iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 14/09/2026

The Great-tailed Grackles in Arizona looked so ragged (chopped) compared to the silky, shiny ones in Texas. Why? 🪶

Ragged -looking Great-tailed grackle walking left in green grass

Ragged-looking Great-tailed Grackle standing green grass facing forward. It looks like it is missing a tail feather.

Ragged-looking Great-tailed Grackle in green grass panting with an open beak

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 06/09/2026

A raven ate juvenile possum brain this morning. Part of a balanced breakfast? 🪶 becausebirds.com/microblog/a-raven-…

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 31/07/2026

If you take away the birds then what has she got? 🐦‍⬛️ becausebirds.com/microblog/if-you-t…

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Reposted by Jeff Mann

Leslie Joy Mills @ljoymills.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

SF used to have a huge flock of green parrots that flew over the Financial District and up Nob Hill! I remember the noise (and sight of them) was a moment. I would stop to watch and listen.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 30/07/2026

LA has a population of Red-Crowned Amazon parrots. They are loud but invisible when in the green trees. 🪶 becausebirds.com/microblog/la-has-a…

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 29/07/2026

Spotted this juvenile Peregrine Falcon on a crane at Dockweiler Beach 🪶 becausebirds.com/microblog/spotted-…

peregrine falcon juvenile perched on a cane

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 24/07/2026

Proposal Design D of new Euro has a spectrogram of the bird sound, range, and feather shape as security details. 🤩 becausebirds.com/vote-for-coo... 🪶🔈

Kingfisher with cool spectrogram security on the a potential €10 note

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 24/07/2026

Here’s a survey for how new EU bank notes should look! Half of the design sets feature adorable birds. Choose one of those! 🪶 surveys.ecb.europa.eu/10b/banknote...

Possible bird designs for new eu bank notes

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 30/06/2026

Testing my micropub endpoint again with a curl command.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 27/06/2026

This cardinal is helping the forest be just a tiny bit quieter. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 12/06/2026

I got great views of a Cactus Wren on a Cenizo while passing through Phoenix, Arizona. She is the 8th kind of wren on my life list. So far I have: Bewick’s Wren House Wren Marsh Wren Carolina Wren Canyon Wren Eurasian Wren Sedge Wren Cactus Wren The Canyon Wren is the best wren on this list. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 11/06/2026

The grackles had a party at Whataburger in the blossoming Crepe Myrtle tree. This borb posture is called a ruff-out display. 🪶

Male grackle in a flowering crepe Myrtle tree

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 06/05/2026

I yelled “Happy Mother‘s Day” to this soon to be mother. She is sitting on her nest in a nearby field. 🪶

Killdeer sitting on her nest in a grassy field.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 27/03/2026

I listen to the local birds sing so much I can often tell which bird species the mockingbird is imitating. I edited together some of my recordings to compare the him to the original bird so you can see how similar it is. 🪶🎤

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 15/04/2025

I had the privilege to take my friend and her bird-loving 7yo for birding this weekend. She loved hearing the birds sing with the parabolic mic. Listen to the birdsong and our cute dialog as she hears a White-eyed Vireo and Golden-cheeked Warbler. 🪶🔊

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 27/02/2025

Tonight, February 26 Barn Swallow season has officially started! The big cold front just left central Texas. It's the fourth year this nest is being used. 💯 bird build quality. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 21/02/2025

It's a hard life out there for a bird. 🪶

Raven facing away with a pretzel that looks like a cigarette lol

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 20/02/2025

My Nintendo Alarmo clock is officially jailbroken. Chain ⏰️ Thanks to: www.schuerewegen.tk/alarmo/

Nintendo Alarmo showing boot screen of custom firmware

Nintendo alarmo soldered and ready to connect be jailbroken

My messy soldering connections on the Nintendo Alarmo

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 17/01/2025

I don't like TikTok but don't support banning it either. We should treat the root cause of social media manipulation and astroturfing not the symptom. #socialmedia

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 30/12/2024

Looking back at my 2024 birding stats is wild. 📷 11,541 bird photos taken 📝 122 eBird checklists 🐦‍⬛ 257 species seen ⏳ 116 hours of birding I uploaded 106 photos (less than 1%!) and 124 recordings to eBird. 🪶 #birdMath

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 29/12/2024

Let's ring in the New Year like a Cedar Waxwing by eating our weight in fermented berries. 🪶

cedar waxwing facing left with a red berry in its beak on a mostly barren tree with blue sky behind it

cedar waxwing flying from a tree branch with its tail spread and wings open

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 24/12/2024

Honey, I shrunk the birds! This Christmas, I miniaturized my first decade of bird photography into something extra special and extra tiny. I created and mailed out over 50 unique mini framed bird photos as gifts to my friends. 🪶 📷

becausebirds.com

I crafted 50 tiny, framed bird pics to send to friends this Christmas

In 10 years of birding I took 45k photos and saw 440 species. This Christmas, I sent 50 unique birds in tiny frames to my friends.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 14/12/2024

This morning, after 10 years of birding, I photographed a bird butthole. Here is the cloaca of a Bewick’s Wren! 🤣🫣🪶

A Bewick’s Wren perched on a lichen-covered log facing away showing the underside of its tail and its cloaca. LOL

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 10/12/2024

Woodpeckers love more than just trees 🌵🪶

Gila Woodpecker facing right clinging to top of a cactus in front of clear blue sky.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 07/12/2024

Any Killdeer enjoyers? Been a huge fan of this bird for a while. I often hear them singing as they fly around dawn or dusk. Recorded this cutie with the parabolic mic on October 13. 🪶🔊

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 06/12/2024

My husband always refers to cormorants and Anhingas as “the bird with fleas” 😭. They don’t deserve that rap! 🪶 Do you hear about other birds with unfair reputations?

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 06/12/2024

Look twice and you might spot an Anhinga slinking through the waters. Like cormorants, a lack of waterproofing require them to dry their wings in the sun. Recorded these cuties in Orlando on 11/23 with a Parabolic mic. 🪶🔊 #Birdsky #photography

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 06/12/2024

This drama bird has a cutesy forehead shield and a tongue-twister name. I recorded this Common Gallinule last month in the marshes of the Wildlife Drive at Lake Apopka in Florida. 🪶🔊 #Birdsky

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 28/11/2024

Happy Thanksgiving, #BirdSky! Let’s show some love for the Wild Turkeys out there trying to do their best. 🦃 🪶

Wild Turkey at Garner State Park in Texas.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 28/11/2024

After a decade of birds I only recently started birding at dusk. I was immediately treated to a new song from a bird with a bizarre name. This is the Chuck-will’s-widow I recorded at Government Canyon this summer. 🪶🔊

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 28/11/2024

Which titmouse is best? I took the Black-crested for granted without realizing it’s a Central Texas exclusive! 💅🏻🪶🔊 Plus, finally nabbed a recording of the Tufted in Florida last weekend.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 23/11/2024

Just found a cute Downy Woodpecker who drilled this huge hole! He climbs completely inside, grabs wood shavings, and then yeets that shit into the wind! Nature is amazing. 🪶🌬️🌳 #birds

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 21/11/2024

With the tiny Bananaquit, I complete my photo collection of a bird trio that I feel could qualify as a Pokémon evolution set. Bananaquit > Social Flycatcher > Great Kiskadee 🪶🍌

Photo collage of bananaquit, social flycatcher, and great Kiskadee

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 21/11/2024

New kind of crow just dropped. Spotted my first Fish Crow in Florida. 🪶🔊 Review: Travel-sized, cute noises, hangs with friends. Says “Uh-uh”. 10/10.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 18/11/2024

3, 2, 1, totally caught this rocket launch by happenstance in Cape Canaveral today. 🚀

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 18/11/2024

Happy Sunday, #BirdSky! Anyone fancy sharing Warblers? I love this Sardinian Warbler we spotted in Europe this summer. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 17/11/2024

Some birds are like Pokémon and say their own name. A famous example is the Eastern Phoebe. Named for the fee-bee sound she makes. Love how her whistle turns into a buzz. 🪶🔊

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 16/11/2024

Woodpeckers are a ticking time bomb of bird noise. 💣 They slowly emit single calls that lead up to an explosive trill. 💥 I recorded this Ladder-backed Woodpecker on 8/25/24 in San Antonio, TX. 🪶 🔊

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 10/11/2024

Our second songstress of the day is a shy, funny bird with yellow eyes called the Long-Billed Thrasher. I recorded her at my local park yesterday. She likes to rustle through the underbrush. Surprised to see there’s less than 1000 recordings uploaded to eBird. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 10/11/2024

For Songbird Sunday, here is a special Texas Favorite, the Painted Bunting. I snapped this photo on 5/1/22 and recorded him 5/4/24. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 09/11/2024

If you like gadgets or birds, check out my review of the new Bird Buddy smart bird feeder camera dubbed "Nature Cam PRO." Their team reached out and sent it to me to try out. tl;dr: captures excellent detail, more in-focus photos, and handles bright sunlight better than the original feeder 🪶

becausebirds.com

Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder PRO Review + 2 Years with the OG

Hands-on with new Bird Buddy Pro: sharper photos, HDR, and slow-motion video. Plus, how my original feeder holds up after 2 years.

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 26/10/2024

The park was bursting with birds this morning! This Scissor-tailed Flycatcher stunned me with an effortless display of acrobatics as she caught various insects for breakfast. 🪶

Scissor tailed flycatcher landing on wire

Scissor tailed flycatcher flying left with tail open

Scissor tailed flycatcher flying left with its head turned upside down

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 26/10/2024

Coworkers alerted me to a distressed bird. I found this Orange-crowned Warbler lying on the sidewalk outside and moved her to a safe spot. A likely window collision during her migration to Mexico. 🪶

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 11/10/2024

Coworkers spotted this spider in the elevator lobby a few days ago. I just found out about her and ran with a cup to save and take her outside! She’s called a Bold Jumper. 🕷️

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Jeff Mann @becausebirds.com · 15/09/2024

Demure by day, but easy to find at night, the Common Nighthawk is the supreme of daytime camouflage. But learn her call and you’ll often find them calling as they zip through the skies above parking lot lights and stadium lights. See the spectrogram and hear her recording with my parabolic mic 🪶🎙️

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