Welcome to BirdForum.I’ve lived in Lanarkshire all of my 38 years, and in that time I have seen my local area change beyond all recognition, and definitely not for the better. From the appearance of massive identikit housing estates where rolling fields once rang to the song of yellowhammers, the inexorable process of urbanisation goes on as the local authorities undertake a concerted effort to eradicate every sign of nature- or so it seems. The nature- filled halcyon days of my childhood are a swiftly receding memory, replaced by the creeping horror of what is replacing them. Its important, I think, to highlight what we, as nature lovers in general and bird lovers in particular, still have, for the moment at least.
Sharing A Solitary Passion
Posted Wednesday 29th August 2012 at 22:44 by Green Sandpiper
I try not to refer to birding as a hobby, I don't believe that that word can possibly do justice to what birding gives me.
A hobby is eomthing you do to pass the time, something you may enjoy, or even excel at, but something that ultimately, you can do without.
Birding, for me, is much more. It is, as the title of this entry suggests, a passion- and I suspect most birders would concur. Birding is an emotional event, bringing joy and rapture, frustration, elation and disappointment at some point. But, we accept this and carry on.
Birding to me reflects the basic qualities of our personality. Gregarious birders like nothing better than to go out en masse, the joy of socialising hidden behind the pragmatic argument that the more eyes there are, the more likely you are to find something special.
Other people like nothing better than to spend hours alone in the field, wrapped in their own thoughts. This, I thought, suited me best. I am, according to my wife, perfectly happy in my own company. I can survive without speaking, or needing to speak for hours. (My wife is the antithesis of this)
I was surprised this week, though, by the joy of sharing. At my local reserve, we've had a pair of spotted redshanks visiting, a real rarity for the area. Added to large numbers of black tailed godwits, snipe, common sandpipers and green sandpipers, the reserve was a hive of wader activity, attracting visitors and regulars alike.
As I was heading home on Sunday, I bumped into 2 such visitors, and as birders often do, we stopped for a chat. They had come to the reserve for the Spotted Redshank, but were heading in the wrong direction. I took them to the best hide for viewing, found the bird, plus the godwits, sandpipers and snipe, and turned what would have been a frustrating day, into a damned good day's birding.
What I have discovered is that as much as I will always be the 'hours alone in the field' type of birder, the very fact that I was able to connect with and share informaton about MY patch, brought me more happines than I had thought possible.
A hobby is eomthing you do to pass the time, something you may enjoy, or even excel at, but something that ultimately, you can do without.
Birding, for me, is much more. It is, as the title of this entry suggests, a passion- and I suspect most birders would concur. Birding is an emotional event, bringing joy and rapture, frustration, elation and disappointment at some point. But, we accept this and carry on.
Birding to me reflects the basic qualities of our personality. Gregarious birders like nothing better than to go out en masse, the joy of socialising hidden behind the pragmatic argument that the more eyes there are, the more likely you are to find something special.
Other people like nothing better than to spend hours alone in the field, wrapped in their own thoughts. This, I thought, suited me best. I am, according to my wife, perfectly happy in my own company. I can survive without speaking, or needing to speak for hours. (My wife is the antithesis of this)
I was surprised this week, though, by the joy of sharing. At my local reserve, we've had a pair of spotted redshanks visiting, a real rarity for the area. Added to large numbers of black tailed godwits, snipe, common sandpipers and green sandpipers, the reserve was a hive of wader activity, attracting visitors and regulars alike.
As I was heading home on Sunday, I bumped into 2 such visitors, and as birders often do, we stopped for a chat. They had come to the reserve for the Spotted Redshank, but were heading in the wrong direction. I took them to the best hide for viewing, found the bird, plus the godwits, sandpipers and snipe, and turned what would have been a frustrating day, into a damned good day's birding.
What I have discovered is that as much as I will always be the 'hours alone in the field' type of birder, the very fact that I was able to connect with and share informaton about MY patch, brought me more happines than I had thought possible.
Total Comments 0
Comments
Recent Blog Entries by Green Sandpiper
- Making the effort (Monday 29th April 2013)
- Sacrificing my principles (Thursday 25th April 2013)
- Spring at last (Sunday 14th April 2013)
- A year on the up (Sunday 7th April 2013)
- Falling In Love Again (Thursday 7th March 2013)
