Nearly 300 atlasers turned out for the third annual Big Atlas Weekend in NY this year. They battled rain and wind and documented 192 species over 813 cumulative hours and submitted 1251 checklists! We held several challenges in different categories and randomly selected from eligible checklists to choose winners. Winners received a free course of their choosing from the Cornell Lab’s Bird Academy. Marianne won for submitting a nocturnal checklist. Congratulations, Marianne!
Name
Marianne Friers
Hometown
My husband and I live on our farm in Fultonville, Montgomery County.
How you started birding
I have been fascinated by most things in nature, especially birds, as long as I can remember, and have been listing informally since my late teens. Some of my earliest memories are common urban birds on my grandmother’s sidewalk before I was eight. Then we moved to a farm near here where there were all kinds of exciting new birds to learn. My dad was a birder, so that interest was nurtured as long as he lived. He and Mom participated in some of the earliest Christmas Bird Counts in Fulton County and I was soon drafted into their efforts. When eBird came along and we retired from dairy farming, I really got serious about chasing and listing.
Favorite birds
I call the Carolina Wren my favorite bird, for sheer sassiness I guess, but I love Ruddy Ducks, Virginia Rails, Canada Jays, Canada Warblers, and too many others to list.
Motivation to atlas
I delight in atlasing because it adds a dimension to everyday birding that makes every observation feel important. We bird a relatively small area intensively, so breeding observations add a great deal of interest to what might otherwise become repetitious.
Favorite atlasing area
My favorite area to atlas is Montgomery County, NY, with Schoharie Crossing boat launch, our home farm, and a couple of rural wetlands being the most productive spots there.
Most rewarding part of atlasing
I think the most rewarding part of atasing is having a good reason to slow down and really observe. I have found several species that had previously been elusive, just by looking harder and better. Adding to existing breeding data is also very satisfying.
Favorite atlasing discovery
It would be hard to choose a favorite discovery, but one recent one would be a Prairie Warbler gathering nesting material on Brand Road/Rankin Grove Road Ext. Also finding Osprey nests on cell towers in both Fulton and Montgomery Counties, and several Common Raven nests on silo platforms.
Advice for someone “on the fence” about participating
My advice for anyone debating whether to play the atlas game is to go ahead and do it…start small with backyard robins or the like, if you prefer, and see where it goes from there. This is my first experience with atlasing and it has been wonderfully rewarding, not to mention a lot of fun.