Birding events in Austin and Fayetteville draw experts and novices

Birdwatching is drawing people together in several settings: in Austin, the American-Statesman, Travis Audubon and the Trail Conservancy hosted a Birding and Breakfast at Lady Bird Lake, welcoming experts and newcomers to identify local birds. In Fayetteville, Mount Sequoyah has installed two purpose-built feeding towers with Northwest Arkansas Audubon Society to support birds, especially in winter, and give visitors and citizen scientists a place to observe them. A Guardian country diary recounts an impromptu birding trip near Slimbridge, where a stranger shared his expertise and a spectacular view of the Severn estuary, finding pleasure in observation rather than competitive bird-listing.