In 2003, David Sibley got a call from the newly formed U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Government officials wanted to pick his brain.
After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the feds had an idea to improve public safety: Assemble small groups of experts to discuss ways to train Americans to recognize unusual or suspicious activity in their midst.
"Basically, it was how to notice things you don't expect," Sibley recalled. "That's very, very difficult. Even bird-watchers are not very good at that."
He should know.
Build Your Expertise Like David Sibley
Sibley, 62, is a household name among birders. In 2000, he released a field guide, "The Sibley Guide to Birds," that took America by storm.
The success of the now-famous reference book spawned other titles such as, "What It's Like To Be a Bird" and "The Sibley Guide to Trees." Like his field guide on birds, his book on trees is definitive — with detailed, vivid illustrations of hundreds of tree species.
Sibley flew to Washington D.C. to confer with Homeland Security personnel soon after their call. Along with a few other bird experts, he shared ideas on how to detect irregularities in the world around us to increase public vigilance against the terror threat.
What's his secret? It starts with knowing what to look for and having a keen eye for details. But then the real challenge begins.
"Observation gets better with training and experience," Sibley said. "It's all training and pattern recognition so that you can incorporate it into that split second when you spot a bird and seek to identify it."
Notice The Details
Birders marvel at Sibley's drawings and how they highlight easy-to-miss subtleties of each species. He says they often ask him, "How can you see that? You must have amazing eyesight."
He responds that it's not his sharp eyes that give him an advantage. Instead, it's the ability to redouble his focus and confirm the accuracy of what he sees.
"It's being open to correction," he said. "As you keep looking at birds, you may have all kinds of optical illusions and tricks of light. You think you see details, so you learn when to trust those details and which are less trustworthy."
Meet Your Mentor
Sibley took an interest in birds — and started drawing them — as a youngster. He kept at it and grew increasingly intrigued by the number and variety of species.
It helped that his father, Fred Sibley, was a Yale University ornithologist. And as a child, David met a luminary in the field, Roger Tory Peterson, who wrote the first modern field guide to birds in 1934.
"He lived near us in Connecticut and I met him a few times," Sibley said. "Every adult I knew was a bird watcher."
Restless after a year of undergraduate study at Cornell University, he says he "took a leave of absence and never went back." In the fall of 1980, he accepted a low-paying job in Cape May, N.J., counting migrating hawks from dawn to dusk for the New Jersey Audubon Society.
"College classrooms wasn't where I wanted to be," he said. "I wanted to be out in the field watching birds and drawing birds and doing a field guide."
Eventually, he wound up spending 12 years traveling around North America doing just that. The self-described vagabond lived out of his VW Microbus (a hand-me-down from his parents) for much of that time; he removed the back seats and set up a bed to make it a camper van.
"I lived very cheaply," he said. Sibley turned frugal living into an art. "I controlled costs. I found free places to park. And I sold a little artwork."
Refine Your Talents
One of Sibley's earliest customers was Pete Dunne, the director of the Cape May Bird Observatory. Even then, the 19-year-old, self-taught artist demonstrated exceptional talent.
"Producing a flat leather case, the journeyman birder began leafing through illustrations, each more exciting than the last," Dunne recalled. He bought a pen-and-ink sketch of Surf Scoters (a type of duck) for $10.
He still has that drawing, along with many others he has acquired from Sibley over their 44-year friendship.
Keep Your Ego In Check
From the beginning, Dunne didn't just admire Sibley's artistry. He also appreciated Sibley's humility.
On Sibley's second day on the job at Cape May Bird Observatory, he burst into Dunne's office and reported a rare sighting of an elusive bird species. "You won't believe what I just saw," Sibley said excitedly. "A Bewick's wren!"
A few days later, Sibley told Dunne, "I was wrong." Sibley realized that the diffusing light made the color on the bird's outer tail look different.
"David didn't need to tell me he was wrong," Dunne said. "Not only is David uncommonly intelligent but he strives at all times to be honest and accurate. He has the work ethic of a monk. And his powers of observation are off the charts."
Dunne cites a story in which Sibley and a friend were in a diner. The friend said to Sibley, "See that guy over there? He was in here last week. He's wearing the same hat."
"Yes, it's the same guy," Sibley replied. "Same hat. Except last week it was green. Now it's red."
David Sibley: Refine Your Work For Improvement
For Sibley, success and humility go hand in hand. He understands that in his line of work, it's tough to get it right the first time.
"If you create an image of a bird on paper, that image becomes in a way your reality," he said. "It influences your memories."
Upon further sightings of the bird, he'd often refine his drawings. He kept pushing himself to ensure accuracy.
"It's never believing that what I've done is a perfect end product," he said. "There's always room for improvement. You see the bird again and think, 'I'm doing my best, but I can do it better.' "
The sheer heft of Sibley's field guide reinforces his intent to provide a comprehensive resource. The second edition weighs over three pounds and its 600-plus pages feature nearly 7,000 paintings of birds.
"I'm not daunted by the prospect of doing all those paintings," he said. "I do one and keep on going. I'm not intimidated by looking at the great mountain of work ahead."
Learn To See Patterns
Pinpointing variations in patterns — whether in birds or elsewhere — takes mental discipline. You have to know what to look for and ensure you are capturing the details as well as the big picture.
Each bird species produces a range of songs and calls. And plumage can vary by season or by the bird's age or sex.
"David can hear subtle differences in birdsongs that I'd never think to listen for," said Keith Hansen, a bird artist who has known Sibley for over 30 years. "He brings things to your attention and you wonder, 'How did he figure that out?' "
David Sibley's Keys
- American ornithologist who wrote many of the definitive guides of North American birds.
- Overcame: Dropping out of college with limited prospects for a lucrative career path.
- Lesson: "Observation gets better with training and experience. It's all training and pattern recognition so that you can incorporate it into that split second."
