I first became interested in birdwatching during my third year of university after spending some time at a local arboretum. I was sitting on a patch of grass next to a small pond, when I noticed this medium-sized, duck-looking thing sitting near the water.
It had light and dark brown feathers that came together in a pretty lace-like pattern, focused emerald eyes, and a long orange hooked bill. I’d never seen anything like this bird. What the heck was it??
In one calculated move, it dove into the water headfirst. Bubbles disappeared into stillness for a moment before it broke through the surface again. Was it successful in its hunt? I don’t remember, but I had to know what it was.
A Double-crested Cormorant. My spark bird1. From that moment on, I started noticing birds.
Since then, I’ve been a casual birder—I’ll come across a species here and there, look it up, and add it to my checklist, but it wasn’t until this past summer that I actually started dedicating a day every week or every other week to look for birds.
I don’t know what it is. A Red-Tailed Hawk could just be circling the sky looking for its next meal or a California Scrub Jay could be chattering away. Any bird could be executing ordinary behavior and I get so excited! Even while driving, I’ll notice them (especially birds of prey)! More recently, I’ve been convincing everyone to go birding with me—friends, my partner, my sibling, my baby cousin. I love going with others and hearing them get excited with me too. It’s been something I could rely on every week—a time to take things slow, be consistent, and to be grounded.
An example of this excitement is my first bird walk with my little cousin, who funnily enough is named Kestrel, seeing some California Quails for the first time.
I was sifting through Merlin trying to identify a birdcall in the distance, when all of a sudden he excitedly calls out, “Ate! I see something!!” and points straight in front of us. A parade of quails popped out of a bush in a straight but frantic line. There were so many of them!! Each time we thought every bird had crossed, another one would burst out into the open, just for a moment, only to disappear into the safety of foliage.
But perhaps the most amazing bird I’ve seen, so far, has to be the American Kestrel. I’ve been trying to see one for the past few months now and after a morning of birding with my friend Zoey, we saw one flying over a parking lot as we were about to enter a pupuseria. I wasn’t even trying to look for one!! It was an exciting moment for the both of us and we sprinted back to my car to grab some binoculars to get a closer look, but it was too late. Still such a great surprise though.
That being said, my 2023 Birding Wrapped Top 5 has to be:
American Kestrel (So cute. So amazing. 10000000/10)
Osprey (Powerful. Majestic.)
Turkey Vulture (Intimidating. HUGE. A little scary, but amazing.)
Red-tailed Hawk (I see these at least once a week but the thrill has never dulled!)
Hooded Merganser (Their heads are so fun!! They look silly and cute.)
Some honorable mentions are the Black-crowned Night Heron, Green Heron, California Quail of course, and the White-Breasted Nuthatch.
The feeling of seeing and identifying a bird, whether it’s new or old to me, is kind of a weird high. It’s a healthy little obsession. And if you’re a mutual friend and want to get into it, let me know because I would love to get you hooked onto it as well!
a species that triggers a lifelong passion for birding