COLUMN: Trailing or Leading: Is MYPath for the birds?

I'm not a bird guy. I like birds. They can be pretty. I like to listen to them. But I'm not very good at identifying them, either by sound or sight.

That is almost okay. You don't have to be an expert on birds to be a contributing member of society. My problem is that I am a seasonal naturalist at McCormick's Creek State Park. The bigger problem is that my mom is very good at birds. Joanne Hannon used to write a column about birds and things for the Spencer Evening World. I should be better at identifying and understanding our feathered residents.

Fortunately, I work on the MYPath Riverfront trail. I have access to more birds than anywhere I have lived before. One of our regular visitors says there is something about the curve of the river right next to our wooded trail that attracts a wide variety of birds. Vern Wilkins can be seen on MYPath with a camera that has a lens the size of the Hubble telescope. Vern is a regular contributor to the MYPath Hotspot on the eBird web page. In fact, Vern and other contributors have recorded 155 bird species along our trail.

Another local group that uses MYPath to find unique bird species is Spencer Pride. Jonathan Balash has led the Rainbow Birders on birding expeditions along MYPath. For the uninitiated, a birding expedition is NOT a hunting expedition with rifles. It is an opportunity to look for and identify birds. If you are fortunate, you may see a bird you have never seen before.

For people like me, I have found tremendous assistance using the Merlin bird ID app. It comes to us from the great ornithology school at Cornell University. If a bird is singing, turn on the Merlin app, and it will identify what kind of bird it is. I am getting to the point where I can identify the birds, and I just use Merlin to confirm. Merlin can identify pictures of birds too, if you can take a good one.

Side lesson: Ornithology is the study of birds. A Merlin is a type of bird. It is a small hawk that eats other animals. Merlins are really cool, and they have been seen on MYPath.

Even though I like birds and am getting better at identifying them, I'm not likely to join a birding expedition any time soon. My wife and I attended a New Years bird count several years ago in a different community. I discovered that I talk too much. The other birders were glaring at me because I might have been (it was never proven) scaring the birds away.

In a similar situation, I am likely to start laughing out loud when some birds are identified. For example, a couple days ago I was listening to a pretty bird song. I pulled out Merlin and learned it was a Yellow-rumped Warbler. How am I supposed to keep from snickering?

Another side lesson: Your knowledge of birds might impress a potential date, but not if you refer to them as a Yellow-rumped Warbler.

I hope you enjoy birds. And I encourage you to bring your curiosity to MYPath. Right now, because the leaves are down, you can see a bald eagle's nest across the river near the fairgrounds. They regularly fly over MYPath, and one of our volunteers knows where they hang out. He has gotten several great photos.

At MYPath I have really learned a lot about birds. I can have knowledgeable conversations with my bird-expert mom. And I feel more confident helping visitors at McCormick's Creek.

Check out the MYPath Riverfront Trail Hotspot on the eBird web page. You will see a list of birds from the common cardinal to the indigo bunting to the osprey. Better yet, visit MYPath in person to see what you can find. Bring your binoculars, your Merlin app and a guidebook. Or just sit and listen. That's okay too.

Kyle Hannon is the Project Manager for the MYPath Trail System. He has served in many community development and trail connection roles throughout the state. On many weekends, he serves as an Interpretive Specialist at McCormick's Creek State Park.