Some of the best sights on the Seaway Trail may be up in the air rather than on the water.

Ornithologist Gerry Smith ’76 shares viewing details of more than 200 species in his Birding the Great Lakes Seaway Trail. The book breaks down where and when to spot various birds along the scenic byway stretching from Erie, Pa., to Massena, N.Y.

The idea for a definitive guide to bird watching along the trail was actually born on the St. Lawrence River, where Smith and Professor Emeritus George Maxwell were doing research more than three decades ago.

“It never quite got off the ground and was forgotten,” said Smith, who spent most of his career as a land steward for the Nature Conservancy and now works as an ecological consultant.

With increasing interest in eco-tourism and bird-watching itself, it seemed like a good time to revisit the idea, he said.

“These sorts of things are being done in other states where there are birding trails,” said Smith, who employed the help of former Nature Conservancy colleague Julie Burgess Covey ’97 as editor.

The book breaks the 454-mile Seaway Trail into 17 sections, each with its own inhabitants and patterns. Covey took care of the maps in the book.

A general nature lover, she discovered a lot of new information about the birds of the Seaway by working on the project.

“In putting this together, I became much more familiar with things I did not know a lot about before,” she said. “It’s very interesting to see how many birds there are and how much they change from place to place.”

Covey also discovered that the Jefferson County area where she lives is a prime location for several Seaway species. The book includes popular birding spots as well as the lesser known posts, said Smith, who hopes the book draws more casual Upstate birders to explore what’s in their own backyards.

— Shane M. Liebler



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