tagged w/ Bird watching
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If you think you know nothing about birds, you are probably wrong. There are some things that everybody knows, and these form the basis for extending your knowledge. First of all, you know that birds have feathers rather than fur for insulation, that most of them fly, and that many of them have characteristic songs or calls by which they communicate with one another.
http://www.tastekulcha.com/birdwatching-australia/If you think you know nothing about birds, you are probably wrong. There are some... more
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Even with the unrelenting snow pack, migrating birds returned to The Valley. An early spring delight is the return of the eastern bluebird.
http://www.tastekulcha.com/bluebirds-birds-happiness/Even with the unrelenting snow pack, migrating birds returned to The Valley. An early... more
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A nice guys called Robert pays tribute to his deceased duck pal Mervin with a heartstrings-tugging retrospective. Strangely we don't find out how Mervin died. I wonder if he ate him...A nice guys called Robert pays tribute to his deceased duck pal Mervin with a... more
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RSPB (UK) publishes the results of their annual Big Garden Birdwatch, 2011. And the findings are looking good.RSPB (UK) publishes the results of their annual Big Garden Birdwatch, 2011. And the... more
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Well, guess what I missed this year? That’s right: I missed attending BirdFair 2010, which was held last weekend, one week before I am traveling to the UK. Saying I wish I had been able to attend is probably stating the obvious, so I’ll just show you a few things that were missed by all of us who did not attend.Well, guess what I missed this year? That’s right: I missed attending BirdFair... more
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This African bird is part of a magnificent and widespread group of birds that breeds all over the temperate areas of Europe and Asia, and even into Alaska, so literally dozens of subspecies have been described (and recognized) throughout the decades. Can you tell me which subspecies this bird is as well as its gender and summer range?This African bird is part of a magnificent and widespread group of birds that breeds... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed at a bird feeder in East Wenatchee, Douglas County, Washington. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours] This mystery bird is mysterious due to its color, or more accurately, due to its lack of color. Can you name the species?[Mystery bird] photographed at a bird feeder in East Wenatchee, Douglas County,... more
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This lovely bird can be confused with another closely related species. Can you identify this bird, the species it is sometimes confused with, and tell me how it is distinguished from this close relative? I am also curious to know if you can explain how the mystery bird got its name.This lovely bird can be confused with another closely related species. Can you... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed at Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, Africa. This bird is in the same taxonomic family as a common bird found throughout much of the northern hemisphere. Can you name this bird and its relative whom I am referring to?[Mystery bird] photographed at Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, Africa. This bird is... more
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This stunning African bird has a very close relative in North America that also looks very similar, can you name the pictured species as well as its North American counterpart?This stunning African bird has a very close relative in North America that also looks... more
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This mystery bird species was filmed in Papua New Guinea and -- seriously, don't fall off your chair! -- is being touted as a living dinosaur, the Ropen (or 'demon flyer'), a monstrous creature that has terrified the natives of Papua New Guinea for thousands of years. Can any of you name this mysterious flying erm, animal?This mystery bird species was filmed in Papua New Guinea and -- seriously, don't... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed on Arusha National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours] This gorgeous bird has an unusual reproductive strategy, can you tell me what it is?[Mystery bird] photographed on Arusha National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge -- one of the most remote coral atolls on earth -- a US territory in the north Pacific Ocean [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours][Mystery bird] photographed on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge -- one of the... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary, Brazoria County, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours] This bird has a number of close relatives, all of which have bills with this distinctive shape. Can you tell me why their bills have this special shape?[Mystery bird] photographed at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary, Brazoria County,... more
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[Mystery birds] photographed at Pigeon Point Lighthouse State Historic Park, 50 miles south of San Francisco, California. [I will identify these birds for you in 48 hours] These sweet birds helped me earn my PhD because they are the same species as my research birds were. If you're really good with IDs, you should be able to ID these birds to subspecies -- any ideas as to which one they are (and why)?[Mystery birds] photographed at Pigeon Point Lighthouse State Historic Park, 50 miles... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed at Tom Bass Regional Park, Houston, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours] Okay, these birds are easy to ID (well, sorta), but I wanted to give my nascent birders a chance to have some fun, too![Mystery bird] photographed at Tom Bass Regional Park, Houston, Texas. [I will... more
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[Mystery bird] photographed at the Kilombero River Game Controlled Area, near Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, Africa. This stunning bird is quite common because it has one of the largest natural ranges of any species in its family -- so large that I saw them in Japan when I was working in Tokyo as a grad student. If you identify this bird, then you'll be able to tell me about its interesting foraging behavior (go on, you can do it!).[Mystery bird] photographed at the Kilombero River Game Controlled Area, near... more
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These birds are remarkable for the astonishing degree of their beak dimorphism -- a difference that was so dramatic that they were originally thought to be separate species. Based on what you know about the evolutionary relationships between form and function, can you tell me (1) what these birds might have used their beaks for; (2) why their beaks are so dramatically different and (3) which one is the male and which female?These birds are remarkable for the astonishing degree of their beak dimorphism -- a... more
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This is an easy bird to ID, but I want my beginning birders to have a chance to identify some birds too (and I want to give casual onlookers a visual thrill). Here's a question for you experts: This lovely species was once lumped together with another species -- can you tell me the former common name for them, and the new common and species names for both?This is an easy bird to ID, but I want my beginning birders to have a chance to... more
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This lovely little bird was photographed in the southern USA, but is lumped with the European form (although the two forms have distinct plumages for all life stages, and many ornithologists and birders think they are separate species). Thus many European birders will also have seen its close relative, which goes by the same common name. Can you ID this bird and tell me what the two subspecies are called?This lovely little bird was photographed in the southern USA, but is lumped with the... more
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