At 04:24 PM 4/16/97 -0700, you wrote:

>My mom is seeing someone and this person, Bob, is into birding. I knew that
>he liked too look at birds but I don't understand WHY a person would be a
>birder. ...snip

Hi Jared:
I think Birders come in three extremes with unlimited combinations in
between. Picture a triangle with an extreme at each corner. You can fill
in the triangle with all the possibilities. Also, people can quickly move
all around the triangle depending on the stimulus of the moment.

Extreme #1 is the Scientist. He/she is interested in knowing everything
about a bird's life including range and habitat requirements.

Extreme #2 is the Bird Watcher. He/she is facinated about how neat birds
are and just enjoys being around them.

Extreme #3 is the Lister. He/she is in it for the sport of finding or
seeing rare or out-of-place birds. A BLUE JAY is common in Nebraska, but is
rare in Seattle. This is a competitive sport to see how many bird species
can be identified in a particular area over a particular time period. I
describe Listing as hunting without the violence.

I admit to being an Extreme Lister, but occasionally I move to the center of
the triangle and find myself watching or studying birds. Listers are the
ugly step-sister of this group. Some Birders find Extreme Listers to be
disgusting. I don't understand what harm we are causing. It just proves to
me that human beings are elitists by nature, even those with wierd hobbies.

Give Birding a try, you might like it.

Craig Corder Dare to be different.
Hermiston OR
ccorder at eonet.com