Would you report a MEGA in your own garden? (1 Viewer)

[Andy Strachan]

Unfortunately, I don't have one in mine at the moment! Or do I..? haha

Imagining I do! Would I report one if it happened to land and hang about in my own garden?
I would love to share it, but would I? Should I?

I'm wondering what your thoughts are?

What would you do?

Anyone actually experienced this?

 

[opisska]

Yes. Even to people who don't even care about birds. Through channels that would actively try to stop me. I would hack into national TV broadcast if I knew how.

 

[Mike Crawley]

Yes, definitely.
If course, you can only see the garden from the kitchen window and lounge window, so people would have to leave their boots outside.
I would charge admission and donate the resultant pot to charity.

 

[Xenospiza]

The garden of the house I live in (which we are not allowed to use...) is viewable from outside, so I'd have no issues reporting a rare bird.
The amount of people that would show up (in Germany) would be small anyway. The biggest problem would be parking. Chances seem pretty slim!

 

[KC Foggin]

I'll never do it again unless it is only to the ones that promise to keep it quiet and I know them well enough to believe them.

 

[Jon Turner]

I often wonder what I would do if a major rarity turned up in the small bird reserve I look after for Devon Birds. It's not ideal for any numbers of people. If I were to ring a major rarity there, I suppose I could release it at a pond about a hundred metres away. (Need advice on this I think.)

 

[Mysticete]

I would when I actually have a home that would attract any sort of rarity. a bare, small, fourth floor balcony isn't exactly a place that anything that isn't a House Sparrow or Starling would want to hang out on.

That said, I don't think I would get the type of crowds folks in Britain would experience.

 

[Helsinki Birder]

I have done so in the past, and have been reporting all (non-mega) rarities and scarce I've found (Bee-eater, Kingfisher, Black Kite etc). However if I found a non-viz-mig mega, actually in the garden and seemingly settled, with the pandemic ongoing, I probably wouldn't release the news.

Owen

 

[Welsh Peregrine]

In the past, I actually lived on a School Campus, and several times we had wintering Waxwing flocks visible from my windows, but not from off campus. On one of these years, they seemed to be the only local birds. Sadly, I felt unable to report them as any visitors would have had to come onto campus to stand any realistic chance of success; had the birds been reliable, then I would have tried to sort out weekend access.

 

[qwerty5]

I've never had the chance (the rarest I've had is a very late Yellow-throated Warbler in my yard yesterday), but I would report if I had a real rarity. I saw on eBird that a local had a Rufous Hummingbird in their yard recently. They had someone come and band it, and in the sighting notes they even invited people to come to see it.

 

[Warixenjalka]

I try to treat others the same way I would like them to treat me...

So yes, I would report Mega in my garden. And smaller rarities also. The "best rarity" so far in my garden were White-winged Crossbills, I report those and a couple of dozen people a few days went to see them.

 

[Farnboro John]

I'd certainly release the news along with parking advice (parking's not great round us but foot access from all over is easy) and proceeds to charity. Anyone who says they wouldn't should certainly never bird in built up areas or visit someone else's garden to see a rarity, invited or not.

John

 

[Xenospiza]

I'd certainly release the news along with parking advice (parking's not great round us but foot access from all over is easy) and proceeds to charity. Anyone who says they wouldn't should certainly never bird in built up areas or visit someone else's garden to see a rarity, invited or not.

They may have legitimate reasons not to do so (no public access, a difficult landlord, issues with the neighbours, no easy control over people entering their house, etc).

I don't like birding in built-up areas anyway, but usually the public is curious and friendly rather than annoyed.

 

[Farnboro John]

They may have legitimate reasons not to do so (no public access, a difficult landlord, issues with the neighbours, no easy control over people entering their house, etc).

I don't like birding in built-up areas anyway, but usually the public is curious and friendly rather than annoyed.

Point very much taken but interestingly not the received slant from those following the non-release line on here.

John

 

[Violetsmommy]

Point very much taken but interestingly not the received slant from those following the non-release line on here.

John

What is a MEGA?

 

[Sangahyando]

What is a MEGA?

I think they're referring to a "mega rarity", i.e. a bird that is not normally seen in that part of the world, particularly if it's from another eco-region and/or continent.

 

[MJB]

What is a MEGA?

It's from the Greek μέγα pronounced méga, meaning 'great'. In science and engineering the prefix means 'million' (megavolts, megaton), but in general language the prefix just means large: megalith, megaphone etc. In UK birding, its slang meaning (understated) is 'quite/very important' to birders...
MJB

 

[davewalters]

Absolutely I would - I'd owe it to my friends of old and to those whose gardens we invaded in the good old days.

 

[lgonz1008]

Since I know most of my local birding community, I probably would, but problem is that my backyard only attracts House Sparrows, Eurasian Collared-Doves and Black Vultures. With the only stand-out species in the backyard being the odd Ruby-throated Hummingbird in Winter or Cooper's Hawk in Fall. Not exactly birds worth reporting as rarities in my area by any means.

 

[John Cantelo]

My garden is small, surrounded by a high wall/fence and the only access is through my house so it would be problematical but, except during a 'lockdown', I'd try to organise something. Fortunately, I back onto an open public space which might help. Happily, there's also plenty of parking locally.