Tennessee Birders by the Numbers: 2018 (Vol. 14)
Welcome to the Tennessee Birders by the Numbers (TBN) report for 2018. Like
last year, 2018 continued to be a great one for rare birds in Tennessee with
Virginia's Warbler, Western Tanager and Evening Grosbeak among the most recent
(see my Evening Grosbeak story at the end). The days when birders thought 300
is what they could expect unless they were locally very active seems to have
past. Even at 313 I still have some pretty easy birds on my TN target list
(birds mainly found in the Memphis area), so perhaps 2019 might also be a good
one for me. Reports coming from other states suggest several rare northern
birds have been seen further south than usual this winter and even without more
western birds I am optimistic about our chances here. What about Lucy's
Warbler, one of my favorites? You never know! It would be interesting to see if
there is a larger pattern in the number of rare birds seen in TN recently, but
we may need more than a couple years of data to help confirm that.
Of course, for birders who travel beyond our state borders, the end of 2018 and
the beginning of the new year means that the American Birding Association has
reached its 50th year. If you haven't seen the December issue of Birding (Vol.
50, 6) you have missed a good one! Of great interest to TN birders, Chattanooga
is the home of the founder of the ABA, James Tucker. Jim, as he is known, is a
Professor of Educational Psychology and holds the McKee Chair of Excellence in
Learning at the Univ. of Tennessee, Chattanooga, and has his Ph.D in
educational psychology from the Univ. of Texas, Austin. The December issue of
Birding also included an insert of the very first mimeographed edition (edited
by Tucker) of what would soon become Birding, "The Birdwatcher's Digest." Most
of the first edition was devoted to the "Games Birdwatcher's Play," and as Jim
introduced the topic, "Each issue of The Birdwatcher's Digest will include the
latest statistics on the various games that members are playing and how they
rank on the overall basis." The statistics in the first edition included the
top birders in the AOU (American Ornithological Union) Area; the top five
birders in the AOU for both 1967 and 1968; birders by states (49 states in all,
without Washington, D.C., Hawaii, provinces and territories in Canada, and the
French territory of St. Pierre et Miquelon); the top birders by the number of
birds in individual states; the top birders as a percentage of the state bird
list for individual states; and an "All States Game Scores" (an early version
of Total Ticks), which divided the mean total species per state into the mean
percentage per state. Thus, with regard to the latter, the average total
species across all 49 states divided by the average percentage per state
yielded a score for which Jim Tucker ranked first followed by Richard Russell
of Virginia. Other results are of interest. The top birder in the AOU Area was
Fred Haerich with 601 birds, followed by Tucker with 550, Joe Greenburg with
530, and our own Benton Basham with 517. Wow, have we come a long way! And for
the state of Tennessee, Benton was first with 225 birds, followed by Roger
Swanson with 213, and Tucker with 211. And note that at the time (1968),
Basham's total represented about 72% of the TN bird list of 312! Finally, you
may be interested to know Joe Greenburg had the highest total of any state, 426
birds for California, with a very strong 92% of the birds on the CA list.
Russell and Tucker both came in second/third (tied) on the percentage of state
birds with 76% for Utah and Florida, respectively. Happy 50th ABA! It has been
a wonderful half-century! And thank you Jim Tucker for starting it all!
This report like those of the last few years will include data since Vol. 13 up
to the present (thus totals from the beginning of 2019). In the Miscellaneous
category this year one birder wanted to see the All Time World List again, and
the All Time Annual Total Ticks, and All Time Total Ticks will also be included.
I. TN List (top 50)
We begin like last year with a "conflated" TN list in that I incorporate the
ebird list into the ABA list resulting in a combined list. Since some new
birders use ebird exclusively (and some use the ABA exclusively) the following
list is as good as can be produced. The highest totals were used when there
were differences. TN birders should continue to make changes to make sure both
lists are consistent. Note that we are quite close to having 50 birders with
300 TN birds (38 now).
1. 388 Jeff Wilson3-t. 377 Mark Greene3-t. 377 Michael Todd4. 369 Daniel
Jacobson5. 360 Clyde Blum8-t. 356 David Chaffin8-t. 356 Tommie Rogers8-t. 356
Terry Witt10-t. 355 Kevin Calhoon10-t. 355 Dollyann Myers11. 344 Ruben Stoll12.
343 Ron Hoff14-t. 342 Gail Clendenen14-t. 342 Steve Clendenen15. 341 Rick
Knight16. 336 Victor Stoll18-t. 335 Phillip Casteel18-t. 335 Francis Fekel20-t.
330 Beth Schilling20-t. 330 Christopher Sloan21. 329 Damien Simbeck22. 327
David Kirschke23. 326 Rick Waldrop25-t. 322 Morton Massey25-t. 322 Thomas
McNeil28-t. 321 James Brooks28-t. 321 Ken Oeser28-t. 321 Alan Troyer29. 318
Chris Agee30. 317 Stephen Zipperer31. 314 Scott Somershoe33-t. 313 Kevin
Breault33-t. 309 John O'Barr34. 308 Richard Preston36-t. 307 Susan
McWhirter36-t. 307 David Trently37. 303 Rick Houlk38. 300 Rick Shipkowski39.
298 Rack Cross40. 297 Joshua Stevenson41. 296 Chloe Walker42. 295 Mike
O'Malley47-t. 292 Edmund LeGrand47-t. 292 Cyndi Routledge47-t. 292 Steve
Routledge47-t. 292 Jeffrey Schaarschmidt47-t. 292 Michael Smith49-t. 291 Graham
Gerdeman49-t. 291 Joseph Hall50. 290 Nolan Walker
II. TN Birders on State/Province Lists
Many TN birders are on the lists for other states and provinces and with the
removal of the ABA threshold for listing we get a better picture of TN birders
beyond TN. The following list includes TN birders by the number of
states/provinces in which they reported lists. Also included are the
state/province abbreviations for those TN birders who are first among TN
birders on these lists. And the state/province abbreviations that are in
parentheses are ones where the birder has achieved 50% of the states/provinces.
So for example, David Chafffin has reported lists in 62 states/provinces, and
is the leading birder in 13 states/provinces, and in 10 has achieved at least
50%. Of course, Hawaii is now included because it is now in the ABA Area. Note
TN birders have achieved the majority of birds in 36 different states and
provinces! Major change from last year: David Chaffin is now tied with Rick
Waldrop as the leading TN birder in Georgia; the list of birders adding states
this year includes Ken Oeser, Gail and Steve Clendenen, Mike O'Malley, John
O'Barr, Joshua Stevenson, and Thomas McNeil; and three birders joined this
year: Rick Houlk, Morton Massey, and Terry Witt (now living in FL and already
with 341 birds on the FL list--got to love the Sunshine State!).
1. David Chaffin (62 states/provinces), (AK), (CA), DC, (GA-t), (IN), (KY),
(ME), (MI), (OK), (SD), (WV), NB, YT2. Kevin Breault (60), CT, ID, (IL), MA,
MT, NH, NV, NY, OR, RI, UT, (VT), WI, WY, BC, (MB), NS, ON, PE, PQ, SK4-t. Ron
Hoff (58), AB4-t. Rick Waldrop (58), (GA-t), (MD), (MN), (ND), (VA)5. Dollyann
Myers (55)6. Ken Oeser (54)7. Gail and Steve Clendenen (51), (AZ for Gail)8.
Mike O'Malley (44), HI9. David Trently (39), (PA), NF10. Scott Somershoe (35),
(CO)11. Gail King (33)13-t. Tommie Rogers (31), DE, (FL), (IA), (KS), (MO),
(NE), WA13-t Michael Todd (31)14. Francis Fekel (26), (NJ)15. Kevin Calhoon
(24) (NM), (OH), (SC)17-t. Stephen Zipperer (19)17-t. Joshua Stevenson
(19)19-t. Rick Houlk (18)19-t. Rick Shipkowski (18)20. John O'Barr (17)21.
Thomas McNeil (11)22. Clyde Blum (8)24-t. Morton Massey (7)24-t. Darrel Wilder
(7)25. Jeff Wilson (6), (AL), (AR), (MS), (TN)27-t. Mark Greene (5)27-t. Rick
Knight (5), (LA), (NC), (TX)28. Rack Cross (3)29. Terry Witt (2)
III. ABA Continental List (with a few exceptions)
The following are our TN birders based on the ABA Continental list. Note that
this list has a new name as indicated last year. The previous name was the ABA
Area list. The ABA Area list now includes Hawaii, while the ABA Continental
list does not. Since most birders use the latter I have also used the
Continental list here. Note that while 280 birders are on the new ABA Area
list, 1,090 are on the Continental list. If you are on the ABA Area list and
are not now on the Continental list, or if your ABA Area list is greater than
the Continental list I have noted that. My suggestion is birders include their
totals on both lists. Also be sure your totals are consistent with other
listing sources such as ebird, and I have used other sources here if the totals
were greater than the ABA results (and if you know of inconsistencies that are
the result of birders who have passed on please let me know so I can update
their results appropriately). Finally, as you can see there are many birders on
the TN list (above) who are not on either the ABA Continental list or the ABA
Area list. It may be time for you to explore the birding world beyond Tennessee
if you have yet to do so, and support the ABA (our oldest national birding
association) at the same time!
1. Benton Basham 8812. David Chaffin 846--ABA Area list3. Dollyann Myers 8004.
Ruben Stoll 7875. Victor Stoll 7866. Tommie Rogers 7837. Kevin Calhoon 781 +
813--ABA Area list8. Rick Waldrop 7479. Clyde Blum 74010. Gail and Steve
Clendenen 75911. Rick Knight 71812. Ron Hoff 71513. Ken Oeser 716 + 769--ABA
Area list15-t. Kevin Breault 70615-t. Darrel Wilder 70616. Michael Todd 704 17.
Terry Witt 69218. Rick Shopkowski 64819. David Trently 63220. Francis Fekel
61521. Mike O'Malley 61322. Gail King 60723. Scott Somershoe 60324. Thomas
McNeil 54725. Gary Brunvoll 53126. Stephen Zipperer 41027. Joshua Stevenson
40028. John O'Barr 344
IV. Canada
Several birders went north this past year. This is are current list.
1. David Chaffin 3322. Kevin Breault 3313. Dollyann Myers 2644. Rick Waldrop
2635. Ron Hoff 2616. Kevin Calhoon 1457. Mike O'Malley 1198. David Trently 929.
Ken Oeser 8510. Gary Brunvoll 7411. Scott Simershoe 6012. Gail King 23
V. Lower Forty-Eight
This list includes all states with the exception of Alaska and Hawaii. Our
leaders for 2018 are David Chaffin at 770, Tommie Rogers at 761, Kevin Calhoon
758, Gail and Steve Clendenen 739, Rick Waldrop 732, and Clyde Blum 716.
VI. United States
Since ebird includes the top 100 ebirders for the United States, I have
incorporated those results in this ABA list. Accordingly our leaders are: David
Chaffin 851, Ruben Stoll 841, Victor Stoll 840, Dollyann Myers 827, Kevin
Calhoon 813, Michael Todd 780, Clyde Blum 777, Tommie Rodgers 776, and Ken
Oeser 773.
VII. AOU North
The AOU stands for the American Ornithological Union, established in 1883, and
the AOU North is covered by the AOU checklist of North American birds including
North and Central America. This year our leaders are: Rick Waldrop with 1,732
and a rank of 9, followed by Kevin Calhoon 1,286, David Chaffin, 1,282, Clyde
Blum 1,040, and Gary Brunvoll 1,021.
VIII. AOU South
Rick Waldrop continues to lead with 2,314 and a rank of 12, followed by Gary
Brunvoll with 752, Gail King with 750, and David Chaffin at 525.
IX. Mexico
Dollyann Myers is at 732 and a rank of 26, followed by Clyde Blum with 685
(rank of 35), with Gail King at 660, Gary Brunvoll 608, Ron Hoff 579, and Rick
Waldrop 567.
X. Central America
Rick Waldrop leads with 909 (rank of 10), followed by Ron Hoff 714, Dollyann
Myers 693, Terry Witt 618, and David Trently 606.
XI. West Indies & Caribbean
Rick Waldrop leads again with 306, followed by Kevin Calhoon with 200, Dollyann
Myers 195, and Ron Hoff with 183.
XII. Europe & Western Paleartic
Rick Waldrop leads with 361, followed by Dollyann Myers 208, Ron Hoff at 192,
and David Chaffin with 186.
XIII. Asia
Ron Hoff leads here with 1,876 and a rank of 10, followed by Dollyann Myers at
1,827, and Terry Witt with 1,495.
XIV. World
As noted before, for my money this is the most important bird list. Ron Hoff
leads with 8,381 and a rank of 6, followed by Dollyann Myers at 8,313 (rank 8),
Terry Witt with 6,488, Rick Waldrop 5,243. Like last year, Claes-Goran
Cederlund leads with 9,411.
XV. North America
Rick Waldrop continues with a great rank of 5 with 1,756 birds, followed by
Dollyann Myers at 1,531, Ron Hoff 1,485, Terry Witt 1,331, and David Chaffin
1,310.
XVI. South America
Ron and Dollyann have 2,624 and 2,522 respectively, with ranks of 8 and 14,
Rick Waldrop is at 2,451 and a rank of 20, followed by Terry Witt with 2088.
XVII. Africa
Ron Hoff has 1,660 and Dollyann 1,658, followed by Terry Witt with 1,287.
XVIII. Australasia
Here, like last year, Dollyann and Ron have 987 and 985 birds respectively, and
ranks of 5 and 6.
XIX. Eurasia
Ron has 2,084, followed by Dollyann 2,058, Terry Witt 1,585, Rick Waldrop
1,103, and David Chaffin 932.
XX. Atlantic Ocean
Mike O'Malley remains best with 66 birds (rank of 24), followed by Ron Hoff and
Dollyann Myers at the ranks of 40 and 43.
XXI. Pacific Ocean
Here, Dollyann has 416 and Ron 403 with ranks of 19 and 21, followed by Francis
Fekel at 160.
XXII. Indian Ocean
Ron continues with a great rank of 5 with 250 birds, followed by Dollyann with
241 and a rank of 8.
XXIII. South Polar Region
This year, Dollyann Myers and Ron Hoff lead on this list with 45 birds and a
rank of 5, followed by Mike O'Malley with 25 birds, and Kevin Calhoon with 24.
XXIV. Millennium
This list includes birders who have been active in the ABA Area since the
century began, specifically this is the ABA Area list for the 21st century.
First are Gail and Steve Clendenen with 739 and a rank of 15, followed by Clyde
Blum with 714 and a rank of 23, Michael Todd with 672, David Chaffin at 663,
Kevin Breault 655, and Mike O'Malley 585.
XXV. Photographed ABA Area Continental
Kevin Calhoon leads with 672 and a rank of 24, followed by Mike Todd 668,
Tommie Rogers 640, Ken Oeser 623, Clyde Blum 602, Ron Hoff 546, and Mike
O'Malley 474.
XXVI. Photographed World
Ron Hoff has the fantastic rank of 2 with 4,902 birds (up 312!), followed by
Kevin Calhoon with 2,014, Chris Sloan with 1,794, Gary Brunvoll 1,586, Mike
Todd 1,431, Ken Oeser 1,130, Mike O'Malley 655, Rick Waldrop 291, and John
O'Barr 284.
XXVII. World Families
Dollyann Myers and Ron Hoff are leaders here with 232 families and a rank of
24, followed by Rick Waldrop with 166. The highest rank has 250 families (up 3
from last year).
XXVIII. All Territories and Provinces
This list is quite similar to the Total Ticks list immediately below and
combines all the territories/provinces in Canada. Kevin Breault leads here with
1,380 birds, followed by David Chaffin 1,073, Rick Waldrop with 594, Mike
O'Malley 130, and David Trently 92.
XXIX. Total Ticks
The main focus of my birding for 49 years now (hard to believe!), Kevin Breault
leads with a rank of 3 and 12,522 birds, followed by David Chaffin 11,786, Rick
Waldrop 9,048, Dollyann Myers 7,729, Ron Hoff 6,911, Ken Oeser 6,563 (up 590!),
David Trently 5,202, Gail and Steve Clendenen 5,172, Mike Todd 3,839, Mike
O'Malley 3,400, Rick Shipkowski 2,518 (up 193 from last year!), Stephen
Zippered 1,408, and John O'Barr 1,093.
XXX. Canadian Provinces/Territories
Like last year, eleven TN birders are on the lists for 11 out of 14 Canadian
Provinces and Territories: Kevin Breault, David Chaffin, Gail and Steven
Clendenen, Francis Fekel, Ron Hoff, Dollyann Myers, Ken Oeser, Mike O'Malley,
David Trently, and Rick Waldrop. Kevin Breault leads in British Columbia,
Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, and Prince Edward Island;
David Chaffin leads in New Brunswick and Yukon Territories; Ron Hoff leads in
Alberta; and David Trently leads in Newfoundland & Labrador. And as noted last
year no TN birders are on the lists for Northwest Territories, Nunavut and St.
Pierre et Miquelon.
XXXI. Annual Lists
On the ABA Area Continental annual list, Ken Oeser got 477 birds for 2018 for a
rank of 9, and the Clendenens got 340 at a rank of 22. Ken Oeser also had 2,825
Total Ticks for 2018, which I believe puts him in first place on the All Time
Annual Total Ticks list! These totals include the highest annual Total Ticks in
ABA history--see below. Another version of this list can be found on my
biographical profile on the ABA website. Steve Clendenen also got 624 annual
Total Ticks last year.
XXXII. Annual List for Tennessee
Ken Oeser led with 240, followed by David Chaffin 213, and Steve Clendenen with
181.
XXXIII. Miscellaneous
A. All Time World List
The current World list (above) includes birders who are still active but does
not include some who have died or are not currently active. So this is the All
Time World list (top 40). TN birders, Ron Hoff and Dollyann Myers have ranks of
12 and 14. Ebird results are noted.
1. 9,411 Claes-Goran Cederlund2. 9,053 Hugh Buck3. 9,002 Peter Kaestner
(ebird)4. 8,946 Robert Walton5. 8,942 Tom Gullick6. 8,825 Jon Hornbuckle7.
8,601 Philip Rostron8. 8,595 Joe Thompson9. 8,464 Bob Bates10. 8,449 Martin
Edwards11. 8,402 Phoebe Snetsinger12. 8,381 RON HOFF13. 8,355 Ronald Huffman14.
8,313 DOLLYANN MYERS15. 8,230 Hans Jornvall16. 8,107 Stephen F. Bailey17. 8,071
Bernard Master18. 8,068 Alan Greesmith19. 8,063 Steve Kornfeld20. 8,060 John
Williamson21. 8,041 Dave Sargeant22. 7,946 Ian Lewis23. 7,930 Keith Betton24.
7,909 Elaine Nye25. 7,877 Jan Smith (ebird)26. 7,865 George Winter27. 7,804
Chuck Probst28. 7,798 Pearl Jordan29. 7,790 Chris Doughty30, 7,774 David
Narins31. 7,709 James Plyler32. 7,686 John Gee33. 7,682 Jan Smith34. 7,664 Mark
Van Beirs35. 7,663 Joseph del Hoyo36. 7,656 Cagan Hakki Sekercioglu (ebird)37.
7,657 Dodge Engleman38. 7,654 Ken Cole39, 7,621 David Fisher40. 7,597 Niels
Paul Dreyer
B. All Time Annual Total Ticks
1. 2,825 KEN OESER (2018)2. 2,578 Jack Hugus3. 2,439 Kenneth Ward4. 2,134
Jeannette Piecznski5. 1,868 Cecil Kersting6. 1,825 John Hubbell7. 1,712 Leo
Miller (2014)8. 1,698 Thomas Heatley9. 1,693 Ron Furnish (2018)11-t. 1,685 Ron
Furnish (2016)11-t. 1,685 Marie Mullins12. 1,655 KEN OESER (2017)13. 1,569 Leo
Miller (2013)14. 1,548 Jan Smith15. 1,507 Edwin Smith16. 1,461 Ron Furnish
(2014)17. 1,404 Edwin Powers18. 1,393 Shirley Smith19. 1,362 Karl Overman20.
1,359 Ron Furnish (2017)21. 1,294 Albert Filemyr22. 1,290 Tom Schlegal23. 1,285
Richard Rosche24. 1,253 Robert Walton25. 1,200 Don Chalfant
C. All Time Total Ticks
This list may also be found in my biographical profile on the ABA website.
1. 18,271 Paul Lehman2. 15,760 Deuane Hoffman3. 15,594 Kenneth Ward4. 14,712
Mike Resch5. 13,594 Thomas Heatley6. 12,990 Jon Dunn7. 12,522 KEVIN BREAULT8.
12,209 Cecil Kersting9. 11,944 Leif Anderson10. 11,786 DAVID CHAFFIN11. 11,262
Richard Rosch12. 11,253 Jeffrey Sanders13. 10,921 Stephen Dinsmore14. 10,515
James Beard15. 10,468 JPat Valentik16. 10,177 Frank Bumgardner17. 10,138 Robin
Carter18. 9,965 Bernard Morris19. 9,883 Don Chalfant20. 9,679 Karl Overman21.
9,588 Caroline Eastman22. 9,449 Edwin Smith23. 9,387 Kenneth Brock24. 9,364
Kent Davis25. 9,328 Robert Walton
That's it for Vol. 14 of TBN. Best of luck for 2019! I apologize in advance for
any errors. Many numbers and calculations were involved. If I've made a mistake
let me know and I'll make the change next year (and thanks for the changes this
year, I realize I write these TBNs more quickly than I should). If it's a big
mistake I'll email the group asap.
Personally, I continued my general downward path with regard to Total Ticks,
ending 2018 with only 280 new ticks for a total of 12,522, six less than what I
got last year. While getting to 13,000 does seem more distant to me at this
point, I was able to achieve 12,500, a small goal I have had. I visited 20
states this year (up from 19 last year), including three trips to Alabama, and
two to Arkansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Mississippi, and Missouri. Still hoping
for that western trip! Alabama remains my most visited state (23 times),
followed by Arkansas and Kentucky with 15, and Georgia and Illinois with 14
OSTs (out of state trips, now a total of 327 of these, not including birding
trips to states I have lived in--10 of those). Hopes for this year include
another Alabama trip, and at least one trip to see my daughter in Chicago.
Friends and relatives will also likely send us to Colorado, Maine and perhaps
Minnesota (with possibilities in adjacent states). If so, I am likely to move
more states/provinces to the 50% level (now 21, with 12 at 45% or higher).
Still thinking about a spring break trip, and a longer trip when school lets
out, but nothing concrete at this point. No new life birds for the ABA
Area/Continental lists, still at 706, the first year since 2008 that I did not
add at least one life bird, but of course my focus has been Total Ticks. 2019
is my 49th year of birding and my ambitious goal is now 13,000 Total Ticks by
my 50th. Okay, very ambitious.
While the new crop of young or beginning birders is not yet out (spring is the
usual season), I thought I would talk briefly again about birding habits. The
main issue here comes down to effort. I tell my students the most important
factor in any activity in life is how much effort is expended. I often see
young birders in the field looking through bird guides, using binoculars for
birds they hope will somehow come into view, and of course now using phones.
Much of birding should be done in study at home. Put the effort into
preparation before you get in the field. Read your field guide, learn bird
vocalization, and study the birds you can expect to see or hear when you are
birding. Perhaps it is because birding appears to be so easy that bad habits
develop, but becoming a better birder (and over a smaller amount of time) is a
function of good habits. Now, there are those who say you should leave your
field guide, binoculars and phone at home when you go birding but I would not
go that far. But keep the book in the car, use binoculars effectively, and only
use bird vocalizations infrequently and in breeding season not at all. While
birding is far from a science, think of yourself as a scientist by developing
the hypotheses that will help guide you to correct identification. In any
habitat lots of birds are of course possible, but with preparation at home you
will be able to reduce the number of possible birds (and identification
hypotheses) considerably. Mainly use binoculars and vocalizations (quietly) to
check or test your hypotheses. Good birding habits will allow you to progress
much more quickly. Soon you will be walking (slowly, please) the trails at
Radnor Lake State Park (the nicest birding place in my area) without
binoculars, as I often do now, but yet fully experiencing everything the place
has to offer including the birds.
A word about birding groups. One of the nice things about birding is that it is
a social activity, but using good habits when in a group is important as a
beginner, and experienced birders need to be sensitive to those who are new.
New birders learn best by figuring out identification by themselves, so
experienced birders should be more reticent about identification. As in the
classroom questions like, "what is that bird?" should be responded to by
something similar to "what do you think it is," and "explain to me why you
think that". As an experienced birder be a role model for good habits and
effective teaching. And of course, it is important not to discourage young
birders. What you know is less important than what they can learn with your
help. The comparison I would make is between the "young professor" and the "old
or effective professor". When I was a young professor it was important to me to
tell students everything I knew. Some students would learn but many would not.
Some would fall asleep! Effective professors give students the opportunity to
engage with the course material and they get students learning by asking them
questions. A quick story. I was birding in Canada at the time and a young
birder who appeared to be visibly handicapped asked if I had seen a particular
bird. This was a bit uncomfortable because it happens the bird was right in
front of us. And the bird was among the most common in North America. I was
about to lecture on the topic, my "young professor" approach, when I decided to
adopt my "old professor" manners and said I had not seen the bird yet but
suggested careful study of these birds might well end with his ultimate
success. I then left the birder hoping he would figure it out and learn more
about this family of birds than if I had simply pointed out his embarrassing
mistake. Later I heard he had become quite expert.
What about too much effort? It is important to have a life beyond birding,
something I believe I have discussed before in these pages. In my Total Ticks
travels I often meet birders, some quite experienced, who seem to have nothing
else going on in their lives other than birding. I certainly support their
strong dedication but because not many people can earn a living from birding,
these birders have given up too much, sometimes even a spouse, family, and a
gainful occupation as significant opportunity costs. If there is one thing I
would tell young birders it is that birding can be a wonderful part of life but
a very difficult one if you view it as an occupation when in fact you do not
have one. And if you are interested in studying birds, there is no better way
than taking ornithology courses, getting a college degree, and going on to
study birds and doing science professionally. While such a path might not
always be easy, you may find as one of my professors would say, "nothing worth
doing is easy". You may say I am just not smart enough to be a scientist, but
cognitive ability is only about 1% of what is needed--the rest is effort. I
have known birders, chess players, and contract workers in maths and the
sciences who are easily as smart as the best professors and scientists. The
difference comes down to discipline, the discipline to spend the long hours in
an effort to try to make the world a better place. And when things get tough,
as they will if you want to make a difference, I recall a line from a science
fiction movie, "never give up, never surrender!" Failure is often just another
way of saying you have not spent enough effort. So get off the sofa, turn off
the TV, and put down the phone. Learn something important, enroll in your and
our collective futures. (That is not to say I won't take a peek at the
super-duper game today. I don't have a prediction but I'm sure the Saints are
not going to win!)
As always you can't list your ABA totals unless you are a member of the
American Birding Association (www.americanbirding.org). It is still quite
affordable and you get a great deal with the magazine "Birding," the new
magazine called "Birders Guide" series that takes on a specific topic in
significant detail every issue (travel gear, listing/taxonomy, etc.), and a
much better interactive site for listing. And with this the 50th year of the
ABA, there's no better time to join!
Always be good to birds and generous to birders of all stripes, totals and
ranks, and depending on where you stand be an effective professor or a
dedicated student. I don't know of a better way to go through life. Good
birding and good totaling!
Kevin BreaultBrentwood, TN
https://www.mtsu.edu/faculty/kevin-d-breault
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_D._Breault
EVGR story:For those of you who have banded birds you have had the experience
of physically working with birds, having birds in your hands. It is a wonderful
experience, and one I had when I helped run the second largest inland bird
banding operation in the U.S. (I believe we had more than 50 nets at the time).
This was in Vermont, and as important as those memories are for me, my
experience with one particular bird at the time, an Evening Grosbeak, stands
out. The bird was found unable to fly. I believe it had been attacked by a
hawk, something not very uncommon for birds in bird nets (I once saw a Kestrel
decapitate a Fox Sparrow only a few yards from me). In any case, we did
everything we could to care for the grosbeak and he was with us for most of a
week I think before he died. Losing the bird was very emotional for us given
how much effort we spent on him and because it was one of the first birds I had
identified as a young birder new to the area, but it left me with an even
stronger interest in birds and bird conservation. Many of use spend a great
deal of time looking for rare birds, but it was this code 1 bird, quite common
in some areas, for which I was most attached. If you ever have the opportunity
to work with bird banders it is certainly well worth the effort.
