Suwanee nature store specializes in birding – a multi-generational hobby for all ages.
BY: Angela Veugeler
One of the fastest growing hobbies among nature lovers in the U.S. is bird watching, or birding. It’s something that can be done in your own backyard, or in one of the many parks in the area and throughout the state.
The cool thing about birding, according to Judy Stoop, Co-Owner along with her husband Jim, of Wild Birds Unlimited (WBU) in Suwanee, is that birding is such a multi-generational hobby. “It gives the grandparents something to teach their grandkids about. You can really make it a cool science project. Take pictures of birds with your grandkids and use the Birds of Georgia Field Guide to identify them. Make a book with your pictures to create wonderful memories and help you connect.”
This July, Jim and Judy Stoop celebrate their 10th anniversary owning Wild Birds Unlimited in Suwanee. They not only specialize in all things birds including all types of feeders, bird baths, field guides and binoculars, but are a nature shop, with a variety of gifts for nature lovers. The franchise appealed to them because of their love of nature and core values. The WBU motto is, “we bring people and nature together and we do it with excellence.”
“Nature is so cool,” Judy shared, “watching the males and females take care of their young. The same birds come through every year. If you mark the date you saw them in your field guide, the next year they will show up within a day or two.”
In honor of their anniversary, WBU invites the public to their Birds of Prey shows on July 18th at 11am and 1pm. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources will be on-site and will give visitors an up close look at a Bald Eagle, Red Tail Hawk, owls and more. On July 16 at 7pm, WBU will offer a bat seminar, giving visitors the opportunity to see a live bat up close and even hear what bat calls sounds like. Both events are free to the public.
During the month of August, if you bring in a bag of dog food (up to 20lbs.) to the store mascot Cheyenne, the Stoop’s yellow lab, you will receive that percentage off your purchase, and the store will donate the food to the Gwinnett Humane Society. On Saturday, August 22nd, from 11am-3pm, they will also host pet adoptions with the Gwinnett Humane Society in the store.
