You are browsing the archives of 2006 December.

with the newest Circus of the Spineless hosted on The Force That Through…

When winter rolls around and most of our breeding birds have departed for points south, we on North America’s temperate shores turn our attention away from the trees and toward the water. Winter means waterfowl. While any river, lake, or pond might harbor a greater abundance of ducks, geese, and swans, the excitement isn’t […]

Post-Christmas Syndrome, that is. Frankly, I’m wallowing in it. Come January 1, the year list rolls back to zero and the birding excitement starts all over again.

Birding is an activity that requires remarkable vision, even beyond the obvious implications of that expression. Besides sight, a birder must be gifted with foresight, the determination to plan ahead and arrive not where the birds were but where they’re going to be. In addition, the enthusiast must be possessed of great insight; the ability […]

Jackal Buzzard Buteo rufofuscus
South Africa, December 2006

The Jackal Buzzard is an endemic to south-west Africa (South Africa, Lesotho, and Swaziland, Namibia, and marginally into Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique), and is closely related to the similar and more northerly Augur Buzzard. Both are clearly members of the buteo group of raptors that includes the Eurasian Common […]

X-mas is over and it’s time to get back to work. The last I and the Bird of 2006 will be hosted by Kevin of NaturalVisions on December 28. If you want to be a part of it, send a link and summary to your best recent blog post on birding or wild birds to […]

…from the Core Team: Mike, Sara, Mason, and Ivy. We wish you a festive and safe holiday season!

Ivy Celebrates Her First Christmas

Today was the Bronx/Westchester Christmas Bird Count. Although I participate in the West Bronx CBC every year, the confluence of family, professional, and social obligations precludes me from making the kind of commitment I’d like. Unable to meet up with other counters or attend the count compilation festivities, I’m an outsider whose observations of common […]

(Southern) Grey Tit Parus afer
Tanqua Karoo, South Africa. December 2006

Endemic to fynbos and karoo regions of southern Africa, the (Southern) Grey Tit (its northern counterpart, P. thruppi, is now more often called Acacia Tit, and subsequently the ‘Southern’ modifier is often dropped) is quite common and typically seen in pairs or small flocks roaming […]

and Martin of Salto Sobrius is leading the battle with his belligerent presentation of Tangled Bank #69.