Mallard Pair at Buddy Attick Lake (Nancie Waterman)
If pressed, I would say that I am an intermediate birder. I can successfully identify the common birds, as well as most of the regular migrants and less common birds, that might wander through my area. I’ve also seen some less common and rare birds, around here and in other places, that I would recognize again. Basically, when it comes to identifying birds, I know enough to be dangerous, not in a lethal kind of way, but in that way of assuming I know something that can lead me wrong. Sometimes you just don’t know what you don’t know. And that is where you make mistakes . . .
Palm Warbler at East End of the Boardwalk (Nancie Waterman / p900)
Photographing Birds at Magee Marsh: In May, Jim and I took our birding on the road. We headed off to “The Biggest Week in American Birding” festival and to see warblers at Magee Marsh near Lake Erie in Ohio. We spent a solid week birding at the marsh and around the area and loved the adventure. During our time there, we saw 101 species of birds and added 27 to our birding life list.
Each May, northern Ohio’s Magee Marsh is a magnet for birders who want to see a wide number of warblers and other migrants up close. Local Ohio birders make the trip even more worthwhile by throwing “The Biggest Week in American Birding” festival. It falls during the height of warbler migration, with all kinds of activities held at area birding hotspots. If you are a birder, it really is an awesome adventure.
