Connie Hagar: The Life History of a Texas Birdwatcher

For three decades, the big names in ornithology beat a path to Rockport, Tex., to go birding with Connie Hagar. Self-taught, she took up birdwatching in early middle age and became one of the best field birders in the country. Reporter McCracken, whose interest in birds was sparked by Hagar, traces her subject's life from a conventional Texas childhood at the turn of the century through her fame as a ""birdwoman.'' Experts (most of them male) from the Eastern ornithological community came to challenge her and remained, or returned, to explore the countryside for birds. In addition, she taught two generations of birdwatchers through her talks at schools and clubs. McCracken's account of Hagar in the field and the number of species she observed will captivate any birder worthy of the title. (April)