Audrey Lee: The Baby Birder

If the birder was napping...does the Whooping Crane count?

So this past week was a whirlwind.  At 4am on Thursday August 1st Elissa started having contractions.  Less than 4 hours later we became parents for the second time.  Her name is Audrey Lee Brywczynski.  When she was born, she was 19 inches long and weighed 6lbs 10ozs.  It's amazing how such a little life can cause so much happiness.

Ruby has been adjusting well to the new addition to our family.  She still hasn't mastered her sister's name, but she is well aware that Audrey is in fact her sister.  Last night we let Ruby "hold" her during our bedtime story.  I know she is only 2 years old and Audrey isn't even 2 weeks old, but she already shows signs of being a very caring big sister.  I am a very proud father.

My wonderful wife was a shining example of someone who knows how to have a baby in record time.  So much so that one of the nurses told me that we were lucky we got to the hospital when we did.  Otherwise, she said, I would have been delivering a baby.  This statement terrified me.  Elissa said she probably would have just done it herself.  I have to believe I would be up to the task, but my wife is pretty self-sufficient sooo....

GB Heron pretending to be a Phalarope

So what have we been doing with our new baby?  Birding of course!  In fact, Audrey's first life bird was a Whooping Crane!  Elissa and I took a drive up to Schoonover WPA to see a beautiful individual who is apparently part of the Wisconsin population.  This guy evidently took a wrong turn somewhere, and I'm happy he did.  Whooping Cranes are an endangered species.  Their population got down to just 15 birds in the 1940's.  According to the Cornell Lab, there are about 600 birds today.  Knowing this information makes this sighting that much more special.

Tomorrow I will be taking part in a shorebird trip put on by Black Swamp Bird Observatory and The Toledo Naturalists Association.  I'm very excited about this trip because, like so many birders, I have trouble with shorebirds.  Having experts like Kenn and Kim Kaufman around really help when trying to ID tough birds.  One thing I've learned as an educator is to never be too proud to ask for help.  I'm sure I will be asking a few questions about this sometimes difficult but always exciting group of birds.  Happy birding y'all!

Whooping Crane hanging out with Sandhill Cranes