One of our newest Birdorable birds is the Great Blue Turaco. This species is the largest bird in the turaco family. Like most turacos, the Great Blue has a head crest. And what a crest it is! Thick and dark, the crest, along with the striking red-dipped yellow bill, makes this bird a total knockout!!

A non-threatened species across its range of central Africa, Great Blue Turacos feed on fruit, leaves and flowers. In some parts of Africa they are hunted for meat and for their beautiful feathers. These beautiful birds are rarely found in captivity. The San Diego Zoo has one in their collection, which happens to be the largest collection of bird species in the whole United States. The zoo in Antwerp also has a pair. Here is a short video from Antwerp.

Like all of our cute Birdorable birds, our Great Blue Turaco illustration is available on a wide variety of apparel options and novelty gift items. Pictured here are two t-shirt styles; visit the Great Blue Turaco product page in our shop for more gift ideas.

We are so pleased to introduce our newest Birdorable bird: the Indian Peafowl! The Peacock has been one of the most suggested birds here at Birdorable. This gorgeous species is the national bird of India, and we've added a Peafowl of India design to the shop, as well as products featuring the Peacock by itself - including cute custom shoes pictured below.

Peafowl appear countless times in Indian mythology and popular culture. During our travels in India, we often came across Peacock imagery, like at the City Palace of Jaipur:

We also saw several of them during our visits to natural parks, and once were even so lucky to find a male in full breeding splendor!

Peacocks appear not only in Indian art and nature, but in advertisements too:

Peacock Brand by Meanest Indian

Peacocks are indeed striking when in full breeding plumage. They sport about 150 long display feathers, which are not tail feathers but elongated upper tail coverts. These are shed each year during their annual molt and often collected afterward due to the prized decorative value of the feathers. Here are some more photos of this gorgeous species.

Nice peacock! by Tambako the Jaguar

Peacock dancing in the wild by Tarique Sani

A peacock #02 by *higetiger

Our latest Birdorable parrot is the Bourke's Parrot or "Bourkie", a colorful grass parrot from Southwestern and Central Australia, where they are endangered due to overstocking and rabbit plagues. In some parts of Western Australia populations have recently increased after grazing was scaled down, allowing vegetation to return. If you like our Birdorable Bourkie don't forget to check out our 50+ other parrots and parakeets.

The Northern Fulmar is a petrel that lives in the northern oceans, across the Atlantic and Pacific. It is abundant in Alaska and the Canadian Arctic, but few people ever see them there as they tend to breed in remote places. In contrast, around Iceland, the Faroe Islands and British Isles they have undergone a spectacular increase in their population in the last two centuries and they are commonly seen as a result. They are one of the longest-lived birds, with an average life span of about 32 years. In Scotland, birds that were banded in 1951 were still found breeding in 1990 at ages likely greater than 50 years!

Photo by diddý (source: Flickr)

It is similar in appearance to a gull, but stockier with a thick neck and more rounded wings. They have a short, thick bill, with a little tube on top. Fulmars come in many different colors, referred to as light morph, intermediate morph and dark morph, but also in every gradation in between. There is no generally accepted explanation for this variety.

Here is a picture of a dark morph Northern Fulmar:

Photo by Glen Tepke (source: Flickr)

If you like our cute Northern Fulmar, check out our other 233 Birdorable birds.

The Great Blue Heron is our 227th cute Birdorable and the answer to yesterday's Spot the Birdorable. If you live in North America you've probably seen these around near water as they are quite common. It has several nicknames, including Big Cranky, Blue Crane, Long John and Poor Joe. Did you know that all Herons have two or more patches of powder-down feathers on their breasts? The feathers break up into a fine power when crushed. The birds apply this powder to areas of blood, mud or slime to absorb the mess. Once it has clumped up they can just scrape it off with their feet. They also sprinkle the powder on fish that they just caught to more easily clean off the slime and oil before eating it.

Photo by Gary Woodburn (via Flickr)

If you like this bird see our other egrets and waders. We've also added the grey equivalent of this bird: the Grey Heron, which can be found across temperate Europe, Asia and parts of Africa.

Have you ever seen a Heermann's Gull? These birds live on the west coast of the United States and Mexico. There are about 150,000 pairs of them and 95% of these nest on the island of Isla Rasa off Baja California. Audubon calls it one of North America's most beautiful gulls. Among other gulls in this area, Heermann's Gulls are easy to identify: breeding adults are dark gray above and light gray below, they have a white head and bright red bill with black tip. They are about the same size as a Ring-billed Gull. Isla Rasa is included in the Islas del Golfo California Biosphere Reserve. Because so many of these birds nest in one place, the entire species is vulnerable to disturbances there, which include harvesting of eggs by fishermen, industrial development and predation by introduced mammals.

Photo by Mike Baird (via Flickr)

Photo by Mary Angelini (via Flickr)

If you like this cute gull, check out our other Birdorable terns and gulls.

Today we've added the Sacred Ibis, a bird that lives in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Europe, where it was introduced. The Sacred Ibis is famous for its role in ancient Egyptian mythology, where it was often mummified as a symbol of the god Thoth, God of wisdom. In art, Thoth was often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or a baboon. Its name means "He who is like the ibis".

The bird may have been sacred in Egypt, but in Europe it is having a negative impact. An increasing population of Sacred Ibises in France and southern Europe are devastating breeding colonies of terns and herons. They also compete successfully for nest sites with Cattle Egrets and Little Egrets. In the late 1970s, just twenty Sacred Ibis were originally imported from Kenya to the Branféré Zoological Gardens in southern Brittany, France. A breeding colony was established and spread to neighboring wetlands. A census in 2005 revealed circa 3,000 of the birds.

Photo by Ruslou (via Flickr)

If you like this bird please check out our other Birdorable ibises.

The first new Birdorable bird of 2010 is this Hamerkop, a bird that lives in sub-Saharan Africa. They get their name from their hammer-shaped heads and they are also known as Hammerhead Stork or Anvilhead. We saw these birds on our trip to the Gambia a couple of years ago and instantly fell in love with these little fellows. They have such a cute head and the large bill makes it look like they're always smiling. Check out this gorgeous one sporting a nice stick for its nest.

Talking about nests, these birds are famous for them. Their huge nests, often built in the fork of a tree, can grow to over 5 feet (1.5 meters) across and made with over 10,000 sticks! That's one busy bird! A Hamerkop's nest is strong enough to support a man's weight. The birds like to decorate the outside of their nest with bright-colored objects that they find in the area. We saw one of these large nests, which you can see in the following picture.

If you like our Hamerkop check out our other African birds. Another favorite of ours from our trip to the Gambia was the Egyptian Plover.

Today, we're excited to introduce one of the most adorable avian species you're likely to encounter: the Northern Saw-whet Owl. With its big, captivating eyes and small stature, it measures just 7 to 8 inches (17.8 to 20.3 cm), making this the smallest owl in Eastern North America. 

The origins of its unique name stem from a charming mix-up. A member of the National Audubon Society once heard the call of a Barn Owl, which is reminiscent of a saw being sharpened on a whetting stone, and mistakenly thought it was the call of this smaller owl. Thus, the name "Saw-whet Owl" was born.

Since 1997, the Ned Smith Center in Pennsylvania has spearheaded crucial research into the movements and ecology of the Saw-whet Owl. Every autumn, a dedicated team comprising both researchers and volunteers engages in a remarkable project. They gently catch, band, and release hundreds of these owls across three banding stations in central Pennsylvania. This research effort has been incredibly successful; over the years, more than 5,000 owls have been banded, significantly enhancing our understanding of the migration patterns and behaviors of this elusive species.

The findings from this research have been instrumental in shedding light on the secretive life of the Saw-whet Owl, helping to map its movements and contribute to its conservation. To dive deeper into this fascinating project and learn more about these captivating creatures, be sure to visit the Saw-whet Owl Research Blog.

Can you guess what bird species this is? Take a look at this image of a Birdorable bird peeking out from the cozy nook of a tree hole and see if you can guess the species! This new addition to our Birdorable family will be revealed on our site later this week.

Need a hint?

This charming bird is a native of North America and is known for its unique nesting habits. Rather than building its own nest, it often takes up residence in abandoned woodpecker holes. Keep your eyes peeled for the big reveal of this feathered friend and see if your guess is right!