10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2024

What is your favorite bird species? Too tough to choose a species but if I could choose a family it’d be a tight finish between shorebirds and vultures. The bird that I’m seeing or hearing at the present moment. Trinidad Motmot What is your name, and where do you live?

Trinidad 240

Trinidad Birds Family Species 240

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2021

The family Furnariidae consists of ovenbirds and woodcreepers, but the actual Ovenbird belongs to the family of New World Warblers – Parulidae. This is not the most confusing aspect of birds by any means, after all there are tanagers which belong in the cardinal family and cardinals that are tanagers.

Trinidad 255

Trinidad Litter Guyana Family 255

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 3, 2020

I’ve been fortunate to see two Penguin species in the wild (African and Galapagos) and have dreamed of seeing more–maybe even all!–especially The goal of Around the World For Penguins is simple: Describe the 18 species of penguin and their breeding grounds “from the perspective of a traveller.”

Penguins 276

Penguins Georgia Albatross New Zealand 276

10,000 Birds

MAY 24, 2020

North America is home to many amazing bird species, including several which require a special effort to see and appreciate. Trogons and quetzals are an ancient, colorful bird family that occurs in forests and other wooded habitats from the American tropics to Africa to Southeast Asia. So let’s look at this sampler, shall we?

America 259

America Arizona North America Texas 259

10,000 Birds

JUNE 24, 2020

While the 480-odd species recorded within T&T may outstrip our fellow Caribbean islands by leaps and bounds, it pales in comparison to the massive lists of mainland South and Central America. T&T boasts a fascinating level of biodiversity, however the relatively small size of the islands puts a limit on individual species diversity.

Trinidad 249

Trinidad Family America Species 249

10,000 Birds

JULY 21, 2021

Today, I’m going to look at the family Trochilidae , or hummingbirds. Although eighteen species of hummingbirds have been recorded in T&T, within this there are three species of hermits. Typically they are drawn to the brilliantly colored flowers of the Heliconia family. Little Hermit. Green Hermit.

Trinidad 259

Trinidad Family Species Birds 259

10,000 Birds

APRIL 28, 2021

Perhaps his first attempt at raising a family – I’ll be checking on him in a few days! Some birds chose to sit quietly together, perhaps getting to know each other’s quirks and habits before settling down to raise a family. Some species have already fledged their young and are in the process of feeding the juveniles.

Raised 264

Raised Breeding South America Family 264

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2021

One bird species that we occasionally observe around Broome is the Yellow-billed Spoonbill, but we had not seen one for a few years until recently. We soon observed several bird species and then a Yellow-billed Spoonbill flew overhead. Not only is it a bird species we rarely encounter, but we had never found a breeding colony before.

Breeding 230

Breeding Australia Cattle Family 230

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 27, 2021

The islands and surrounding islets of Trinidad and Tobago boast an astounding list of almost 500 species of birds. For such a small place, birders are often spoiled for choice, there seems to be a representative of almost every neotropical family making their presence felt in some corner of habitat. Green Honeycreepers.

Trinidad 253

Trinidad Groups Family Species 253

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 14, 2020

The best laid plans… Last week, I had hoped to get permission to get onto the campus of one or Morelia’s many universities, to look for a family of Wood Ducks that apparently have arrived to spend the winter in its unusual habitat of marshy forest. In fact, it was guaranteed before I got out of bed! cuerpoRRUÍN! cuerpoRRUÍN!”

Mexico 278

Mexico Family Laws Ducks 278

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 313

Woodpeckers Mexico Cattle Turkey 313

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 26, 2022

Over the course of the following hour or so we observed many different species *coincidentally* alight on the wall near to the body of the fallen yellowlegs. Did the Black-bellied Whistling Duck represent his family, “showing face” as we say here in the Caribbean? Pectoral Sandpiper (L) and White-rumped Sandpiper (R).

Elephants 261

Elephants Ducks Humane Family 261

10,000 Birds

JULY 18, 2021

Our land-locked species in temperate zones tend to become too focused on the little details of perpetuating their species to be sufficiently entertaining. Out on the shore, though, a whole suite of species exists in the places we gravitate to anyway. The best of summer birding in my experience takes place at the beach.

Virginia 235

Virginia Birds Fish Experience 235

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 223

Costa Rica Opossums Mammals 2000 223

10,000 Birds

JUNE 9, 2021

Many species seemed to come in threes, and today I shall continue my examination of these. Three species of antshrikes are resident in T&T. These endearing birds are almost always found in pairs or small family groups, and I often have difficulty deciding which bird to photograph as both males and females are equally beautiful.

Trinidad 204

Trinidad Bears Family Groups 204

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 2, 2021

Where a birder goes in the Caribbean determines which birds are seen including toy-like todies, Carib hummingbirds, cool pigeons, quail-doves, unique avian families and outrageous woodpeckers. One such special place is the Centro Manu, a small family run reserve that features several star bird species of Costa Rica’s Caribbean lowlands.

Costa Rica 262

Costa Rica Puerto Rico Birds Owls 262

10,000 Birds

MAY 22, 2021

To give some idea of the birding possibilities at this accessible site, on a recent visit, after enjoying a classic Tico lunch, casual birding gave us a good number of species. Birds like toucans, tanagers, and fruiting trees with Crested Guans and other rainforest species. I need to get back and explore it a little bit more.

Costa Rica 261

Costa Rica Birds Farming Woodpeckers 261

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 28, 2021

At least that’s where I added this species to my New York list. Corey went for a walk at Jamaica Bay with his family on Saturday evening, after the rain had stopped in New York City and went out again, alone, on Sunday morning before the rain picked back up.

Charlotte 235

Charlotte New York City New York Jamaica 235

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 26, 2021

And apart from local people, primate researchers sometimes spot it, but it is a species seen by fewer than ten living birders. The rest of the 216 pages long book is devoted to various African bird families and half a dozen individual species. He has authored several other books and many articles, largely on natural history.

Congo 264

Congo Africa Madagascar Kenya 264

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2021

If you had your choice of one bird family to pursue, to seek out and observe and photograph and kvell over, which one would you choose? A passion for one bird family is also very useful. Hummingbird species, on the other hand, number in the hundreds. So, when British natural history writer Jon Dunn (not to be confused with U.S.

Costa Rica 264

Costa Rica Brazil Bolivia Ecuador 264

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 29, 2022

The stars of the bird world take many forms and fame is often related to location but some species, some cool groups of birds are accorded priority no matter when or where they are seen. One such star avian family is the Setophagidae, the birds known as wood-warblers. 13 Warbler Stars from the North. See our eBird list here.

Costa Rica 266

Costa Rica Nashville Tennessee Turtles 266

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 8, 2021

Continuing here with the series on threes within the avian landscape of Trinidad and Tobago (in case you missed it, T&T has three each of trogons , antshrikes , spinetails , manakins , hermits , honeycreepers , and resident warblers ) we arrive at one of the more difficult species triads to encounter. Stripe-backed Bittern.

Trinidad 239

Trinidad Breeding Family Species 239

10,000 Birds

JUNE 6, 2021

If you’ve had an encounter with a wild animal – a bird stunned by hitting a window, a fox hit by a car, or a family of raccoons unexpectedly found residing in your attic – you know how hard it can be to find help. This is a valuable resource you can pass along to your friends and family, wherever they live.

Wildlife 264

Wildlife Wildlife Rehabilitation Animal Raccoons 264

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 5, 2024

Not just the Common Cuckoo or the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, you must love the whole family Cuculidae, all 32 general and 148 species of them, from Anis to Roadrunners to Coucals to Lizard Cuckoos to Koels to Malkohas to Drongo-Cuckoos to Hawk-Cuckoos.* You gotta love Cuckoos.

Family 191

Family Species 191

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 26, 2020

But his Best Bird of the Weekend was one he saw with his family on a visit to Jamaica Bay on Saturday evening. A distant American White Pelican on the East Pond was Corey’s 264th species in Queens this year, which tops his previous best by three species. Corey enjoyed some good birding on both Saturday and Sunday mornings.

2020 230

2020 Rabbits Jamaica Pelicans 230

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

In 2008, with my family decided to build the Limneo Lodge , a small accommodation with only 9 rooms. With more than 312 so far recorded bird species, Lake Kerkini National Park offers great birding year-round. Other important breeding species include Black and White Stork , Lesser Spotted , White-tailed , and Booted Eagle.

Greece 261

Greece Wildlife Boars Otters 261

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2021

The eggs hatched out around 20th June after 28 days of incubation and the Pied Oystercatcher family were soon on the move. This moves the family closer to a reef that gets exposed on low tides and better feeding opportunities. Usually the first thing we look for when we visit Pied Oystercatcher families is look for footprints.

Breeding 238

Breeding Feral Cats Eggs Feral 238

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 4, 2021

Shorebirds – or “shorbs” for the cuteness factor (as if that needed any enhancement) – remain one of the most fascinating families of birds for me. Obliging species like Grey-headed Kingfisher , Long-crested Eagle , and even a pair of Greater Blue-eared Starlings ensured we didn’t get anywhere quickly.

Buffalo 264

Buffalo Kenya Trinidad 2019 264

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 16, 2021

Ecuador is one of the world’s leading destinations for birdwatchers, and no wonder: with more then 1,600 bird species found throughout the small country, Ecuador has the world’s highest density of bird species found per acre. In fact, 1,600 different bird species accounts for almost 20% of the species known to exist in the world.

Ecuador 250

Ecuador Birds 2019 Cattle 250

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 211

South Africa Malaysia Africa China 211

10,000 Birds

MAY 10, 2024

There are 154 species of cuckoos in the world, and they’re all a fascinating bunch. I have encountered a few of the more quirky members of the family, including the brilliant and aptly-named African Emerald Cuckoo, India’s ultra-shy Sirkeer Malkoha, and the fascinating Lesser Ground Cuckoo in Costa Rica.

Cyprus 203

Cyprus Africa Europe Asia 203

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. Last but not least, there were three species of shrikes, Red-backed , Lesser Grey and at least 2 Masked Shrikes , possibly 2 more, an entire family (not all were showing so well).

Greece 217

Greece Pelicans Stray Dog Tortoises 217

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 258

Nicaragua 2015 2016 Mexico 258

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 5, 2020

They are one of the most famous families of birds, and for good reason. Trinidad and Tobago has historically had seventeen species on record, sixteen on Trinidad and six on Tobago. Oftentimes even the uncommon to scarce residents play nice, one can easily view fifteen species on a single visit to the twin island republic.

Trinidad 252

Trinidad South America Venezuela 2019 252

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 25, 2021

Each family is given a double-page spread. Each species is described only by features that may (although not always) be seen in flight; those impossible to notice in flight are omitted. Each species is described only by features that may (although not always) be seen in flight; those impossible to notice in flight are omitted.

Europe 227

Europe Asia Cyprus Turkey 227

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

As I result, January gave me my slowest start for Michoacán in four years, as far as my number of species is concerned. I missed some regulars, but they were replaced by surprise species. Unlike this article’s header photo, this second shot shows the mistletoe berries which are this species’ favorite food.

Mexico 231

Mexico Rescue Suffering Family 231

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021

It was also great to finally travel overseas again, meet a lot of people I did not know (and some I did), to be in a new country… and not just the new country, but its best birding area, where almost all local hotspots are yellow (150+ species) and several are ochre (200+ sp.), impressive for Central Europe.

Austria 293

Austria Factory Asia Battery 293