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What state do you hail from? Do you know your state bird? It is an interesting study in both history and social perception. Several states have the same state birds and some states even shoot theirs.
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Birders - the term might conjure up an image of someone not young, wearing a funny hat, popping up from behind a bush with binoculars raised to eye level. In all honesty that image might not be far off. The real question is - would you go to a movie about birders?
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Why not combine your interest in birds with another favorite hobby? Coin collecting presents such a unique opportunity. Many beautiful coins are available that are graced with stunning depictions of our favorite birds.
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Winter can be a time when we don’t get out nearly as much as we would like. We can use this time to build our knowledge of birds and birding. As I always tell my kids, reading is knowledge. Here are a few of my favorite sources for increasing your bird knowledge.
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One of the coolest sights for me as a young lad was seeing a hawk perched on a pole or wire as we drove along a country road. I guess you can say I have been a Hawk Gawker my whole life.
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What is a warbler? To some, it may be someone who doesn’t know when to stop talking, but if you’re a birder, it is a group of small, beautiful birds that you look forward to seeing each spring. They are often referred to as the butterflies of the bird world but to me they are pure pleasure.
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Do you keep a Life List? Do you know what a Life List is? While many people who love birds aren’t familiar with the term life list, they often, unknowingly, have one. A life list is simply a list of birds (or any particular “thing”) that you have seen or heard before. The list can be as simple or complex as one wants it to be.
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I love books. I especially love books about birds and nature. When I plan a trip to a location that I have never birded before, you can bet I search out any local guides that may help me. Do we have any good local guides for this area? You bet we do.
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Once you’re into this “birding thing”, it is only natural to want to see as many different birds as you can. When you combine this desire with the limited number of peak migration days and busy work schedules, you can easily see where the concept of “Big Days” comes from.
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When I first got into birding, one of the things that fascinated me was the diversity of names. I had no idea what a warbler was, who the heck was Bewick and the only cuckoo I knew of popped its head out of a clock every hour. The more I learned, the more bird names intrigued me.
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While Ruth wrote this article in 2005, Project Feeder Watch is still a very active program. You can contact Cornell for updated materials and dates.
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What got you interested in birds? For a lot of people it was a parent or grandparent who fed birds, or a great Aunt who used to point out the birds on a walk around the neighborhood. For me, it was one bird.
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Not surprisingly, the overwhelming winner was The Sibley Field Guide To Birds. We all agreed that it is the most thorough field guide we have ever seen and the artwork is fantastic. Not only does Sibley give you multiple drawings of each bird, he is the first artist to draw all birds in flight from above and below. The Eastern version of his field guide is perfect for those who live and bird in the Midwest.