10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 15, 2023

So though I visited Lynford, I didn’t see a Hawfinch on this occasion as I wasn’t there at the right time, though I did meet a number of hopeful Hawfinch hunters (HHHs), none of whom reported a sighting. Sadly, many fail, as the finches favour the hornbeams for roosting, so are best seen at dawn or dusk, rarely in the middle of the day.

Barn Owls 209

Barn Owls Rats Japan Blackbirds 209

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 24, 2020

But seeing as the month is also bookended by Hogmanay and Burns Night, we’ll gladly take the opportunity to visit– in spirits, at least – the rugged Celtic landscapes of Scotland and Ireland where whisky was born and – with luck – have a look at the birds that inhabit them.

Sheep 194

Sheep Branding Ireland Fowl 194

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 17, 2020

But seeing as the month is also bookended by Hogmanay and Burns Night, we’ll gladly take the opportunity to visit– in spirits, at least – the rugged Celtic landscapes of Scotland and Ireland where whiskey was born and – with luck – have a look at the birds that inhabit them. A Golden Eagle (1916), another painting by Archibald Thornburn.

Lions 159

Lions Eagles Hunting Lamb 159

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 7, 2017

Hunting: You may have noticed that the Written Species Accounts include a section on hunting. I am a city girl and until I became a birder my contact with hunting was limited to occasionally seeing dead deer on the tops of cars in upstate New York. So–not a fan of hunting. I was really taken aback when I saw this.

Ducks 117

Ducks Geese North America Hunters 117