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Last month I was privileged to have been given an ‘insiders’ tour of the International Bird Rescue Research Center, a rehabilitation centre in Fairfield, California which primarily specialises in the care of birds affected by oil spills. I wrote half of what I hoped was a glowing report (I certainly felt ‘glowing’ after my visit) [...]

Occasionally - and it is occasionally - you get to do something, go somewhere, or meet someone that genuinely inspires, humbles, or excites you. Last week I was privileged (an over-used word, but the right one) to do all three when I was given a special ‘insiders’ tour of the International Bird Rescue Research Center [...]

It seems like a very long time since I last went actually birding - my excuses include moving house, a series of trips to the Middle East where the temperature was hotter than Satan’s underpants and I stayed in the hotel rather than fry, general apathy etc etc - but just two days ago I [...]

‘When two Standard Oil tankers collided in 1971 beneath the Golden Gate Bridge spilling 900,000 gallons of crude oil. Little was known about oiled bird care at that time and despite the courageous, attempts of hundreds of volunteers, only 300 birds survived from the 7,000 birds collected.’
 
So begins the account on the History page of [...]

It’s that time of year (at least in the northern hemisphere) when birders fortunate enough to visit the coast once again get a chance to see one of the most funky ducks in the world - the marvellous Surf Scoter Melanitta perspicillata. Surf Scoters breed in Alaska and northern Canada (they’re the only species of [...]

Business brought me out to Orange County, CA for a week in mid-October. Despite the length of my stay, I had precious few available moments for birding. My dear pal Amy brought me for some Upper Newport Bay birding not once but twice. The first attempt was undermined by the severity of Santa Ana winds [...]

Upper Newport Bay has a sterling reputation as a locus for some of the best coastal Orange County birding around. This is a big deal, considering both the outstanding avifauna this part of California can deliver as well as the other superlative sites along this stretch of the Pacific. Unfortunately, my first taste of [...]

Business has brought me once again to a shiny section of the Golden State. It is the height, indeed the very definition, of privilege to rise up after breakfast over a variegated expanse of autumn hues to arrive for lunch in a portion of the Pacific coast where one is far more likely to spot [...]

Steller’s Jay Cyanocitta stelleri
California, various dates

The distinctive Steller’s Jay typically lives in flocks of greater than 10 individuals and occurs in coniferous and mixed woodland over virtually the whole of the western side of North America from Alaska in the north to Central America in the far south and east to south-western Texas, completely replacing [...]

At the end of last April I posted a short series of photos taken in India of a Black Kite feeding on the intestines of what I thought was probably a large dog. Judging by the number of page views this series attracted it seems that there are a fair few 10,000 Birds readers who [...]

Finding efficient ways to fit birding into business travel has me on the hunt for ideal locations as close to airports as possible. So far, my two favorites have been Jamaica Bay right down the road from JFK and Arrowhead Marsh practically connected to the car rental lots at the Oakland airport. Now, to add [...]

The magnificent Ferruginous Hawk Buteo regalis is North America’s largest “hawk” - with a wingspan averaging around 56″/142.24cm - and during both summer and winter is found in grasslands, deserts, and other open areas with isolated shrubs or trees where less than 50% of the land is under cultivation (during winter, Ferruginous Hawks are often [...]

An abundant and familiar bird of open country across the western two-thirds of North America, the Western Meadowlark Sturnella neglecta is often seen singing its warbling song from fenceposts along roadsides in native grassland and agricultural areas. It’s such a well-known and well-loved species that it’s the the official State bird for six western States [...]

The Prairie Falcon flying off a power poll. A Belted Kingfisher making my record shot of the Bolsa Chica Reddish Egret much more interesting.  A Surf Scoter. And, of course, the Rock Pigeon, Common Pigeon, Feral Pigeon, whatever the heck you want to call it. How about Pigeon? Anyway, these are, as my sadly unclever [...]

The second part of my “excellent adventure” (Part One, is right here) involved coming down from the San Jacinto mountains to the valley floor some 5000′ below and the very different habitat - and consequently very different birds - of sagebrush and desert. Looking at my edition of Lane’s “A Birder’s Guide to southern California” [...]

Last year Mike wrote a superb and typically lyrical post asking “What is a Waxwing?“. I’m not going to even attempt to equal his phrasing by covering the same ground he went over so eloquently - if you haven’t read his post yet click the link you’ve just hurried past immediately - but I do [...]

Ah, the deep thinking that goes into making a successful Big Year when the rostering decisions determining your destinations are made by someone else. Suppose for a moment that your scheduling department had sent you to Los Angeles for the first time in 2008. Would you go flat-out for the common species first (which almost [...]

One of the nice things about taking a long vacation somewhere that involved lots of birding is that even after being back for a week one still has plenty to blog about from the vacation. Not only that, but by blogging about the birding experiences one gets the chance to relive the experiences one [...]

Towards the end of last year I took a series of photos of a confiding American Buff-bellied Pipit Anthus rubescens. Pipits can be a very confusing bunch of birds to separate in non-breeding plumages, and for a long time the northern hemisphere group that includes Rock, Water, and Buff-bellied Pipits were considered almost inseparable in [...]

One of my favorite ducks is the Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata). Something about their namesake, absurdly long, shovel-like bills, elegant plumage, and cool vocalizations make me want to see them on every birding excursion. Or maybe it is their clever methods of eating, whether straining the water with their bills or swimming in [...]