The Ardent Birder: On the Craft of Birdwatching

by Todd Newberry

If you wash dishes with binoculars around your neck, own more spotting scopes than shoes, and read the Bird Chat listerv before and after your first cup of coffee, then you can only be one an ardent birder. Biology professor and lifelong devotee of our fine feathered friends Todd Newberry has written 50 short essays that range from meditations on bird-watchers' daily events to philosophies of why they do what they so ardently love to do. THE ARDENT BIRDER is the first book in the vast field of popular birding literature to focus on the birder, not just the bird. A thoughtful gift for the bird-watcher who has everything, THE ARDENT BIRDER includes 75 delightful drawings and includes suggestions for how intermediate-level birders can hone and share their skills in the field.

Genres: Birds, Nature, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2005

Reviews

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author Todd Newberry was an invertebrate zoologist at the UCSC, where I also worked, and well known for his birding obsession. I attended the lecture announcing publication of The Ardent Birder in 2005. I finally read the book I purchased 20 years later! The book is quite unlike his quirky lecture, where he played slowed-down bird songs so that we humans could experience their complexity within our limited range of hearing, then took us all out on a field trip down a nearby trail. Still, the book is plenty quirky and fun. Pen and ink drawings of bird engaged in unlikely actitivites by Gene Holtan accompany the text.

That said, it’s not for everyone. Not a beginner book, nor an avid birder’s book. More for intermediate level birders who know the basic birds of their area and want tips on distinguishing similar species, working within a birding group, learning bird calls, counting birds, note taking, collecting equipment, and leading bird watching tours.

There are basic tips as well. Some of the most useful involve binoculars. As he stated in his lecture, binoculars look like huge predator eyes to birds. He recommends keeping binoculars at chest level until a bird is spotted, with elbows held close to the body. Then, slowly and smoothly moving just the forearms to bring the binoculars to the eyes. Another (literally) brilliant tip also reduces body motions that might scare birds. Instead of physically pointing out a bird to a colleague, Newberry employs a small mirror to shine a bright spot in the foliage near where he sees the bird.

Well worth reading for advanced beginner/intermediate birders with a sense of humor.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this gentle, eloquent book for the respect and care it showed to both birds and people. It will stay on my bookshelf for those times when I need a reminder of that.

[Seana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oddly, two different people asked for this book in the bookstore I work at yesterday. Oddly, because it's not new. But they reminded me how much I love this book, and I'm not even a birder. Though it really is for birders, it is also about how to move in the world with civility, grace and awareness.

[Heidi Marc-Aurele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good tips in this book.

[E · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as helpful as I'd expected. The stories were interesting but not particularly helpful to a beginner. Perhaps broader appeal to a more experienced birder.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of practices that apply to life as much as to birding.