A birder is a birdwatcher. As a young child, I became a bird watcher years ago when I was a member of the National Autobahn Society. One hot day after Mother's Day and before the arrival of the 17-year cicadas, I decided to do some gardening. A day earlier I had spotted a beautiful red bird with a crest and black face. A bird that I believed was a Cardinal. That bird inspired me to go outside. I hadn't engaged in many outside activities since the pandemic, but I had received my best inspiration and motivation to engage with the world again that day. I felt a little more comfortable engaging with nature. The one constant in this chaos of the pandemic has been the continuing cycle of nature. The seasons changed, the sun shined, the snow and rain fell, and the leaves of the trees still changed colors. When I spotted the bird the first time, with my naked eye I quickly grabbed my phone and quietly snapped a picture through my screen door. The next day I gathered up my materials for gardening and a few bushes I needed to plant. I also had a packet of wildflower seeds to plant to attract honeybees. the most important task at hand was to rid my garden of weeds. I had a bird nest above my awning, and they chirped most of the day. They kept me company.
The sun was bright but there was a small breeze blowing. It was quite relaxing outside with nature. I had dug up most of the weeds and replanted and repotted the flowers and bushes that I had purchased from the local nursery. I had a folded blanket that I had placed on the stairs beneath me. I sat down to take a breath of fresh air when my phone rang. My daughter had called me, and she could barely hear my voice over the chirping and warbling birds. I had her on speaker. She laughed amazed by the constant bird chatter. My hands were dirty, and my cell phone was on the steps behind me when I spotted the cardinal. I whispered to her that the bird was back. She had seen my picture of the bird on Facebook. We smiled because someone had called him a Robin. He was breathtaking. His colors were bright and beautiful. The bird had landed on a high branch on a tree right in front of my view. I tried not to breathe too hard. I knew that the bird would take off in flight at the slightest movement by me or any other creature. I was happy that my neighbor’s calico cat who usually lounged outside was inside at the moment. I am not a skilled photographer so I knew that I could easily miss the shot. Birds aren’t going to pose for anyone, professional or not. The sun was blinding. I adjusted my eyes, held my breath, and took the shot. I found it strange that the same bird came back to visit me on the next day. I think he must've realized that he was now a star since I had posted a picture of him on Facebook. I think he came back for his close-up.
This experience pushed me to search for more answers about who he was although I suspected that he was a Cardinal, but I wasn't quite sure, so I downloaded an app called Merlin sponsored by the Cornell Lab which allows anyone to identify any birds in the area.
My search was successful. I was able to upload the picture of my bird and discovered that it was a male Northern Cardinal. It stated that my bird was a striking and familiar backyard bird throughout most of eastern North America, Southwestern U.S. and even Mexico. Although he didn't make a sound that day, I read that he has a high-pitched metallic chirp and a series of loud. sweet whistles. Based on the information on the app, I learned that the females were brownish with red wings and tails.
The most rewarding thing about capturing a picture of this bird was how stress free I felt, how connected I was, more connected than I have been in the last year, and how sociable with others I became because I felt the desire to share a beautiful bird with the world. Then next time he comes back, I’ll just enjoy his beauty. After all, I don’t want his newly found fame to go to his crest.
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