10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 24, 2023

Queen of Spain Fritillary , photographed in mid November Clouded yellow – another common November butterfly For the autumn or winter visitor, the biggest draw is the flock of Lesser Whitefronted Geese that in recent years have been regular and reliable wintering birds on the lake.

Greece 246

Greece Pelicans Geese Buffalo 246

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2011

Mallard duckling Mute Swans and Canada Geese are tended to by both parents, though sometimes Canada Geese will all pool their young into a single large brood because there is safety in numbers. Pity the hen Mallard that gets abandoned by her mate and left to raise a nest full of ducklings completely on her own.

Canada 165

Canada Geese United States Abandoning 165

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 28, 2018

A beautiful series of raised boardwalks have been constructed, allowing year round access to the area, thru the marsh area, all the way out nearly a half mile into the tidal flats. In 1974, Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge was established to protect the delta and its diversity of fish and wildlife habitats.

Fox 178

Fox Washington Bald Eagle Geese 178

10,000 Birds

MARCH 30, 2013

I am unable to say why some of the ducks swim with their tails raised while others allow it to trail behind them in the water. The females do not carry the long tail plumes and reminded me slightly of Cotton Pygmy geese. I am guessing that it is a sign of virility. Some could be seen swishing their tail in a very energetic fashion.

Ducks 178

Ducks Geese Suffering Canada 178

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2011

Letters from Eden (Houghton Mifflin, 2006) will soon be followed by a memoir about the birds she has raised, healed, studied and followed throughout her life. Here’s a tidbit from the NRA’s Hunters’ Rights website: “Sandhill cranes are hunted much like geese, with decoys set in fields and hunters stationed in blinds.

2011 263

2011 Kentucky Tennessee Hunting 263

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2020

Luis Gonzalez is a Miami resident and IT major who was originally born and raised in Cuba. He has been an avid lover of the natural world since he was a kid, with a strong love for paleontology when he was younger, but he only took up birding in his last year of high school and hasn’t looked back since.

Canada 224

Canada Cuba Miami Florida 224

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 2, 2023

As the Hooded Cranes know that I am a consultant, they sometimes ask me whether they should forage together with geese or preferably seek areas in which geese are not present. Seek geese in meadows and mudflats, but avoid them in paddy fields ( source ). I am giving them the typical consultant answer: It depends.

Geese 147

Geese Birds Fish Sparrows 147

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2022

In being wonderfully obvious, such birds become avian ambassadors, special “signature” species with the potential to raise bird awareness, to reconnect crucial links between people and the nature that surrounds them, with the ecosystems they partake in. In northern habitats, they could be Common Ravens, geese , or chickadees.

Costa Rica 147

Costa Rica San Jose Asia Geese 147

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 11, 2016

Walking down from the top car-park on October 5th we soon joined the wide trail and had the option to go to the right to the hide that was raised very high overlooking the ponds or go to the left towards the ponds. Greylag Geese on the move. Alkborough Flats sign at top car-park.

Geese 140

Geese 2006 Australia Investigation 140

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2017

The open plains are now busy with young Magpie Geese and numerous other waterbirds and the Sharp-tailed Sandpipers are busy feeding up before migration. We are watching the Dollarbirds line up on the power lines before they head north and soon all the gravel roads will be open again and we can head off into the bush once again.

Breeding 100

Breeding Eggs Protection Cows 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 12, 2017

Whilst enjoying the Magpie Geese breeding around Broome recently we also noticed a Magpie-lark nest close to the highway in one of the very few trees beside the road. While we had been waiting one of the young had raised itself up and let its waste drop outside the nest. She waited for a moment and flew in towards the nest.

Breeding 100

Breeding Australia Collecting Geese 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 4, 2017

Magpie Geese were breeding close to the main highway south of Broome and so were the Whiskered Terns , White-winged Black Terns , Purple Swamphens , Comb-crested Jacanas , Wandering Whistling Ducks and Plumed Whistling Ducks. The Australian Painted Snipe nest was positioned on higher ground in between the fence and the highway.

Breeding 100

Breeding Eggs Raised 2017 100

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 20, 2014

One of the neognath branches is called Galloanserae and consists today of the the Galliformes or landfowl (megapodes, guans, guineafowl, patridges, pheasants, grouse, turkeys, quail, and relatives) and the specialized aquatic Anseriformes or waterfowl (ducks, geese, swans, and related waterfowl, along with the weird South American screamers).

Family 279

Family Parrots Birds 2014 279

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 2, 2008

The fact that geese mate for life, and that the mate of the poor goose that was slaughtered would step forward, was enough to make me swear off meat forever, if I hadn’t already. Kristof’s column broke my heart. As a country, we place so little value on the creatures that give up their lives to satisfy our hunger.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Factory Farm Factory Farming 40

10,000 Birds

APRIL 22, 2012

No human can divine what a mated pair of geese or eagles may feel for one another, but stories abound of birds,especially Canada Geese , who spurned all offers from members of the opposite sex for years after a mate was killed. Needless to say, this makes them quite pleasant to raise. Did Vanna love his cage partner?

Parrots 273

Parrots 2003 Birds 2004 273

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 9, 2014

Plumed Whistling-Ducks, Pacific Black Ducks and Magpie Geese stood in the shade on the bank and Black-winged Stilt stood in the shallow water. Plumed Whistling-Ducks and Magpie Geese. White-necked Heron and Magpie Geese. The advantage of early starts is that you raise the odds of seeing Australian Bustards and Brown Quail!

Geese 189

Geese Australia Parrots Ducks 189

10,000 Birds

APRIL 24, 2012

This week at 10,000 Birds, it’s all about how birds get around to bumping uglies (I’m talking about cloacas here), who they do it with, and how this actually leads to raising chicks…the birds and the bees of birds, you might say. Greater White-fronted Geese are one of many species that mate for life.

Albatross 243

Albatross Lifestyle Birds Raised 243

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2019

There were a lot of birds about at this early hour and we were very surprised to see seven Magpie Geese fly by. After a very dry start to the year there had been no Magpie Geese observed locally at all. It also raises the question on how many other rare vagrants make it to Australia and don’t even get noticed.

Australia 147

Australia Litter Geese Cats 147

10,000 Birds

MAY 16, 2011

Are you willing to hazard a guess about its lineage? Teal x Northern Shoveler hybrids seem fairly regular in North America and Europe.

Ducks 252

Ducks North America Denmark America 252

10,000 Birds

APRIL 23, 2023

Australian Pelican Glossy Ibis Most of the Magpie Geese families have moved away from the highway now, but there are still some close to the fence-line. There are not many dry areas, but closer to the fence-line the land is raised and they can seek relief from all of the water there.

Pelicans 147

Pelicans Australia Fish 2019 147

10,000 Birds

JUNE 25, 2017

Several bird species arrived in Broome early in the year and have bred successfully and this has included Plumed Whistling-Ducks , Wandering Whistling-Ducks , Magpie Geese , Australian Painted Snipe , Australian Crakes , Black-winged Stilt , Red-kneed Dotterels, Purple Swamphens and Masked Lapwings.

Breeding 100

Breeding Geese Ducks Eggs 100