Phil was here for about 30 minutes in the early afternoon during the "prime" ETS period. I had a really good feeling that he would see the bird because there was one at the feeder just as he pulled into my driveway. But it didn't happen.
Sounds like it was a fantastic wedding celebration as he had a couple of hours to kill between the first reception and the second reception so I told him to come back over. We watched, scanned, and talked for a while, but I had a bad feeling about it. I'd never seen the ETS this late in the day so I suggested we take a quick drive over to Creve Coeur Lake/Park where they are known to hang out.
We scoured a couple of places with no luck and then finally came upon a field where there were hundreds (if not thousands?) of sparrows. Every minute or so they would rise out of the field en masse. It was an awesome experience. Phil, as an experienced birder, must have been laughing at me because I have never seen such a sight. I think I giggled a couple of times.
But after watching for a while, the flock was obviously weighted heavily toward the House Sparrow. There were also some American Tree Sparrows, and I'm pretty sure others I couldn't identify, but definitely no ETSs. I guess my appointment as Eurasian Tree Sparrow Ambassador of St. Louis will be delayed until my track record improves!
I really wanted Phil to see the ETS, but birds are finicky. There are no guarantees. But if it is any consolation to Phil, his visit made my weekend. He may not be a big time government official, a financial wizard, or the director of a nature conservancy, but he is a VIP in my books. I learned a lot from him, such as:
- Listen carefully to the sounds around you. Even if it is a mile away, you may still hear the bird calling. Birding is more than a visual experience.
- Look closely. Phil saw so many birds in a tree right in front of me that I missed. Next time I look through my bins, I will take my time. I might even do a better job of keeping the lenses clean!
- Know the habitat of the bird you are seeking. Know what it eats. Quit searching blindly. And when the much more experienced birder tells me that "maybe we should stop here" I will listen.
- If you see an unfamiliar sparrow, quickly consider that it might be a female house sparrow. Otherwise, you might waste a lot of time. (This would be funny if you had been there. I just needed to put it in writing because his stories made me laugh.)
- And beyond lessons learned, Phil helped me identify Bird #102 on my life list. I saw a warbler in the trees, pointed it out to him, and he knew exactly what it was: Black-throated Green Warbler!
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