I and the Bird

In considering this grand dialogue so many of us have deigned to participate in, by which I of course mean blogging, I believe it’s fair to say that it is working. It’s working in the sense that an international community of natural history enthusiasts (perhaps “addicts” would be more accurate) has coalesced around the concept of freely shared insights and observations. It’s working insofar as accurate, detailed information on just about any topic, but particularly birds, is available in a quantity and of a quality never before seen in human history. It’s working in that no one’s appetite for birding articles and photos need go unsated, even in I and the Bird‘s off-weeks. And last but not least, it’s clearly working because vital new voices are chiming in every day.

All of this came to mind during a recent visit to lovely dark and deep, written by my buddy, Corey.  This dynamic new birding blog may be a newcomer to the ever-expanding ranks of the web’s natural history sites, but it was strong right out of the gate. But that makes sense, as Corey has been a dedicated birder for as long as I’ve known him. At first, I only knew Corey as Bad Birdwatcher #1, for reasons that this post makes abundantly clear.  Next, we crossed paths at the Core Team’s first pelagic trip. Then, we met up at Jamaica Bay for some surprising summer birding, and since then, it seems like we meet all the time. During this period, Corey made the move from blog reader to blog writer. And at last, our young blogger is all grown-up as he hosts his first blog carnival, a chipper, chickadee-powered I and the Bird #46.

Are you new to the wild bird blogging game? Amazing new nature sites are emerging all the time and the best way to stand out from the crowd is to submit something exceptional to I and the Bird. The next edition will be hosted by another exciting newcomer (to blogging, not birding,) Jochen of Bell Tower Birding. Send your submissions to me or Jochen (joroeder AT yahoo DOT com) by April 17!

Written by Mike
Mike is a leading authority in the field of standardized test preparation, but he's also a traveler who fully expects to see every bird in the world. Besides founding 10,000 Birds in 2003, Mike has also created a number of other entertaining but now extirpated nature blog resources, particularly the Nature Blog Network and I and the Bird.