The art of birdwatching: Utah's nature prompts growing interest

The first step is easy. That is, identifying the object fluttering about as a bird. The next step is not so easy. That is, identifying the bird.

Size, shape and coloring suggests possibilities. A good birding book narrows the selection. Years of experience then make it possible to name the bird.

Otherwise, it could come down to simply making a good guess.

One birding book, for example, lists 34 different species of sparrows.

But that's what bird-watching is all about: locating, watching and identifying. And it's popular.

Bird-watching is the fastest growing outdoor activity in the United States. One estimate puts the number of birders in the United States at more than 60 million. Another survey found that one in three people in the United States, in some way or another, participated in bird-watching this past year.

Reasons for this interest in flight vary.

One reason is that birds are everywhere, so it's easy to find a subject. Another good reason is it's outdoors, in forest, backyards, marshes, parks and, interestingly enough, cemeteries. Also, it need not be physically strenuous and is not age specific.

There are approximately 10,000 species of birds in the world, 800 of which are flying in the North America and more than 250 different species that visit Utah.

And, as Susan Snyder, teacher/naturalist at the Ogden Nature Center, said, "You never know what you'll see. Occasionally, it might be a very rare bird. Last year, at the Bear River refuge, there were a couple of McCown's longspurs. They must have flown off course. They usually occur in eastern Wyoming and Montana. Rarely do you see them in Utah. It was pretty cool."

There is, also, a certain mystery to birds. Some cultures believe that by watching their flights and calls they can foretell the future. Early myths associate birds with the creation of the world. The Navajos believe after a great flood, turkeys flew down and rescued seeds. Modern scientists use birds to monitor the environment.

Getting involved in bird-watching is simple enough.

It can be as easy as sitting down and watching birds fly about to buying a birder's standard equipment — a good birding book and binoculars — and visiting a popular bird preserve.

One good place to start is Tracy Aviary in the center of Liberty Park, and Hogle Zoo at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. Detailed signing at the two locations takes the guesswork out by identifying birds and habits.