one of the reasons NC and the Triad are such great places to bird is because we are in the Atlantic flyway which puts us right in the migratory routes, and lastly, our topography and climate are ideal for birds. According to Dick Thomas, Director of the Piedmont Environmental Center in High Point, a lot of wildlife watchers choose birds because they are much eas- ier to access and study than other forms of wildlife. With our many lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, bogs and wetlands in the Triad, there are many many great places to watch birds. Asked what makes people so fascinated with birding, Dick says it gives people a challenge and sense of self- discovery while studying living art. He also says there is the beauty of the birds, their unique behaviors and patterns of behavior that fascinate the watcher. Getting started is not hard according to Dick, simply join up with a local club BEFORE purchasing any binoculars so they can guide you on the best set of binoculars for your budget and style of bird watching. He says besides binoculars you really only need a good guidebook. Just some of the great places to bird watch in the Triad:
-Hanging Rock -Pilot Mountain
-Greensboro Watershed Lakes (offer periodic bird watching pontoon boat tours)
-Piedmont Environmental Center -Bog Garden
-local rivers such as the Dan, Haw, Yad- kin etc.
-Hamilton Lakes (hosts lots of migratory Warblers according to Ann Steighner with Piedmont Bird Club)
Dick says that one reason the Triad is
such a haven for birds (whether year ‘round or migrating) is our diverse habitats which attract many different species. Some species need woodlands, others need wetlands, some need pine forests while others may need deciduous forests. We have a wonderful variety of habitats in the Triad to support a great variety of birds. Greensboro specifically has some very
interesting history around birding. Accord- ing to Ann Steighner with Piedmont Bird Club, and source listed below on the story of his life, T. Gilbert Pearson was a high school dropout in the early 1900’s. He was an avid egg collector and mount- ed birds as a hobby (according to https://
www.carolinabirdclub.org/chat/is- sues/1986/v50n2pearson.pdf). His fascina- tion with birds is why he did poorly in school. He had, however, always wanted to go to college for ornithology and he had been collecting bird eggs since he was a young boy and had become quite good at mounting birds. He contacted many col- leges to see if they would pay his tuition and board, and only Guilford College re- sponded in the positive if he agreed to continue adding to his extensive egg col- lection and mounting birds for their pro- gram. Gilbert did graduate and taught biology there, then went on to become the first faculty member at UNC-G. His egg collection can still be found in Guilford College’s ornithology department and is kept under lock and key only to be brought out for ornithology students to view periodically. He also started the Au- dobon Society in the U.S. Ann also shared that there exists a list
on the Piedmont Bird Club webpage of the most notable bird sightings in the Triad each year, and in 2016 the most rare bird in her opinion was an Iceland Gull. The Iceland Gull’s migratory route is NOT in the Triad, no one knows why it showed up on Lake Townsend but it stayed there for a while which gave birders from all over NC and VA a real treat and many chances for viewing. If you like to drive/travel, you may
consider learning more about the NC Bird- ing Trail. This extensive trails system is a partnership among six organizations in- cluding: The NC Wildlife Resources Com- mission, Audobon NC, NC Sea Grant, US Fish and Wildlife, NC State University Coop Ext., and the NC Parks and Recre- ation Dept. The birding trail consists of 103 specific sites in NC with I-95 as the border between the coastal plain and piedmont triad and I-77 as the border between the piedmont triad and the mountain regions. There are three NC Birding Trail guide- books, one for each region for Coastal, Piedmont and Mountains. You can also sign up for rare bird alerts
on the Carolina Bird Club website, and one of their top pieces of advice for newer birders is to “consult birding re- sources ahead of time to better your chances of seeing seasonal species and birding is a lot about being at the right place at the right time.” So, hopefully you are ready to start birding whether by your window of your home or in your car, or a walk in the woods. Birding, good for the Triad and good for you!
JoAndra (Jo) Proia is the Outdoor Writer for Natural Triad. Her na- ture writing has been published in several outdoor magazines and she is working on her first guidebook, “Piedmont Lakes” to
be published in the spring of 2017. She is an ACA Certified Kayak Instructor and Guide with GET:OUTDOORS WOMEN ON THE WATER, a kayak shop in Greens- boro. She is certified in Wilderness First Aid and is an L1 Level yoga teacher. She can be reached at
jo.proia@
naturaltriad.com or LIKE her page at
www.facebook.com/ getoutdoorswomenonthewater. See ad on page 23.
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