Ma’ayan (they/them) began as a self-described “bird skeptic,” but fell in love with birds during their mom’s 60th-birthday trip to the Amazon. Back home in California, they assumed the excitement wouldn’t translate—until owls, flickers, and other neighborhood species proved otherwise and sparked a deep, lasting passion. Raised in the Bay Area, Ma’ayan feels a strong commitment to learning about and integrating into their local ecosystems, leading to an interest in habitat-specific bird communities, avian behavior, and localized ecological patterns. They have organized birding events with the Feminist Bird Club of Sonoma County, including both standard walks and affinity walks for queer and BIPOC birders.
Over the past two years, Ma’ayan’s enthusiasm has become a full-fledged obsession with raptors. Each fall, they volunteer as a hawkwatcher with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory and have facilitated a “Raptor Cohort” for birders seeking a deeper understanding of these species. For Ma’ayan, no day of birding feels complete without seeing a raptor—and few experiences compare to watching hundreds soar overhead in a single day.
