today i was driving down the highway, headed home, and i drove under a red-tailed hawk. the telephone wires crossed over the road at this particular point, so the hawk was sitting directly over the road. as i approached, he lazily stretched out a leg and wing. i smiled. i'd had my special bird moment of the day.

birding while driving. no, its not safe, but it really cant be helped. if one is a true birder, one cannot turn off the birding urge! and traveling presents such a wonderful assortment of habitats to view.

first, practice birding while you r a passenger in the vehicle. once u know what to look for, and where, u can move on to birding while driving. u will be able to wisely use the split seconds u can spare from driving.

where to look: telephone wires. these modern advances have had a huge impact on birds. they love them!!! perfectly sized for perching. perfectly placed for birds that want a good view (like a hawk) or birds that like to stay in the skies all day (like a swallow). also look at fenceposts. both of these can be scanned pretty far into the distance. the great big sky is your other place to look.

the key to birding while driving is to scan quickly, assuming empty spaces, and looking for where its broken by a bird. so u r scanning a telephone wire. wire, wire, wire, bird, wire ... etc.

what u can expect to see.
in the sky: vultures. they will be soaring in circles.
crows. flying in a straight line w/ their characteristic rowing wingbeat.
heron. huge, w/ neck tucked in and legs extended.
hawk. soaring. know the common hawks in your area. usually, if the bird is black, its a vulture, and if its white its a hawk. the red-tail is most common. if u have time, u may see some orangeish on the tail as it circles.

on a fencepost/fence: meadowlark. yellow breast and black necklace.
red-winged blackbird.
eastern kingbird. black back, white front.
bluebird.
hawk.

on a wire: hawk. the common red-tail has a distinctive white belly w/ a loosely speckled black band across the chest.
kestrel. (one of my favorites) this guy is a little hawk.
bluebird.
swallow.
dove.
of course, pigeon. and starling.
grackle. bigger black bird than a starling.
kingfisher.

also easy to id on the go: bluejay, mockingbird (look for white flashed by wings and tail), robin, cardinal

*safety note* other drivers DO NOT appreciate birding. it doesnt matter that u have just seen a bald eagle; u r in the middle of a bridge, and u cannot slow down, let alone stop. i'm sorry.

birding rule #4:wherever u r, whatever u r doing, keep an eye out for birds!
hey! birding makes one more observant, and that is a must also with driving, right??