How to Infiltrate the Weird World of Birdwatching
Your Burning Birding Questions Answered by a Total Non-Expert
There is a type of bird called a brood parasite, which as a reproductive strategy lays its eggs in the nests of other birds and leaves them to do the parenting. Thus some unsuspecting sparrows or warblers end up raising a conspicuously large cowbird or cuckoo (whence comes cuckold), usually at the expense of the host birds’ own offspring.
I, too, am an impostor. I have walked among the hardcore birders and been accepted as one of their own, despite my oversized lack of knowledge and clashing plumage of inexperience. “Anything good today?” a bebinoculared stranger asked me recently on my lunchtime walk in the park. “Two Magnolias, a Black-and-White, and a nice Blue-Headed Vireo,” I replied, as if I’d been speaking this nonsense language my whole life. And here’s the crazy part — I actually knew what I was talking about. I really did see those birds, and identified them all by myself!
You can, too, and getting there may be easier than you think.
How Do I Start?
I have two key suggestions for anyone interested in taking up birding. One is more philosophical; the other, entirely practical.
1. Let go of self-consciousness.
This is the biggest impediment most new birders face, and it cuts in two directions. On one hand, it can feel pretty silly to stand around craning your neck up at the trees while joggers and parents with strollers maneuver around you. On the other hand, the encyclopedic expertise of longtime birders can be intimidating and may leave you wondering if you’re a poser. (Even with no one around to judge, the learning curve for spotting and identifying birds can frustrate beginners easily — more on tackling that later.)
My advice in the former case is to remember that anyone who sees you out birding either doesn’t care or is extremely jealous. As for the latter, I like to recall this morsel from the introduction to Kenn Kaufman’s field guide:
Birdwatching is something that we do for enjoyment, so if you enjoy it, you are already a good birder. If you enjoy it a lot, you are a great birder!
And as that endearingly earnest quote might suggest, most bird nerds are more than happy to welcome newcomers and share the craft. Which leads us to…
2. Go with a guide.
The surest, simplest, fastest way to become a competent birder is to learn from an expert while in the field. Time to take [that one college friend who just moved to the city / Grandma / your latest Tinder match] up on their offer to go birdwatching! Better yet, your local Audubon chapter or parks department likely offers free or inexpensive birding walks, and the right guide will be able to teach you everything I discuss here — only ten times better and while actually doing it. (If you’re in the New York City area, I highly recommend any of Gabriel Willow’s excellent and popular walks.)
Where Do I Go?
This is the easiest part, because — and I know you know this — birds fly, so they can show up anywhere! Where you go will determine the kinds of birds you see, but you might be surprised how little you have to travel. A city park or a backyard feeder can provide as much birding action as a hike in the woods or a visit to the lakeshore.
When Do I Go?
No, you don’t have to get up super early. Different species keep different schedules, but birds are active throughout the day. Obviously, you’re likely to see more birds on a cool morning than a blistering afternoon, but there’s no designated hour for birdwatching. More important is the time of year —you’ll likely see different visitors in summer versus winter, and if you’re on a migration path, spring and fall can deliver a mind-boggling diversity of travelers passing through!
What Should I Bring?
What to wear, the tools of the trade, how to bird with your smartphone, and what to know before you go:
Clothing
Wear whatever you would normally wear for the location, weather, and level of activity involved. Just make sure you’ll be comfortable.
Binoculars
With decent models starting at several hundred dollars, this can be a daunting deterrent for a neophyte, so let me start by saying: You don’t have to buy a binocular to start birding. (Yes, “binocular” is correct.) That doesn’t mean you will enjoy birding to its full extent without a binocular — eventually, you’re going to want a good one. Nor do I necessarily recommend buying a cheap “starter”— a bad binoc might only frustrate the novice further. But I encourage you to remember that birding begins with the naked eye. The purpose of a binocular isn’t to search for faraway specimens; it’s to get a closer look at the birds you’ve already spotted.
The best way to learn how to work with a binnie is to borrow someone else’s. (If you’re going on a guided tour, show up early; the leader probably brought a couple of extras and will gladly show you the ropes.) When you reach a level of interest and proficiency where a nice bino would be a worthwhile investment, birding sites have plenty of detailed breakdowns to help with your shopping. And as with any purchase that size, you’ll definitely want to inspect the goods in person before you buy.
Field Guides
There are a wide range of birding references; in addition to many regional guides on offer, here’s a brief overview of some of the popular standards. (I’ll offer some tips on how to use these later.)
- National Geographic: The gold standard in bird guides (and the perfect gift for any occasion).
- Sibley: At its size, more of a desk reference than a field guide; beautifully illustrated with detailed descriptions.
- Kaufman: The fieldiest of the guides; designed for fast reference, it fits in many decent-sized pockets. Great for beginners.
- Audubon: This is the one I grew up with. It comes in versions tailored for East and West of the Rockies.
- Peterson: A classic that influenced all birding guides thereafter… but has been outpaced by many of them.
Technology
Birding is easier than ever in the age of smartphones. Before you rush out to buy any of the above books, be aware that most of them are available in some form — occasionally for free! — as an app. There’s a whole marketplace of ornithological tools for your phone: guides, identification wizards, personal checklists, and more.
I use the Audubon app as a pocket reference and to view recent sightings at local hotspots, and sometimes consult the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s online bird guide for particularly tricky questions of identification. Cornell also provides a service called eBird, which allows enthusiasts to share sightings through their massive database, track and upload checklists in real time with a companion app, and receive email alerts on rare birds in their area.
Knowledge
The more you’re aware of the birds you might expect to see at a given time and place, the easier it will be to identify them — and to know if you’re looking at something unusual. A quick web search should lead you to information on the common birds in your area, or you might check a local bookstore for regional field guides.
So… What Do I, Uh, Do?
Take a moment to let your senses adjust. It helps to find a kind of soft focus where you can be aware of movement and sound all around you. Focus on places birds might be — the branches or trunks of trees, the edge of a shallow pool, the mulch-strewn underbrush. If the area where you’re standing seems empty of activity, move along. After a few false alarms from squirrels or falling leaves, you may actually spot a bird!
You don’t necessarily have to remain still or silent — some birds are less shy than others. But it does help to stay attentive and respectful of the birds and their habitat. (To that end, the American Birding Association provides a thorough code of ethics, which basically boils down to “don’t be a jerk.”)
How Do I Know What Bird I’m Looking At?
Once you see a bird, watch it for as long as you can. Observe as much as possible. What shape is it? What kind of beak, wings, feet, tail does it have? Does it have any distinctive markings? Is it calling or singing? Most of all, what is it doing? How does it behave? Keep watching until it flies away. Then you can take out your field guide. The most important part of identifying a bird is observing it as closely as possible; once it’s gone, you can spend all day flipping through pages (or scrolling through screens).
Most guides are organized by types of birds; it may help you to familiarize yourself with the general categories in advance. You’ll probably know right away whether you’re looking at a songbird or a hawk or a heron, so flip to that section and narrow from there. The illustrations in a guide tend to draw the eye, but the descriptions are the most helpful. (Few things are more satisfying than finding a picture that might be the bird you saw and reading the accompanying paragraph to find an exact description of the behavior you just observed.) Don’t forget to consult the range maps and check whether that bird is likely to be seen in your area at that time of year.
Another element to consider (and a particularly tricky one for beginners) is the bird’s sound. Birds offer an incredible and melodically rich palette of calls, cries, and songs; for some species, this is the best and simplest way to make an identification. It takes some time to learn what birdcalls actually sound like, so have patience! In my experience, no amount of listening to recordings will cement a birdcall in your brain like actually hearing it in the wild and marveling at the tiny avian form that produced it.
Remember that birds, like human beings, exhibit a variety of appearances. In many species, males are brightly colored while females are more subdued; younger individuals may have a different feathering entirely. A seemingly exotic bird might just be an odd-looking individual of a familiar species. When making an identification, consider the whole impression — not just what a bird looks like, but where it is and what it does.
How Do I Share the Bird I Saw?
Modern birders are social-media-savvy; follow some locals on Facebook, Instagram, or (most appropriately) Twitter to see what the scene is like and learn the relevant hashtags (#birdcp for New York’s Central Park, for example). Many areas have local birding clubs or associations that may offer email lists or discussion groups. You can always try uploading your checklist of sightings using the eBird app as mentioned above. And of course, if you see another birder staring up at the trees, be sure to tell them what you’ve spotted!
What Are Some Good Birds?
I’m glad you asked! Here are a few birds that I consider Very Good for looking at:
Scarlet Tanager
A tropical summertime visitor and one of the easiest birds in the canon to spot. Hard to miss among the foliage on a bright sunny day.
Prairie Warbler
A small, subtly beautiful passerine with a mesmerizing, synthesizer-like song.
Anhinga
A common sight in southern wetlands is this swimmer bobbing its serpentine head above the water or perching with wings spread to dry.
Pileated Woodpecker
North America’s largest woodpecker will astonish you with its powerful hammering and eerie call.
Great Blue Heron
Graceful as it stalks its prey, majestic in flight, this big beautiful bird is a thrill to see at your local fishing hole.
Ovenbird
This is my favorite bird. Striking coloration gives it a distinctive look to match its distinctive walk. Watch this lil goofball strut!
Okay, But… Why?
Birding has so many benefits, I’m not even sure where to begin! It can be a group bonding activity or an opportunity for solitary reflection, a competitive challenge or an escape from the daily grind. It can hone memory, observation, scientific aptitude, outdoor skills. It forces us to go (or at least look) outside, engage with nature, and appreciate the world we live in. But most importantly, I think, it teaches us to embrace wonder and awe.
Birds are inherently fascinating. They are, after all, living dinosaurs. And they have long been an inspiration to humans. Larks and nightingales have prompted the pens of poets for centuries. Finches got Charles Darwin thinking about evolution. And what was the goal of the Wright brothers if not to imitate the hawk or the sparrow? Birds are amazing. Now get out there and find some!
