Bird Watching

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You probably hear birds every day, but can you tell one bird song from the next? Birdwatching, or birding, is an increasingly popular hobby in many parts of the world. Venturing out to look for and listen to various species of birds in your locality can be both enriching and relaxing. All you need is a pair of binoculars, a field guide, and a willingness to observe.

Step 1 – Get a pair of binoculars

A pair with reasonable magnification (e.g. 7 x 8 x) and lighter weight often works better in cluttered environments like forest or woodland. Higher magnification (10 x or 12 x; and heavier weight) glasses are better for open country and wetland birding.

Step 2 – Get a field guide

Some people prefer the guides with illustrations because photographs can lead to confusion due to poor lighthing, flash, posture, etc. Get into the habit of studying the birds’ habits, calls, and field marks before birding. This way, you will be ready to identify a particular bird the instant you see it.

Step 3 – Find other bird watchers

If you really enjoy bird watching, search online for birding groups and chapters near you. Many lead bird walks that you can attend., Contact local universities or parks to find out whether classes or walks are being offered. The more sets of eyes and ears there are, the more birds you’ll find, especially if you go with bird watchers, who are more experienced than you are.

Step 4 – Start bird watching in the morning ,when birds are searching for food and listen. Most of the time, you will be surrounded by bird calls and songs, but will not have a single bird in sight. Look for movement in trees, and bring your binoculars to your eyes. If you can’t go to the birds, bring the birds to you. Putting up bird feeders and keeping them filled with fresh bird food is an effective way to attract birds to your own yard.

Step 5 – Identify the bird you have spotted in your field guide. You will find birds stick to certain ranges – range maps will be shown in your field guide. Do not focus on colour as this alone can lead to misidentifications. Focus on shape, size, markings, posture, behaviour, etc. If you have time, and if you’re interested in having a visual record, take a picture of the bird.

To find more and different birds, you may wish to plan trips to different habitats: forests, mudflats, lakes, rivers, fields and meadows. Eventually, you may wish to plan travel even further to places which will host birds you are not likely to see near your home.   

Step 6 – Create your “life list”.

This is a list of every species of bird you have seen. Eventually you might progress to creating various other lists: yard lists, month lists, year lists, state lists, etc. Write down the bird species, gender (if you can tell) location and date.

Step 7 – Respect the birds

Birdwatching etiquette and ethics are important in makign sure that as birding becomes more popular, the birds’ habitats are not disturbed.

Some guidelines include:

• Don’t stress the birds with recording or artificial lighting.
• Don’t get too close to nest, nesting colonies, roosts, display areas, and important feeding sites; your presence may interfere with birds’ activities.
• Avoid advertising the presence of a rare bird if it may result in habitat disturbance.
• Don’t attract birds to areas where they are in danger.

How to identify a bird

Have you ever seen a bird at your feeder that you really like, but just can’t seem to figure out what it is? You should learn how to identify a bird, and this article will explain how to:  

Categorise the bird

There are eight different categories that they can go into. As soon as you see the bird you should try to put into one of these categories. The eight categories are:

1.        Ducks and duck-like birds

2.        Gulls and terns

3.        Long-legged waders

4.        Shorebirds and small waders

5.        Fowl-like birds

6.        Birds of prey

7.        Flycatchers

8.        Warbles

Size matters

You should pay attention to how big or small the bird is. You can use size relativity to get a general idea.

Study silhouettes

The silhouette is important part of identifying it. When it is flying and you can’t see all of the details, just pay attention to its body, beak, tail, and legs.

Pay attention to the bird’s behaviour

Different birds have different behaviours. For example, when woodpeckers climb up a tree, one might climb in spirals, in jerks or use their tail as a brace.

Take note on where you saw the bird

Range is important part in identifying birds.

Don’t depend on colour.

Birds have different plumages at different times of the year, so the colour of their feathers might not tell you what kind it is.

Use field guide

It is best to use a field guide last, because you will have all the information recorded when you go to look it up. Most field guides have categories that the birds are put into, or they separate them by family.