Bird watchers look through their binoculars at a bird pointed out by naturalist Doug Hitchcox during a weekly bird walk at Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth. Bird walks and birding festivals are great ways to enhance your knowledge. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographe

Spring is in the air! Red-winged blackbirds are back in force, song sparrows are singing, woodpeckers are drumming, and piping plovers are back on the beaches. It is a wonderful time to be a naturalist, and especially a birder, but learning where to start can sometimes be challenging. Marnie, a self-described amateur birder from Farmington, recently asked for advice on how to go from “101” to the next level.

I want to start with a biased plug for Maine Audubon’s Birding Basics courses. Each week we cover a different topic, ranging from bird identification to picking out binoculars. Some weeks, we definitely go beyond basics, like the hour and a half talking about gull identification (seriously, 90 minutes on telling apart three species of gulls). These are free, live, and online every Tuesday evening through April. We began in January, but we have recordings available to share with anyone who registers. Join us at: maineaudubon.org/events/birding-basics-2025/

Marnie did specifically ask for field guide recommendations, and that is one of the most important pieces of gear for a birder, after binoculars. Depending on your skill level, some guides may be a bit daunting. Here are some recommendations from a Maine perspective: If you are brand new to birding, an easy-to-use guide like Stan Tekiela’s Birds of Maine is a great place to start. It is organized by color, and only covers 125 species, so you won’t get overwhelmed. Depending on your level of interest, you may outgrow Tekiela’s guide quickly, so the next step I’d recommend is the American Birding Association’s Field Guide to Birds of Maine, authored by Nick Lund. This covers 250 species and is filled with beautiful photos by Brian Small. This number of birds should cover almost anything you’ll encounter in Maine, plus Nick’s description of the birds and where you can find them are tailored to a Maine audience.

After that, you’ll want a more comprehensive guide, like Sibley Guide to Birds of the East or the newest National Geographic, which both illustrate every “field identifiable form” of birds in the region; no matter what age or plumage you encounter, it should be in the book.

The best way to learn anything is by doing it, and especially learning from someone who knows more than you. Fortunately, there are a lot of opportunities in Maine to join a bird walk, especially in the next few months. Along with our regular walks at Gilsland Farm in Falmouth and Fields Pond outside of Bangor, Maine Audubon has seven volunteer-led chapters that offer dozens of walks. You can look up your local chapter here: maineaudubon.org/about/chapters. Freeport Wild Bird Supply also hosts weekly walks. If you’re in the Lewiston area, check out the Stanton Bird Club; in Augusta, look for the Augusta Bird Club.

I’d encourage everyone to consider attending any or all of Maine’s birding festivals. That’s another great way to learn about birds; you get an opportunity to hear from expert keynote presenters, and also have unique opportunities to see iconic species like Atlantic puffin or Bicknell’s thrush. Feathers Over Freeport will be on May 17, Wings Waves and Woods in Deer Isle is May 14-18, the Downeast Spring Birding Festival is May 23-26, the Acadia Birding Festival runs May 29 through June 1, and the Rangeley Birding Festival is June 5-8. I hope to see you at any of these!

Have you got a nature or wildlife question of your own? It doesn’t have to be about birds! Email questions to ask@maineaudubon.org and visit www.maineaudubon.org to learn more about birding, native plants, and programs and events focusing on Maine wildlife and habitat. Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox and other naturalists lead free bird walks on Thursday mornings starting at 8 am, at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm Audubon Sanctuary in Falmouth.