Lifers

What birders mean when we say "lifer" is something you might be wondering. Ah, the phenomenon of the life bird can only be truly understood by someone who really loves birds. Now, don't get me wrong, I haven't always been obsessed with birds and I used to make fun of my parents when they talked about birds, and how many lifers they got on their trips, but the more you start to enjoy birding, the more you want to chart your progress, and keeping track of the "lifers" is a good way to do it. The lifer gives you a tingle in your stomach, a rush of adrenaline through your body, and a keen sense of achievement. Every lifer is earned (or should be) by learning the field marks, calls, habitat preferences, and behaviors of birds, and birds are very diverse in all of the above aspects.

You may have heard of people being referred to, disparagingly, as "listers". A common, but not necessarily accurate perception of people who keep track of their lifers is that all they are trying to do is rack up a big lifelist. This in and of itself is not a bad thing, but there are certainly a few listers out there, who may engage in a little bit of bird sandbagging. There are those in the birding world who love birds, but would prefer to have someone else find, point out, enumerate the various field marks and call variations, point to the bird, and raise their binoculars to behold the lifer, tick it off their checklist, and move on down the trail to have the next lifer found for them. Some of us who work very hard to find and ID the birds on our own may have trouble accepting this as true birding, but to each his own. And hey, if I had the money, I might spend it on a bird guide who could find some of the more elusive species for me. But alas, I will never find myself in that quandary...no worries.

I don't care how big my lifelist is, but I do keep track of it, because one of my goals in life is to see as many species of North American birds as I can, and maybe one day I will branch out to the rest of the world. Recently I was treated to a new lifers, with the help of a birding friend with whom I hardly ever get the chance to bird, but who has helped me get numerous lifers. One September day this fall, I had the day off from school so I went out to bird. I found some early Purple Finches and I knew that my friend needed them for his year list, so I let him know where they were. So he arrived and we birded a bit, he got his Purple Finches, and then we decided to hit a little-birded place in the area.

We ended up in a cemetery of all places and the birding was a bit slow and we were getting ready to pack it in. We moseyed along the edge of the property and a bird landed on a sumac branch just in front of us, at eye level. We both held our breath and noted the field marks: greyish/brown hood extending onto the breast, bold (complete, not broken) white eye ring, pale yellow underparts...it couldn't be...one of the most coveted birds on the East Coast of North America: a Connecticut Warbler!!

This bird is a difficult one to find although people tell me they turn up regularly in NYC parks like Forest Park in Queens. They are the kind of bird you just have to be lucky to see. This was only the second on seen in Orange County NY since they started keeping records, about 50 years! Needless to say, it was an exciting bird and I was psyched to add it to my list. Yahooooooo!

Why bird?

Most people are utterly confused when I tell them that I like to spend my spare time with a pair of really expensive binoculars slung about my neck looking at birds. "WHY," is usually the first, and sometimes, the only question I get, with an incredible look of perplexity on the face of the questioner.

Well, first of all, it is really fun! If you like a challenge, and most people do, try carting a bird book and binoculars around with you in the woods and figure out what kinds of birds are flitting about all around you. When you become addicted to the incredible beauty and diversity of the bird world, your next challenge is to be able to identify them BEFORE you see them - by sound.

Secondly, birding is an intellectual pursuit, and every time I go out and bird, I learn something. Whenever you pay close attention to your surroundings, you are bound to learn, and that is one of the most rewarding things about birding. Just recently, I went for a little hike with my dog Stella, and as usual, I brought my binoculars. As soon as I got out of the car, I heard Black-capped Chickadees making a bunch of noise, and I knew they weren't talking to me. So I watched them for a while. Chickadees are birds that you usually don't pay too much attention to unless they are upset about something or there aren't any other birds around. This was a case when both things were true, so I watched the Chickadees for a bit - plus, they are REALLY cute! As I watched, I noticed they were perched 2 or so feet off the ground, they were looking down, and they were scolding something that seemed to be walking slowly through the brush. I watched for about 5 minutes before I could see what they were all hyped up about, then I saw it. A bright red flash of a fox, sneaking through the underbrush. My dog didn't even know it was there, but the Chickadees sure did! I can tell you about 50 stories like this, all because I pay attention to the birds when I'm outside!

The third thing that has me hooked on birding is you can and should do it almost everywhere. It is a great reason to travel to some of the most remote and beautiful parts of the world, and I know I will never run out of reasons to travel! And luckily, my parents are birders and they have taken me on a number of trips and have helped my North American ABA list reach 504 where it is right now.

One more thing - I am always meeting new people when I bird, and birders are an interesting group. I know that if I walk up to someone with binoculars around their neck, we will have a lot to talk about, and we will probably have a pretty nice conversation too! f you walk up to someone with binoculars around their neck and ask what they're looking at, they will usually be more than happy to show you and teach you about the birds. Birders love to get more people birding because the more eyes that are out there looking at the birds, the more interesting rarities we shall find!

Birding is something everyone can do and that's yet another great thing about it! I've only been doing it a few years but I already have developed my skills pretty well and I get better all the time.

Have you ever seen a bird that seemed out of place in your backyard and wondered what the heck it was? Have you ever seen a hawk, owl, eagle, or falcon hunting and been really impressed? When people find out that I am a birder, without fail, they they have a bird question that usually starts like this: "I saw this bird that..." and ends like this, "What kind of bird was it?" We are all curious about birds - they are one of the few animal groups to have mastered multiple domains on the planet: the sky, the sea, the ice, and everywhere in between. So get yourself a bird guide and figure out some of these crazy feathered creatures! See where they take you!