Each spring, 1000’s of individuals flock to Rowe Sanctuary to witness one in every of Nebraska’s best wildlife spectacles: giant concentrations of Sandhill Cranes gathering alongside the Platte River throughout their annual migration. The cranes are unimaginable, however I’m going to allow you to in on a secret—the birding at Rowe Sanctuary is spectacular even when the cranes aren’t right here. And that’s particularly excellent news in case you’re a “child birder,” a “not-a-real-birder-yet,” a “non-eBird consumer,” somebody who is just “alongside for the experience,” or, as some would possibly name you, a starting birder.
Birding is a fast-growing pastime, and there are extra instruments than ever that will help you uncover and recognize the birds round you. However maybe the very best factor about birding is that you simply don’t should be an professional to get pleasure from it; you simply have to be curious.
Come Hen with Us—Any Time of Yr
Not like the annual Sandhill Crane Migration, when guests want to order a spot on one in every of our guided crane viewing experiences, birding at Rowe may be as leisurely as you need it to be. Come when it really works for you, keep within the customer heart and chook from our home windows overlooking the Platte River or go for a hike on our miles of mountaineering strays. Keep for 20 minutes or spend the afternoon. Deliver your binoculars, a discipline information and perhaps your telephone with a number of chook apps or just carry your eyes and ears. There isn’t a admission price to go to the Customer Middle, and workers and volunteers can reply any questions you may need, and we hold a current chook sightings board the place you possibly can see what different guests have been discovering.
So, you need to get into birding? Meet the birding group
One of the great issues about entering into birding is discovering that you’re not the one one who thinks birds are cool. There may be a complete group of people who find themselves fascinated by birds. You may study identification ideas and tips from different birders—generally issues that aren’t in your discipline information, and generally issues that are within the discipline information, however you haven’t seen but as a result of there are roughly 4,000 tiny particulars to recollect. A technique to do this is by attending one in every of our month-to-month chook walks right here at Rowe Sanctuary; an effective way to fulfill each new chook AND human buddies. One subsequent chook stroll is August 29, 2026 you possibly can register here though registration isn’t required!
One other nice option to uncover what’s taking place at Rowe Sanctuary is thru eBird. It’s one software learners can use to turn into a part of the web birding group and see what different birders are discovering. eBird is a web-based platform the place birders document the species they see and listen to, and guests can submit easy species lists or add pictures and notes about their observations. Should you’re new to birding, eBird can appear somewhat intimidating at first. There are leaderboards, species lists, private data, and birders who appear to know the whole lot.
However don’t let that scare you away.
Whereas tons of of species have been recorded at Rowe Sanctuary over time, the variety of species reported in any given month is far smaller however a typical chook record from a brief stroll across the sanctuary will embrace 15-25 species. Don’t fear about seeing the ultra-rare birds; begin with the birds which are widespread and turn into aware of them. If you see a chook you don’t acknowledge, examine what you noticed—its dimension, form, coloration, habits, location, and sounds—with the birds you already know are more likely to be right here.
And don’t be shocked in case your “uncommon Australian chook that has one way or the other by no means been documented in North America” seems to be a quite common chook considered from a barely uncommon angle.
Belief me. It occurs.
Don’t Overlook to Pay attention
One among your most underrated birding instruments is one thing you have already got with you: your ears. Birders usually deal with what they’ll see, however birdsong and calls can let you know the place a chook is hiding, assist you determine a species, and even provide you with clues about what is going on round you. Generally you do not have to see a chook to start out determining what it’s.
The extra I find out about birds, the extra amazed I’m. They don’t all the time behave precisely as anticipated. Generally taking a number of additional minutes to look at reveals behaviors, relationships, or diversifications you would possibly in any other case miss and that’s a part of what makes birding a lot enjoyable.
Birds are in every single place. At virtually any time of day, in virtually anyplace, there’s a chance that you simply would possibly see—or hear—a chook you have got by no means seen earlier than. Generally the reply is a Bald Eagle hovering over the Platte. Generally it’s a tiny songbird hiding within the shrubs. Generally it’s a chook you’ve seen 100 instances earlier than however all of the sudden discover doing one thing utterly surprising.
So come go to Rowe Sanctuary. Come throughout crane season, definitely—however are available in August, September or another time of 12 months, too. You by no means know what you would possibly see, hear or what you would possibly uncover.
