Brazil photos on WikiAves

WikiAves is an interactive online encyclopedia of Brazilian birds, that allows people to upload photos and audio files of any wild bird in Brazil, as well as data on identification features, distribution, habitat and taxonomy. WikiAves has been around since 2009, and with over 225,000 photos and 14,000 sound recordings now uploaded, of almost 1,700 species, the site has become a powerful resource for birders in Brazil. If you are planning to go to Brazil then I highly recommend you take a look. Some of my favourite photos are these of Toco Toucan, Buff-fronted Owl, Crowned Eagle and Spot-tailed Nightjar. I've set up my own account to showcase some of the many photos I've taken in Brazil over the years. Check them out here.

Dream bird

With the exception of the Atlantic Forest Holy Grail that is Kinglet Calyptura, the bird I dream of finding at REGUA is Atlantic Royal Flycatcher. Check out this stunning photo on WikiAves by Joao Quentali here.

Garden megas!!!

Why all the garden birding of late? Well, at the end of last year I managed, somehow, to mess my back up again, which has led to me spending a lot of time hobbling around the house in pain (two weeks now until I see an orthopedic surgeon). Still, big news! There's been two megas in the garden over the last two days - a Stock Dove yesterday and 2 Starling today.

More Waxwings!

Driving down the A3 this morning on my way to work, I glimpst what looked like a small flock of Waxwings flying around over the Sainsbury's car park at Cobham. Thinking they were probably actually Starlings I decided to check them out, and I'm glad I did, because on entering the car park I located a flock of about 40 Waxwings flitting about in tall trees between the car park and the small housing estate in the south-east corner. I was about to drive off when I noticed another 16 birds feeding on berries on the northern edge of the car park. Once at work I found out that a group of 20 was seen here two days ago.

Brazilians get twitchy

As if having a resident Stygian Owl roosting outside your apartment isn't enough, a few weeks ago Rick Simpson reported that a 70+ strong flock of Brown-backed Parrotlets, a very rare Brazilian Atlantic Forest endemic, had taken up residence at the Ubatuba Birdwatching Centre. Classified as Endangered by BirdLife International, Brown-backed Parrotlet is notoriously difficult to catch up with, and even harder to see well. The birds are still present and have been showing very well at times, even sparking a twitch in Brazil, a country where twitching is virtually unheard of! Hopefully they'll hang around for my next Brazil trip! Check out Rick's account and Elis Simpson's excellent photos on Rick's blog here. Also, more photos here.