A feather in her cap
Bird society member thrilled to share birding experiences with others
It’s not uncommon for members of the Nova Scotia Bird Society to help visitors “who want to see a specific bird.”
Barbara Haley recently helped a birder from the United States.
Ruth Carlier hails from Florida, according to Haley, and contacted the Nova Scotia Bird Society requesting a tour.
Haley is one of about 600 Nova Scotia Bird Society members and, on behalf of the society, provides free bird tours.
In an email following the tour with Carlier, Haley noted, “I think we saw about 45 species … with Ruth — two of which were ‘lifers’ for her, meaning she had not seen them before. One was a Nelson’s sparrow .... another bird we saw was a bobolink, which is considered a threatened bird in Canada.”
Providing guided tours is just one feather in Haley’s birding cap. She serves on the Nova Scotia Bird Society’s board of directors and among other things coordinates volunteers.
The society is a non-profit organization that took flight in 1955 catering to “... the study and conservation of wild birds in Nova Scotia,” according to the website.
A testament to the success of the organization, Haley says the society — and particularly its president David Currie — is commonly called on by researchers and members of the media to provide data or comment on birding questions.
The society does not have paid staff. Volunteers do 100 per cent of the work. They plan meetings, organize and guide field tours, accept speaking engagements, facilitate a booth at trade shows and tend to bird feeders at local seniors facilities.
The society produces an extensive professional quarterly publication called Nova Scotia Birds filled with reports, stories and photographs all contributed by volunteers.
The society curates an informative website and several volunteer administrators respond to the posts on the society’s private Facebook group page. Haley says requests to join the Facebook group are considered by a team of volunteer administrators.
Members of the Facebook group report sightings and descriptions of birds, upload photos and pose questions about birds, feeders and “even what cameras to use,” said Haley.
The society now has more than 11,000 Facebook group members.
For Haley, birding is not only about data collection — it’s also about the experience.
“Birding, for me, is about having an absolute place of peace,” said Haley, adding that occasionally she will rise before sunrise, make her way to where birds nest, perch herself in the still darkness and wonder, “What am I doing here? And then the air fills with sound and ... everything else falls away.”
For more information visit NSBirdSociety.ca.