Birdwatching firsts are usually good things.

A new birdwatcher sees a scarlet tanager for the first time. The first warblers show up in the spring. An evening grosbeak visits a feeder for the first time. (I’m still waiting for that one, by the way.) Witnessing a unique behavior, like an eagle harassing an osprey into dropping a fish, for the first time is always a thrill.

But not all firsts are cause for celebration. Some firsts are best avoided if at all possible. I was reminded of this last week when I woke up and found this year’s first deer tick embedded in my thigh.

I should have known better, of course. But there I was tromping through waist-high grass trying to get a better look at a swamp sparrow. It will be okay, I thought, it’s still early in the season, and it hasn’t really warmed up yet. Every year, it takes this lesson for me to realize that ticks emerge before I think they will.

I returned to the car after my unsuccessful attempt to close in on the swamp sparrow. As I sat down and got ready to turn the key, I noticed a deer tick on my pants, its tiny black-and-red body slowly crawling as it searched for a way to get to my blood.

I grabbed it between my thumb and index finger and flicked it out the window. Usually, I like to dispatch the tick before discarding it, but I was already buckled in and wanted to get on my way. Then I noticed one. And another. Before I pulled out of the parking lot, I flicked six ticks out the window.

I gave my clothes and skin a good inspection when I got home. Apparently, I wasn’t thorough enough. When I woke up the next morning and sat on the edge of the bed, I felt a very familiar pain where my thigh met the mattress. It wasn’t a sharp or excruciating pain, but rather a condensed, numb-like pain that I have become all too familiar with.

I knew what I was going to find when I looked, but I still held out hope that it was something other than a tick. No such luck. Darn it, not again, I told myself. I grabbed the tweezers and carefully extracted the tick. It was dead and not bloated, but it was in there pretty deep.

I went to the urgent center to make sure the small hole in my leg was cleaned out properly and to get some antibiotics. The doctor said as long as I take the antibiotics within 72 hours of being bitten, I should be safe from Lyme disease. Instead of spreading out the antibiotics like they used to, I was prescribed one big dose to take all at once.

Yes, I know I should be more careful and take the proper precautions. I highly recommend caution and diligence to anyone reading this. Do as I write, not as I do.

I’m hoping to avoid any bouts with poison ivy this year, but I’m sure that first is coming too.

Let’s get back to the good firsts. Spring migration is upon us and many exciting firsts of the year are coming. I’ve seen several warbler species already, but I’m still waiting for my first orioles, grosbeaks and tanagers.

May all your birdwatching firsts be good ones.