Whether you're a researcher looking for knowledge, an environmentalist dedicated to protecting wildlife, or a hiker simply interested in enjoying the outdoors, you can understand why there is reason for people like Dr. Richard Roberts to study songbirds. These musically talented feathered friends are frequently assessed by researchers to get a continuous idea of the distribution of their populations. What species are where, the ratio of genders, how old are the birds? all questions being answered here.

The data collected is sent to the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, where it is made available for anyone else who may need information on birds. Ward Museum handles the public outreach which brings people to the banding areas for demonstrations.

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Written by Erik Yount. Photography by Errol Webber.

Whether you're touring the coastal bays of Worcester County for the summer or you're a long time resident, the likelihood of encountering wading birds in the area is about as great as the likelihood of sand on the beach. Wading birds are the numerous species of Heron, Egret and Ibis who fly and feed among the marshes and coastal waters of the county, strutting about like they own the place. While not as common as pigeons or seagulls, any visiting tourist would need to wear blindfolds in order to avoid seeing at least one Snowy Egret or Great Blue Heron. One might deduce from the frequency of these sightings that these birds have nests and young stashed in every corner not already occupied by man (or pigeons and seagulls). After all, a species must keep up its breeding in order to survive.

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Back on the road, after packing up camp, Melanie and I were in search of two valuable commodities... wi-fi and a place to rest our heads for the night.

The first of those was needed (for the obvious reason) to update you kind readers on our travels, so we moved on over to the near by town of Rehoboth. Wi-Fi was found in a cup of coffee from the resident Starbucks, though it wasn't Starbucks internet. (Hint: If you tuck yourself back close to the mall, you can use the mall's internet. It's conveniently free, opposed to AT&T's and Starbucks corporate hold on usage, and it's relatively fast.)

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With all the exploration and discovery we have been doing, we thought it best to share some of the common critters we see scurrying under our feet and over our heads.

To do so, we headed out to the small marsh behind our condo at the Makai. It was a fiesta of life in such an unexpected location. Here you could find so many things to catalog, but we will give you a small dose:

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