10,000 Birds

MAY 4, 2021

Marybeth learns as she birds, embraces listing goals as a means of engaging with community, unabashedly enjoys a little competition, struggles to balance her absolute joy in birding with unexpected, life-and-death family obligations. Adventures of a Louisiana Birder: One Year, Two Wings, Three Hundred Species. by Marybeth Lima.

Louisiana 264

Louisiana Species Mississippi Alabama 264

10,000 Birds

JUNE 8, 2019

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.

Costa Rica 199

Costa Rica Species Birds New York 199

10,000 Birds

JULY 13, 2014

It’s mid-July, which among other things means that those of us in North America are starting to check local mudflats for returning shorebird migrants and waiting impatiently for the AOU to hurry up and create five species from the Clapper-King rail complex (the reasons for which we covered last year ). Gowen et al.

Elephants 197

Elephants New Zealand Sparrows Ostriches 197

10,000 Birds

APRIL 3, 2012

The bird was a sparrow, that much was clear, but it didn’t seem to fit any of the easily boxes the other North American sparrows can be fairly easily sorted into. Superficially, it resembled the Black-chinned Sparrow of the southwestern United States with its gray chest and chestnut streaked with black back.

New Jersey 222

New Jersey North Carolina Sparrows Connecticut 222

10,000 Birds

JULY 23, 2022

In pastures of the hot lowlands, they tend to be lines of stunted Gumbo-Limbo trees or some other heavily pruned species. In addition to those birds and the Squirrel Cuckoo pictured above, the following are some of the more common hedgerow species of Costa Rica. Rufous-tailed Hummingbird and other hummingbird species.

Costa Rica 260

Costa Rica Birds Sparrows Squirrels 260

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 4, 2021

Some call them trash, tours might not visit, but they can host more than the expected and common species. Some such vegetated spots can also attract oddball birds, species that wander to find a home in urban circumstances. Three species of seedeaters sing from the tall grass, one of them being the Yellow-bellied Seedeater.

Costa Rica 254

Costa Rica Sparrows Rodents Rats 254

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. He goes on to describe how early classifications of the nine-primaried oscines relied on bill shape to determine family boundaries. A new perspective on tanagers Much of the core of the tanager family remains intact.

2003 211

2003 South America Sparrows Family 211

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 17, 2021

Still, the outing did not produce any new species for the year, or enough good photos for a post here. Instead, I have chosen to write about an idea I’ve had percolating for a while: to tell you what the most common species are down here. I’ll take the most common native species in taxonomic order.

Woodpeckers 328

Woodpeckers Mexico Cattle Turkey 328

10,000 Birds

JULY 24, 2019

It’s a rush any new birder experiences: that of every species being a lifer. But the opportunities to see new species become more difficult with each one seen. But the opportunities to see new species become more difficult with each one seen. Even so, I was able to see 54 species, of which fully half were lifers.

Spain 195

Spain Europe Sparrows Mexico 195

10,000 Birds

JULY 13, 2023

Some 320 species have been recorded here, and in springtime it is possible to observe more than 150 bird species in a week. The Strymonas Channel was adorned by numerous Great White Pelicans , Black-crowned Night-Herons , Glossy Ibises , also Penduline T**s , Common Reed Warblers , Cetti’s Warblers and Eurasian Tree Sparrows.

Greece 229

Greece Pelicans Stray Dog Tortoises 229

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 29, 2022

In the 1960s, Efraín Chacón constructed a dirt trail [from San Gerardo de Dota] to the Pan-American Highway, and brought his family to build a house, to farm and fish for trout. more than two dozen species before the rain forced us inside. more than two dozen species before the rain forced us inside.

Costa Rica 237

Costa Rica Opossums Mammals 2000 237

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2021

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.

Nicaragua 262

Nicaragua 2015 2016 Mexico 262

10,000 Birds

JULY 14, 2021

But it does offer plenty of the endemics and other species that make our area distinctive, and many of them were waiting for me on this latest visit. For the taxonomy fans out there, the American Ornithological Society just announce that this species should be moved to the Chlorophonia genus. My guess is that they are still mating.

Mexico 224

Mexico Sparrows United States Virginia 224

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 25, 2021

We are too far into the year for many FOY sightings, but not quite far enough for most migratory species to make their return appearances. No surprise to that; these two species always initiate the migratory season here. I’m no expert, but I strongly suspect Rusty Sparrows only hunt for grubs when they are feeding babies.

Louisiana 262

Louisiana 2000 Mexico Hunting 262

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 11, 2024

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?

Mexico 213

Mexico Birds Woodpeckers Sparrows 213

10,000 Birds

JUNE 24, 2016

Blackbirds, as a family, often have those simple descriptive names that are easy to mock ( Yellow-rumped Warbler , ugh) until a non-birder comes describing such a species to you and asking for an ID. In the long run, all of this proved to signify nothing, as the sparrows were more than able to take care of themselves.

Blackbirds 190

Blackbirds Boston Science Sparrows 190

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2022

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. Not all the colorful species have feathers. There are several, almost identical, species of Flycatchers in the Myiarchus genus.

Eagles 214

Eagles Falcons Sparrows Species 214

10,000 Birds

JULY 7, 2020

They portray the nesting cycles of Mallard, Red-tailed Hawk, and American Robin, illustrating the various ways in which birds create families. Do they have families too and do they take care of them? 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

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Many Neotropical families and genera have some of their northernmost members here, such as the spinetails ( Rufous-breasted Spinetail ), Tangara tanagers ( Azure-rumped Tanager ), and guans ( Horned Guan ). the species suffering most from deforestation). This is a fascinating area of transition. We were off to a great start.

Honduras 214

Honduras El Salvador Costa Rica Arizona 214

10,000 Birds

MAY 16, 2022

As this African Green Pigeon shows, the color should offer good camouflage for species living on trees. In case you do not know that brimstone is sulfur, the Brimstone Canary brings the point home by having the Latin species name sulphurata. Different bird families, I know. Lucia for the birds. Celebration everywhere.

South Africa 200

South Africa Africa Saint Lucia Camels 200

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 24, 2014

In honor of fall, and of the Chipping Sparrow that just smacked itself (thankfully not too hard) against my balcony window, here’s a blast from the past: Oct. The morning is cold, and it’s damp, although not the buckets-from-the-sky affair that yesterday was. Dawn is getting later and later. Could I ever readjust to land?

San Diego 173

San Diego Sparrows Breeders 2009 173

10,000 Birds

JULY 12, 2024

Since this latter martin appears to winter in northern South America, and no one knows where the the Sinaloa Martin winters, it has been suggested that the two species might winter together there. I have now seen the species in eight different years. Of course, Paso Ancho is also a hotspot for many other beautiful species and endemics.

Mexico 212

Mexico South America 2020 America 212

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2012

Saturday of this weekend saw a Le Conte’s Sparrow reported from Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. Somehow, I have never seen a Le Conte’s Sparrow , which leaves a gaping hole on my life list among many other fine Ammodramus sparrows. The Le Conte’s Sparrow was not refound. Mystery bird?

Sparrows 178

Sparrows Africa Family Rights 178

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2021

A typical description of the family is that of “a tropical African and Asian songbird that typically has a melodious voice and drab plumage”, another is “small, dull-colored passerine birds of Asia and Africa”, yet another states that they are “often rather plain” Individual species get even harsher reviews.

South Africa 225

South Africa Malaysia Africa China 225

10,000 Birds

MAY 25, 2022

Towhees are large, ground-hugging sparrows that occur only in North America. Just to complicate things more, four members of the Melozone genus are called Ground-Sparrows rather than Towhees.). Earlier this month, I came across a family of Spotted Towhees (Olive-backed) with a couple of other strange aspects.

Mexico 208

Mexico North America Sparrows 2015 208

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2020

When our local government called for Michoacán’s residents to stay at home, I said goodbye to some 250 regional species, and shut myself in at home with the other 30 that regularly visit my neighborhood. And on this particular trip, I could see all these species on a single kind of tree. And what species!

Squirrels 169

Squirrels Sparrows South America Mexico 169

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 11, 2020

We saw several species of this challenging family, after some time I managed to graduate with the ability to classify them as “streaked” or “unstreaked” When it came down to the actual species, however, I left it to the expert! Yellow-breasted Apalis. Northern Anteater-Chat. million years ago!

Kenya 203

Kenya Washington Groups Game 203

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 10, 2020

A metaphor for life, I am tempted to say, if this wasn`t such a meaningless thing to say … November is a good time for several species of buntings, of which I am quite fond of. While Long-tailed Shrikes are the second hand car dealers of the Nanhui bird world, some of the other members of the shrike family are a bit more subtle.

Stray 241

Stray Asia Family Industry 241

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 17, 2019

As is typical of urban birding in Costa Rica, we had small flocks of this species fly over and good looks at the White-crowned Parrot , the other most common parrot in the valley. But, they still occur, the most common species being Black Vulture , Turkey Vulture , Gray Hawk , Short-tailed Hawk , and Yellow-headed and Crested Caracaras.

Costa Rica 195

Costa Rica Parrots Birds Blackbirds 195

10,000 Birds

MARCH 30, 2020

Over the years I’ve seen a variety of open-country birds there, including Bobolinks , Vesper Sparrow , and American Kestrel. Over the years birding Willow Lake I had added nearly eighty eBird checklists at the preserve and netted myself 127 species, good for number two on the eBird hotspot list.

Bald Eagle 184

Bald Eagle New York City New York Birds 184

10,000 Birds

JULY 1, 2011

On a recent family trip to Jones Beach, on New York’s Long Island, I had the opportunity to observe a small flock of gulls bathing, resting, and preening in some shallow brackish water that had collected behind the beach. I need to go find some sparrows or some other species that are really easy to deal with… a.

New York 181

New York Collecting Sparrows Family 181

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

Striolated Bunting ( Emberiza srtriolata ) This member of the bunting family (that’s bunting, not sparrow. Sparrows are from the family Passeridae. The species used to be lumped with the commensal House Bunting, but the two are now treated as separate species. A whole bunch coming for a drink.

United Arab Emirates 161

United Arab Emirates Saudi Arabia Oman Yemen 161

10,000 Birds

JULY 19, 2011

For 13 years now, friends and family have been gathering in an undisclosed corner of Potter County, Pennsylvania during the third weekend of July to create a glorious giant chicken of wood, straw, and gunpowder only to burn it. See why we keep the location undisclosed?

Chickens 174

Chickens 2011 Pennsylvania Birds 174

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 24, 2022

About 120 species have been recorded so far. About 180 species have been recorded so far. Almost 230 species have been recorded so far. Head back to the town of Opovo, south of Baranda, and ask for the Kod Bobe Restaurant (Chez Boba), a second generation in the same family and the best restaurant in the area.

Serbia 260

Serbia Woodpeckers Owls Eagles 260

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 1, 2018

Recently, while guiding on the slopes of Poas, without too much effort, we had more than a hundred species. Such a birdy day and yet, one that still lacked quite a few species. Poas itself seems to be pretty straightforward but I wondered how far down both sides of the mountain should be included in my species list. Two hundred?

Costa Rica 100

Costa Rica Species San Jose Birds 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 10, 2015

Just like we did last year my family spent this past weekend camping at North Lake State Park, up in New York’s gorgeous Catskill Mountains. And, not surprisingly, the breeding birds present were largely the same species as last year which was not a problem at all! Not because of the species but because he knew the species!

Birds 162

Birds New York Family Sparrows 162

10,000 Birds

MARCH 26, 2011

Perhaps this is why, when asked about the future of field guides in our Crossley ID Guide Giveaway, so many suggested the future is specialization: I believe the future of bird guides will consist of specialist guides which will focused on sparrows, gulls, etc. Future field guides have much room to grow in guides focuses on families of birds.

Sparrows 163

Sparrows America North America Birds 163