If you’re a North Texan looking for a new hobby this spring and summer, birding may be it.
Birding shot up in popularity during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated that 96.3 million people in the U.S. are birdwatchers, according to a 2022 survey.
“I’ve noticed over many years what joy birds bring to people’s daily lives,” said David Hurt, a lifelong birder on Audubon Dallas’ board of directors. “We are missing nature in our lives. Birds are a reminder that there’s a world out there.”
Many birders get fulfillment from the citizen science aspect of birding. By recording their observations, birders can help scientists monitor bird populations and devise conservation strategies. Hundreds of thousands of birders worldwide have logged their observations on eBird, an online database managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. They have cumulatively contributed more than 1.6 billion bird observations to the platform, eBird reported at the end of 2023.
Additionally, there’s a documented link to improved mental health with birding and other outdoor activities.
“It gets you out in nature, gets you observing. It creates a purpose for being really attentive, being mindful, being present,” said Noah Matson, deputy assistant director of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Migratory Bird Program and self-proclaimed fledgling birder.
“There’s a reason Rachel Carson titled her book Silent Spring, because it’s so unfathomable to imagine a world where you don’t hear birds.”
But one of the best things about birding is accessibility. People can bird almost anywhere, and there are many low-barrier ways for people to participate.
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North Texas: An ‘interesting mosaic’ of birds
Billions of birds migrate annually, moving between breeding and non-breeding grounds, and Texas plays an important role in this treacherous journey. About 1 out of 3 migrating through the U.S. in the spring passes through Texas, according to Audubon Texas.
“People say there’s not much nature in North Texas, but we really knock it out of the park in bird species — it’s an interesting mosaic,” said Ben Sandifer, a certified master birder who’s been birding in the area for about 20 years and has traveled across the U.S. and internationally for birding.
Birds from far and wide fly through the area seasonally. In the spring, some migratory birds make a pitstop in the area during their migration from the Arctic circle in Canada to South America. In the summer, some migratory birds can be seen in North Texas that come up from the neotropics, or the general region of Central America, the Caribbean and South America.
Common birds you can see and hear in Dallas County
In addition to migratory birds, there’s a large assortment of birds common to the area thanks to a variety of forest, grassland and wetland habitats.
These are the birds that were observed every day in 2023 in the county, according to eBird data obtained by The Dallas Morning News.
Where to go birding in the D-FW area
The Great Trinity Forest in southern Dallas is recognized as the largest urban forest in the country. Although, Hurt of Audubon Dallas said it might not be the most beginner-friendly.
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For beginners, Cedar Ridge Preserve or Dogwood Canyon might be more suitable to see forestland birds.
Cedar Hill State Park and the Fort Worth Nature Center offer grassland birds some native prairie habitat, Hurt said. Sod farms off Interstate 45 are other good places to see grassland birds, and when it floods, shorebirds flock to the area.
To see wetland birds, the Village Creek drying beds in north Arlington and White Rock Lake might be good places to spot them.
Some of the best places to see birds aren’t serene naturescapes. They’re cemeteries, parking lots, water treatment plants and landfills.
“Humans have altered the landscape in so many ways, and birds — given enough time — will change their behavior and adapt,” Hurt said.
Many birds are attracted to food scraps that humans leave in parking lots or pile up in landfills. Insect-eating birds commonly nest on parking lot light poles or street lamps because insects congregate around the illumination. It also helps that natural predators are often absent from these developed areas.
Birds also seek to mimic their natural habitats, such as taking refuge in cemeteries’ undisturbed mature trees or the ponds that form around sewage plants.
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Kalder Korte, a 19-year-old who ranked as the top Dallas County eBirder last year, said he thinks most people would be surprised at how many birds can be seen in their backyards or neighborhoods.
His advice: “Just go out and go birding. It doesn’t have to be some crazy 10-mile hike in the mountains. All you have to do is go out and see what’s in your neck of the woods.”
Equipment and resources to help your birding journey
Hurt recommends the following for people to go birding with:
- A smartphone with the eBird and Merlin smartphone apps downloaded. In addition to logging observations, the eBird app has information to help identify birds and locations of latest sightings. Merlin has a questionnaire as well as audio and photo tools to help identify birds.
- A field guide. A popular one is The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of North America by David Allen Sibley. The field guide has a key showing where bird species tend to be at certain times of the year.
- A pair of binoculars with a close focus of 10 feet or less. For birding, Hurt said he recommends 8x42 specs — that means a level 8 magnification power and a diameter of 42 millimeters for the objective lens. Birding can be done with the naked eye, but Hurt said he thinks it’s more pleasurable to observe birds’ behaviors and physical traits in detail from a distance.
For intermediate and advanced birders, it can be worthwhile to invest in a spotting scope and a DSLR camera.
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There are many Facebook groups people can join to ask for help identifying birds, get notified of rare bird sightings and connect with local birders. Additionally, the Audubon Society hosts bird walks and other informational events on birding that can be helpful for beginners, Hurt said.
“Nobody’s going to judge you because you don’t know how to identify a bird,” he said. “We are glad to teach you.”
Hurt said he advises beginners to let go of the desire to be completely informed when starting out.
“You’re not going to know much getting into it,” Hurt said. “And you’ll never learn it all, even if you study it for the rest of your lifetime. And that’s what’s fun about it.”