Introduction to birdwatching
We were all new once, however long ago that was. There’re some basics to the past-time and I’ve set out a few here. If it’s useful, you’ll read it and …
We were all new once, however long ago that was. There’re some basics to the past-time and I’ve set out a few here. If it’s useful, you’ll read it and …
Once I came out of the closet and self-described as a twitcher, I felt strangely liberated. I was out and proud. The usually unkind descriptor ‘nerd’ is still applied to …
As a stage in the evolution of safe and successful methods of reproduction, there’re a few issues with eggs. There are also many strategies that birds have adopted to negate …
it is said that it’s a man’s world, but that is not always the case. Here’re two examples from the bird world that show the benefits of being female. What …
Giving Jindabyne a miss I don’t know if you have seen the movie Jindabyne about four fellows going on their much-planned annual blokes’ fishing trip. They are in high spirits …
Sexual innuendo linked with bird-names is not too hard to find. Tits and shags are all too obvious and couple this with a largely male pursuit, add in lashings of post-adolescent humour and the article here is an almost inevitable consequence. I was sent this article by someone some time ago and I post it here in case someone finds it titillating or perhaps provocative of a behind-the-hands snigger.
The Twitchathon team, the Common Loudmouths, went north for a seven tick trip. . Philip was with us in spirit and it was his research that enabled our success. It was not, however, as simple as we had hoped. The Kalka-bloody-doon grasswren was the holdout and while we enjoyed the chase, most of the time at least, we would have enjoyed Philip’s presence more.
No-one plans like the Loudmouths plan. In this case, we’re off to Boodjamulla in June/July 2018 to look for Kalkadoon grasswrens, Carpentarian grasswrens, Lilac-crowned fairy wren, Sandstone shrike thrush and more. This takes planning and where better to plan and plan often than some eatery and drinkery?
Isn’t it odd how every cat owner will tell that their cat doesn’t eat birds. If it’s a cat, it eats birds, period! That’s what they do. If you must have a cat, and that’s a big if, make sure that it isn’t where birds are. There’re many good designs for cat runs, make one and put your cat in it. Check this article from The Conversation for reasons why.
Birdwatchers span a range of shapes, sizes and approaches. At one end, you’ll see some in their various shades of Kathmandu merchandise, camouflaged from head to toe in khaki and sensible hats, with $2000 Swarovski or Zeiss binoculars and twitching in their earnestness. And then there are the other kind, the irreverent chaps (and they are mainly chaps) out for a good time in the bush. You can find somewhere on the continuum where you’ll fit, so do yourself a favour, take the advice in this handy introduction and I’ll see you out there.