The Birds Are Not on Lockdown, and More People Are Watching Them

[douglas9]

The adult male scarlet tanager is a medium-size songbird with glaring crimson feathers and jet-black wings.

It can be hard to spot, because the species tends to forage among the upper branches of tall trees. But it does come down to earth, and sometimes can be caught hanging out with pigeons outside of the Freeport Wild Bird Supply store in Maine.

It is the kind of sighting that can spark a lifelong interest in bird-watching, said Derek Lovitch, 42, a birder and biologist who runs the store with his wife, Jeannette.

“The scarlet tanager is one that gets a lot of people into it, because you’ve got to know: What is that thing?” Mr. Lovitch said.

Business is booming at his supply store, and he’s seeing younger customers than usual. But it’s not the scarlet tanager that has gotten so many people interested in birds in recent months. It’s the coronavirus pandemic.

“There is definitely a craving for engagement with nature, especially considering how limited our ability to move is right now,” Mr. Lovitch said.


https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/29/science/bird-watching-coronavirus.html

[smb]

1. Our Cats Love To Watch Birds Through The Window nt

[3Hotdogs]

2. 11th grade English class and the poem was about the Scarlet Tanager.

Written by a 19th century poet. It was nice and I wondered what that bird looked like --- too lazy to go to the library and there were no internet tubes in 1957. And then I forgot about it.

until ---

I saw my first one, six years ago. I had been chasing birds for 15 years but my eyesight isn't good. People on my birding trips would point to one but I could never see it. Finally, two weeks ago. There were two. Flitting around a small tree, right in an open field, where even I could see them.

Magnificent.

Worth the wait.