Ode to Birders

Hi to all birders,

I was invited by Corey to write about the birds of Honduras and I will in due time.  But first I would like to express my appreciation to the ones who have made my lifestyle in Honduras possible: the birders. Many thanks goes to all of the people who have supported the birding industry here and who have actually come down to see some of our wonderful 740+ species of birds.  This poem is dedicated to all of you.

Ode to Birders

Hail to the many who tout their glasses

Amidst the brush to avoid the masses,

We herald the little winged creatures

With all their garn and fanciful features

We traipse over hills and over dales

Mucking through the muddiest of trails,

At times in search of the rarest delight

All through the day and into the night

Nearly 10000 birds many will seek

To the far horizons, odds are bleak,

Sought after species are quite the prize

For tired feet and blood shot eyes

Many will attest that we`re actually freaks

Being gone for days and even weeks,

But without a doubt we`re a joyous bunch

Hardly eating and forgetting lunch

Across the globe we do often roam

Through tropical realms we call home,

In search of a piprites that is so rare

Just one peek is all I can bear

Then there are guides, quite the strange batch

So few and far between, hardly a match,

They schlep those clients seemingly all about

Through a haphazard forested route,

Bearing binocs, scope and gear

Not a fer-de-lance do they fear

Through the woods in search of army ants

Where cherished birds do often lance

And our peering eyes hope for a glance

While those little critters crawl up our pants

We are the intrepid birders who speak

Are great in numbers, more by the week,

Trying to save the many feathered friends

The toucan, hummers and even the wren,

We will go down fighting `til the very end

Robert J. Gallardo