Birding is on the rise and if you haven’t added it to your list of pastimes, I’m here to tell you why you should!
Ease your mind, relax your body: less stress, anxiety, and depression
We all know that being outside breathing in fresh air is good for us; time in nature has been proven to reduce stress and anxiety. Hearing birdsong relaxes our nervous system because it signals to our bodies that we are not in danger. Looking and listening for birds is an exercise of mindfulness, helping us slow down and ground ourselves in the present moment, letting go of worries about the future and rumination on the past. Birding is generally not a super rigorous activity, but it does often require walking and gentle movement, which can be beneficial for people of any age. A walk outside almost always improves my mood, especially when I get to see my little feathered friends hopping around or singing their songs.
Good for your brain: better focus, attention, and memory
When you’re looking for birds, you’re locked in paying attention to the sights you see and sounds you hear. You’re looking for movement, you’re listening for subtle noises, you’re zoning in on one or two stimuli. I hear so many people talk about how they’re not able to focus these days because their brains have been hijacked by the quick dopamine hits we get from social media and the constant barrage of distractions supplied to us by our phones and other devices. Birding is the kind of activity that is SO GOOD for our brains because the more we challenge ourselves to slow down and engage in this activity, the more it increases our ability to focus and give our undivided attention to one thing. If you get really deep in it, you may find yourself staring at trees for hours and forgetting your desire for a distraction from reality.
Not all birders care about identifying what kind of bird they’re seeing, but if you do choose to get into identification, it can be a really great tool for keeping your brain sharp and improving your memory. There are over 10,000 species of birds in the world and at least 200 species that I know of that move through my area at some point during the year. Identifying these small creatures isn’t always a simple task and can require great attention to detail. Learning the names of different birds and studying the details that help you to tell them apart helps to create new neural pathways in your brain and improves cognitive resiliency. Being a bird nerd might help you maintain your cognitive functions longer, so go study the birds!
COMMUNITY: Parks as third places, intergenerational friendships, celebrating with others
Another optional part of birding is the social aspect (but I urge you to bird with other people because it’s way more fun that way)! I was mostly a solo birder in the early years of my birding journey but since having discovered the amazing community of birders in my area, I rarely bird alone anymore. There’s been a lot of discourse lately around the disappreance of “third places” in our world and while I agree that there aren’t a lot of places where people can go to regularly encounter and socialize with friends and potential friends, parks are the perfect third place for birders or bird-curious people! I’ve made so many friends at parks and being a birder makes it so much easier to befriend local park-goers. If you’re carrying a pair of binoculars or using your binoculars, it’s likely someone might ask you if you’ve seen or are seeing anything interesting. On the flip side, if you see someone else with binoculars, it’s very easy to start a conversation with them asking about what they’ve seen on their outing. The majority of birders are super friendly and happy to tell you all about what interesting finds they’ve had that day. Some might even show you their special birding spots and invite you to join them to look for birds together!
One great thing about the birding community is that it generally includes people of all ages since it is such an accessible hobby. There aren’t many spaces where I interact with people who are of a significantly different age than me, but birding has helped me build friendships with people of all ages- from kids to retired folk. I think it’s so important to have connections with people from different generations because they often have different perspectives and life experiences than you, giving you new ways to think about the world and potentially challenging your normal way of thinking.
One of my favorite things about birding is the excitement of seeing a new or interesting bird and the joy and celebration that follows! When you get to share this experience with another person or a whole group of people, there’s nothing better! I especially love seeing grown adults light up and high five or jump around because of a cute little bird they just saw. Nothing tickles me more than that. Celebrating with others creates bonds and increases your sense of belonging, so go jump around with some birders and experience the joy of being part of the birding community!
Spiritual benefit: Generates awe and appreciation of the natural world, encourages harmony with the earth, adds whimsy to your life
When you stop to appreciate the birds, you’re engaging in a gratitude practice for the natural world. You’re reminding yourself that there is so much beauty around you and allowing yourself to be in awe of it all. When you allow yourself to lean into awe and gratitude, you are likely to feel much more satisfied with your life. This may lead you to feel more at peace with simply being in the world and reduce the feeling that you need to constantly be doing and consuming.
Birding may also lead you to other nature-related passions as you spend more time outside, you notice more incredible wonders in the world around you. You may take up an interest in bugs or lichen or native plants or land conservation. You will likely start to see the interconnectedness of all living things and want to do your part to live more in harmony with the earth. Showing respect and care to our home matters so much and I do think we suffer in many ways when we are not in right relationship with the earth. Any activity that can move us more into harmony with our planet is an activity worth pursuing in my opinion.
I hope at this point I’ve convinced you to start birding, but if not, I’m urging you to just do it for the whimsy! Birders know that what they’re doing is a little silly and strange to some and generally they approach the hobby with a very playful spirit. Birding is a playful way to engage with the world and the people around you. It’s a way to point out interesting creatures and ask others to join you in your excitement around them. Maybe people will start referring to you as “the bird girl” or if you’re lucky “bird queen”! Maybe you’ll befriend a bird at your local park and chat with them when you’re feeling down. Maybe you’ll make a hoard of birder friends and not be able to go to any of your local parks without running into at least one of them. You’ll never know unless you get out there and let the birds (and birding community) change you!
Join your local birding club! Look for an Audubon chapter near you or search for other birding groups in your area! If you’re in Lexington, join me for a bird walk or bird event with my birding group Lex Bird Cult!