A Case for Patience
There is no “right” way to go birding. You can take a short stroll, relax on your porch, hike, drive (but don’t get too distracted by the birds!), bike, boat, kayak, you name it. Personally, I enjoy slower-paced walks or hikes that allow me to not only look for birds, but also listen for their vocalizations and observe their behaviors in more depth. An added bonus is that I get to enjoy general nature more – flowers, butterflies, fallen leaves, insects, spiders, and tree bark patterns all command my attention while birding.
It’s worth taking a moment to pause and take in your surroundings. For those of us living in a bustling city, it helps to counteract urban frenzy by lingering in one location and letting your senses take over. I’ve had several birding trips where this led to finding rare birds or observing interesting behaviors with the usual suspects. One story in particular comes to mind to illustrate this point.
This week, my husband and I were slowly walking through one of my favorite parks down a paved trail. I’ve walked this trail countless times and have a good idea of where certain birds hang out. On this particular day, we noticed a flurry of activity in the redwoods. Instead of conducting our usual quick scan before moving on, we stopped and examined each and every bird that popped into our vision. The majority of the birds were the energetic Townsend’s warblers and chestnut-backed chickadees. Brown creepers emerged and I watched them spiral up trunks digging for insects on the bark. After about 15 minutes of observing, I noticed a bird that upon first glance I thought was yet another brown creeper, except it seemed more boldly patterned. Focusing my binoculars onto the bird, I realized it was covered in heavy black-and-white stripes all over its head and body – an aptly-named black-and-white warbler! Quick, take pictures, this is a rarity for this area! We stayed in this spot for nearly an hour excited to watch a bird that does not live around here. Patience and careful scanning sure paid off.
