Young Birders Profile
Spotlight on Auriel Van Der Laar

The following interview with Auriel Van Der Laar was printed in the Fall 2006 issue of Golden-Wings.

Golden Wings - What year did you start birding?
Auriel Van Der Laar - Sometime in 2000 I think, though I've been somewhat obsessive about nature since I was in the third grade.

GW - What (or who) got you interested in birds?
AV - I met local bird bander, Tom Kashmer, at a county park program where he led bird banding demonstrations among other things. He later got me into Green Creek Wildlife Society (GCWS) and I've been hooked ever since.

GW - Do you have a favorite bird, and if so, what is it and what makes it your favorite?AV - I've always had something of an obsession with Common Loons…though I've never seen one. I think that they are just beautiful and have the most eerie call.

GW - Other interests/hobbies besides birding?
AV - I love to write, mainly fantasy, but I also write lots of reports/articles. I'm heavily involved in boy scouts (through their venturing program) and I worked at Pioneer Scout Reservation this past summer. I'm in the marching and concert bands at St. Joseph Central Catholic in Fremont. I'm in 4-H (8 years) and have taken every natural resources project, except fishing, that my county offers.

GW - What is your dream job?
AV - Working as a park ranger or working up at Pioneer Scout Reservation in Ecology, doing avian research somewhere in the world.

GW - Who have been your mentors or heroes in birding?
AV- Tom Kashmer, Kim + Kenn Kaufman, Julie + Mark Shieldcastle, and Debbie Haubert.

GW - Do you have a job somewhere?
AV - This past summer I worked up at Pioneer Scout Reservation in the Ecology department teaching hundreds of little scouts about nature. (Best job ever!) I've also been babysitting since I turned thirteen.

GW - Do you volunteer anywhere?
AV - I teach Sunday school (grades4, 5, and 6) and sing with our church choir. I'm on the OYBC Youth Advisory Panel. I help BSBO with bird banding in the spring and the fall. I help with my church's grade school youth group. I run the youth newsletter for the local home school group. Soon I'll be running the website for Green Creek Wildlife Society. I've also been volunteering with GCWS for the past five years, monitoring bluebird trails, rail traps, spring and fall migratory bird banding, etc.

GW - What is your favorite movie?
AV - Lord of the Rings, hands down. Pirates of the Caribbean and Star Wars are great as well.

GW - What is your favorite book?
AV - Again, Lord of the Rings, [JRR Tolkien] The Chronicles of Narnia, [CS Lewis] The Inheritance Trilogy, [Christopher Paolini] and anything by Ted Dekker or Frank Peretti.

GW - Favorite place to eat?
AV- Olive Garden

GW - Favorite place to bird?
AV - Pioneer Scout Reservation, during the spring it is so amazing what you can find out there. Magee Marsh is also a favorite of mine, though I don't have much diversity in the places I have been birding.

GW - Do you have any pets, and if so, what are they?
AV - Our family has a dog (Springer Spaniel, we think, he's from the pound) named Shiloh. My brother Billy has two frogs (yet to be named) and I have a parakeet, named Yiago, who finds it quite entertaining to sing very loudly at five am and wake me up.

GW - Are any other members of your family birders? If not, how do you handle that?
AV- My parents will bird with me if I can convince them to drive me somewhere, but I really doubt they'd go birding on their own. I've mainly just found people that do like to bird that can drive, and tag along with them whenever possible.

GW - Have you taken any birding trips out of state?
AV - Nope, sadly, though that will hopefully be changing in February.

GW - Conventions you've attended.
AV - Lake Erie Wing Watch, '05 + '06

GW - What would you say to someone to convince them to be a birder.
AV - I'd tell them that God gave us nature for a reason, to be enjoyed and to be studied. And you can't kick it till you try it!

GW - Where do you go to school?
AV - I'm home schooled, have been since the 4th grade, before that I went to catholic school.

GW - Do you plan to go to college, and if so, where?
AV - (shudders) Yes. I have begun looking for a college. It's so much work, and so many choices! I'd love to go into Wildlife Management, so I'm looking at Hocking Technical down in the Hocking Hills area, my mom wants to see if I could get into Cornell.

GW - Birding classes/courses you've taken?
AV - Various sessions at Wing watch over the past two years, Nature Camp with BSBO (summer 03 or 04) 4-H State Conservation Camp 05+06 and to many county park programs to name.

GW - Birding classes/courses you've taught?
AV - I taught the bird study merit badge up at Pioneer this past summer, and led bird hikes twice a week. I helped with the OYBC's overnight up at Pioneer as well. I've taught classes about nature to city kids at my aunt's schools over the past couple years.

GW - What bird would you most like to see?
AV- Either the Common Loon or Kirtland's Warbler.

GW- How many birds are on your life list?
AV - Umm…I'm not much of a lister, but somewhere over 200 last time I