Most birders have a “spark bird,” a bird they saw that really caught their attention and put them on the path to becoming a birder. At this year’s Cape May Autumn Weekend, gregarious Jeff Gordon and his buddy Jim Rapp interviewed a number of notable birding personalities (and, incongruously enough, me) on the topic of our spark birds. After polishing this piece with the help of Bill Schmoker, Jeff posted seven magnificent minutes to YouTube. Check it out!
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.
This is great! I wish I got included. Not sure what I would pick though… chickadee maybe.
Mine was the American bittern, the first bird I IDd with my 1940s edition of Peterson’s field guide. After that, I was hooked.