New team member Abby Pope describes how she joined this year’s Birdathon:
I’ve always considered myself to be more of a bird-watcher than a birder: I enjoyed watching and listening to birds, but never actually thought to track or identify them. I was introduced to the hobby of birding by my boss, Nadya Bennett, at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. Nadya, a passionate birder herself, encouraged me to join the Zoo’s team, the Wayward Warblers, for the 2018 BirdaThon, as she thought I would enjoy it. Though I was a complete novice, I was motivated by Nadya’s enthusiasm, and I decided to give it a shot—I already had binoculars so half the battle was fought.
As Nadya slowly began introducing me to warblers, I became more invested. I no longer wanted to be ignorant of who the brilliant, yellow bird that flew in front of me was. It became even more thrilling when, one day, we went to a local park and I was able to identify a few warblers on my own. It suddenly became clear to me why so many people enjoy this hobby—not only was it simply awesome to see these birds who have come such great distances in person, but it was just so satisfying to correctly be able to identify them.
I was amazed at the number of people who were at Magee Marsh during Biggest Week. It’s really a special thing to bear witness to so many people with the same passion congregating. While it was occasionally silent, with birders focused on getting a view of various birds in their binoculars, you could often hear people go through extreme lengths to explain to those around them where exactly a bird was in a tree, so that they, too, could catch a glimpse of a bird they might not see for months or even a year.
While it was a long day, I’m glad Nadya asked me to participate and that I decided to take a step out of my comfort zone and try something I might not have considered doing before. I’ll definitely be back next year!
Here’s a list of the 116 species that we saw on our 2018 Birdathon:
Canada Goose
Trumpeter Swan
Wood Duck
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Wild Turkey
Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
American White Pelican
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Green Heron
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper’s Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Sora
American Coot
American Golden Plover
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Dublin
American Woodcock
Wilson’s Phalarope
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Capstan Tern
Common Tern
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Eastern Screech-Owl
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Horned Lark
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Swainson’s Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Prothonotary Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Connecticut Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Cape May Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Palm Warbler
Yellow-rumpled Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln’s Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow