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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Perry Smale" data-source="post: 1566715" data-attributes="member: 14674">It should be perfectly acceptable to life-tick elusive species like Quail, Savi's Warbler and Corncrake on song. It's only due to "rules" imposed by the birding police-style organisations, some of which charge to use their websites, that birders feel under pressure to actually have to see a bird to tick it. Where is it written in stone that we must see it? If you can identify the bird by song what's the problem? I admit that I don't currently count birds I have only heard (I have heard two Savi's Warblers in Britain but am yet to see one but don't count it on my list).Correct me if I'm wrong but don't the Dutch count heard-only birds as lifers?It would surely be beneficial to the birds if they could be ticked on call or song as birders wouldn't feel the need to rampage through crop fields or play tapes to lure birds out when they're trying to raise young or whatever.As for spending hour after hour or day after day just to see a Quail for a few seconds I for one would prefer to do something more interesting like watching paint dry! Seriously though (I've only ever seen one Quail in Britain  and wouldn't worry if I never saw another one) there's nothing more tedious than standing by a field full of wheat hoping for a split-second view of whirring wings knowing that you could be seawatching or something!</blockquote>