13 little birding moments
While out birding one morning, I came across these stacked stumps. Each is a representation of one of my neglected ideas. 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘠𝘰𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘳
Birding is one of the few hobbies that seamlessly aligns with mindfulness. It clears my head and encourages me to be present and take in my surroundings. When I walk through local parks, bask in nature, and lift my binoculars to my eye sockets, the chatter of my incessant self-talk quickly silences. Getting outside and enjoying nature can be therapeutic for our mental health. Most of us know this, but we don’t consider how it can help us think more creatively — or at the very least inspire us to pursue creative endeavors.
As a birder, I’ve spent countless hours in the field with my binoculars, pondering the species I see, the places I visit, and my thoughts and emotions percolating internally throughout the day. These days, my birding practice is hardly about ticking off species on a checklist. I go birding to pause, unwind, reset, and find clarity. And, more than anything else, birds often inspire me to write or dream up a future project.
Life is hectic, and I have yet to consistently make an effort to sit down at my laptop to write a blog post or an essay. What so-called “writer” prioritizes self-preservation over putting their words out into the world? I’m essentially a copywriter for my day job, but I can’t string words together beyond a marketing assignment. I’ve been thinking about this predicament all winter long.
I’ve recently realized that I keep a bunch of random musings in the Notes app on my iPhone, whether about birds, something I noticed, or my inner monologue. Sometimes I’m bold enough to add these snippets to my eBird checklists. So, to get beyond the hurdle of publishing something, anything, I’ve compiled some excerpts of brief encounters where I’ve shared space and time with some winged wonders. I hope my bumbling words will inspire you to make your own notes about the quotidian of nature, birds, and life in general.
Common Nighthawks
I hurried home after visiting Holliday Park to see if I could catch a nighthawk flying over the yard for my yard and green lists. Sure enough, one swooped past me, heading west. Then another flew westbound overhead minutes later. And another. Two more. The erratic flapping and bursts of wing motion are transfixing. My imperfect human vision can’t detect what they’re eating with their large mouths, but their feeding on the wing appears casual and yet supernatural. I watched the sky until sunset, when the katydids began to stir and the bats emerged.
Sept. 2, 2022 | Home, Indianapolis, IN
Upland Sandpipers
Slender sandpipers (long, skinny neck and small head with wedge-shaped tail) with yellowish legs that perched on the wire/poles as well as on tall bushes in the soybean field. When one perched on the wire, it would flap its wings and then settle into position. Their slow flight was very labored, like a Chimney Swift, but they would sometimes glide high up. The birds were very vocal both while flying and while perched. Coolest birdsong (rising quick, bubbly song with an elongated two or three notes at the end) we’ve ever heard! Activity quieted down when the rain approached. Perhaps these birds should really be called “Grasspipers” due to their choice of habitat.
June 23, 2018 | Grissom Air Force Base, Peru, IN
Canada Warbler
I had just exited the shower when Jonathan alerted me to the Canada Warbler, so I was only wearing a bath towel. I ran out the front door barefoot, grabbed my microphone, recorder, and headphones, and ran out. Soon after, my neighbor arrived on the street. She’s a bus driver in Washington Township, and there must have been a couple of kids on the bus because she opened her window and said something to me. Because of the excitement, I forget what she said exactly. Her tone was such that I shouldn’t be in the front yard in my towel.
May 20, 2022 | Home, Indianapolis, IN
Western Sandpiper
I agonized over this bird while in the field because I had never seen a Western Sandpiper (a lifer) before. … I questioned several species — Stilt, Sanderling, White-rumped, and Western. I eliminated White-rumped (normal primary projection) and Stilt (short dark legs). I kept wondering about Sanderling due to splotchy upperparts, like on a juvenile bird, but [an eBird reviewer] kindly ruled that out and confirmed the pics as a Western. … I am a terrible shorebirder, but at least I can find and point out the weird/unusual birds.
Aug. 5, 2023 | Eagle Creek Park, Indianapolis, IN
Chuck-will’s-widow
My first Chuck-will’s! I was walking around the limestone rock shelter with my mom and cousin when I heard it singing from the west, just across Onion Creek as the sun set. Pretty incredible experience standing there listening to it, with the shelter’s history of use by ancestors of the Tonkawa tribe more than 2,000 years ago.
June 4, 2022 | McKinney Falls State Park, Austin, TX
Rufous Hummingbird
[Orange is the] happiest color. … I had no idea RUHU was a near-endangered species. They are also the northernmost (Alaska) breeding hummingbird species. I’d like to learn more about the tendency of western hummingbird species to migrate east in the fall and winter. It’s wild.
Due to the kindness of the [property owners], their love of native plants, and their enjoyment of sharing their yard with like-minded nature lovers, that was quite possibly the most enjoyable “chase” bird at a private residence. Kathleen said she’s planted 300 trees on her property! They collaborated with EcoLogic to construct the prairie, which is now in its first year of full bloom. For real, #YardGoals.
Sept. 11, 2022 | Private Residence, Westfield, IN
Tree Swallow
Have you ever paid attention to a Tree Swallow’s constant low-key song? (I’m not referring to their calls while flying but to their singing while perched.) The experience is very enjoyable, as the repeated watery gurgles and chirps create a strange song. These birds can make a lot of noise despite having such a small-looking mouth.
May 4, 2022 | Eagle Creek Park, Indianapolis, IN
Brown-headed Cowbirds
When I let my dogs out this morning, six cowbirds were making a racket in a tangly part of the backyard. I wish I’d pressed the record button sooner and recorded their vocalizations while they were perched nearby. When I decided to record, they circled the house in two groups of three as if a chase had begun. … Cowbirds should irritate me as a birder. Nevertheless, this species’ unusual vocalizations outweigh their lack of parental skills. I like their whistles and rattles in a childlike way.
March 29, 2023 | Home, Indianapolis, IN
Magnificent Frigatebird
After hearing about a Magnificent Frigatebird while at a Marquette Park lakewatch, this was a close-call chase from northwest Indiana to Indianapolis. These rarely inland birds are always on the move, and I was worried the entire 2.5-hour drive we would miss it.
We arrived just minutes before sunset and saw it through our spotting scope from Rick’s Café Boatyard. We looked west at the Eagle Creek Sailing Club’s cove, where it was perched in a tree, presumably ready to roost. … I’m glad we stuck around as daylight diminished because a Bald Eagle flushed it. When another eagle arrived, the two harassed the frigatebird. We saw its long, angular wings and unmistakable silhouette as it flew above the treeline. At dusk, it flew against the backdrop of a pink-orange sky.
Nov. 1, 2020 | Eagle Creek Reservoir, Indianapolis, IN
Morelet’s Seedeater
We didn’t have Morelet’s Seedeater when we visited the boat ramp this morning, so imagine our surprise when we found it perched in the sweet acacia tree right of the ramp not long after getting out of our car. Initially, we thought we had a Lesser Goldfinch because it was hunkered in about mid-height due to the wind. Upon closer observation we noticed the buffy breast and lighter cheeks.
Jan. 6, 2021 | Salineño Wildlife Preserve, Roma, TX
Chimney Swifts
If heartache is the emotional experience of absence or loss of a loved one, then my first-of-season Chimney Swifts are the mystical incarnation of that feeling’s departure, lifting my winter depression and releasing an incomparable delight from my body.
April 25, 2023 | Holliday Park, Indianapolis, IN
I wish more people, birders and normal folx, would appreciate the allure of Chimney Swifts. They’re the underdogs of urban spaces, declining in numbers, and yet they’re flying prowess is unmatched by other birds as they meander the sky daily. If you look up and watch their boomerang wings flutter or see the larger-than-expected body (“cigar-shaped” is rather reductive, no?) of one swooping a little lower to our terrestrial plane, you’ll see why I’m enamored with their style, skill, and presence. … Perhaps swifts also remind me of my Naval aviator father and the joy he must have felt in a cockpit while flying.
Aug. 25, 2022 | Home, Indianapolis, IN
Blue-headed Vireo
Hearing a Blue-headed Vireo singing sweetly through my home office window was the gift I needed today. Based on last year’s yard sighting (4/27/22), it’s one day ahead of schedule. I walked barefoot outside to see it, and after it moved down the street, I marveled at the oaks for delivering such exciting finds since we moved into this house.
April 26, 2023 | Home, Indianapolis, IN
Ruffed Grouse
When we saw the Ruffed Grouse, it was walking on the forest floor about 15 feet away from us. It stayed flightless the entire time. It frequently called quietly, making some “pew” calls in twos and threes and single cat-like purrs (whuuuut!). The bird perched on a fallen log to watch us before approaching; it got within two feet of our group while we stood quietly in place at the forested edge. The Brown County Epic, a mountain-biking event, was happening while we were there, so two to three cyclists would occasionally pass by and spook the grouse further back into the woods. We didn’t even need our binoculars. Unbelievable. It played Inspector Jacques Clouseau with us and every now and again would grab and yeet leaves. …
The grouse experience filled my cup, so to speak, so much so that I didn’t go birding again for days. The rabbit hole of learning more about this species kept me delightfully occupied.
Oct. 8, 2022 | Yellowwood State Forest, Nashville, IN