Nature Blog Network

white pelicans

Our featured blog this week is Birders Lounge, and our author and hostess is Amber Coakley. Amber  has been blogging at Birder’s Lounge since May, 2008, and recently helped launch the new carnival, House of Herps. Though birds are her primary focus, Amber has deep appreciation and unbridled enthusiasm for all wildlife. If you’d like to know more, check out her About page at Birders Lounge.


Amber can be contacted by email at both Birders Lounge and House of Herps, acoakley AT birderslounge DOT com or acoakley AT houseofherps DOT com, respectively.

baby snapping turtle

Amber, why do you blog?

You wouldn’t think it would be so challenging to answer this question! I blog because I love nature and nature photography, and because I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if I didn’t have an outlet. Why do I love nature so much? Because it heals me – and this is the first time I have ever made a statement so deeply personal in such a public venue. That said, I’m willing to share this truth – and I’ll bet that there are others who know what I am talking about. I have endured more than my fair share of loss and profound grief – and absolutely nothing in this world offers me the kind of peace and joy of life that Nature offers so effortlessly. It is because I need Nature that I work so tirelessly to protect her. Wildlife is pure in a way that humankind rarely is – free of cruelty and the innumerable atrocities that we humans visit upon anything that gets in our way. Blogging is my megaphone, which I use to sound the call to action to save that which has saved me.

wheel bug

What do you like most and least about blogging?

The best thing about blogging for me is the freedom to babble about anything that makes me happy. I am growing more comfortable with allowing my sense of humor show, and that is always fun. Sharing pictures and stories of my walks and field trips is a great way for me to share my life with friends and family, and to make new friends. I used to feel pressure to write on a schedule – that was not fun, so I decided to stop worrying about it.

passion flower

How has blogging changed how you think about nature? or how you write?

The more I blog, the more I learn about animals, plants, habitats, and ecosystems. This continuing education and discovery augments my appreciation for every living thing. I have definitely become more and more attuned to conservation issues since I have been blogging. I’m not really a writer – I just write like I talk and it comes out ok. And it helps to have a brilliant significant other to check my work.

prothonotory warbler

How do you promote your blog and attract readers?

I don’t really promote my blog, but I do promote the two wildlife rescue and rehabilitation organizations that I have chosen to champion at Birder’s Lounge. (Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation in TX, and International Bird Rescue Research Center in CA). I have visited each of these facilities and I am so grateful for the work they do. I think that my constant support for these and similar organizations ends up getting my blog noticed.Twitter, Flicker, MySpace, Facebook – there’s no time!

baby water snake

Is there a story behind the name of your blog?

First, I daydreamed about building the ultimate structure for birds, including food, water, and shelter. With the help of family and friends, I eventually realized my daydream, built it in my backyard, and called it the Bird Lounge. Then I moved on to daydreaming about opening a store that catered to birders, gardeners, and nature-lovers. I envisioned it as more of a gathering place – a community, with handy access to coffee, bird stuff, plant stuff, optics, books, etc. I started referring to my grand vision as Birder’s Lounge, which seemed a fitting complement to the Bird Lounge in my yard. Since I didn’t win the lottery, my vision of a brick and mortar Birder’s Lounge morphed into the blog I have today.

lynx spider and spiderlings

Do you feel you’re part of a community with other nature bloggers?

Yes, I certainly do feel a sense of community with other nature bloggers. Nature bloggers are “my peeps,” along with my fellow Texas Master Naturalists. I have several blog-buddies whom I have come to know through their blogs, though I have not yet met anyone face-to-face. I don’t spend nearly as much time making the rounds to all of the nature blogs, like so many other bloggers do. It is always tough to divvy up time between writing and reading. And saving the planet! Duh!

american robin

Any words of wisdom for new nature bloggers?

Advice? Sure – write about what you love and speak from the heart. Don’t spoil your blogging fun by setting a pace that becomes a chore. Everyone loves pictures. Enthusiasm is contagious!

black caterpillar

Anything else you’d like me to ask you, or that you’d like to volunteer without being asked?

I am working on a new project that I am very excited about. It is called NatureSquad, is geared toward matching passionate people with wildlife/conservation non-profits, and has nothing to do with money. (And it’s not a blog.) NatureSquad will have a web presence at http://www.NatureSquad.net, and I hope to have it online by April 1.

I would also like to thank everyone at Nature Blog Network for fostering and supporting nature bloggers everywhere!

great egret