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Platalea ajaja is a marvelous bird and I was delighted to make its acquaintance - for only the second time in my life – at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge’s Black Point Drive when I was attending the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival in January.
That’s because this fascinating part-Caribbean, part-south American country holds well over 800 species of avifauna making it without doubt one of my top three countries in all of the continent to visit. Before I delve into some of these avian treasures let me give you a few non-birding reasons to visit this gem of SouthAmerica.
Approximately 2,300 bird species inhabit Africa, however as impressive as that sounds, much smaller SouthAmerica boasts nearly 1,000 species more. Madagascar’s mammals are equally remarkable; over 100 species of endearing lemurs and bizarre carnivores amongst them!
I was happy to read that the wood stork ( Mycteria Americana ), a bird near and dear to me, was down-sited from the status of endangered to threatened species. Fish and Wildlife Service is down-listing the wood stork from endangered to threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). However, birds in the U.S. Photo: U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service has listed the “Rufa” population of Red Knot ( Calidris canutus rufa ) as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The other sub-species, Calidris canutus roselaari , migrates along the Pacific Coast and breeds in Alaska and the Wrangel Island in Russia.
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 –especially when reviewing books like A Field Guide to the Wildlife of South Georgia or Far from Land: The Mysterious Lives of Seabirds.
Just as it takes a village to raise a child, it sometimes takes a “village” of rehabbers to save threatened wildlife. Starving and dehydrated, they were taken into care by Dr. Helene von Doninck of Cobequid Wildlife Centre . One of the babies did not survive, but Helene worked tirelessly to salvage the other three.
Purple Gallinules live in marshes in the southeastern United States, Central America, northern SouthAmerica, and the Caribbean. Most of them are year-round residents though much of the population in the United States – with the exception of south Florida birds – migrate south for the winter.
Geographic patterns of species richness for birds (1,558 species) in East Africa at 0.25° resolution (blue indicates low species richness, while brown indicates high species richness). At the time of writing, Uganda has 16 hotspots with 400+ so far eBirded species, of which one has almost 600 species.
home about advertise archives birds conservation contact galleries links reviews subscribe Browse: Home / Birds / Manky Muscovy Ducks Manky Muscovy Ducks By Mike • March 2, 2011 • 6 comments Tweet Share The Muscovy Duck ( Cairina moschata ) attracts more attention than most ducks, at least in North America.
Even though some say good wildlife photography should not contain manmade elements, I like everything about this photo. The Rufous-collared Sparrow is apparently a common bird in Central and SouthAmerica, but in Mexico it only occurs in the southernmost state of Chiapas. I will have to write more in detail about them soon.
Patience was a quality I did not need in my encounter with this Yellow-crowned Night Heron as upon my entry to the blind at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge’s Big John’s Pond the heron was up close and personal, hunting from the bare branches that overhang the pond directly in front of the blind.
The Lodge at Pico Bonito is an inviting, idyllic place for relaxation as well as for enjoying wildlife. Lovely Cotinga is the flagship species at Pico Bonito, where it is perhaps easier to see than anywhere else within its range. More than 400 species have been recorded at the lodge to date. Photo by James Adams.
If a list also shows the status for each species, birders on their way to Costa Rica would realize that they shouldn’t really expect vireos with white eyes nor blue heads (but would hopefully know that they should very much report those species on eBird so local birders can chase them!). Toucan species with new names.
And apart from local people, primate researchers sometimes spot it, but it is a species seen by fewer than ten living birders. This book is essentially about those birds that breed on the continent south of the Sahara, a topic few birders are familiar with. Some are incredibly rare and hard to find.
Starting in the mid-1990s, there was a “where to watch birds in…” series of five site guides written by Nigel Wheatley and covering SouthAmerica (1994), Africa (1995), Asia (1996), Europe & Russia (2000) and Central America & the Caribbean (2001). Species accounts for all 2,792 bird species.
Cliff Swallows migrate to North America from their wintering grounds in SouthAmerica to nest in large colonies, sometimes numbering in the thousands. Fish and Wildlife Service. He and his wife had enjoyed the swallows for several years and they were appalled that the marina management were destroying them. Authors: T.
I was fortunate enough to spot the individual in this post at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge where it was foraging in bushes and small trees between four and fifteen off of the ground. The Cape May Warbler is considered a Species of Least Concern by Birdlife International because of its large range and large and stable population.
Peterson Field Guide to Birds of Northern Central America covers 827 species, including resident, migratory, and common vagrant birds. The end result is that the whole “biographic” area (NCA plus southern Mexico and northern Nicaragua) is home to 41 endemic bird species.
For most avian migrants heading south towards Mexico, Central and SouthAmerica, crossing thru the Arizona desert areas can provide very few water, food and resting areas. This 90 acre lake, managed by Arizona Fish and Wildlife is about a 45 mile drive from Tucson, and 9 miles from Mexico, as the Chihuahuan Raven flies.
I didn’t realize how many new species I would see within the city itself! Because of this, areas around the city that were once sleepy are now “urban,” with humans and wildlife struggling to keep up. Given how far west I found myself, I was hoping for at least a handful of new birds.
It actually makes a lot of sense, the geographic features of the isthmus between North America (including Mexico, because Mexico is part of North America) and SouthAmerica cut across political lines, as do birds. In addition, 67 species are listed in a chapter entitled “Marginal, Dubious, and Hypothetical Species.”
. “Invasive&# is an ugly word, and ugly consequences have come from many of the explosive range expansions we’re most familiar with, whether of exotic species or even of native species with their normal restraints removed. Especially of all the species that had been introduced to the US. The proposal from U.S.
High above the great Rift Valley, endless treeless plains stretch out as far as you can see, holding birding (and other wildlife treasures). An eclectic mix of endemics, specialties and oddly displaced species, it is one of the most memorable places I have ever birded… and I never visited it as a trip.
This tiny species breeds north of Florida but returns to spend the winter here as well as in Central and SouthAmerica. Birds weren’t the only wildlife on the trail. I hadn’t seen a Black-and-white since they had left in the spring, and I greeted the bird like I would an old friend. A Black-and-white Warbler.
The vast majority of Baltimore Orioles that breed in North America return to the tropics between Mexico and northern SouthAmerica for the cold half of the year. A trip to the coastal plain may net you up to seven species of warblers, from the omnipresent Yellow-rumps to Chats and Cape Mays. The proposal from U.S.
This photo could have been taken in Florida’s Treasure Coast during the winter months or in SouthAmerica during the same period. Please report banded and flagged birds to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. And by similar, I mean the species and abundance of shorebirds and gulls. Photo: Eveling Tavera.
Knowing that there are reserves with long lists of 600 or more species, I set my threshold at more than 600 birds… and found only a few such hotspots. In early November 2020, there were 15 countries with more than 1000 species eBirded so far. Other than that, there are barely a few hotspots with over 500 species.
There is another area of the Queens County CBC where a team will also likely see Monk Parakeets , Myipsitta monachus , but I am seriously determined to count that bird for my area, Coastal Flushing, a section of northeast Queens, New York, that includes Whitestone, home of one of the loudest invasive bird species in the U.S. And cell towers.
One such controversial bird is the Veraguan Mango , a small hummingbird species that was, until very recently, believed to be a Panamanian endemic. Veraguan Mango by Carlos Bethancourt Although the Neotropical region supports fewer bird families than Africa, there are considerably more bird species here than anywhere else on earth.
First published in 1973 in association with the Asa Wright Center, the book focuses on species descriptions, with illustrations grouped together in plates positioned in the center of the book. The guide covers 477 species, an expansion of 35 from the second edition, which was published in 1991. The AOU has not accepted that split.
from SouthAmerica. JFK Airport was a major hub for the importation of wildlife for the pet trade, and it is likely that birds escaped from quarantine during this period. Mitred Parakeets are native to southwestern SouthAmerica. Mitred Parakeets are popular pets, commonly known as Mitred Conures.
So I asked seven wildlife rehabilitators, “Tell me your favorite (or one of your favorites) release story – the kind that makes you keep going, in spite of everything.”. “A August arrived and I was releasing birds knowing they’d need time to adapt prior to making that long flight across the Gulf of Mexico, headed to SouthAmerica.
The latest edition of the Clements Checklist that I could find, last modified in August 2022, lists 965 species (a little more manageable!), including 355 endemics, 28 introduced species, 6 extinct species, and 77 globally threatened species. There are three to four species on each page, for the most part.
This map shows the distribution of the World’s bird species, based on overlying the breeding and wintering ranges of all known species. I live in the southeast of Europe, for a while lived in the south of Africa and also have extensively birded western and central India. I am talking 600 or 700+ bird species.
On my first day in Florida for the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival I landed at Orlando International Airport at about 9 AM, deplaned, waited for my luggage, got my rental car, and drove west. I was bummed out but still hopeful that one of my three target species would show itself. Wait, west?
But, as I have already shown in one of my two posts about visiting Cuero y Salado Wildlife Refuge, that is exactly what the boat load of birders I was with got the chance to see way back at the beginning of March. Green Iguanas range from southern Mexico and the Caribbean islands to SouthAmerica and are relatively common.
Finally, the Similan Islands are perhaps one of the most beautiful islands in the world and form a stunning backdrop to this species, one of the loveliest pigeons in the world. Duncan is currently enjoying South Africa but he got his BBOTY in before he left: As of today I have no idea what birds I will see in December in South Africa.
The wildlife was what we expected. The birds were not as plentiful because we were there during the tail end of the summer when most species had already flown south. We are told the scenic beauty of Alaska is only rivaled by that of the Patagonian and Antartic region in extreme SouthAmerica. Northern Hawk-Owl.
Osborn, a passionate field biologist who participates to the core of her being three re-introduction projects aimed at saving three very different, endangered species: Peregrine Falcon, Hawaiian Crow (‘Alala)*, and California Condor. Sophie Osborn’s stories are personal and inspiring, but this is more than a personal memoir.
More than 5,000 bird species in the world make some kind of seasonal movement. But in the fall (with plumage as in the photo on the left, above) they take an entirely different, and heroic, route, first to Massachusetts and then, after a rest, south over the Atlantic Ocean. Eighty hours of flying. More than two thousand miles.
If this was America, we might not be concerned because starlings are an invasive species, at least in North America. ” The birds appear to be starving to death, so experts don’t believe a toxin is the culprit, said Julia Burco, a wildlife veterinarian for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The Great Black Hawk – a species with a native range in Mexico to SouthAmerica – had been spotted in this park for weeks, but not every day. Though I had arrived in Maine nearly a week ago, something kept me from trying for the rare species so far from home. Fish and Wildlife Service, to decide its fate.
For native people, living in SouthAmerica meant living with hummingbirds, and for Europeans, discovering South American meant discovering hummingbirds (and, tragically, exploiting SouthAmerica meant exploiting hummingbirds, destroying hundreds of thousands for stuffed specimens and in futile attempts to keep them alive in captivity.)
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