2011.10.23

Recent bird feed Snipe hunt with little (r)egret

I headed to Koona Bay to spot the recently sighted Latham’s and Painted Snipe, but I dipped. However, I did see a Little Egret and Marsh Sandpiper.

Life list

These pages chronicle the birds I’ve seen in the places I visit. Life list total: 573

Australia

Species total = 355

Latest sighting

Australian Painted Snipe
Rostratula australis

New Zealand

Species total = 40

Latest sighting

Wandering Albatross
Diomedea exulans

Tanzania

Species total = 41

Latest sighting

Crested Crane
Balearica regulorum gibbericeps

Thailand

Species total = 66

Latest sighting

Coppersmith Barbet
Megalaima haemacephala

United States

Species total = 87

Latest sighting

Pacific Wren
Troglodytes pacificus

Vanuatu

Species total = 30

Latest sighting

White-throated Pigeon
Columba vitiensis

A note on systematics

As with the systematics and taxonomy of most organisms, molecular testing has changed our knowledge of the relationships among avian taxa. As these relationships are far from solidifying, classification is in flux. I’ve based my classification on the most recent accepted work for Australia, but have also incorporated some of the more likely changes that are discussed on Wikipedia and other sites. I’ve tried to take a moderate approach.

Common names

Common names for a species often vary by country. As I live in Australia, I try to use the English name as published in Christidis L & Boles CL 2008. I hope to include local language names at a future date.

References

Christidis L, Boles WE, 2008, Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds, CSIRO Publishing, Canberra.

Doughty, C, Day, N & Plant, A, 1999, Birds of the Solomons, Vnuatu & New Caladonia, Christopher Helm (Publishers) Ltd, London.

Floyd, T, 2008, Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North Amercia, HarperCollins Publishers, New York, NY.

Heather, B & Robertson, H, 2005, The Field Guide to the Birds of New Zealand, Revised Edition, Penguin Books (NZ) Ltd, Aukland.

IUCN 2009. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2009.2. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 08 March 2010.

Morcombe, M, 2004, Field Guide to Australian Birds, Complete Compact Edition, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd, Archerfield, Qld.

Robson, C, 2006,A Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand, Asia Books Co, Ltd, Bangkok.

Stevenson, T, Fanshawe, J, 2002, Birds of East Africa, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.

Key to IUCN statuses

lc least concern nt near threatened
vu vunerable en endangered cr critically endangered