Why do we watch birds?

We all have our reasons, but the “Seven Pleasures of Birding” is a good start

Great Blue Heron by Glenn Kaupert
(published 9-24-25)

During a recent book talk I mentioned the three questions I hear most often: What’s the rarest bird you’ve ever seen? What binoculars should I buy? And, How did you get into birding?

Today I’m going to tackle the last one, but with a twist. There is a difference between what got us started in the hobby and what keeps us going.

Readers of this column already know my “spark bird,” a Hooded Warbler spotted in 1994. That bird launched my obsession. Maybe it happened that way for you, too—a certain bird caught your eye and fast-tracked your interest. Or perhaps it was a special person who ushered you into the hobby, a book such as “Kingbird Highway,” or a movie like “The Big Year.” Origin stories are fun to retell, especially among fellow birders.

But let’s consider something even more basic: Why we watch birds.

Author and celebrity birder Christian Cooper has devoted considerable thought to the issue. His “Seven Pleasures of Birding” capture the essence of birdwatching’s mass appeal:

  1. The beauty of the birds
  2. The beauty of being in a natural setting (connecting with nature)
  3. The joy of hunting, without the bloodshed (birding as a treasure hunt)
  4. The joy of collecting (keeping lists)
  5. The joy of puzzle solving (making difficult IDs)
  6. The pleasure of scientific discovery (new observations about behavior, etc.)
  7. The Unicorn Effect

These seven points provided structure for Cooper's 2023 book, “Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World.” But he drew them up well before his New York Times bestseller.

I first learned of the Seven Pleasures in 2006 through the late Marie Winn, herself a celebrity author/birder (“Red-Tails in Love”). She was birding with Chris and others in their beloved Central Park (New York) when Cooper mentioned a list he’d written that sums up the joys of birdwatching. Marie requested a copy, which she then shared with the birding community.

Cooper’s email to Winn closed with this: “If you get tired of people asking you, ‘Why do you go birdwatching?’ as I eventually did, these [seven points] are handy to whip out.”

Great Gray Owl by Matt Zuro
I can picture his tongue in cheek. As one of birding’s biggest cheerleaders, I doubt that Cooper ever grows weary of discussing the hobby’s virtues. Just the opposite, his Seven Pleasures function as an intriguing conversation starter.

Going deeper, I think the list encourages thought about what aspects of birding are most important to us. We all approach the hobby differently.

In my new book, “The Best of Words on Birds,” a central theme is that we should bird the way we want to, the way that feels best. Find your style and enjoy every experience.

You might agree with each of the Seven Pleasures. Or maybe all but one or two. Keeping lists, for example, might not be your thing. Perhaps you would add a point, such as the joy of sharing birds with others.

Personally, I would tweak point No. 6 and call it the pleasure of learning. Watching birds is always an opportunity to learn something, scientific or not.

With his last point, The Unicorn Effect, Cooper said he saved the best for last. I couldn’t agree more. Here’s the way he explained No. 7 to Marie Winn:

Worm-eating Warbler by Jackie Bowman
“After you’ve been birding for even a little while, there are birds you’ve heard of or seen in books that capture your imagination, but you’ve never seen for yourself . . . and then one day, there it is in front of you, as if some mythical creature has stepped out of a storybook and come to life. There’s no thrill quite like it.”

Anybody disagree? I didn’t think so.

I tell stories about my own “unicorn birds” in the book, including Great Gray Owl and Worm-eating Warbler. My second-in-life encounter with Elegant Trogon last month in Arizona gave me a similar thrill. (Now that’s a spectacular bird!)

I write about the unicorns found by others, too, like Jeff Bilsky’s Painted Redstart in 2022, and Dan Lory’s Ross’s Gull in 2023. Those birds didn’t belong around here, and yet there they were, in plain view.

Birding seems to always deliver if we have curiosity and patience, and belief in the possible. The pleasures are real.

Copyright 2025 by Jeff Reiter. All rights reserved.