A field guide to Northwest birders

By Sherry Stripling
Seattle Times staff reporter

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive

Even a common loon can see that bird-watching is big business in these parts, where more than 1 in 3 Washington residents takes bird-watching seriously — the fourth-highest participation rate in the nation. They're not all old coots, either. Many show the flicker of youth (and increasingly more also show color). The American Goldfinch State has an exceptionally high number of species of birds, with one for every day of the year (365). On the eve of the world's biggest bird-watching competition, the April 18 to May 15 annual "Birdathon" sponsored by the National Audubon Society, we present two fine specimens — but of birders, not of birds — along with some other droppings that might be enough to put heron your chest.

THOMAS JAMES HURST / THE SEATTLE TIMES Northern backyard birder Uncommonly called Native plantus obsessea Don Norman, 50 Plumage: Mature, some silver cresting? Habitat: Richmond Beach half-acre layered with mostly native plants, including Indian plum, serviceberry, snowberry, mulberry and nut trees, plus California Wax Myrtle. His goal is to have different layers of plants for nesting and protective cover, and plants that bear at different times so birds will have for a steady supply of berries, nuts and bugs. He mixes native plants with his vegetable garden, fruit trees and flowers. Behavior: Makes note in a personal record book of birds that roost in his foliage or fly over his property, then moves that information to a spread sheet that he uses to track migration patterns back to 1980. Environmental toxicologist by trade. Equipment: Pots for growing bare-root plants to save money. Ancient greenhouse. Big windows throughout house from which to view the birds. Pricey 7x50-power Swarovski binoculars. Personal record book, which need be no more elaborate than a three-ring binder with 366 pages, he says. He recommends Seattle Audubon Society's "Gardening For Life: An Inspirational Guide to Creating Healthy Habitat" and "Landscaping for Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest," by Russell Link (University of Washington Press, 1999). Call: "Have some cover near your garden space so the birds will pop out and you can see them from your house." Song: "Plant more plants. Clean up less. Use less water. Don't kill things. What could be simpler?" Similar species: The "bird-feeder" crowd. Norman has a feeder for hummingbirds and occasionally scatters birdseed, but otherwise depends on his plants to provide food year-round. The "armchair" birder, people who follow Web sites such as the Northwest birder e-mail list Tweeters (www.scn.org/earth/tweeters or Surfbirds (www.surfbirds.com) to read what other birders are seeing in the field.

General characteristics

• The average bird-watcher in Washington state: Baby boomer, educated, and with an income of more than $30,000.

• 72 percent of birders are married.

• Say you want an evolution? The Audubon Society first popularized bird-watching around 1900. Roger Tory Peterson's first bird guide in 1934 pushed birders into the millions. The new flock of birders carry digital cameras, pocket-sized high-powered binoculars and "lists" of bird sightings in their Palm Pilots.

THOMAS JAMES HURST / THE SEATTLE TIMES American field birder Uncommonly called teenage intelligensia Anna Kalagian, 15 Plumage: Fresh, often slickered. Birding by ear: Excellent, a more common trait for birders who also play music (she plays piano). Says her mother about Anna's ability to pick out a bird by its call at dawn on camping trips: "Many's the time she has bolted from her sleeping bag shouting, 'What was that????' " Habitat: Alki Point, but also found at Nisqually River Delta, Skagit flats, Christmas Bird Count at Discovery Park (within two weeks of Christmas Day), bird-banding at Longfellow Creek in West Seattle, along the Duwamish River and anywhere else BirdWatch, the Seattle Audubon Society's youth naturalists, go, including southern California and Texas. Life list: 350 birds before her Texas trip, which ends today. Equipment: "The Sibley Guide to Birds" (Full edition 544 pages), $40 binoculars (should be 8x36 or better), $125 telescope ("you don't have to have one"), the family's old camera tripod, and her precious life list. Call: "You can't really 'plant watch.' Birding is a great way to entertain yourself while you're outside." Song: "It's become a passion (or obsession) and I plan on continuing the rest of my life." Behavior: "Most of the (birders) I know are not supercompetitive, but a lot, including me, have life lists. It makes it fun." Similar species: The fanatics, who hop in the car at 2 a.m. and travel four hours to sight an exotic or rare bird (Anna doesn't qualify because she can't convince her parents to drive her that far for a single sighting). The "non-lister," who simply enjoys the beauty and peace of seeing birds while walking (or traveling the state to bird festivals).

Feathering the nest

• Bird-watchers in the United States spend $30 billion a year, including $10 billion on travel.

• Last month's Othello Sandhill Crane Festival, where 1,500 visitors swelled the small town in Adams County by nearly another third, is one of more than 20 Washington bird festivals and events. Nationwide, the number of bird festivals has risen from five to more than 400 in the past 15 years.

• Washington is one of only a handful of states developing a statewide map system showing the best places for bird-watching. Festivals and the Great Washington State Birding Trail maps fit with the Audubon Society's strategy to raise awareness of the value of birds and save habitat, because 1 in 4 bird species are declining. Maps are available by calling 866-922-4737 or visiting www.wa.audubon.org/new/audubon.

Migration routes

Birdathon is Audubon's largest annual fund-raising event. Thousands of people count birds and collect pledges from sponsors based on the number of species they see in 24 hours. Choose a date and time from April 18 to May 15 and start counting in your backyard or in the field, on your own or with a flock. You can find the closest chapter through Audubon Washington (www.wa.audubon.org/new/audubon).

More info

• If you're reluctant to leave the nest, curl up with Mark Obmascik's rousing "The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature, and Fowl Obsession"; David Allen Sibley's best-selling "The Sibley Guide to Birds"; or pop in the film documentary "Winged Migration."

• To see BirdWeb, Seattle Audubon Society's online guide to birds of Washington, visit www.birdweb.org.

• To join Seattle Audubon Society's popular youth naturalists' group, BirdWatch, call 206-523-8243 ext. 20, or e-mail emilys@seattleaudubon.org.

• For Tweeters' e-mail list on birds and birding in Cascadia, see www.scn.org/earth/tweeters.

(Sources: Audubon Washington, Seattle Audubon Society, "Birds of the Puget Sound Region," Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economic Analysis)

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company