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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

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    Headless wood pigeon

    Hello, I saw a freshly killed wood pigeon near my house just outside Paris. It was headless but relatively unscathed otherwise. Are their any raptors that would decapitate a pigeon like this, and leave the rest of the kill untouched? Or is this the work of a dog or a cat? There is a forest...
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    Dunlin? Paris, France, 25 Sept

    I saw this very small wader with a long bill. It looks dunlin-like to me but was hoping to confirm with the experts. Including one un-cropped photo for size comparison.
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    Diving Duck, Paris, France. 23 Sept 2023

    Hi all, I saw this solitary diving duck in a large flooded quarry along the Seine this morning. Would you say Juvenile Pochard, Tufted, Ferruginous ?
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    bird in Austin, TX in July

    Just a guess from me. The size, the shape of the beak, and the way it's sitting in the tree looking helpless, make me think juvenile Corvid. Could it be an American crow? Curious to hear other opinions.
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    Garden Warbler or ChiffChaff? Forest just outside Paris, France, 24 June

    Accidentally came close to a nest and two warblers chirped aggressively at me. I thought a garden warbler at first, but it seems to be a little too much yellow, is it a chiff chaff?
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    Fontainebleau Forest, France - 17 June - Mistle Thrush?

    Yesterday early morning in Fontainebleau, I heard a golden oriole briefly singing nearby and then saw two birds land in the trees. I was far away and used all the zoom I had. As much as I hoped to see the oriole my instinct in the field was mistle thrush, but looking at the photo I have my...
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    Honey Buzzard? Just outside Paris, France - 26 May 2023

    That's a lifer for me! Thanks everyone.
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    Honey Buzzard? Just outside Paris, France - 26 May 2023

    I saw this raptor this morning as it was soaring in the distance. The pictures aren't great. My initial thought was just another common buzzard so I hestiated to even snap a photo, but this one seemed a little bit off. The tail seemed too long and the overall shape didn't feel like a buzzard (to...
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    Best birding in Europe?

    Birding in Scilly seems like a dream, unfortunately I haven't yet made it out there. Seeing your list does make me wonder what the UK list would look like if you removed Scilly. Maybe that would be a good rule of thumb for comparing country lists: first remove the top 1 or 2 % of hotspots...
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    Best birding in Europe?

    That would be an exhausting 10 days. It took me 2 years of regular birding in the UK to get to 180 species, that's with very little twitching and a only a handful of trips to the coast. I had the problem of wanting to see as many birds as possible, but also wanting to minimize my time in a...
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    Best birding in Europe?

    I have a lot of fun browsing ebird's data and I noticed that the UK has the highest species count in Europe with 616 species, which is higher than #2 Spain (603 species). I thought this was maybe due to more birders in the UK, which may be true, but to my surprise there are actually over 100k...
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    Hobby or Peregrine? Paris, France, 12 May

    Wow, you can't miss those red trousers now. I need to learn how to do some photo editing. Thanks for the help.
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    Hobby or Peregrine? Paris, France, 12 May

    I saw a Falco this afternoon circling some water on the edge of the Bois de Boulogne. The lighting is terrible but I was hoping someone could confirm the ID. I thought Hobby in the field, but looking at the photos I thought it could possibly be a Peregrine. I've never ID'd a peregrine with...
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    Greenshank or Wood Sandpiper? Just outside Paris, FR -- 1 May 2023

    Good catch. Thanks for the insights Joe, and the visuals, I found them helpful not confusing. Thanks for all the help everyone. I feel comfortable calling this a greenshank. My initial thought looking through my bins was a greenshank. And despite the somewhat confusing facial markings, I keep...
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    Greenshank or Wood Sandpiper? Just outside Paris, FR -- 1 May 2023

    I saw two greenshanks while out a flooded gravel pit just outside Paris last week. This third tringa was a bit further off, and seemed to have a much whiter lore and supercilium. Is this a Wood Sandpiper? Cheers, Peter
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    Are Guided Birding Holidays fun?

    I appreciate all the comments and the discussion. It's a subjective question and everyone has a slightly different answer but the comments helped give me a more nuanced view of guided trips. There are cons, but there are more pros than I first imagined. This will help me to decide if and when a...
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    Trying to learn birds

    I think it's just practice and experience. Get a field guide (Sibley's is good if you're in the US) and some binoculars and go outside and start ID'ing birds. Start with whatever you see outside your house. As for free resources you could take a look at the photos and songs at ebird.org, and...
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    Are Guided Birding Holidays fun?

    I agree this sounds like a great idea. It allows me to do what I enjoy most and gives me some flexibility to hire guides as needed.
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    Are Guided Birding Holidays fun?

    Yeah this is what I would be worried about. Especially if I spend a lot of money on a big trip, I'll have high expectations and would probably be let down if the guide wasn't well suited to me. But like you I would still really enjoy a few weeks looking at birds in India, even with a guide I...
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    Are Guided Birding Holidays fun?

    This is a helpful way to think about it. A few missed species might not matter much, but if I know I'm going to miss quite a bit, like 25%, it may change my thinking.
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    Are Guided Birding Holidays fun?

    I've been birding regularly for about 5 years now and I go birding on almost every trip I take, but I've never done a holiday dedicated to birding. I'm always very tempted by these "8 days in Spain", "14 days in South Africa", "3 weeks in Colombia" type trips. They sound like great fun even if...
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    Sardinian Warblers? Souss Massa, Morocco - 12 April

    Thanks Alexander, that's very helpful. My first subalpine warbler, I'll know what to look out for next time.
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    Whitethroat? Souss Massa, Morocco - April 12

    That's great. Thanks for the explanation!
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    Whitethroat? Souss Massa, Morocco - April 12

    Another one from Souss Massa. At first glance I expected another Sardinian Warbler, but upon closer inspection I think it looks like a Whitethroat. Is this a Whitethroat? Thanks, Peter
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    Sardinian Warblers? Souss Massa, Morocco - 12 April

    Are these all Sardinian Warblers? Bird 1 Bird 2 Bird 3 Thanks for the help, Peter
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