Atlantic Puffin Maine

Atlantic Puffin, Bar Harbor Pelagic, Maine, July 2017

Birding, Race, and Inclusion

  • The New Yorker talks to Corina Newsome, one of the organizers of #BlackBirdersWeek. “I’m always on guard. I try to prominently display my gear. Even if I don’t see a bird, if I see white folks approaching me, I immediately look through my binoculars. I need them to know what I’m doing. There’s no way I’m going in a remote area, or the woods, without a white person as cover.” 
  • Recordings of two conversations among Black birders are available here and here
  • An ABA podcast looks back on Black Birders Week, and more importantly, looks ahead.
  • PBS Nova and Christian Cooper talk birding and inclusion.

Blogs and other highlights

  • A rare Terek Sandpiper in Rhode Island, chased by boat: “Having the boat as our mode of transport was looking rather fortuitous. We decided to give it a shot.”
  • The White-throated Sparrow is changing its song, and Canada is not happy about it.
  • IUsedtoHateBirds keeps it real: “Black lives matter and wear a fucking mask.”
  • NPR’s Short Wave does a Birding 101 podcast.
  • Seagull Steve distracts us with always welcome Costa Rica trip reports