Birding by the Bay Santa Cruz - Marti Selman Photos: L. Selman

Birding by the Bay
(From Santa Cruz Magazine - Nov. 2007)

By MARTI SELMAN
Photos: L. SELMAN

Rich in species, our area is one of the nation’s prime birdwatching spots.

For many years, I viewed the obsession of birdwatching as meaningless: Memorize hundreds of birds’ scientific names, sit on a three-legged stool, and if one happened to fly by, check it off your list. But what did I know? Certainly nothing about habitats, breeding plumage, or the miraculous migrations of these winged creatures. But all that changed on one rainy Saturday in January, when my husband and I sallied forth on our first Big Day.

Little did we know that the Monterey Bay area is considered a prime birding spot. But Robin, our brother-in-law visiting from Florida, did. So, it was mainly to please him that we went driving around in the rain with a single pair of binoculars (his). Every time the rain let up, we got out of the car and walked slowly down a pathway in a park, along the beach, around a marsh. When Robin spotted a good example of a species, he would identify it, then pass the binoculars around. We even learned about pishing, an onomatopoeic sound which birders make to arouse a bird’s curiosity to entice them out of the bush.

At the end of the day, we sat around a fire and made our checklist. Being novices, almost every bird we spied that day were lifers (a birder’s first recorded view of a species). But even more interesting, was a subtle nagging already pulling at our solar plexus. Whether it was the brisk winter air in our lungs, the comforting warmth of the fire, or the universal satisfaction of compiling a list, after one taste of this addictive non-sport, we were hooked.

Next, we began attending beginner’s bird walks, offered regularly by the Santa Cruz Bird Club. Our unique coastal microclimates are a draw to a huge variety of feathered creatures, from pelagic (ocean-going birds which come on land only to nest) to shore birds and waders, to raptors. On a single Saturday last January no less than 75 species were counted during a beginner’s walk at Natural Bridges State Park, led by local expert birder Stephen Gerow.

Our area also is a stopover hub for scores of winged visitors, who pass through to refuel and make connecting flights elsewhere. Fall and spring are the best time to observe them in migration, as they head south, anywhere from Mexico to Argentina for winter feeding grounds, or north, all the way to Alaska, for breeding and rearing young.

Once you enter the world of birding, your thirst for information is sharply whetted. With more than 810 species in North America alone, a single lifetime will barely get you started. Yet, with a little effort, you can begin to identify plumage, wing-beat patterns, nesting behavior, the jizz (overall color, size, shape and movement) of at least a few species.

Learning to identify calls and songs is another matter. Most field guides also provide a phonetic rendering of one or two sounds from the vocabulary of each species. Yet, since many birds employ complex language as well as regional dialects, these phonetic renderings will mostly just confuse you. The field guide, for instance, tells you an Olive-sided Flycatcher’s call is “Quick! Three Beers!” But don’t believe it. He clearly says “Just me and you.”

“Many people don’t realize how much skill it takes to be a good birder,” says Todd Newberry, our local don of birdwatching. “Beginners are sometimes blown away with the level of skill required, and need to have their confidence rebuilt.” Still, he says, birds are creatures which are accessible to most of us on a regular, daily basis.

Since that unforgettable wet, January morning, we have traveled to flyways and hot spots all over the United States. But at no other place have we encountered as great a diversity of species as we have right here in our own Monterey Bay area. This fact is supported by evidence gathered during the Christmas Bird Count, a 100-year-old tradition sponsored by the National Audubon Society.

In this venture, the U.S. is mapped into a grid into which local volunteers brave wind, rain, snow or what-have-you to count the number of species in their grid during a three-week period over the winter holidays. This is the ordinary person’s chance to participate in “Citizen Science.” Data collected helps scientists in compiling vital global information about birds and their prospects for the future.

Our area always ranks high in the number of species counted.

David Suddjian, our local bird “accountant,” keeps meticulous records on dates and counts for each migratory species sighted each year in our area and these can all be viewed on the Web site of the Santa Cruz Bird Club.

In his book, “The Ardent Birder,” Newberry waxes contemplative on the varieties of birding experiences. While not every outing elicits an “Audubon moment,” birding provides a connection to what is sacred in the world. Birds are emblematic of the world around us, its beauty as well as its fragility.

But “the real value of birding,” Newberry says, “is more illusive than just trying to salvage nature. And it is a less materialistic concept than mere conservation.”

It lies, he says, closer to the magic of a soul’s connection to the earth, as (and he quotes Charles Hartshome), “life touches life.”

*The Santa Cruz Bird Club: Everything you need to know about birding in our area, including events, checklists, and where and when to find the birds at http://www.santacruzbirdclub.org/

*Rare bird alert: To get the latest information about birds in the Santa Cruz area, you may want to join the Monterey Bay Birders’ listserver, which sends out alerts regarding new and rare sightings. To subscribe, send an email to:
majordomo@biology.ucsc.edu with the message: subscribe mbb [address].

*Next Christmas Bird Count for Santa Cruz County:Dec. 20, 2008.

*Local contact:
Dsuddjian@aol.com