WHitehawk Birding blog
Welcome to the Whitehawk Birding Blog! Here we share fun birding and nature facts and news in posts that we hope you find of interest. We hope you enjoy!
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What is Bird Migration?
It’s that time of year again! Around the world, birds are preparing for their migration from their overwintering grounds to their breeding grounds. But let’s take a deeper look at these bird movements. What is bird migration? Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement of birds. We may recognize that birds are migrating when bird…
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What do Harpy Eagles Eat?
It seems reasonable to assume that a bird measuring 3 feet tall from beak to tail, and has a 6-foot wingspan, legs the size of a human’s wrist, and talons the size of grizzly bear claws eats just about anything it wants to. And that is true, within reason, of course. Biologists throughout the Harpy…
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Birds in Colombia: One-fifth of the World’s Birds
Colombia is one of the 17 megadiverse countries in the world. This is due in part to the exceptionally high number of birds. Actually, Colombia holds about 10% of global biodiversity. It boasts the highest number of orchids, and the second in the number of plants, amphibians, butterflies, and freshwater fish. The richness of birds…
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Great Curassow: A Neotropical Specialty
Walking through the lowland rainforests of Central America, you hear a rustling off-trail along the forest floor. Scanning the dense foliage of the understory, you catch a glimpse of a large, turkey-like bird. It is glossy black all over with a bright yellow knob above the bill and a perfectly curled crest as if it…
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The Snow Leopard
The first time I saw a Snow Leopard, I was a young girl visiting the Los Angeles Zoo. I remember being amazed by its spotted fur, light eyes, and, most of all, its long, powerful tail that seemed to almost be a separate creature! Never could I have imagined that one day I would get…
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Top 10 Reasons to Visit India
There are SO many reasons to visit India, it is very hard to come up with only 10! Whitehawk made its first trip to India in 2014 in search of the elusive Snow Leopard. Our trip was a roaring success and our group was able to see not one but two Snow Leopards in a…
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The City of Antpittas
Perhaps the simplest and most humorous description of antpittas is that they look like ‘eggs with legs.’ This description might also remind you of Sheldon, Garfield the Cat’s friend, or Humpty Dumpty of “Through the Looking-Glass.” In fact, Humpty Dumpty’s name in Spanish is Zanco Panco. Zanco refers to his long legs, as does the…
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Panama Wildlife: A Glimpse at Great Biodiversity
The narrow Isthmus of Panama is home to the famous Panama Canal and is nestled between Costa Rica and Colombia. It forms a land bridge between North and South America. It is a hotbed for biodiversity and has the most species recorded of all Central American countries. Panama’s landscape is comprised of low elevation rainforest…
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Top 10 Reasons to Travel to Panama
The Isthmus of Panama, nestled between two oceans and connecting two continents, has much to offer anyone interested in birds, nature, culture, and history. Planning to travel to Panama? Read more to find out our favorite things about this lovely country, in no particular order. 1. Biodiversity Despite its small size, Panama is one of…