As a high school student in his hometown of Philadelphia, Tykee James was baptized into birding while working at the Cobbs Creek Community Environmental Education Center, an urban facility in the southwest sector of the city that brings research and hands-on activities to the populace to enhance their connection to wildlife, habitat, and nature.
As he taught others, Mr.James became an energized and passionate steward of the environment, and an evangelist for conservation in his neighborhood, and beyond.
On Monday morning, Mr. James shared his interest in birding and the outdoors at the Biggest Week in American Birding festival, leading a bird walk through the marshes and patches of woods at Maumee Bay State Park. He was instructing, educating, and sharing his understanding and appreciation of birds, their incredible migration journeys, and the critical importance of habitat to these winged wonders.
“For a decade I’ve been building power, trust, and coalition as a member of the birding community,” Mr. James said prior to guiding the walk. “My first lesson as a birder went beyond identifying the birds in the trees. ... It developed my practice of assessing features of the park — like park benches, street lights, and trash cans — to contextualize my community’s relationship to our green spaces. Today, I’m still birding with a purpose, whether it's with my new neighbors in D.C. or to encourage members of Congress to go birding in their home district.”
In his role as the government affairs coordinator for the National Audubon Society, Mr. James lobbies for birds and bird-friendly legislation, and also organizes bird walks for members of Congress and their staffs.
“From my first bird walks in my neighborhood to walks I led on Capitol Hill, everybody has a story about birds. I love that about birds and people,” he said. “Sharing those stories has been a valuable tactic in building common ground, even though we can have a different perspective on the same bird. They may only see the left wing, I may only be limited to the right wing, but we all know it’s about sharing birding experience.”
He found that sharing to be an enjoyable and integral part of his visit to northwest Ohio this week.
“The Biggest Week is truly the biggest opportunity to connect to what birders love — birds and other birders — and that atmosphere of sharing that you find among birders,” Mr. James said. “We are in an era of sharing, and so much of my leadership now comes from the generosity of others in the birding community.”
Mr. James said his visit was exciting and invigorating, but likely too brief, and he looks forward to being a part of future Biggest Week festivals.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to be there with the folks. As a passionate birder, it is nice to be in the belly of the beast, or the heart of the nest I should say. A birder is not someone who knows all of the things about birds, it is the person who asks questions and also shares what they know. It is impossible not to love what they do with this festival,” Mr. James said.
He was back in the nation's capital by mid-week since James finds his calendar crowded with commitments in his role as president of the DC Audubon Society, a co-founder of Birder’s Fund and the Freedom Birders project, and service on the boards of the Wyncote Audubon Society, the Birding Co-op, and Justice Outside, as well as being an elected councilor for Wilson Ornithological Society. Mr. James is also a producer for Wildlife Observer Network, a wildlife media project he started with friends in his hometown, and he serves as co-host of a pair of podcasts — Brothers in Birding and On Word for Wildlife.
Also of note on his lengthy list of credits is the role Mr. James played as a co-organizer of the first Black Birders Week, an initiative that welcomes more Black people to the birding and natural sciences community. He said the notion of celebrating Black birders in such a manner came about two years ago when the nation was reeling from a racist incident in New York's Central Park involving a Black birder, and the deaths of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd.
“#BlackBirdersWeek is a week-long series of online events (from the last Sunday in May to the first Saturday in June) that amplifies and celebrates the stories of Black Birders and, in turn, demonstrates that the Black experience includes joy, pride, resistance, strength, and style,” Mr. James said.
He added the pandemic has magnified the long-standing barriers that he feels have created a lack of diversity and inclusion in the birding community. He said that disparity is connected to the origin of many of our public parks being located away from communities of color.
“Access to the outdoors is a fundamental experience for many first and long-time bird watchers of all backgrounds,” Mr. James has related in his writings. “It’s extra special when their journeys begin in local parks because it shows how important parks are to a community’s quality of life. They provide essential green infrastructure and jobs in cities and towns across the country and host important stopover habitat for migrating and resident bird species throughout the year.”
He hopes to see more “meaningful investments” in parks, noting that this will provide an important gathering place for communities while also benefiting birders and offering valuable habitat for the birds that make parks home.
Mr. James is one of the driving forces behind a movement that has dramatically changed the birding ranks over the past couple of decades. What was once a collection of mostly affluent and somewhat eccentric individuals has morphed into a band of birders as diverse as the warbler species they are observing during the Biggest Week festival.
“I think birding has been transitioning into something enjoyed by multiple generations and people from multiple demographics,” John Windau of the Ohio Division of Wildlife observed in the early days of the festival. “We’re living in a society that’s nature-deprived, so anytime we can get a wide range of people outside enjoying wildlife and nature, that’s a very positive thing.”
Kim Kaufman, executive director of the Black Swamp Bird Observatory which hosts the Biggest Week each May, has often repeated the refrain that the festival is about people as well as birds.
“My favorite part of all of this is how many people it brings together,” Kaufman said. “Diversity is one of the reasons this festival is successful. Birders from all over remark about the diversity of our crowd.”
For his part, Mr. James sees birding as an avocation that thrives in the absence of a strict characterization.
“Let’s start with a better definition of a birder: someone who shares their appreciation of birds with others or themselves,” he said. “There should be no requirement for location, ability, or equipment.”
First Published May 10, 2022, 5:17 p.m.
