Follow that bird! It’s Global Big Day
The bird.
The bird.
The bird is the word.
That’s because this Saturday, May 11, is Global Big Day in the birding community — an opportunity for fans of feathered friends everywhere to be data collectors for a day and help scientists understand the current state of our dinosaur ancestor pals.
This never used to be on my radar until I turned 50 last year and became a bird fanatic overnight, as I assume happens to every quinquagenarian.
Ever since then, any time I see or hear a bird, I must find out — who is that?
When the weather is nice, I can’t resist relaxing on my patio and enjoying the chorus in the trees surrounding me — plus stalking my hummingbird feeder for a glimpse of my fast-moving comrades.
Bob Marley was right on the mark with his realization that, in a tense world that often seems to make little sense, all it takes is three little birds to center yourself in a state of peace.
I’ve spoken with lots of folks who keep feeling fascination about birds — and, like me, they’ve found that their smartphones are helping to fuel it. We’re hooked on using the Merlin Bird ID app that’s available for free from the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology.
There’s a lot of comparing notes and competing to see who can amass the most impressive “life list” of bird species observed.
And instead of grousing when the birdsong starts up in earnest outside my window before daybreak, I just have to smile and think, “my buddies are here.”
These birds have helped me to find a kind of contentedness — and connectedness — that I never really knew before. For this reason I am happy to serve as an unofficial ambassador for the Global Big Day.
You don’t even need to leave your yard or spare more than a few minutes to participate. But if you’re into it, it’s definitely worth making an outing of it. Pick a park or a strolling route and
head out, even if the weather is less than perfect. You might catch a glimpse or sound bite of a bird that’s just passing through.
The scheduling of Global Big Day is no accident; it occurs during a point in spring when migrations are at their peak. So, no matter where you are on Earth, you’re getting one of your best shots at witnessing a great variety of species in a compressed amount of time.
For instance, the song of a nifty little bird called the blackpool warbler has been drifting though my backyard. This is an unusual interloper, but it’s a pretty impressive flyer capable of flapping its wings nonstop for a flight over the Atlantic from the East Coast to South America.
And during a Sunday visit to Triangle Lake Bog State Nature Preserve in Rootstown, I observed 36 different bird species with the help of my Merlin app. We’re talking scarlet tanager, magnolia warbler, Cape May warbler, red-header woodpecker, Wilson’s warbler (a deflated volleyball has it’s own warbler? Incredible!), blue-headed vireo and least flycatcher, just to name the new seven additions to my life list (now at 133) from that excursion. Now, don’t everyone head out there at the same time; there are precious few parking spots.
But we’ve got lots of options for places to help document Saturday’s Global Big Day, including a national park and some great county and city park systems. Hit the trails, or listen up for the chirping right outside your window.
It’s the OG form of tweeting, after all. Let’s give it the respect it has earned.
When he isn’t toiling away as the Beacon Journal’s senior news director for content, you can occasionally find Joe Thomas musing about everyday life as the Average Joe. Reach him at jthomas@thebeaconjournal.com