Sounds a silly question, but it's something that's puzzled me. For example, take this report on the Sussex Ornithological Society's page for recent sightings:
How do people manage to log such a precise high number of a species of bird?
Also:
How do people manage to count flocks of birds this time of year so confidently, especially as I've read that many birds of different species form single flocks. There were three people on this birdwatch, how can three sets of bins/scopes manage to confirm that all the birds in a flock are of one species, or how do they manage to ID and count a mixture of species?
Here's the link to the site:
http://www.sos.org.uk/recent-sightings/index.php
Thanks
Conditions looked excellent at Climping Gap this morning and observer coverage was good, but despite this nothing unusual was found. However, once again the visible migration was noteworthy, with flocks of finches all heading E along the coast (just where are they all going to?). Goldfinches again predominated, with a massive total of 2360 logged
How do people manage to log such a precise high number of a species of bird?
Also:
however there were also at least 55 Linnets, 185 Siskins, 15 Redpolls, 15 Chaffinches, plus 30 Sky Larks and 77 Pied/alba Wagtails.
How do people manage to count flocks of birds this time of year so confidently, especially as I've read that many birds of different species form single flocks. There were three people on this birdwatch, how can three sets of bins/scopes manage to confirm that all the birds in a flock are of one species, or how do they manage to ID and count a mixture of species?
Here's the link to the site:
http://www.sos.org.uk/recent-sightings/index.php
Thanks