Casey, Your thoughtful remarks are really appreciated. They ring true. Glad you took the time. Thank you Joe Faulkner On Wed, Apr 1, 2015 at 5:47 PM, Casey Tucker <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Hi Everyone, > > So I wasn’t going to weigh in on this issue, but after careful > consideration I've decided to add my own 2 cents for what little it’s worth. > > As someone who began to get more into hardcore birding during the “good > old days” of the 90’s, I relied heavily on the Ohio Bird Listserv as a tool > to learn about Ohio’s birds and their occurrences. I read every posting, no > matter how far the report was from where I lived in southwest Ohio at the > time. > > As a new birder back then, whenever a new rare species was reported I > took the time to look it up and read what I could about it; how to identify > it, its distribution, its biology and whatever else I could learn. > > I especially looked forward to April 1st because it was a great learning > opportunity. The unusual and absurd postings were not viewed as a joke on > me, as a new birder, but a fun and funny opportunity to learn. I not only > learned about new birds, because I spent the time to look them up rather > than blindly chasing after them, and I learned critical thinking skills. > > Developing critical thinking is an important skill for new birders. As > we experience new bird species critical thinking helps us realize that the > bright orange oriole we’re seeing in Ohio for the first time is probably a > Baltimore as opposed to a Scott’s. It helps us recognize when we’re seeing > a common species in aberrant plumage rather than a new rare species, and it > helps us go through the necessary mental exercises when we do potentially > find a vagrant or rare species for the first time. > > As my own birding skills improved I looked forward to eventually > participating in April’s Fools postings myself. Even that was a learning > opportunity. I had to look at Ohio’s lists, Peterjohn’s book, and then > look for a species that had didn’t have a high probability of showing up in > Ohio, but had the right believability, and familiarize myself with the > different birding locations in the state to pick the least probable > location. > > I respect those of you who think you’re looking out for new birders, and > perhaps a warning message like Kathi’s should be sent out as a caveat first > thing on April first, but I don’t think those who post April Fool’s > sightings necessarily have any malicious intent or are targeting new > birders specifically. > > A lot of other more serious information outlets have participated in > April’s Fools, like this article about dragons in the scientific > publication Nature: > http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v520/n7545/full/520042a.html > > Should they not do that because novice readers might take it seriously? > > Whether we want to recognize it or not cliques still exist in Ohio’s > birding community. It’s not just a small group of serious birders > anymore. Ohio’s Birding Listserv is one way of communicating with the > birding community as a whole and breaking down the barriers of cliques, > unlike social media sites that reinforce cliques. I know a lot of people > who have stepped away from birding in Ohio because of these cliques. > > So I would encourage new birders to consider participating in April’s > Fools postings the next time you have a chance. It can be fun and a great > way to build your skills as a birder and participate in a larger birding > community. > > Casey Tucker > ______________________________________________________________________ > > Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. > Please consider joining our Society, at > www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. > Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. > > > You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: > listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS > Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask] > ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]