Birding for the Curious: The Easiest Way for Anyone to Explore the Incredible World of Birds

by Nate Swick

Explore the Fascinating World of Birds

There's something about birds that fascinates people and invites us to pause, look and listen to the beautiful, natural world around us. But do you always recognize what you see and hear? With this book, you'll get started. Birding for the Curious is a beginner course in birding for every nature and animal lover out there. With it, you'll learn what birding is all about, what birders do and how you can become one. You'll also learn how to:

- Find more birds
- Identify the birds you see
- Attract more birds to your yard and feeders

Birding for the Curious is the perfect gift for the nature-lover in your life, or an excellent introduction to birding for you. It won't be long before you can easily recognize and name the common birds in your area. With this book, you will enjoy nature at a whole new level.

Genres: Nonfiction, Birds, Nature, Animals, Science, Ornithology, Biology

176 pages, Hardcover

First published July 21, 2015

Reviews

[Patrick McGrady · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up on a whim while perusing the stacks at my local library. I think I liked the art? Birds are pretty cool? I'm not sure exactly why.

Whether I knew it or not, that fateful day would prove to be a seminal moment in my new life as a birder. I haven't been so suddenly taken by something like this in a long time. This book led me to the ABA website, Birding podcasts, checking out multiple field guides from the library, etc. This got me very excited for my new favorite hobby.

The book itself was so great. Most hobbies/activities that you are unfamiliar with can seem so foreign that the very thought of starting from scratch seems dreadfully overwhelming. This book is perfect for someone just starting. Nate breaks down the very basics and gives a great jumping off point in a way that seems fun and completely manageable. I have never seen a more well put together introduction to anything. The book is light, fun and FULL of great information. I will be honest, I took a lot of notes in a separate notebook and I already feel like I have learned so much.


Side story - I have always enjoyed watching birds. We have a few feeders in the yard, but to become a serious birder I felt I needed to go beyond my backyard. This past weekend, I took my wife, daughter and dog over to a local preserve for the first time. It was beautiful wooded trails, a pond, marsh, etc. It was an absolute blast. We saw a bunch of different types of birds including my first officially identified and logged wild bird: Green Heron. We watched 3 of them, perched on stumps just barely sticking out of the water as they fished for dinner. It was so incredible to see such a unique bird snatch a tiny fish from the water and watch it wiggle in its beak. Sharing that moment with my family meant everything to me. I will remember that moment for the rest of my life.


In case it wasn't clear..... I am all the way in on birding.

[☄ · Rating 3 out of 5]

mr. swick called my favorite bird "a sentient piece of tree bark with a huge mouth" this book slaps

[Ginny · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, this is a nice book to hold. The pages are thick and glossy. The size is just right, text and drawings pleasant to read. For book feel this gets a 10! This book, though, was intended for a brand new birder, which I am not now. I still learned things, but not as much as a new birder would.
Recommend for new birder.

[Hapzydeco · Rating 3 out of 5]

A must-have for an aspiring birder.

[Amber Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent, quick, interesting read. As a newer birder, this provided the essentials to really get into birding and to know how and what to look and listen for. The tone of the book was very inviting and informative, it made you even more curious about topics within birding. The art and visuals are also pleasing and helpful. 10/10 would recommend for anyone interested in getting to know birds better.

[Emily G · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

“How you go about birding is not a concern. The important thing is that you go birding… I say it because a world with more birders in it is a world that prioritizes wild places and wild things. That’s the world that I want to live in.”

A great resource guide for those new to birding (me). It made me interested and excited about the hobby! 🦜🦆🦢🦅

[Anna Abney Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 A good introduction to birding.

[Christine Convery · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely illustrations in this short intro. A lot of "what to buy," but I'll admit, I'm sold.

[Kate Belt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this today and yesterday. Amazon tells me I purchased it on March 8, 2018, so it was time. The water color illustrations are beautiful, and I loved this little book. One page was devoted to the various shapes of beaks and how they work for particular species. It’s definitely geared toward novices and would probably bore experienced birders. I enjoy birds without being a birder and enjoyed learning how they approach searching for, attracting, and identifying birds. My great takeaway was learning what the numbers and settings mean on my little binoculars that belonged to my husband. Now maybe I’ll be able to see out of them the next time I want a closeup of birds in my tree. It also covered best seeds, etc., for different birds, and oh yes, now I understand the reason behind what I’ve observed by my own self, which is that I see fewer birds during the summer months because they aren’t here. This book would make a lovely gift for the novice birder.

[Kalena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non-fiction/birds; first read by this author. This was a short and sweet introduction to birding. You may recognize the author from one of the biggest citizen birding websites in America--eBird. It is a cute book that offers very basic, but solid information about birding. This is not a field guide although the top two he recommends are family favorites. For a more thorough introduction to birding, please check out Sibley's Birding Basics which is excellent and also fairly short. I picked this one up at our library and had it done in an hour or so. Definitely like Nate Swick's writing style--very easy-going, informative, and encouraging.

[Chris Keefe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Valuable, interesting, and - as someone just stepping into bird ID - worth the price of admission. This was a library book, so the price of admission was rather low, but that's beside the point.

Swick knows his stuff, and does a lot to help the amateur avoid bad habits early. Look for shape, size, behavior, before looking for color. Don't write off large flocks, but scan them for difference - you might find something exciting in and amongst the common. And do take the time to learn from others, and to share what you learn with the community.

Thank you, Mr. Swick, for a soft landing in the world of birding.

[Connie D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully put-together book for anyone who is thinking about or just starting to watch birds.

I discovered, in reading this, that I know more than I thought I did...but I would have appreciated reading this earlier in my birding career.

[Candice · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you, or someone you know, wants to learn more about birding, I can think of no better book than Birding for the Curious: The Easiest Way for Anyone to Explore the Incredible World of Birds. Nate Swick is an avid birder who writes for the American Birding Association and seriously knows what he is talking about. I have been birding for over 20 years, myself, and I have given similar advice over the years. I love this book because it is well organized, thorough, very readable and funny. He includes photos and drawings along the way to enrich and explain each topic. You will learn about choosing field guides and binoculars, how to identify what you find (both by sight and sound), bird feeding, citizen science, tips for finding birds in the field, birds in different seasons, using eBird and learning other helpful skills. Throughout the book there are "activities" to try the skills you are learning about along the way.

There is really only one thing I disagree with. Nate Swick advocates leaving your field guide at home when you go birding. Fundamentally, we have the same goal, study the birds at home and pay attention to what you are looking at while you birding. However, after the bird has moved on, I find it tremendously useful to remind myself of field marks and double-check tricky identifications. It helps me know what to look for next time and helps me reinforce identification skills along the way.

Honestly, this is the best introduction to birding I have found to date. Enjoy!

[Michel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this book in several respects:

* I found the book so thin and so elementary (even though I am a raw beginning birder) that it did not bring me significant information that I found useful.

* the font and presentation choices are atrocious and go totally against basic UI guidelines. I do not have great eyes, although they are good enough to read hundreds of books per year---I found the book very difficult to read, probably it the worst 1% that I have found. I was probably twice as slow, perhaps worse, reading it as I normally am.

* The few illustrations are pretty but not very useful

* The book is skewed towards is East Coast birders.

In the end, I do not find it a useful book. I am chucking it.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

After formally birding for at least a year or two now I realized I never sat down and read any kind of books on birding. I saw this on a very nice display at the library and picked it up. I think it's fantastic for people who've thought about birding and haven't done it yet, and still pretty good for the maybe slightly intermediate. I definitely learned some things and think it still holds up despite being a little old and very broad. If anything, it's a light read, which is good for a beginner's guide. The illustrations are nice and the pictures are good. Not sure if it's *the* definitive beginner's guide but you can't go wrong with it.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this because Jimmy Carter kept talking about birding in the book I just finished (and also this had nice pictures). I'm now equipped with hot birding tips, the knowledge that falcons are most closely related to parrots, and the inexplicable urge to purchase some field guides (apparently the Sibley one is the go-to).

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this slightly off beat but very refreshing take on how to start off with birding. I started it before I went to the Galapagos and finished it the day after my father died, so a wide variety of experiences in between but overall would recommend it, especially if the mainstream guidance feels overly stuffy to you.

[Stefanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and accessible introduction to birding for novice birders for both backyard and hiking. I appreciate the recommendations on how to find birding groups and how to behave on birding hikes. Also details about a couple annual birding events and how to get involved.

2024 Reading Challenge: Birding Books; More Non-Fiction

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I stayed with this book, though I didn't initially like it. I've been reading a bunch of birding books but what I didn't like about this one was.....the font! It made it difficult to read as i was small and not a standard font. When I reached the middle of the book, I started to appreciate it more.

[Wayne Coltrane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great ornithological value

I've been birding for about a year which is long enough to appreciate the great information in this book. Its well organized and written. I checked it out from my library but I'm going to buy a copy as a handbook for my birding library.

[Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to birding. Nice graphics and conversational writing. May be worth 5 stars on a second reading.

[Agilborder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great intro to birding

[Samantha Landay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent intro to birding for beginners. I got a lot out of it, but if you have been birding for any length of time you may know everything contained in this already.

[Lorraine Sulick-Morecraft · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, helpful birding info, great sketches too.

[Mik · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good, basic, inviting book that walks you through some community norms as well as encouraging exploration wherever you are.

[Mark Geisthardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this book at the library and having been a semi-birder for several years I thought I'd check it out and it was a great and fun read as well as informative and insightful.

[GretchenKR]

Great into to birding book

[Vlad Tepes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super helpful and informative. Crisp and humorous as well. Loved it.

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really helpful and simple tips for getting into an overwhelming hobby.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the book. Very helpful in explaining the basics. The photos and sketches are a big plus. The font used needs to be larger though - it made reading it a challenge.