All things Bird 038; Beautiful

Bird-Watching or the field observation of birds is an educative, exciting, healthy, inexpensive and rewarding hobby enjoyed by millions of all age groups, across the world.

Let8217;s indulge in a little bird watching
Bird-Watching or the field observation of birds is an educative, exciting, healthy, inexpensive and rewarding hobby enjoyed by millions of all age groups, across the world. The sport requires no formal training, a dash of interest, patience and practice is all it demands. This week, we8217;ll talk about the novice birder 8211; someone who is just getting interested in the amazing feathered world around us.

Initially, it can be a tad boring and difficult for it takes time to figure out what kind of bird you are looking at. But once into it, it8217;s addictive. Bird Topography is the list depicting different visible parts of a bird. This is important because as you read through the birds descriptions next to their pictures, the guide will often use these unfamiliar terms. To the beginner many birds look alike. By learning basic bird anatomy more experienced birders soon become proficient not only at telling species apart, but also knowing where in the guide to look for them.

Identification Clues : There are many basic clues that allow you to successfully identify the bird; bird8217;s silhouette, its plumage and colouration, behavior, its habitat, and its voice. Sometimes, the key to identification simply knows which clue to look for first when you see an unusual bird. As your birding abilities increase, you will be able to pinpoint the important clues with greater ease and certainty.

Silhouette 8211; Shape and Size: After birding for a few months one should be able to categorize most birds into families using silhouette. With experience we learn to note the details of a bird8217;s shape, size and any characteristic that stands out. The shape of a bird8217;s bill is very helpful in identification. Finches and sparrows have short conical bills. Woodpeckers have chisel-shaped bills for working dead wood. Hawks, eagles, and falcons have sharp, hooked bills that make quick work of meat.

Plumage: Striking colours of many birds, usually male of the specie, will attract the attention of even a casual observer. The distinguishing plumage clues that identify different species are known as 8220;field marks.8221; These include such things as breast spots, wing bars thin lines along the wings, tail bands, eye rings circles around the eyes, eyebrows lines over the eyes, eye lines lines through the eyes etc. Some field marks are best seen when a bird is in flight.

Bird8217;s Behavior:How a bird flies, forages, or generally comports itself is one of the best clues to its identity. For example, Woodpeckers climb up the sides of tree trunks searching for insects. Fly catchers spend most of their time perching on a suitable spot. When they see a flying insect, they will, true to their name, fly and catch their meal, before returning to the same perch or another nearby. Finches spend a lot of their time on the ground in search of fallen seeds. Even the way a bird props its tail gives some clues as to which species or family it might be. You can even identify some birds just by the way that they fly. Most finches and woodpeckers move through the air with an undulating flight pattern, flapping their wings for short bursts and then tucking them under for a short rest.

Habitat:Birds segregate themselves according to habitat type and are sometimes quite picky in selecting an area as home. For example, waders and waterfowl prefer watery habitats. Beginning bird watchers will need to spend some time in the field to be able to associate different species with different habitat types.

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Voice:Birds have unique songs and calls. Listening to recordings and spending time in the field helps when you are trying identify birds by their call.

Birding Ethics:
Be quiet, avoid harassment; don8217;t disturb the birds.

Be extra careful during the breeding season of the birds.

Do not handle eggs or young or tarry too long at nests.

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Doesn8217;t use bird call audio tapes to attract birds unless very necessary for research.

Follow all rules of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.

Divide larger groups of people into smaller more manageable numbers.

Leave no litter or trash, carry it back with you. Ingested trash items can kill.

Time for Birding: The best time to see birds is at sunrise to early morning and then again in the late afternoons. Birds tend to rest during the day. In places like lakes, you can observe birds through the day. While it is possible to watch birds any time and any place it is helpful to know when and where to look. You are more likely to see specific birds at certain times of the day.

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Birds Club:Major cities have their own bird-clubs and most of them hold regular bird-walks. Some of the there are given below. Go to their website or send them an email enquiring about membership details:

Delhi: Delhibird Group delhibird.net
Mumbai: Birds of Bombay: surfbirds.com
Kolkata: Bengalbird: kolkatabirds.com
Bangalore: Bngbirds: monsoons.ca/birding.
Kashmir: Birds of Kashmir: birdsofkashmir.com
Haryana: Haryana-Online: haryana-online.com orientalbirdclub.org

Next Week: Bird watching destinations in India

The writer is a city based gemologist and owns an adventure club,
clubfootloose.com.
Mail him at solisethigmail.com