Birding for Life

Why haven’t I been a birder all my life?

Sandpiper, pelican, seagull, Red-winged Blackbird, Mockingbird, and Bald Eagle – those are the birds that I remember knowing as an 8-year-old growing up in Florida.  I’m in awe and a little envious of others who became birders as that age.  And I’m not entirely certain why I’m not one of them.  Perhaps it was lack of binoculars or someone to encourage me.

I had another chance to become a birder when my late husband, Burt, and I moved to Miami in 1980.  We both loved nature and the great outdoors and spent significant time biking, hiking, and canoeing in the Everglades.  I learned Anhinga, one of Burt’s favorites, Purple Gallinule, Swallow-tailed Kite, Snail Kite, herons, and egrets.  One the way home after one of those trips, I went through the checklist in our Peterson’s guide and checked all the birds that we had ever seen.  A couple of years ago I reviewed that list and found that I had also checked off a few gulls, woodpeckers, Blue Jay, Cardinal, and Robin.  But I found not one single sparrow or warbler had been checked.  I know the reason for that; Burt was brilliant but lazy.  The little birds were just too much work to identify.  We knew no other birders and again there was nothing to ignite the tiny birding spark inside me.

Fast forward to Thanksgiving 2006.  My step-daughter, Shelly, and her husband, Jeff, were visiting from Florida.  My son, Rick, and daughter-in-law, Missy, were also at my house.  One of them saw a large bird in my backyard, we grabbed the Sibley guide, and identified it as a Red-shouldered Hawk.  The spark was ignited this time.  We listed all the birds we saw that weekend and I’ve kept track of most of the birds that I’ve seen ever since.  Over then next few years, my interest in birds and birding grew.  At first I birded only on official Forsyth Aududon trips, mostly our monthly Second Saturday bird walks, and in my own neighborhood.  I birded in Florida on trips to see family and friends.

In the spring of 2009, my friend, David, invited me to Kansas to go birding for a few days.  We met interesting people, had fun, and were thrilled to see Lesser Prairie Chickens.  I realized that I could actually get on an airplane and fly somewhere just to look at birds.  I began traveling more and my passion for birds has slowly and steadily grown.  Now I’m pretty much obsessed and dream of birding around the globe.

Life is about more than just seeing birds, though, and I try to do my little part for the environment, starting in my own backyard.  I’ve got many native plant species, I use no chemicals in the yard, and I try to abide by other wildlife-friendly practices.  You should see my dead trees and wood piles!

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