How to Identify a Bird in a Nutshell

It's a Bee Hummingbird (5–6 cm; 1·6–2·6 g )! That's the only bird that could fit in a nutshell. LOL. JK.

Seriously though, there are three big picture overlapping spheres of observation foci to practice when bird watching: Looks, Behavior, and Habitat.

You really should make mental or literal field notes in your bird field notebook about all three of these. You'll notice a "je ne sais quoi" wedge at the top. I'd encourage makig notes about this too. What poetry does this bird stir insude of you? What facets of life does it make you contemplate? What human traits, emotions, gestures do you see in it? Let's all be more like Dawson in our field noting, merging poetry and science when at all possible.

Field Sketching

Here are some good example of a field notes:

Tips and Tricks

1. Scan the outline of the bird. When you're first learning and don't know which parts to pay attention to right away, you can try scanning the outline of the bird with your eyes and noting the colors, patterns, and shapes you see. Start at the tip of the beak and work your way clockwise or counterclockwise. For example if I was scanning a song sparrow, I might note: dark, wedge-shaped bill, brown and white streaky head, brownish and streak back, brown tail, lighter underparts, dark legs and feet, chest heavily streaked.

2. Note level of canopy. A lot of times we'll observe birds where there is vegetation around, whether that be by a creek, in a forest, or in a city neighborhood. Take note if you see the bird mostly on the ground, in the medium sized bushes, in the treetops or rooftops, or soaring in the sky.

3. Compare! Not only is it helpful to compare one bird to another -- contrasting shape, size, colors, behaviors -- it's also helpful to make metaphorical comparisons, like that hawk's call sounded very urgent, like it was super stressed out (red-shouldered hawk come to mind?).

4. Go birding with people who know their birds. Many of us have had many birding mentors along the way and their help and influence does wonders for your learning curve. Ask lots of questions and have fun with bird nerd family members, buddies, or lovers.

5. Intern, Volunteer, or Get a Bird Job. Birding like it's your job helps speed up the learning process as well. Some places to look are Point Blue Conservation Science (shameless plug), Audubon Canyon Ranch, San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory, Klamath Bird Observatory, Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, or your local Audubon chapter.

Equipment

If you are really excited to learn about birds, you'll basically need 3 pieces of equipment:

• binoculars

• a field guide

• notebook

My former recommendation for a solid beginning pair binoculars was Eagle Optics' 8x40 rangers. Sadly, they have gone out of business. My newest recommendation is Vortex's 8x42 Diamondback HD's. The "8" is the magnification and the "42" is the width of the lens (how much light is let in). If you want to get more into shorebirds and seabirds, you should probably get a 10 power magnification (and also a spotting scope at some point). I don't work for Vortex, but these seem to be close in specs, quality, and price to the Rangers at this point. You'll be looking at spending around $200. You can get less expensive binoculars with smaller lend sizes and they will work, but 8x40/42 are the best standard to go by.

People have different preferences for field guides. I like the Sibley guides and use the smart phone app a lot. Here is a list of good guides for North American birds to check out:

• The Sibley Guide to Birds, (I suppose the Second Edition would be better to get at this point) By David Allen Sibley

• The Kaufman Field Guide to Birds of North America by Ken Kaufman (also available in Spanish)

• National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America (this was my first field guide... warm and fuzzy memories...)

• The Peterson Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America, or The Peterson Field Guide to Birds of Western North America

For a notebook, one that is portable and easy to whip out in the field. Consider spiral bound or hard cover. And always remember to bring extra pens and pencils. Waterproof is an option if you want to get hard core.