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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Dave Ball" data-source="post: 3525335" data-attributes="member: 94954">In most of my more recent twitching experiences, usually locals have immediately identified us as birders, have been interested in what is going on, and have been friendly and helpful. For last year's Caddington Rosy Starling (first twitchable one in Beds) I was wandering down a residential close, with bins, when a chap came out and asked what we were doing. I was able to show him the photos posted by the finder on my phone, and he immediately said 'Oh, that's XXXX who lives at number XX up that road, and I saw that bird on top of that roof there this morning, but thought it was a Magpie!', and was extremely interested and helpful. (Oddly enough this was at about the time that the pink Magpie in Wales was identified as a Rosy Starling!) Subsequently the finder invited us into his back garden and we all saw it well, and a lady a few doors down was also very helpful. As I was leaving, the finder came out of his front door, and I pressed a fiver into his hand, explaining that this was customary on such occasions and please donate it to the charity of his choice (without adding that if the charity turned out to be his own personal whisky acquisition fund I really wouldn't mind). I haven't been to either (neither a tick as far as I'm concerned), but the Dusky and Blue Rock Thrush twitches seem to have worked equally well for all concerned. Twitching doesn't need to be a zero-sum game.Edit: which doesn't mean that I don't feel uncomfortable wandering around housing areas birding, I think we all do.</blockquote>

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