Rooted in the appreciation and wonder of birds, birdwatching is a popular hobby where novice birdwatchers and experts enjoy the different birds the region has to offer.
Birdwatchers range from backyard hobbyists to enthusiasts who travel far to spot a rare bird. The Pontiac is a unique region for this hobby, because some of the rare bird species, such as the grasshopper sparrow, eastern meadowlark and bobolink are declining elsewhere in Quebec.
Sheenboro resident, Vincent Agnesi is a self-taught avid birder originally . . .
from Gaspé. He lived along the coast and fell in love with birds when his father gifted him his first pair of binoculars and a bird book on his 15th birthday.
Years later, he picked up the hobby with his birding buddy Ron Bertrand, and he’s been doing it ever since.
He enjoys the challenge of finding new species and comparing it to previous years as well as discovering new parts of the county. He also enjoys being out in nature and the feeling of peace and solace that it brings. “I like being out in nature, like it’s peaceful. I found during covid there, that’s about the only thing that kept me sane,” he said.
It’s a flexible and portable hobby that can be done from anywhere in the world, explained Agnesi “it’s like a treasure hunt,” he said. Being known in Sheenboro as a birder he often finds people stop him to ask him about a bird sighting they had. Those experiences have allowed him to meet new people and other fellow birders.
One tradition that brings bird lovers together is the Christmas bird count, a practice that started off as bird hunting but later became a birdwatching activity where people cover different parts of the region and see which groups of two or three can spot the most birds. Each group covers a 15 mile radius of a certain spot on a certain day during the winter. In non-covid times, after the activity is over the group would gather to share lessons or moments from their birdwatching adventures, explained Agnesi.
When asked about the best time to go birdwatching, he pointed out spring because that’s when migration is in full force. “From now ‘til maybe the end of May, you never know what you will find,” said Agnesi.
One of his fondest memories was spotting a steller’s sea eagle, during a trip back to his hometown, a bird he called the most impressive bird. The steller’s sea eagle, originating from Eastern Siberia, is attracted to salmon and in Gaspe there are three salmon rivers, which he assumes drove the bird back to the region.
“I checked on eBird an online bird database, and it had returned, so the next morning, I got up early and lo and behold, there it was,” he said. Another memorable find is the great gray owl.
When out, Agnesi is always equipped with his binoculars, telescope and camera. He also uses Sibley, a digital bird dictionary, to help him identify his birds when he is out and plays bird songs to try to compare to identify a bird while out on the trails.
The birding community is quite big in the Pontiac. Debra Powell, another local birder, enjoys the hobby because when she is out in nature she forgets everything else. “It’s like moving meditation,” she said.
Although she doesn’t call herself an expert, she was very aware of birds from such a young age, and continued to build on that interest. She does not go far, in fact, she stays in her own neighbourhood when birdwatching and over the years has spotted owls, wood ducks, sharp-shinned hawk and a Carolina wren, a rare bird.
When going out birding for the first time, she said depending on what a person hopes to achieve, there are so many resources out there. “You can learn on the fly (pun intended) or you can take a beginner birding course to get the basics and/or read the intro in any bird guide. There is lots of good stuff online now. I think it’s useful to know what birds you might expect in a specific habitat and learn what they look and sound like,” she said.
Coming all the way from Gatineau, Daniel Toussaint has loved coming to this region for many years. He enjoys visiting the Bristol marshes. One of his fondest memories was also spotting a rare bird, the golden-winged warbler.
“What I like to see in the spring is my first bird migratory species, like this morning I saw my first chirping sparrow. I always like to see the birds returning back from migration. So that’s one of the reasons why I like so much birding in the spring,” said Toussaint.
It can be a bit tricky to spot a bird, because sometimes you have only seen it in books or once and other times you don’t have a chance to grab a photo to deliberate afterwards. But when Agnesi is stuck on a bird and isn’t able to name it, he reaches out to Manson Fleguel, a friend of his who has a keen eye and is very efficient. “He knows his birds, he’s my mentor,” Agnesi chuckled.
Agnesi’s goal is to be able to identify birds by their song, he said. “Some people have told me that 75 per cent of the birds you will be able to identify is because you can hear them. You don’t always see them, and starting now around 5 o’clock in the morning birds are singing everywhere, they call it the dawn song,” he said.
He hopes he can spot more birds this year than he did last year. Currently at 181, when asked how many more he hopes to spot this year he laughed and said “182.” Come fall, Agnesi is looking forward to spotting an orange-crowned warbler, he said.
