AUTHOR INTERVIEW
Q&A with Birder Marc Parnell
THE AUTHOR OF LOUISIANA'S NEWEST BIRDING GUIDE TELLS ALL
By Jordan LaHaye Fontenot
O
rnithologist and lifelong birder Marc Parnell, author of the Birding Pro's Field Guides series, recently released his Louisiana guide in March. Besides offering monthly feathery forecasts, feeding guides, and little-known facts—Birds of Louisiana also introduces a new strategy for local birders called "birding-by-comparison". As a special exclusive for our "Our Natural World" issue, Parnell offered some insight into this approach, along with his birding strategies and on why Louisiana is one of the best places in the world for bird-lovers.
Can you tell us a little about your background as a birder? How long have you been doing this? Ever since I was a young child, I was fascinated by nature. My career in ornithology is best described as a natural outgrowth of this passion. Bright colors and otherworldly abilities of flight tend to steal the headlines, but I was particularly interested in birds' behavior behind the scenes, as well as their migratory trends: predicting which birds would be best observed in each month throughout the calendar year. Over the past twenty years, I have travelled and backpacked across the country in search of these answers, and I have only fallen in love more with our feathered friends along the way.
How did you go about the research for this book? The research process typically consists of several loosely defined stages. First of all, I try to locate birds at different times of year, in different locations, and in different habitats: carefully observing to capture the best overall description of their day-to-day behavior throughout the entire year. Secondly, I place great emphasis on reflection: in order to best put myself in the bird's mind, so to speak, I sometimes have to take a step back and consider things after a good night's sleep. And finally, data analysis plays a significant role, summarizing and unifying all of my various observations.
What is special about birding in Louisiana in particular? Hands down, Louisiana is one of the two best states in the country to observe birdlife. The delicate coastal wetlands support a wide variety of avian species, from long-legged wading birds to a diverse collection of waterfowl and songbirds. In addition, large sections of flooded forest throughout the state provided the ivory-billed woodpecker with some of its last-known habitats, while numerous native birds still populate these woodlands today. My book gives specific recommendations on how to find each of the 152 most common species in the state, and there will undoubtedly be some stunners around the corner from each and every reader's neighborhood.
What are some of your favorite public places to go birding in Louisiana? My favorite places to bird in Louisiana include Sabine National Wildlife Refuge near Lake Charles, the Big Lake WMA east of Monroe, and the Red River (and its oxbows) near Shreveport.
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