#spark bird

[proton-wobbler]

Do you have a spark bird story?

"A spark bird is a term used by the birding community for the bird that hooks someone into their passion for birding."

If you have a story to share, even if it's quite small, please feel free to share with the Spark Bird Project!

The Spark Bird Project

The Spark Bird Project is an ongoing community science initiative designed to gather and share the stories of people’s passion for birds. Re

Dr. Lodi-Smith was recently a seminar speaker in my department and had a wonderful talk about this project and the ways that finding joy in hobbies can impact self-perception and mental health across a lifetime. She really was a joy to have and this project is quite an interesting bridge between psychology and ornithology. I only felt it was right to share the link to her project with my bird themed audience lol.

Also-- even if you're not in the US, you can participate! Dr. Lodi-Smith expressed a desire to diversify the dataset and outside the US is a big part of that.

[newbirder]

Blurry photo? Yes. Spark bird? Also yes! I photographed this Northern Parula in 2012, and it sparked a love of birds and birding that has continued to this day :)

[micajestr]

it was hard, but IT'S FINALLY BEEN DONE!!! the animation is FINISHED!

cw for blood for a sec there!

the illustrations for the flashback below the cut!

[ostdrossel]

The Cardinal

is a bit of a special bird to me, maybe one could call it my “spark bird”, the one that started my interest in birdwatching. My native German eyes were stunned to see the first one, it almost seemed unbelievable to me that it was a wild bird. They have remained one of my favorites, and snowy days bring lots of them. I have seen up to eight individuals recently, and I am delighted that some have started to come to the cams. It’s two different females and a male here. One of the girls has spectacular red accents.

[blackjayx]

Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius)

Random fact: That common and often hated bird was my ‘spark bird’, as you can probably guess by looking at my nickname. I still love to see them, it immediately makes my day better. This one^ tried to fool me by imitating a buzzard. Pretty impressive.

[snailkites]

hey! re: tags on the ruby-crowned kinglet: what is a "spark bird"?

Thanks for your question!

Everyone has their own story of how they took up birdwatching. For many, myself included, there’s a moment that sticks with them. A “spark bird” is one that captivated them early on and “sparked” their love of birds. For me, that was the Ruby-crowned Kinglet. 

I began birding in 2014. I was a freshman in college, exploring the activity fair, when I came across a sad little booth for the bird club, newly founded. I remember thinking to myself, “this looks silly. I’ll do it,,, ironically”. I turned up for a bird walk on campus and went on a few field trips. 

But as the next year began, I saw a bird I’d never heard of before. It was absolutely tiny, with a bland olive body but a furious red crest. Later that day, I decided to start my bird of the week feature with that bird. I started seeing Ruby-crowned Kinglets everywhere on campus. One came within a foot of me as it foraged frantically in some downed pine branches. I was hooked!