| Nine of Cups Birds Sightings Along the Way |
We've always liked birds, but we can't say we were ever avid bird watchers. Since we've been sailing, however, we're more aware of the
different birds we encounter and much more enthusiastic about spotting and identifying them. We originally bought "Birds of the World"
(Smithsonian Handbooks/Alan Greensmith) and soon found it to be very limited in its scope. Though expensive, we purchased a bird book
specific to Patagonia "Birds of Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego and the Antarctica Peninsula" in English and Spanish (Couve & Vidal)
which was extraordinary. Subsequently, we purchased a book specific to South Africa when we visited South Africa and Namibia and
found it to be wonderful, but it gets to be costly and takes up a lot of space aboard to have a book specific to each area. We were on the
lookout for a more definitive world book of birds and have purchased a used copy of "Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds" (Perrins) which
we hope will do the trick.
Please note that the most common shot of birds we managed is the "blurry bird". Our photographic skills have increased over the years as
has the quality of the digital cameras we've used, but "blurry" still seems to prevail. We've seen and identified many more than we've been
able to capture in a photograph. That said, we'd still like to share with you a sampling of what we've seen.
different birds we encounter and much more enthusiastic about spotting and identifying them. We originally bought "Birds of the World"
(Smithsonian Handbooks/Alan Greensmith) and soon found it to be very limited in its scope. Though expensive, we purchased a bird book
specific to Patagonia "Birds of Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego and the Antarctica Peninsula" in English and Spanish (Couve & Vidal)
which was extraordinary. Subsequently, we purchased a book specific to South Africa when we visited South Africa and Namibia and
found it to be wonderful, but it gets to be costly and takes up a lot of space aboard to have a book specific to each area. We were on the
lookout for a more definitive world book of birds and have purchased a used copy of "Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds" (Perrins) which
we hope will do the trick.
Please note that the most common shot of birds we managed is the "blurry bird". Our photographic skills have increased over the years as
has the quality of the digital cameras we've used, but "blurry" still seems to prevail. We've seen and identified many more than we've been
able to capture in a photograph. That said, we'd still like to share with you a sampling of what we've seen.
Abdim's Stork - Namibia
Albatross - South Atlantic Ocean
Avocets - Walvis Bay, Namibia
Black crowned night heron - Arica, Chile
Black necked stilt - Isabela, Galapagos
Black vulture - Florida, USA
Black skimmer - Florida, USA
| Blue-footed booby Isla de la Plata, Ecuador |
| Brown booby & hatchling Los Roques, Venezuela |
Brown hooded gull - Valdivia,Chile
Brown Pelican - Florida, USA
Burrowing owl - Salinas, Ecuador
Canada geese - Aurora, CO, USA
Cape Bulbul - Boulders Beach, South Africa
Cape Sparrow - Namib Desert, Namibia
Cape Sugarbird - Boulders Beach, South Africa
Caracara - Easter Island
Chicken - Puerto Pina, Panama
Chinstrap penguin - Antarctica
Dolphin gull - Ushuaia, Argentina
Crested duck - Ushuaia, Argentina
Common tern - Florida, USA
European bee eater - Etosha, Namibia
Egyptian geese - Cape Town, South Africa
Fairy terns - Flamenco anchorage, Panama
Pink flamingos - Bonaire, NA
Flamingo - Walvis Bay, Namibia
Galapagos penguins - Isabela, Galapagos
Gentoo penguin & sheathbill -Antarctica
Great Frigate - Galapagos Islands
Great Frigate in flight - Florida, USA
Grebe - Piriapolis, Uruguay
Gray gull - Tongoy, Chile
Hartraub gulll - Walvis Bay, Namibia
Guinea Fowl - closeup and on the move - Karoo, South Africa
Heron - Iguazu Falls, Argentina
Herring gull - Block Island, RI, USA
Jacobin - Trinidad
| Java sparrow - St. Helena Island South Atlantic |
Ibis - Rio Sabana, Darien, Panama
Kelp geese (male/white & female) -Ushuaia, Argentina
Kiskadee - Colon, Panama
| Kelp gull - Valdivia, Chile |
Kori bustard - Etosha, Namibia
Lava heron - Galapagos Islands
Lesser grey shrike - Etosha, Namibia
Lesser masked weaver - Etosha, Namibia
Madagascar fody - St. Helena Island