it is a long way up.

Falcons 113

Falcons Australia Investigation Asia 113

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 9, 2017

This morning, they have seen some 10,000 Broad-winged Hawks , mixed up with two dozen Swainson’s Hawks , several Mississippi Kites and one or two King Vultures , Swallow-tailed and Double-toothed Kites , Merlins and Peregrine Falcons. Or a mammal. Or even those pooie reptiles.

Costa Rica 143

Costa Rica Reptiles Farming Mississippi 143

10,000 Birds

JUNE 22, 2011

Great horneds are known as the “Tiger of the Woods&# because they’ll hunt anything and they are good at it, but they are slow and stealthy. When you think of a bird eating raptor, you think of fast birds like Peregrine Falcons and Cooper’s Hawks.

Dissection 208

Dissection Bats Minnesota Owls 208

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 13, 2013

Peregrine Falcon ( Falco peregrinus ) at Delevan NWR (click on photos for full sized images). I’m sure most of you know that the Peregrine Falcon became an endangered species because of the use of organochlorine pesticides, especially DDT, during the 1950′s, 60′s, and 70′s. Don’t miss it!

Falcons 136

Falcons Wildlife Sacramento Endangered Species 136

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2020

The essays are arranged in almost AOS taxonomic order, with changes made to lessen confusion for new birders–falcons are grouped with hawks, all water birds come before land birds, etc. Some of the chapters focus on a specific bird, most are about bird families like hawks, tanagers, wrens, etc.,

2020 264

2020 Birds North America Sparrows 264