Let’s start with the basics. What is “birding”?

If it wasn’t for birding, I would have slept through this amazing sunrise on Nantucket

Birding [bur-ding]. noun. 1. The identification and observation of wild birds in their natural habitat.

That's a good enough starting point for me, although I did drop off the last little bit of the definition I found which is “for recreation”. I know of several Ornithologists, with serious Ornithological careers, who might question if their entire field of study was just for recreation after reading my blog (a small risk for sure, but better to play it safe). I also didn’t include the obsessive documentation and creation of “lists” of the birds you have seen, but that's pretty standard as well. 

Trying to outline the ways and means and reasons and rationales that people go birding gets incredibly complex. From watching a backyard bird feeder, to traveling to the absolute most remote places in the world to observe colonies of waterfowl, it all still falls in the same definition. Add in the rationale for these choices and it gets even more complex. Maybe you want to add a bit of life to your garden, maybe you love to see migrating species and imagine where they have been and where they are going, perhaps you're into checking boxes off of lists and chasing rarities, or maybe you’re engaged in a bit of citizen science and want to report your findings to monitor the populations in the face of climate change. 

Of course we’re still talking about birding, but there are other non-avian reasons as well. It's a reason to see the sunrise and sunset in beautiful places. It's a way to get your mind off of work, bills, and other stress. It can be meditative and help you focus on something bigger than the minor issues of the day. It's a reason to travel to your local park, state forest, or Costa Rica. It's an excuse to get away from your kids for a few minutes, or to find a way to get closer to them. It's a way to add some tension and drama in your life, as you look to fill out your “life list” or “year list”.

So “what is birding?” is a simple question to answer in this inaugural post, but “why is birding?” seems like it could take years to understand. I’m trying my best to figure it out, and I’ll share what I learn as I go.