Bird is the Word

Last year I picked up the book, To See Every Bird on Earth, by Dan Koeppel. I thought the idea of a father and son wanting to see as many birds as they could sounded interesting, and let's be honest. I liked the cover art. Turns out I loved the book, too. I've always wanted to know the name of the birds I see flitting past, and this book detailed the world of birders and listers and a complex familial relationship. Well written and informative. And it got me hooked on bird watching.

I know what you're thinking. Her husband fly-fishes, she quilts, and now they count birds? Nerd alert. But in my defense, bird watching appeals to three qualities I love. Having fun without spending a lot of money, collecting things (bird types), and making lists. For Christmas Paul gave me my very first Peterson Field Guide, and a pair of small binoculars, and by February I had 20 birds, just in my backyard. I can't believe there were that many kinds of birds flying around my neighborhood and I never stopped to see them. That alone sealed the deal for me and birding.

I was keeping track of my list in the back of my field guide until my neighbor told me about a great website for tracking your list, that her husband and his brother have created. It has the best photos of any bird I'm looking for, which helps identify what I've seen on trips. And it gives you your world ranking, which is why Paul started his list too. We've both got close to 80 birds, and are about to break into the 200's in world ranking. And we've only been doing this for 6 months.

So now we're branching out and going on specific bird watching trips. We've been up AF canyon and in the ravine behind Tracey's house in Highland (we netted 7 birds there, including a red-tailed hawk), the Ogden Nature Center, and Antelope Island. We invested in a spotting scope with a bonus from work, and that's added to our fun. Antelope Island, although a bit bleak and smelly, is a GREAT birding location. Our first trip we saw 20 different birds, most of them waterfoul. Plus it's great with our kids, because they could sit in the air conditioned van with a movie on (a rare treat), and Paul would run down to the shore through the spiders with the scope and a walkie-talkie (also a fun addition to our birding), while I sat in the car with the reference books giving him clues to the birds he was looking at. Plus, our children see a bird, can sometimes identify it, and always tell me to "run get the book."

I'll keep posting about birds more, since it's becoming a bit of a tradition in our little family. I think it's amazing that Heavenly Father made so many different kinds of birds for us (over 800 just in North America) and I've been missing his creation all of this time. My testimony of his love for us through this earth he made has grown with each bird I identify. And I love that my children are slowing down when they hear a bird chirp or fly overhead. But the best part? Birding with Paul. When we got married, I knew he was the one for me, without a doubt, but it's nice to know that I can grow and change and find new interests throughout life and he'll be right there supporting me, or making jokes through the walkie-talkie.