In the December/January issue of Birds & Blooms, we have an article on Spark Birds. So what is a spark bird? To put it simply, it’s the bird that sparked your interest in birding. It can be anything—a rare sighting, an everyday feeder bird or even a unique moment with a group of birds. We loved hearing spark stories from others, so some of our editors decided to share their spark stories with you. Take a look!
Kirsten Sweet’s (associate editor) Spark Bird Story
The first bird I was ever really in awe of was a cedar waxwing. Not only did I think it was utterly gorgeous, but it was the first bird I was really confident in identifying. After all, there’s no mistaking the bright yellow tip of its tail and black mask around the eyes. I think I’ve finally mastered the difference between a Bohemian and cedar waxwing, too.
I’ve seen tons of pictures of these beautiful birds throughout my years at Birds & Blooms, but for whatever reason, it took me a long time to see a cedar waxwing in person. I saw one just a few weeks ago. It was a juvenile and I’ll admit, it looked a little bland at first, but as soon as I saw the yellow tail, I just knew it was my spark bird. And I can’t wait to see more!
Danielle Calkins’ (associate editor) Spark Bird Story
Considering my first real attempt at birding was in Ohio at The Biggest Week in American Birding, just last year, it’s only appropriate that I discovered my spark bird during that unbelievable experience. During a bird banding demonstration, I was fortunate enough to release one of the banded birds – the gray catbird. I had seen it before and although it’s only gray in color, I loved it. Sure I obsess over birds with bright colors adorning their feathers, but something about the gray of this bird stood striking and beautiful in the surrounding trees.
And then, it was time. The bird was carefully positioned between my fingers before I let it loose. The gray catbird will forever bring cherished memories of my first birding experience, great friends and a hobby I’ll never forget.
Stacy Tornio’s (editor) Spark Bird Story
I experienced my spark bird roughly 10 years ago in northern Wisconsin. We were at my in-laws’ cottage on a little lake for a summer visit, and I heard an eerie wail, echoing across the water. “What is that!?” I asked. I’d never heard such a thing, growing up in Oklahoma.
“Oh yeah, that’s a loon,” they replied casually. The next day I saw it—this gorgeous bird with a jet-black head and red eye. During that whole summer, I loved watching the loon dive deep into the lake for fish, sometimes staying under the water for a minute or more at a time. Now that I have kids, I love sharing my love of loons with them as well. We like to watch it dive down and see who can find it first when it pops up.
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My first close-up view of a Cedar waxwing was when I found one lying on my front sidewalk, an apparent victim of an encounter with my living room window. What a beautiful bird it was!
Black Phoebe
My spark bird was a starling. Someone gave my mother two nestlings that they had found. We raised them and taught them how to hunt bugs. When it was time to let them go, one left and the other stayed with us. He slept in a wicker basket on our screened in porch at night and would fly outdoors all day. If we were outside, he’d land on our heads or shoulders to ride for a while. He would come inside as well and hang out on chairs or on top of the china cabinet or on us. He would wake me up in the morning by prizing my lips open or my ear with his beak. That started my love for ALL birds, wild and domesticated.
It was on Election Day, about 12 years ago. I was driving on a small bridge which spanned the Cedar River, near my home in northern Iowa. Suddenly a bald eagle swooped down the river in it’s dive for food. I had never seen a bald eagle in the wild and almost drove off the bridge! Since then, we have been fortunate in having many bald eagles visit our neighborhood, but I will always remember first sighting our beautiful National Bird on Election Day!
American Robin
Years ago a neighbor asked me had I seen the American Bittern. We were at our summer camp in the Adirondacks. No I answered and he explained what to look for and I went on my way. A few days later on the flat in front of camp there was the elusive bird sneaking along head straight up in the air. What a sight. I kept my eyes ready at all times for him and the blue herons who would come by now and again. The gulp noise of the American Bittern is a key to spotting them. Sort of an announcement.
My ‘Spark’ bird was the Rose Breasted Grosbeak. It was about 5 years ago at the first sign of spring. A flock of about a dozen showed up at my feeder. They stayed around the yard for a couple of days. Sad to say that I haven’t seen one since. They are beautiful birds.
i’LL NEVER FORGET THE SIGHT OF TREES OUTSIDE A SECOND STOREY WINDOW WHICH WAS UP HIGH ENOUGH TO GET A BEAUTIFUL SIGHT OF A LARGE FLOCK OF CEDAR WAXWINGS. THEY LOOKED LIKE THE BULBS ON A CHRISTMAS TREE. STUNNING!
My ‘spark bird’ was the Pileated Woodpecker. I was 21 years old and living in Jacksonville Fl. My neighbor was a birdwatcher. I saw this HUGE bird on a pine tree, pecking away at the bark and the bark was flying all over the ! I thought this bird had escaped from the Zoo and called my neighbor to see. She told me what it was and, the very next day, presented me with my very first bird book, The Golden Guide to Field identifications…Birds of North America (only $4.95 back then). I have it to this day and refer to it more times then to my 3 other bird books. Have been watching birds now for 40 years. Very enjoyable, restful and informative.
My first encounter with a Cedar Waxwing was years ago in Knoxville one spring. The apple tree was in bloom and suddenly we heard this beautiful chatter, upon investigating discovered these fasacinating birds eating the blossoms. Last year in my own yard (Nashville) a flock landed near my birdbath then dined on the dogwood berries. To my supprise just this week I noticed three juvenile on my deck, soon thereafter an adult flew onto a branch of the tulip poplar. What a Thrill!
My first sight of a Cedar Waxwing was at my sunroom feeder in upstate Ontario, NY. It was but 3 feet from my window as I was sitting at a tea table having my morning coffee. I could not believe how beautifully sleek and smooth looking it was with all the blend of yellow, greens, and tan shades…to top it all off with a red tip wing. His dark masked eyes flowed into his butch cut plumage.
That spring the pair must of made a nest in our backyard where we had a full row of cedar trees 100 ft wide. Never saw anymore after that or since.
When I was just a child, I went for an early morning walk in the spring through the timberland surrounding our farm. I remember so well, the sound of the cardinal singing in the trees. It made such an impression on me, that I’ve never forgotten the beauty of him and his song. From then on, I have been an avid bird lover. I still live on the farm with the forty acres of timber and I still treasure the beautiful Cardinal.
My first encounter with a cedar waxwing was many years ago while living on the northern coast of BC . We had a large mountain ash outside of our dining window and in the fall a whole flock stopped at our tree as did many other species during that fall.
I have never seen that many at a time before or since. Beautiful and amazing
My spark bird was a wren that built a nest in a pot plant on our little screen porch when I was about 7 years old. The pot was only two feet off the floor–just right for me to peek in and observe the progress of the eggs and then the nestlings. I was careful not to touch the nest or the little ones, but I’m sure I breathed all over it. Fortunately, Jenny Wren didn’t seem to take offense at my hovering, and never abandoned her babes. I’ve been a bird lover ever since–over half a century.
My spark bird is the Purple Martin. These birds amaze me.I have a 16 hole
apartment house for them in the center of my garden. It was full this
year.I love the chattering they do.Early in the morning they appear to
be discussing the duties of the day. They are very neat birds.There is
never any mess below their houses.They flock together when there is
a hawk in the area.Beautiful to watch as they go around their busy day
feeding their babies.They are used to me so I don’t get swooped at but
anyone coming into my back yard when they have young ones,be it
friend or foe they are swooped at.They come real close you can feel the
wind through your hair.
My spark bird was also a cedar waxwing. I heard a sound that I hadn’t heard before, I looked up in the tree above me and saw the “little bandit” I didn’t know what it was because I had never seen one before. I checked a bird book and found out it was a cedar waxwing, I have been hooked ever since.
My spark bird was the Northern Cardinal. This was the first bird I recognized growing up in my home state of WV. How I loved this beautiful bright red bird and his faithful mate. And what a gorgeous song! I have loved cardinals all my life. We have lived in several states since I married in 1971 and have been lucky enough to live in KY and NY where there are cardinals. We have lived in CO since 2000 and I miss my beautiful red birds terribly. Other birds have become beautiful friends (Steller’s jays and pygmy nuthatches) but no other bird can take the place of my beautiful cardinal.
I saw “sparkbird” huh… WHAT is a Sparkbird… ooohhh lol My sparkbird is the cardinal. I how they look so smart, with their pointed crest.
My Sparkbird is and will always be my very favorite bird: the Northern Whip-Poor-Will! I was a very young child when I first heard their courting song. Their haunting call, I’ve counted sometimes upwards to 300 times without them even stopping for a second. They forever amaze me. I’ve laid awake at night in the spring with the window open to listen for them. The best times are quite late at night, or just before dawn. I love to hear one call repeatedly and then to hear another answer back and forth from a distance, almost like an echo, but often drawing ever nearer. They are very shy, their feathers muted browns and tans, a perfect camoflauge in the woodland. I feel blessed to have seen one twice in my lifetime.
I was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. I was 30 years old, with two young (4yrs & 2 1/2yrs) sons. My oncologist was a birder. During hours and hours of chemotherapy, she began telling about her birding trips around to world. I was too sick to play outside with my sons. My husband positioned the couch in front of a window so I could watch while he and the boys played in the yard. Soon sparrows, cardinals and house finches, in the bushes and landscaping just outside the window, caught my attention. All these events were leading me toward birding but my “spark” came in the form of a beautiful Yellow Warbler.
When we moved I was sad to leave all “my” birds. Shortly after we settled into our new house I discovered cedar waxwings nesting a few feet from my back patio and baltimore orioles nesting in the front yard!
BTW It’s been almost 9 years since my diagnosis and I’m cancer free =)
My spark moment wasn’t just about a bird, but also a coffee shop and a book. One afternoon when I was at a park with my son I noticed an unusual bird around the small pond at the park. Later in the week I returned to the park twice to try and get pictures of the bird. Months went by and I never really tried to ID the bird, but then one afternoon I saw a National Geographic field guide in our local coffee shop. They have a program where you drop a book off and take a book so I exchanged a book for the field guide. I was excited to finally determine that the bird was a Green Heron. Every time I identify a new bird I still get the same excitement of encountering something that is new.
One winter day many years ago at my home in Boise, Idaho, I noticed a little bird perched outside on the ledge of the window above my kitchen sink, trying to get warm in the heat escaping from my drafty old window. It stayed clear into the evening, and as I retired for the night, there it was, huddled up close to the glass. The next morning, I went out the front door and startled a flock of them, all of which flew off in a momentary panic; all but one, that is. This poor little bird, overcome by the cold (and probably hunger), was just too weak to take flight; it could only hop a few feet away. My heart went out to the helpless creature (a sparrow, I would later learn). I felt I had to do something and suddenly recalled an old pet bird cage in the basement, which I quickly got out, hurriedly covering the bottom with old newspapers, and filling the cups with water and some of our Love Bird’s seed. I then went back outside, easily scooped up the little bird and brought him into the warmth of my home. I put him in the guest room, where he wouldn’t be bothered too much. There he remained until the next afternoon, when he seemed to have regained his vim and vigor, hopping around and flapping his wings, as though he wanted out. He seemed to be so much better, so I took him outside and he flew away into the trees. I’ll never forget how good I felt about trying to help sustain that tiny life, and how high my hopes for his success were at that moment. Unfortunately, that spring, when I was tidying up the planter under the kitchen window, I found a little bird who hadn’t made it through the winter. I was just sure it was “my” bird. My heart broke and my eyes went misty as I remembered my little feathered friend.
So, did I ever regret getting involved or think of my efforts that winter as pointless? Not for one moment! What a great lesson I learned about continuing in courage and faith when all the world seems against you. Oh, to be able to soar in the face of adversity! “But, in the end he failed”, some might say. To those I say that sometimes the success isn’t in the victory; sometimes the success is in the trying. It’s far easier to push forward in victory than it is to fight a losing battle.
That rather plain, average-looking Sparrow who came to sit on my window ledge was my spark bird. It brought me a special message at a time when I needed it, and in a way I could understand it, better than the spoken word. I hope I shall never forget my little messenger, and what a special gift his memory is and always will be for me.
My sparkbird is likely the cedar waxwing also..we had a mulberry tree in my front yard in ohio, and i would hide in there while flocks would come and eat (its a wonder how, but i never recall getting pooped on….) they were so noisy and ravenous i dont’ think the would have noticed me if i had moved. I have moved to Florida and just a couple years ago saw the migratory flock of them for a couple weeks they visit my area.. i was soo happy to see them. Betsy Craven- i also raised a starling who lived with us at night and landed on my head when i walked home from school.. you should read “Arnie the darling starling” its a great book!
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