Recently I have been quite busy practising my new hobby, i.e. birdwatching. I'm at the early stage so I'm using a non-professional equipment, i.e. binoculars, camera, and my knowledge is also very limited. I have recently ordered a good guide book to identify European species of birds. The one I am currently using is a little bit old-fashioned - it contains drawings instead of images and sometimes it is quite difficult to correctly identify a bird. Fortunately, I have some friends who are ornithologists and recently I have registered to the birdwatcher's forum - they are very helpful.
Below I'm posting some pictures I have taken in a nearby pond in my town. Sorry for non-professional quality, but it is neither my goal to take 'artistic' pictures nor to be a 'professional' in what I do. I just enjoy the fact that I can have some rest outdoor, watch the birds, listen to the bird songs, learn new things about the nature surrounding me...
Mute swan (Cygnus olor)
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Another mute swan:
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Common coot (Fulica atra)
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Common Goldeneye (female) (Bucephala clangula)
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This is not a bird but still... very nice creature
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André in Zuid-Afrika
Must be a wonder ful hobby! A few weeks ago, when I went to the small town of Vanzylsrus near the Botswana border, I sat early in the morning on the balcony of my chalet, drinking coffee, and watching the birds about. It was fascinating. I saw some birds I've never seen before in my life.
KSa
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Must be a wonder ful hobby! A few weeks ago, when I went to the small town of Vanzylsrus near the Botswana border, I sat early in the morning on the balcony of my chalet, drinking coffee, and watching the birds about. It was fascinating. I saw some birds I've never seen before in my life.
Well, I would never dare to compare Poland and South Africa in terms of abundance of wildlife - wild birds seem to be an exception. Still, I think that when your purpose is just to enjoy the fact of being in contact with nature, sometimes even sparrows can be fascinating. When it starts to be a professional thing, not to mention competition (for example: "how many rare species' individuals have you seen this year?") than it loses its charm. But still it's like killing two birds (sic!) with one stone - you can take some rest and learn something at the same time. One example: in my town there are (at least) two species of wild pigeons (plus feral pigeons which are in fact an urban form of domestic pigeon). Until recently I was unable to distinguish them - now I can do it both by watching and hearing them.
I wonder, however, how my new hobby is going to develop. Whether it will turn out to be a short-lived enthusiasm or maybe it will become something serious. For the next two weeks I'm rather busy so I will only have time to visit the surroundings. In 2 or 3 weeks I will go for one day to a wild bird sanctuary located in the nature reserve some 25 km from where I live.
Elaine
Good luck on your new hobby, KSa! I guess how long you can keep up your enthusiasm with birdwatching depends on how varied and extensive your subjects are and how far you're willing to go to expand your range.
André in Zuid-Afrika
KSa wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Must be a wonder ful hobby! A few weeks ago, when I went to the small town of Vanzylsrus near the Botswana border, I sat early in the morning on the balcony of my chalet, drinking coffee, and watching the birds about. It was fascinating. I saw some birds I've never seen before in my life.
Well, I would never dare to compare Poland and South Africa in terms of abundance of wildlife - wild birds seem to be an exception. Still, I think that when your purpose is just to enjoy the fact of being in contact with nature, sometimes even sparrows can be fascinating.
Exactly. I've found that over the past year after moving to a small town. Suddenly I see sunsets again, I'm aware of animals and birds around me, and appreciate the beauty of it again. In the city, you lose track of that.
Elaine
Well, I think I'm starting to get the hang of my on-again-off-again-and-back-on-again hobby-- houseplants! After getting off to a rocky start and witnessing the sad, slow demise of my ficus, gardenia, dumbcane, and even my easy-to-manage philodendron plants, I've managed to get my replacement ficus and replacement gardenia plant to bloom and thrive! So, feeling confident, I went out and bought more plants...
a croton
and a sansevieria (aka mother-in-law's tongue)
And now I'm itching to buy more for my balcony and front entrance landing.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
Well, I think I'm starting to get the hang of my on-again-off-again-and-back-on-again hobby-- houseplants! After getting off to a rocky start and witnessing the sad, slow demise of my ficus, gardenia, dumbcane, and even my easy-to-manage philodendron plants, I've managed to get my replacement ficus and replacement gardenia plant to bloom and thrive! So, feeling confident, I went out and bought more plants...
a croton
and a sansevieria (aka mother-in-law's tongue)
And now I'm itching to buy more for my balcony and front entrance landing.
I've come to accept the fact that I'm not a gardener. Plants seem to commit suicide when they see me coming.
Elaine
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
I've come to accept the fact that I'm not a gardener. Plants seem to commit suicide when they see me coming.
Maybe it's your withering sense of humor.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
I've come to accept the fact that I'm not a gardener. Plants seem to commit suicide when they see me coming.
Maybe it's your withering sense of humor.
You mean the plants don't appreciate it when I say to a cactus?: Stand up straight, you little daisy!!!
Elaine
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Elaine wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
I've come to accept the fact that I'm not a gardener. Plants seem to commit suicide when they see me coming.
Maybe it's your withering sense of humor.
You mean the plants don't appreciate it when I say to a cactus?: Stand up straight, you little daisy!!!
No, the cacti don't appreciate it when you sneer at them and say, "My my, we're in a prickly mood today!" It hurts their feelings when you needle them like that.
André in Zuid-Afrika
Elaine wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
Elaine wrote:
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
I've come to accept the fact that I'm not a gardener. Plants seem to commit suicide when they see me coming.
Maybe it's your withering sense of humor.
You mean the plants don't appreciate it when I say to a cactus?: Stand up straight, you little daisy!!!
No, the cacti don't appreciate it when you sneer at them and say, "My my, we're in a prickly mood today!" It hurts their feelings when you needle them like that.
Hm, maybe I have too many butch plants in my garden... I need more of the flowery type then.... But the thing with them is, they tend to try to be prrrrrrruuuuuuttttttttyyyyyyyy alll of the time....
KSa
Elaine wrote:
Well, I think I'm starting to get the hang of my on-again-off-again-and-back-on-again hobby-- houseplants! After getting off to a rocky start and witnessing the sad, slow demise of my ficus, gardenia, dumbcane, and even my easy-to-manage philodendron plants, I've managed to get my replacement ficus and replacement gardenia plant to bloom and thrive! So, feeling confident, I went out and bought more plants...
Elaine,
Very nice hobby. In my house I have 4 plants but I don't know the names. Maybe I will take pictures and upload them so that you or anyone else could identify them.
The plant "mother-in-law's tongue I once had but was unaware of the name.
KSa
The Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)
André in Zuid-Afrika
WOW that is one beautiful picture, Ksa!
Rio
Welcome to the club KSa!
I've been doing it on and off now for 5 years myself. Make sure you invest in some good binoculars and a few good bird books. I make sure I take them whenever I travel. Thanks for the photos, the pheasant in particular looks stunning.
You should come to Australia if you love birdwatching, you'll seriously love it. Especially Kakadu national park; I went there over Xmas and saw about 6 species of birds within a 3 minute walk...
Uriel
That should be fun for you, KSa! I don't do much more than glance at the birds in my yard, but I still enjoy them -- there is nothing cuter than a single-file line of little Gambel's quail scuttling across the road, or tiny hummingbirds flitting around my honesuckles! I also have several gnerations of swallows that nest on my front porch -- one nest is right above the front door, and they always give me dirty looks whenever I go in and out, and the other nest is on my motion-detector lightbulb, which I guess I won't be replacing this season.... We also have various little songbirds, roadrunners, big-ass Chihuahuan ravens, hawks, white-winged doves, cute little burrow owls, and once I saw a turkey vulture munching on something by the side of the road -- enormous bird!
I'm terrible with houseplants, Elaine -- they live in fear of me -- but I think I'm finally getting the hang of this outside gardening thing. I planted all kinds of cool flowers this spring, and a number of tomatoes and herbs -- it being tax season and all recently, I wondered if I could justify applying for a federal farm subsidy.
KSa
Quote:
Welcome to the club KSa!
I've been doing it on and off now for 5 years myself.
Hi Rio!
I'm glad there is someone else on this forum doing it fairly regularly! I hope for fruitful cooperation in exchanging experience and pictures.
Quote:
Make sure you invest in some good binoculars and a few good bird books. I make sure I take them whenever I travel. Thanks for the photos, the pheasant in particular looks stunning.
Well, I've invested some money already but not as much as I would like. My ambition is not to be a professional photographer of nature - my pictures are just for documentation of what I've seen plus sharing with experienced birdwatchers when I'm unable to identify the species. My camera is a good non-professional digital Canon with optical zoom 10X and 8 MP. I think it's enough for amateurish purpose. As for binoculars - I recently threw out my good old Russian binoculars which I was using for 20 years. It was unfortunately not suitable for birdwatching (optical parameters 7x35). I have bought a standard binoculars for watching birds, i.e. 10x50 (Delta Optical Entry). It's not professional, cost me the equivalent of 100 US dollars. When I see that my passion is developing into something more serious I'll invest in better binoculars. I'm also waiting for shipment of "Collins Bird Guide The Most Complete Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe " that I've recently ordered via internet- I've been told this is the best guide currently available.
Quote:
You should come to Australia if you love birdwatching, you'll seriously love it. Especially Kakadu national park; I went there over Xmas and saw about 6 species of birds within a 3 minute walk...
When I happen to be in Australia one day I'll not forget to take binoculars and camera with me!
KSa
Uriel wrote:
That should be fun for you, KSa! I don't do much more than glance at the birds in my yard, but I still enjoy them
What I especially like about birdwatching is that the birdwatchers vary from those (like you) who don't do more than glance at the birds in their yard from time to time, without any special equipment, to semi-professional ornithologists, equipped with professional binoculars, expensive cameras, attending ornithological camps, ringing birds and possesing extensive knowledge of bird species.
The indication of whether you are or aren't a birdwatcher is whether you enjoy it or not.
Quote:
there is nothing cuter than a single-file line of little Gambel's quail scuttling across the road, or tiny hummingbirds flitting around my honesuckles! I also have several gnerations of swallows that nest on my front porch -- one nest is right above the front door, and they always give me dirty looks whenever I go in and out, and the other nest is on my motion-detector lightbulb, which I guess I won't be replacing this season.... We also have various little songbirds, roadrunners, big-ass Chihuahuan ravens, hawks, white-winged doves, cute little burrow owls, and once I saw a turkey vulture munching on something by the side of the road -- enormous bird!
Well, I'm sure you are a birdwatcher.
KSa
These pictures I have taken this afternoon:
NIGHTINGALE - it's hard to find a better singer in my region. This is probably the thrush nightingale (Luscinia luscinia); there are two very similar species (thrush nightingale and common nightingale) which are most likely to be distinguish by comparing their singing.
Uriel
Not my picture, but these are cute little gambel's quail:
They have handsome markings, and tend to hurry around in small groups, single file, like they are very late for their bus, little topknots bouncing as they scurry.
Uriel
These are tiny little burrowing owls, about fist-sized:
I can never see them without the Dead Milkmen's ranting song "Stuart" popping into my head:
You know that Johnny Wormser kid,
kid delivers newspapers in the neighborhood?
Some of the neighbors say he smokes crack,
but I don't believe it.
Anyway,
for his tenth birthday,
all he wanted was a burrow owl. He kept pestering his old man,
"Dad, get me a burrow owl, I'll never ask for anything else as long as I live!"
So the guy breaks down,
and buys him a burrow owl.
Anyway,
the other night,
I go out in my yard,
and there's the Wormser kid
looking up in a tree.
And I said, "Whatcha lookin' for?"
And he said, "I'm looking for my burrow owl."
And I said,
"Jumpin' Jesus on a pogo stick --
everybody knows
the burrow owl
lives
in a hole
in the ground!
Why the hell do you think they call it a 'burrow' owl, anyway?!"
Now, Stuart,
do you think
a kid like that
is gonna know
what the queers
are doing
to our soil???!!!
Uriel
Turns out my dad and his wife have turned into amateur birdwatchers; I went up to their cabin in the mountains today and they pointed out such small wonders as grosbeaks and red-headed finches, Mexican jays (similar to blue jays, but with gray patches), and of course, the hummingbirds that came to the feeder outside the window. We also saw such large wonders as turkey vultures, huge ravens, and wild turkeys. And I could hear (if not see) what had to be either a woodpecker or a flicker.
KSa
It's amazing where you can spot wild birds. Recently I went to a rather big sewage reservoir collecting sewerage from a nearby factory. The water in this 'pond" was preliminarily cleaned but still it was giving out rather nasty smell. However, it didn't disturbe wild birds from nesting there. I saw a coot, a female mallard with young ducklings and I took a picture of the Great Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus arundinaceus). I came across at least four of them, and heard the voice of another eight-ten. This bird's voice is very characteristic - if you can try to find the sample of it in the Internet, it's really interesting.
Great Reed Warbler:
A few days ago, the first Common Swifts returned to my town and they are flying around in big flocks giving out a loud screech. They look like swallows but they are not related. They spend most of thei time flying - they can even copulate while flying.
Andre, I've read that most of the local population of swifts winter in South Africa.
KSa
Uriel wrote:
Turns out my dad and his wife have turned into amateur birdwatchers;
Very good!
Uriel wrote:
I went up to their cabin in the mountains today
What are they doing there beside birdwatching? Are they staying there temporarily or permanently?
Uriel
Temporarily - it's just a little getaway for weekends and such. It was originally a hunting cabin, so my dad is on a mission to renovate some of it -- tear down bunk beds and build shelving and so on. But they still have their main house in Albuquerque.
André in Zuid-Afrika
KSa wrote:
It's amazing where you can spot wild birds. Recently I went to a rather big sewage reservoir collecting sewerage from a nearby factory. The water in this 'pond" was preliminarily cleaned but still it was giving out rather nasty smell. However, it didn't disturbe wild birds from nesting there. I saw a coot, a female mallard with young ducklings and I took a picture of the Great Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus arundinaceus). I came across at least four of them, and heard the voice of another eight-ten. This bird's voice is very characteristic - if you can try to find the sample of it in the Internet, it's really interesting.
Great Reed Warbler:
A few days ago, the first Common Swifts returned to my town and they are flying around in big flocks giving out a loud screech. They look like swallows but they are not related. They spend most of thei time flying - they can even copulate while flying.
Andre, I've read that most of the local population of swifts winter in South Africa.
Ah yes, the Europese windswael! (litt. European wind swallow)
No, I'm not that clever, had to look it up! Funny that we consider them to be European birds, despite the fact that they spend summers [your winters] here.
KSa
André in Zuid-Afrika wrote:
No, I'm not that clever, had to look it up! Funny that we consider them to be European birds, despite the fact that they spend summers [your winters] here.
I'll tell you why: in the world of birds the most important thing is where they have their nesting sites. The swifts lay eggs only once a year - in Europe.
KSa
These pictures I have taken recently:
The Blackbird (Turdus merula)
The Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris)
I have photographed and identified more birds in my area but most of the pictures are of rather bad quality - I'm keeping them just for documentation purposes.
Elaine
Pretty. Love the blackbird-- the symbol of temptation!
KSa
Today I was birding a little in the surroundings:
The White Stork (Ciconia ciconia):
The Whinchat (Saxicola rubetra):
The Red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio)
... and a great abundance of other birds either seen or heard: chafffinches, blackbirds, orioles, cuckoos, great reed-warblers, reed warblers and some unidentified species of gulls and two birds of prey (probably common buzzards, but I'm not sure - they were too far away from me plus identification of birds of prey is a higher level of knowledge.
KSa
One of the birds of prey I have already identified (with the help of my friends form the birdwatchers forum).
It's the Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus)
The pic is not good but as I said in the previous message it was taken from the long distance (10x zoomed).
Elaine
I bought a hummingbird feeder last month which I hung out on my balcony, but I hadn't ever seen any hummingbirds around. But then yesterday when I returned home from work, I saw my first one! I was so excited.
(photo not mine, but the feeder base looks like the one I bought. I wasn't quick enough to snap a picture)
KSa
Elaine, that's good !
At the beginning I was also very excited when for the first time I saw a bird I was looking for. I didn't know that birdwatching could bring about such satisfaction!
This week I dedicated every spare moment to birdwatching.
This period of time (i.e. the middle of June) is here still the time when bird singing is heard everywhere. However, you see more and more this year's offspring. I could see white stork's babies (still in the nest) and young yellowhammers and rooks which have already left their nests. They are, however, quite clumsy - cannot fly properly, and what's more, they are not too afraid of humans or cats which can end up very badly for them.
I haven't seen too many rare species of birds, but I apparently entered the breeding ground of two Yellow Wagtails. They were nervously flying around me and shrieking loudly they were trying to deter me. I didn't want to disturb the nice birds so I quickly took two pics and sneaked out of the area.
Male:
Female:
And this is a picture of the Common Redstart (male):
KSa
Well, I have neglected birdwatching for the past few months due to the winter season. I am looking forward to seeing the Spring coming and the wave of migratory birds coming back to their breeding grounds. Currently we have very few birds but still there are some interesting "visitors" from the North (Scandinavia) such as waxwings. Waxwings are very interesting birds, they fly in great flocks up to hundreds of individuals and feed on rowanberries.
I need more of the flowery type then.... 
