Thrill-seeking and why we like to do it Global Big Day 2023 special for bird watchers

heard by searching for YouTube videos or on the Merlin app.

Since this date was picked as the peak of spring migration, we were focused on the beautiful warblers migrating from the south in full breeding colors. We managed to spot or identify the songs of 17 species of warblers, almost half the 35 species that can be observed in New York.

That 35 species includes several species are very tough to fnd because of their sneaky habits, or because they are found in limited numbers, or in small geographic areas.

But warblers aren’t the only birds heading for their breeding grounds. Thrushes, tanagers, buntings, sparrows, and a variety of shorebirds are also winging north. The habitat dictates what birds are likely to be found.

Most shorebirds will be along the Atlantic beaches, but certain species like ponds. Many songbirds are feeding on caterpillars in the treetops, leading to a phenomenon known as “warbler neck” from craning to see tiny birds fitting 100 feet overhead. But some prefer the low thickets where they can be singing a few feet away while being completely hidden. A caveat at this time of year is that birds exhausted from fying over the ocean will land anywhere it looks like they can fnd food, regardless of whether it’s their preferred habitat. In addition to being fun, Big Day provides scientists with a snapshot of numbers and locations of thousands of bird species worldwide.

Added to the Christmas Bird Count and the newly introduced October Big Day, a big picture of the movement, migration routes and whether species are gaining, stable or declining can be teased out.

You don’t have to be a gonzo birder to participate in any of these events, you just need a free ebird account and a place to observe birds to contribute to citizen science.