Noah Strycker made waves in the North American birding community after winning the prestigious ABA/Leica Young Birder of the Year competition in 2004.

He then traveled to Taiwan to advise on a new ecotourism program, illustrated the comprehensive 2-volume Bird Coloration, became BirdBoy in WildBird magazine, and took position as Associate Editor of Birding magazine.

Currently a 21-year-old junior at Oregon State University, Noah studies Fisheries & Wildlife and Fine Arts on a full academic scholarship. When not in class, he travels in search of birding adventures. He spent last summer researching Atlantic Puffins off the coast of Maine, studied abroad in Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands in the fall, and stalked Ivory-billed Woodpeckers in Florida over winter vacation.

Now, he shows an enthusiastic vision of birds as a contact sport . . . and an important spoke in environmental conservation. Listen for him in April on the popular radio program, Living on Earth, where he will read his essay about iPods from the recent book, Good Birders Don't Wear White: 50 Tips From America's Top Birders.

After graduation, Noah dreams of a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford, doing bird field jobs around the world, or possibly pursuing graduate school in the U. S.

He plans to visit Arizona, Australia, Fiji, and Borneo in coming months. Noah is an active birder with a "life list" near 1,500 species and always looks forward to the next bird!