One of my earliest memories is of a bright blue bird in the shrubs behind our Cincinnati home. Five or six at the time, I remember wondering whether it was someone's pet bird, freed from its cage. Today, more than 50 years later, the image of that bird remains very clear in my mind and I recognize it as an indigo bunting.
Such childhood experiences, compounded over the years, awaken us to the natural diversity of this planet and set the stage for a commitment to conservation later in life. As parents and grandparents, we should do whatever we can to expose our young ones to the many fascinating creatures that share this planet. We and they will be enriched by the process and nature will be the ultimate beneficiary.
