Also, you don't want to forget the advantages of taking a course. The USDA
Graduate Studies offers Natural History Field Studies courses, including one
on Birds of Prey. I took this course at Rust Sanctuary in VA and found it
to be very informative and helpful (not that that makes me an expert in the
area by a long shot).
Suzanne Richman
From: ecj100@xxxxxxx
Reply-To: ecj100@xxxxxxx
To: alcanblaine@xxxxxxxxx
CC: va-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [va-bird] Re: First Spring Birding
Date: Tue, 06 Mar 2007 13:19:13 -0500
Blaine
Let me second Paul's excellent advice and add a few thoughts.
1. In addition to time in the field, spend some time with the books. In
addition to Wheeler, I recommend Jerry Liguori's Hawks from every Angle.
Some time spent reviewing what to look for in advance will really help you
zero in on the important items when you are out in the field. Pete Dunne's
book Hawk's in Flight can also be helpful.
2. Spend some time birding in groups. When somebody IDs a hawk, don't be
afraid to ask them, for example, what makes that a Cooper's Hawk rather
than a Sharpie. Then see if you can make out the points they mention.
3. Realize that hawks are not easy, but that it will get easier with
time. So just get out there and do it.
Eric Jeffrey
Falls Church, VA
-----Original Message-----
From: pmkane@xxxxxxx
To: alcanblaine@xxxxxxxxx
Cc: va-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Tue, 6 Mar 2007 12:25 PM
Subject: [va-bird] Re: First Spring Birding
Blaine,
Welcome to the Northern Virginia Birding Community.
While birding isn't always as easy as some veteran birders would have
others believe, time in the field usually helps with most
identification problems.
Sure, it can be frustrating getting an identification wrong, but
calling a bird incorrectly is not some kind of big-deal birding sin.
I have made a career out of calling birds incorrectly, and so far as
I can see, the world is still turning; and no one who I bird with
believes that I am anything other than a veteran birder. When you are
in the field working identification problems to the best of your
ability, you will be flying as close to the heart of the "birding
flame" as any veteran birder I know.
Besides your field guide, look for a copy of Brian Wheeler's Raptors
of Eastern North America. You can probably pick up a copy of this
excellent desktop resource at One Good Tern on Fern Street in
Alexandria, VA. Lots of great photographs, range maps, and species
accounts in this very readable reference.
When you are in the field, don't be in a hurry to look a raptor up in
your field guide. Instead, look at the bird for as long as
circumstance and common sense permits. Don't be afraid to call a bird
incorrectly. I have learned quite a bit from my own birding mistakes.
When I am looking at at perched raptor, if possible, I look first at
the bird's head, then its wings, and tail. When I am looking at a
flying raptor, if possible, I look first at the bird's wings and then
its tail. This approach usually helps me begin working identification
problems from a solid footing.
With enough time in the field, your own raptor identification skills
will improve.
Paul Kane
Falls Church, VA
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