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Birding: Socially Acceptable in your country? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Sancho
- Start date
Atricapilla
Still Wandering
I was glad to get away from all that snobbism,now it's just good old plain and simple birding with the gear you've got.Jos Stratford said:Not optics I agree, but certain females wouldn't be seen dead with the wrong sort of this and that ...and certainly wouldn't be seen anywhere near my scruffy car ...snobbism rules okay, regardless of gender
Xenospiza
Distracted
In the Netherlands, it's the same. The minorities nearly all live in cities and think that nature only exists in their homelands (mountains! jungle! deserts!): most Dutch think the same anyway. Only the Turkish may go out and picknick... (and then have to cope with all those Dutch who never clean up their dog sh*t). About 1% of the minorities is member of a conservation group, compared to some 25% of the ethnic Dutch (including groups like Greenpeace). I think it's pretty much heritage. I have no faith in education changing this any time soon...James said:
Chris D
Well-known member
A few years ago my wife and I were strolling along in the morning at Frasier's Hill on the Malay Peninsula. Just a pure great place in every respect. The entire morning we never ran into any other "Honkies" (old degrading term for white folk). All the birders we met, and there were many, were ethnic Malays, Chinese Malay, Singaporeans, Hindu Malay, and Thai. I'm always learning things as I grow up. It was so nice to be a "Minority" for a morning.
Touty
Well-known member
Dimitris said:Well lets see. Greece has less then 100 of us We have 100.000 legal hunters and around 300.000 illegal ones. So I think it's natural that I get odd looks when I tell I'm interested and enjoy watching birds only and not killing them.
As for my friends. They accept me. As for others I don't give a sh!t on what they think.
Better to be hated for what you are then to be loved for something you are not. That's what I always say.
As for girls. I've had interested looks,but they'd rather talk about other stuff and I must comply...
Dimi
There are between 1000 and 10000 in Italy... the true number is probably closer to the lower one and most of them concentrated in the northern half of the country. I do get a bit of stick from people I know if I walk into a bar or café with bins... I just laugh and / or tell them to 'eff off'. Very often the same people then ask me about birds they've see.
Steven Astley
Well-known member
Makes you wonder how acurate distribution maps and population estimates are in these countries with only limited people to do survey work (if any is done at all). It's worrying as certain species populations could be detoriating rapidly in these under birded areas without anybody knowing until it's too late. Suprizingly aswell in European countries, must be an even worse situation in many other countries around the world.
My wife´s Chinese, she´s wouldn´t describe herself as a birder but does enjoy and appreciate birds. Mind you, that´s really just since I came out of the closet and started birding seriously again after we were married. I can´t remember ever seeing a birder when living in China (Hunan, too....great birding province). I´ve just checked with my wife and she says she never heard of Birdwatching while growing up in China, and never knew anyone who birdwatched. So is it just non-Chinese on holiday or working there who bird in China?Chris D said:
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Steven Astley said:
Lithuania also has only a handful of accurate active birders ...it is absolutely certain that the figures stated in, for example Bird Life journals, are way out. In many cases, virtual non-birders have carried out the 'surveys' and they simply do not reflect the true picture, sometimes glaringly so.
samuel walker
It's OK to be a little blue........
Ethnic birders
Sam
I've encountered two black birder/photographers in Ohio. The most surprising ethnics were the Amish/Mennonite birders. A group of these central europeans settled in Ohio andPennsylvania generations ago. A self proclaiomed plain people who shun cars colorful clothes and electricity. These good farming folks are easy to pick out a good birding sites with women wearing drab dresses and bonnets and the men in full beards and black shirts and pants. These people drive around at home in horse and buggy. When birding they are using Leica and Zeiss optics. They move from the center of Ohio to the northern marshes on hired buses. They are outstanding birders.Pinewood said:
Sam
Steven Astley
Well-known member
Interesting stuff samuel and now we know the real reason why they don't have cars or expensive clothes they have blown it on expensive optics
BirdGal
Just a Fledgling
Sancho said:
I'm a 28 year old school teacher in the US. . I have 14 and 15 year olds and the other day I was telling them that I was going to have to take my binoculars and camera with me on the golf cart this summer so I can do my two favorite things at once. . . . one girl spoke up and said "Ms. __, you sound like an 88 year old!" I laughed and said "Well, the birdwatching experts I am studying under are 85...so I guess they're rubbing off-- which is a good thing in this case!"
Great! Another birding teacher with sassy teenagers! Honestly, the kids I teach acknowledge birding as almost normal now, I've even started putting up posters of common birds with their Spanish names ('cos I teach Spanish), and sometimes kids ask me about birds they've seen or heard (one says she has a Nightjar singing in her area, I'm sceptical but if she's right she deserves a medal, it would be the fourth known singing male in Ireland). As I said, five of the other teachers are birders too (two are converts), so the kids have gotten used to seeing teachers peering into trees. But the teenagers who are into birds themselves are not open about it. Nor was I at that age. And yet they love telling us what they've seen. Last winter (04-05) we had a big Waxwing influx, and a lot of the kids saw them in their area, we even had a flock of 50 that hung about the school for a few weeks, so lots of students got to see them. And Waxwings are indeed special, even to those who don't notice birds.BirdGal said:
I live in america where it's acceptable but i'm only 28 and look about 18 years old, so whenever i tell family, friends, or strangers that i'm into bird watching they think i'm kidding or weird. They assume it's an old-person's hobby. But to be fair, some of them are supportive or happy about it. They're like extremely surprised that someone my age has a healthy hobby, while everyone else around is smoking weed and gettin drunk and watchin tv all the time...
So i don't tell anyone anymore unless they ask. And if they laugh or giggle thats fine. I just continue doing it and you gotta respect someone who does something even though the rest of society is trying to get them to feel awkward about it. Most people just won't get it. Before i got into it only 4 months ago, i too wouldn't have 'got it'. In fact, i got into bird watching by reading an online article about different ways to have fun outdoors. The second the author mentioned 'bird watching' i chuckled, like 'yeah right, thats boring' but the truth is i did that because i had never really thought about it, why i might LIKE it. But once i thought about it i went 'hmm that sounds like a hobby that meets all my requirements of what i've been lookin for! and not only meets them, but meets them better than anythin else i can think of, and even EXCEEDS them!' And i've been hooked ever since
You just gotta remember that other people aren't interested in what you're interested in, they're only interested in what they are interested in. Life's short so enjoy what you enjoy
So i don't tell anyone anymore unless they ask. And if they laugh or giggle thats fine. I just continue doing it and you gotta respect someone who does something even though the rest of society is trying to get them to feel awkward about it. Most people just won't get it. Before i got into it only 4 months ago, i too wouldn't have 'got it'. In fact, i got into bird watching by reading an online article about different ways to have fun outdoors. The second the author mentioned 'bird watching' i chuckled, like 'yeah right, thats boring' but the truth is i did that because i had never really thought about it, why i might LIKE it. But once i thought about it i went 'hmm that sounds like a hobby that meets all my requirements of what i've been lookin for! and not only meets them, but meets them better than anythin else i can think of, and even EXCEEDS them!' And i've been hooked ever since
You just gotta remember that other people aren't interested in what you're interested in, they're only interested in what they are interested in. Life's short so enjoy what you enjoy
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A good summary, Pete. You are quite right about city people in Australia not knowing anything about birds, but as in S Africa, you find that the 'county' people are much more informed. Unfortunately they tend to use out of date names for the birds so it is sometimes hard to know exactly which species there are referring to.
In relation to the gender thing; I think there are far more females involved in birding here than in UK and I don't mean "little old ladies at their bird feeders" (like me!!!) but young teenagers and even kids still at school. We do have the monthly bird walks organised by the BOCA where the majority are older females but there are many younger females and males on pelagic and shore bird outings where the going is a bit tough for the older people (with some exceptions----ME) and the birding is more exciting.
Pete, I think your idea of Aussie birdos is a bit 'Brisbaneized', we all know how how backward they are North of the Border!!!!! lol ;-)
In relation to the gender thing; I think there are far more females involved in birding here than in UK and I don't mean "little old ladies at their bird feeders" (like me!!!) but young teenagers and even kids still at school. We do have the monthly bird walks organised by the BOCA where the majority are older females but there are many younger females and males on pelagic and shore bird outings where the going is a bit tough for the older people (with some exceptions----ME) and the birding is more exciting.
Pete, I think your idea of Aussie birdos is a bit 'Brisbaneized', we all know how how backward they are North of the Border!!!!! lol ;-)
dendroica_john
Well-known member
Birding is pretty popular here in the U.S., though it will get some strange reactions. Here in D.C. I have to be a little careful that my birding doesn't look "suspicious" to an overzealous cop or a busybody passerby. I have had at least one unpleasant encounter of that sort, but luckily this has not been a common experience so far.
One person who found my blog took the trouble to send me an email informing me that birdwatching is gay (with some offensive epithets thrown in).
Sometimes I get funny responses from people. This morning I met a kid who asked me if I was a photographer. When I replied that I was a birdwatcher, he looked at me like it was the strangest thing in the world.
One person who found my blog took the trouble to send me an email informing me that birdwatching is gay (with some offensive epithets thrown in).
Sometimes I get funny responses from people. This morning I met a kid who asked me if I was a photographer. When I replied that I was a birdwatcher, he looked at me like it was the strangest thing in the world.
dendroica_john said:
Funny how people react to things they don't understand... well now at least he's more aware that bird watching exists and may end up thinking about it and doing it himself some day. My old martial arts instructor was a genious at turning 'little punk kids,' who would come to his school and make fun of him, into students and then even top students...and without even tryin to convince them of anything. he saw that they were obviously curious about it and he showed them how it could be cool/fun/useful
BirdGal
Just a Fledgling
Heya!! Nice to meet another birding teacher .
I got one of my classes interested during the Great Backyard Bird Count after I wrote an article for the local paper and showed them how reporting counts works. The other classes started to get interested when I showed them the Eagle Nest Cam from Hornby, Island B.C. Canada. They've dubbed the pair our class mascots || and we're counting the days until the eggs hatched. One girl came in this morning and said "Hey, Ms. __, did you see the eagles this weekend-- I did!". Some of the kids had written down the URL when I first showed them last week.
I had an outstanding weekend birding and got 2 nice pics of Cedar Waxwings. The flock has been in the area for about a week and I finally caputured 2 of them on "film". The kids asked me "See any interesting birds this weekend?". I showed them the pics-- they were very excited. . .you're right, Cedar Waxwings are special.
. I got one of my classes interested during the Great Backyard Bird Count after I wrote an article for the local paper and showed them how reporting counts works. The other classes started to get interested when I showed them the Eagle Nest Cam from Hornby, Island B.C. Canada. They've dubbed the pair our class mascots |
| and we're counting the days until the eggs hatched. One girl came in this morning and said "Hey, Ms. __, did you see the eagles this weekend-- I did!". Some of the kids had written down the URL when I first showed them last week. I had an outstanding weekend birding and got 2 nice pics of Cedar Waxwings. The flock has been in the area for about a week and I finally caputured 2 of them on "film". The kids asked me "See any interesting birds this weekend?". I showed them the pics-- they were very excited. . .you're right, Cedar Waxwings are special
. Sancho said:
