Getting Started - Birding
By Jan Smith, Massachusetts Bays Program

As with any other hobby or sport, nothing beats first-hand experience. With birding, a good pair of binoculars helps, too. Massachusetts Audubon Society offers many activities for beginners to learn birds, as do a number of regional bird clubs. As an online resource, nothing beats www.massbird.org, which connects you not only to up-to-the-second bird sightings in Massachusetts, but also has a vast array of links to a wide variety of organizations, and answers to any question about birds or bird feeding that you could possibly have.

Birders can go out in any weather, at any time of year, in search of something exciting to see, although heavy rain, wind, and snow or fog can make it challenging. An easier way to see a variety of bird species is to set up a bird feeder, stock it well, and see what shows up. Years of experience has given us good information on where best to go to look for birds and what best to do if you want to attract specific birds to your property. The basic equipment that anyone needs to start is a pair of binoculars and a bird book. There are many sources of information for how to choose the best binoculars for your price range, and there are many field guides to choose from, including some specifically targeted for beginners, and some for experts.

So, starting is easy! Get out there and look and see what you find! The exciting thing is that you can really get pleasure from watching and learning about the common species and still have a chance of finding something rare.

Photograph by Rob Kipp www.bird-photos.com