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Shearwater Chase in Costa Rica

10,000 Birds

I strained to see them, could only see an occasional booby escape our bow, watch some of the hundreds of Wedge-tailed and Pink-footed Shearwaters zip by and hold on as our boat tested its speed. As we approached and drew nearly alongside the small seabirds, we also tested the limits of our optics, our balance, and our focus.

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Raptors of Mexico and Central America: A Book Review

10,000 Birds

This is the first identification guide that I know of that covers Mexico (technically North America but rarely included in North American raptor guides) and Central America. Like Peterson’s Hawks of North America, 2nd edition (Houghton Mifflin, 2001), which Clark co-authored with Brain K.

Mexico 161
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The Beautiful and Colorful Mourning Dove

10,000 Birds

Their habitats vary widely in both rural and urban landscapes; open habitats are preferred and the species generally shuns only extensively forested areas and wetlands 1. To show how adaptive this species is, the following photograph was sent to me by one of my readers and I use it with her permission.

Hunters 175
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Gulls Simplified: A Gull Book Review

10,000 Birds

Even more than warbler, shorebird, and sparrow identification, this is a field that tests our endurance (gull watching is too often done in bitter cold, windy conditions), patience (even getting one good photo can take hours as you try to separate the ‘interesting gull’ from the flock), observational skills (so many plumages!)

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Birding Inirida, Colombia: practicalities, part 3

10,000 Birds

Tap water is not as cold as in Europe (and, I presume, North America), but to be called lukewarm it should be warmer. Birds The local birdlist has reached 462 species, and some 30 more are expected. Merlin pulls the data out of eBird and was particularly useful in narrowing down the number of species to consider.

Colombia 238
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Black-footed Albatrosses Rock!

10,000 Birds

I was lucky to work with the species on Tern Island in French Frigate Shoals. Learning to fly involves testing the wings. So get yourself to the Principality of California (assuming you can get a visa) and check yourself ones of these off your North American (minus all the warm bits with the interesting birds) List!

Albatross 157
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Great Egrets and the reliability of field marks

10,000 Birds

I was still telling the truth when I mentioned the four subspecies, species, taxa, forms, you name it, of the Great Egret: modesta (Asia), alba (Europe, Asia), egretta (Americas) and melanorhynchos (Africa). This is particularly interesting for birders in North America and Europe (duh!), If not, it is here. This is easy.