BIRDS
Birding
How to observe birds, identifies them, study them and enjoy them
1. The birder (birdwatcher)
An interesting and enjoying way of leisure is the birding. No doubts that seeing birds, mainly in their savage state is so generous and a rare opportunity for thinking about life's meaning, because they represent liberty with its potential of flying and easy locomotion, as for its beauty. The one who has this opportunity and learns its signification is a privileged person.
If you have access to a preserved natural area, it is still better, because then you will have better chances for birding more species. The most savage place of birds' observation, more species for seeing and hearing.
The birds' observation, besides a pleasure hobby, can become a challenge to the observer, because there are so many species, making the studies interesting.
So, if you are a curious and like nature, why not birding? Why not becoming a birder? To see the birds and also studying them, since they are in almost all the places, as cities, forests and country.
Don't forget that there are 1.650 known species in Brazil, and Amazônia hasn't already been completely explored.2. What is necessary for birding?
Seeing birds is not too hard, the difficulty is in identifying them. For this we need too much study and dedication. Evidently that the birds can only be observed without bigger obligation, but it is natural that people start to be curious about that non-identified birds, and so start studying for the curiosity. It must be remembered that a little is known about our big part of our birds, make bring us emotion when discovering something about certain specie that isn't at books, motivating new adventures.
For observing and identifying birds it is still necessary:
- neuter color clothes: being better the green ones for the observing at forests or khaki ones at the fields, for not frightening the birds and become easier the approximation;
- Binnacles: growth of 7, 8 or 9 times;
- List of the birds of the place (Checklist): some places, parks and Reserves have already prepared their avifauna list, making easier the observing because it permits the better and more quickly identification of the birds that are seen. With the checked list the observer will know how many species he has seen in that day;
- Notebook: for the notes and posterior studies of those birds that are difficult for identifying or small recorder for registering what is being seen.
- Boots: good boots for protecting of snakes, because the observer is almost always looking up or distant, looking for birds;
- Field guide: It's necessary taking for field a good identification book, remembering that it have to be chosen the one that has the biggest possible part of the avifauna from the chosen ecosystem;
If you don't have the chance of travelling for a forest or fields distant from the cities, be calm, because there is always a Park near your house, where you can stay long hours observing; but if there isn't one, you can do the observing in any empty ground with a little scrubland, or even in that abandoned pasture near home.
For sure there will always be "birds waiting for your observing". Don't discourage, because the observing itself is not difficult, besides demanding attention and dedication of the observer.3. Mainly forms for observations
Usually the birding can be done of two ways:
- Waiting observing: when the observer stand in some place for some time, preferably near a swamp, a river or a tree full of fruits, waiting for the appearing of the birds of the region;
- Route observing: when the observer make its observations walking through a route, tread, in the field etc.
Important: if you are doing a waiting observing and it is possible, look for a shelter, tent or hiding place, where in silence you can have better conditions for seeing the birds, mainly if you are near some water font, as rivers and swamps.
The hiding place of observing can be since a simple camouflaged cloth support to sophisticated tents or even a brick shelter.4. How to identify birds:
4.1. Make notes
As you see the bird, note in the notebook (or recorder) its characteristics as color, approximate size, form of the beak, kind of flight etc, everything using binnacles, inseparable friend of the observer.
4.2. Record the birds' voices
Another important detail in the identification process is the vocalization, because as you know it, the identification becomes much easier, because you can verify the existence of certain specie without seeing it, only by knowing it voice. For this it is necessary starting to record the birds' voices using any recorder and, after identifying them, trying to memory it for the next time hearing it.
Remember that birds are divided into families that have species, and each family generally have the same "kind of voice", making easier to know which bird is in identification process.
4.3.Visit museums and zoos
Another important resource for the observer is taking a look at the Museum of Natural History or of Sciences of the city, in the division of ornithology (birds studies), where surely will find help in his identification work, or even look for some ornithological entity help or even the help of experiment observers.
You can also visit the Zoo from your country, trying to recognize any bird that you have seen and couldn't know which one it was, helping in your studies.5. Attract birds
You can also enjoy birds in your own garden, location or farm, only having to make a place for eating or drinking, that a lot of species will appear, making easier a better identification.
We can't forget that a lot of birds immigrate looking for another places to be in the winter, in a way that some times we don't find species that were used to live in a certain place in another time of the year. But this does not impede the observing, because it is only necessary studying the species and its "costumes" for knowing when and where finding them.6. Conclusion
So, the ones who like nature and specially birds, doesn't need too much things for enjoying himself and studying, it is only necessary a little bit of curiosity, nature love, binnacles and some notes. Yes, just this. With these ingredients and a place where there are any vegetation, it's possible an adventure in the fascinating birds' world.
Resuming, if you like birds, budge yourself, go to a field equipped and/or make a place for eating or drinking in your garden and enjoy birding, that can be since an excellent hobby and leisure, an important reason for studies.