*John Stirrat* I am sad to inform you of the passing of John Stirrat, at the age of 79, on January 11th. John’s obituary may be viewed at: www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/west-hill-on/john-stirrat-10527001 John Stirrat was a birder. What does that mean? Like many of us, he spent a significant amount of time watching birds. When he wasn’t actually watching birds, John might have been making bird lists, talking about birds, thinking/reading/computing/digitizing about birds – not every hour, but certainly often. For some of us, birding translates into chasing “good birds” and can become a controlling influence over our lives. Not John. He was never, ever too busy to point out birds to beginners, to help someone sort out which warbler was singing, to show visitors where he had found that secretive wren. It didn’t matter whether it was the peak of spring migration at Thickson’s Woods, an autumn hawk flight at Cranberry Marsh or a quiet day at Frenchman’s Bay – he always made time. He even waded into the flocks of “seagull detesters”, and encouraged others to distinguish which gull was which! On the other hand, John did not respond instantly when someone wanted to know: “What bird is that”? He would smile and ask them: “What do you think it is?” To the baffled reply: “I have no idea” – he would calmly say: “It’s okay – just make a guess”. And so, field mark by field mark, one identification at a time, he set a great many feet upon the birding learning curve, and encouraged those people to keep going out and to become birders themselves. It wasn’t just birds – John was a well-rounded naturalist. He keenly participated in butterfly outings and workshops, and then took part himself in several annual butterfly counts in Durham, Toronto and other Regions. Similarly, he learned to identify our local dragonflies and damselflies, and shared his new knowledge with one and all. For our club, Pickering Naturalists, John was indispensable during the almost two decades he spent on the executive. He was Outing Coordinator from 2004 to 2016, and actually led almost all of the outings himself for that entire period. Most of these were local outings in Pickering / Ajax and on the Durham waterfront, as well as on the lakeshore in nearby Toronto. We also went farther afield to the Carden Alvar, the West lakeshore out towards Hamilton, and Niagara River. It was always striking on these trips – John knew all of the bird group leaders that we encountered! More distant treks for the club included Presqu’ile, Long Point, Algonquin, and occasionally Amherst Island. Even after he “retired” as coordinator, John continued to attend almost all of the outings and was a great help to participants. Other roles on the PN executive included Recording Secretary for the club from 2016 to 2019, and as a general member of the Executive from 2019 to 2021. John was also our sponsored birder for many years for the Baillie Birdathon, one of the major fundraisers for the club and for birds in Ontario. He participated annually in our December Members’ Night, and helped to make our 40th anniversary a grand success. As a board member for OFO, John was well-known for his role on the committee for the annual convention. He also served as recording secretary and helped lead OFO outings in Durham Region. John was a great friend and birding companion. He will be in our thoughts as we watch the ducks return in March, as we listen to the dawn chorus in May, as we scan shorebird flocks on the beach, as we look up at the hawks soaring overhead Cranberry, as we search for Snowy Owls on the wintry shore. Steve LaForest Pickering Naturalists