Ethics of bird watching
A recent series of posts on the birding forum Birding-Aus discussed the ethics of birding. This thread had a particular emphasis on the practice of some birders of playing recordings of the calls of hard to see birds. This method is used in an attempt to attract the bird to come closer. The theory is that the bird will think this is an interloper on his territory or that it will come to investigate out of curiosity.
Some birders are strongly in favour of this practice and use it often, others use the method sparingly while others are strongly opposed to it. I think that it is cheating, and prefer to use my birding skills to track down the elusive bird. The only concession I make is that I will occasionally use a method called pishing, in which one makes hissing or kissing noises with your mouth. The way I do it is to suck air through my teeth against a tightened lip – it’s actually very easy to do and quite hard to describe in words.
As a result of this discussion, several people posted their bird club’s code of ethics. I thought it was so good I have included it below.
- The welfare of birds must come first.
- Habitat must be protected.
- Nests, eggs and the immediate vicinity must not be disturbed.
- Keep disturbance of birds and their habitat to a minimum.
- Abide by the bird protection laws at all times.
- Keep your pets at home.
- When you find a rare bird, think carefully about whom you should tell.
- Make your records available to the local bird recorder.
- Respect the rights of land owners.
- Respect the rights of other people in the countryside.
- Be an ambassador for birdwatchers generally. We do not want to be unwelcome in the future
This is a simple list of easy to follow instructions with the welfare of the birds in mind.
Thanks to Alan for posting this on Birding-Aus and the Hunter Bird Observers Club. It’s their code and similar codes have been adopted by other clubs in NSW.
Todays’ photo is of a Yellow Rumped Thornbill, a species that responds well to pishing.
Yellow Rumped Thornbill
Penguins and Happy Feet
I took my wife to see the film “Happy Feet” yesterday. What a brilliant film with plenty of fun and entertainment throughout. It is infectiously happy with an excellent portrayal of the grand beauty of Antarctica. And I don’t think I will ever regard penguins in quite the same light again.
Purists could deride the film as the poorer for having thousands of penguins dancing and singing their way across the screen. Penguins just do not do that in reality. Loosen up if you are a critic who thinks this – despite the obvious drawbacks, several things stand out which are a definite plus in my mind:
- From this film the general public will learn quite a number of facts about the life cycle of penguins.
- People will also learn much about life in Antarctica and its delicate ecosystem.
- The heavy environmental message laid on thick near the end will make people think – and hopefully act – for the good of all species, not just penguins.
- Learning about the environment can be packaged in a fast paced, entertaining and fun way.
All the way through I was astonished at how the writers had incorporated so many subtle references and allusions to other things, including other films. In summary, this film could be labelled: “where Sister Act meets Riverdance meets Hillsong* meets calypso.”
Overall rating: 4 stars – a must see film.
*Hillsong: a very large and influential charismatic Christian church in Sydney.
A very strange chicken
Some very strange and bizarre things happen in the natural world. I recently came across a story about a chicken with webbed feet – just like a duck.
To read this unusual story and to see the photos click here.
The story is featured on a blog called Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted) which features some beautiful photographs of the natural world, including birds. One amazingly beautiful photo is of a Western Scrub-Jay in California. Worth a visit.
Trials of being a birder
Being a birder for many years I have had my fair share of amused people look at me in a peculiar way with the realisation that here was a seemingly “normal”, sane person passionately interested in birds.
You get that.
Get over it – I did three decades ago.
In my circle of friends – and most of my family, I’ve developed a resilience and thickness of hide to the point where they no longer think I belong in a loony bin. Quite the opposite. I’ve lost count of the number of conversations that start, “Trevor, thought of you the other day when I saw this interesting bird. Don’t know what it was but…” This opening is usually followed by a series of interrogating questions from me until I establish what bird they have seen.
I have also become something of a resident guru, receiving many phone calls soliciting my help in identification or help with injured birds. All this has escalated on this blog with readers’ comments and questions.
So it comes as a pleasant surprise that there are some very famous – hopefully also sane – people who are also birders. Bill Oddie (of BBC television “The Goodies” fame) is possibly one of the better known celeb birders, though reading his books one could question the “sane” tag in his particular case. Evidently former president Jimmy Carter is a birder. And so are the following celebrities better known for their non-birding exploits:
- Billy Fury (singer)
- Eric Morecambe (comedian)
- Harold Wilson (PM of UK)
- Princess Takamado of Japan
- Ian Fleming (author of James Bond stories)
And now it seems we can add the name of former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney to this list of celebrity birders.
To read about Sir Paul McCartney’s interest in birds click here.
Eagle attack
I always thought that paragliding seemed to be a somewhat dangerous pursuit. Like all extreme sports, the prospect of danger seems to be one of the main adrenalin surging elements.
One paraglider received a little more of an adrenalin rush than normal. Her glider was attacked by a pair of Wedge Tailed Eagles.
Britain’s top female paraglider has cheated death after being attacked by a pair of “screeching” wild eagles while competition flying in Australia.
Nicky Moss, 38, watched terrified as two huge birds began tearing into her parachute canopy, one becoming tangled in her lines and clawing at her head 2,500 metres (8,200ft) in the air.
“I heard screeching behind me and a eagle flew down and attacked me, swooping down and bouncing into the side of my wing with its claws,” Moss told Reuters on Friday.
Read the story in the Melbourne Age here.