My friends know that I am a veteran dead man, and I don't like to go out or bask in the sun. When they knew I started birdwatching, they came to me and asked: Why do you want to go birdwatching? I usually say it casually: because I like it.
The word "like" contains a lot of emotions that best explains why I watch birds.
An important little thing
One day, a bird stopped on the edge of my balcony and stood motionless for a long time, moving out as soon as I approached it. In order not to scare it away, I went to a room with a balcony and squatted for half an hour, watching it walk back and forth by the balcony and pull a few bubbles of.
I was a little worried about whether it was injured and couldn't fly, and I was wondering how I could help it, and then I saw a big bird flying back and forth near it, and the bird's line of sight was still following the direction it was flying.
I couldn't help but run out to find out, when the big bird stopped flying, stood high and watched my long moving object vigilantly, and the bird also hid. I quickly took a picture and went back to the room to continue observing, but I didn't expect that in the next scene, Big Bird stopped next to Little Bird! At that moment I didn't realize what was going on, and with my knowledge at the time, I only thought that these two birds might know each other.
I posted the photo to my friends and learned that it was a white wagtail, and that the young bird that had just learned to fly should be staying on the balcony, and the other big bird was its parent bird, which was encouraging the bird to continue flying.
On the left is a young bird, and on the right is a parent bird ©, the cat birch
This is my first time watching and photographing birds, and I have a wonderful feeling when I see such a classic scene. Although this set of photos is not taken well, I still save it to the present, and I will not forget to save it in advance when the phone is flashed.
Long after the two wagtails flew away, I used to look out on the balcony expecting to see the staying birds again, but never again. This became an important little thing in my birdwatching process, after which I did not pay attention to and record the birds around me for a long time.
Get your first taste of bird watching
More and more friends around me began to watch birds, and I also found that bird watching is not an unattainable activity, and rookies like me with weak physical strength and poor equipment can also try it.
Driven by my friends, I started by getting to know Guangdong's "rookie" (Guangdong's five major dishes: black thrush, white-headed bulbul, red-eared bulbul, dark green embroidered bird, and magpie robin), and officially entered the pit.
At the beginning, adding new happiness can really make people constantly release dopamine, and every time I organize photos after bird watching, I feel very worthwhile and happy.
Dark green embroidered eyed bird, although this kind of bird is very common in Guangdong, but it is not easy to shoot, because it is too small, mobile phones are more difficult to shoot. This is the only picture I have left of © a bird that I can see clearly after taking a series of cat birch
Chance encounter two white-headed storks standing side by side, one of © the famous Guangdong dishes (birds) cat Xiaohua
After watching more rookies, I began to be greedy and wanted to add new and more types of birds, and the bird photos shared by my friends also made my desire to add new ones stronger.
This feeling is very similar to going to classic attractions to successfully check in, unlocking rare cards/hidden levels in the game, and sending good-looking bird photos to the circle of friends, in addition to pleasure, there is also a sense of achievement and vanity. For a while, my new speed peaked, and I was able to add more than one or two new birds every time I went bird watching. This should be a stage that every birdwatcher goes through.
But gradually, the pleasure of adding new subsided, and I began to feel as if I was watching birds for the sake of bird shooting, and I kept asking myself some questions: Why do you go out to shoot birds at all your lengths to endure exposure to the sun? So many photos of birds, but do you really know and understand these birds?
What is bird watching for?
Later, I saw an article on the public account of the cat league: I cried in the taxi on the day of 520, because I was afraid that I could not save a bird, and Phoenix recorded the process of her rescue of a purple-backed reed. I saw that while overcoming anxiety and fear, Phoenix constantly sought help from professionals to learn more about the habits of the purple-backed reed to better care for "Little Purple".
With the efforts of Phoenix, Xiaozi returned to the wild from dying to regaining health, and in this process, the professional rescue advice provided by the teachers played an important role, and their rich knowledge and experience came from long-term learning accumulation and careful observation.
The doubts in my mind seemed to be solved - I should not stop at the stage of seeing and taking pictures, I can try to do more observation. Birdwatching with new purposes will not last long, and the process of observation and learning can make birdwatching enjoyable.
In the subsequent bird watching activities, my mentality changed subtly, and I began to pay attention to the bird's every move and try to understand, although I could not guess the bird's mind from the perspective of a two-legged beast.
Photo story
Now, the number of bird photos in my folder is still increasing, and when I open the album and open any photo, the experience and mood it corresponds to.
01
This is the black-faced spoonbill © cat birch captured in May foraging with large and small egrets
Under the guidance of local birdwatcher Sanshi Ge, I photographed the black-faced spoonbill. There were several of them, standing conspicuously between large and small egrets.
The big and small egrets are even rookies among rookies on the mudflats here, and I can recognize it just by looking at the temperament. It was also the first time I saw so many egrets, and I was very surprised and strange, but the three stone brothers who were traveling with me were commonplace, and their expressions were not wavering.
If you look closely, you will find that the black-faced spoonbill's foraging posture is also very different from other herons - they open their long mouths and reach into the mudflats one by one, looking inexplicably funny. I thought black-faced spoonbills were common, but when I went back and flipped through the books, I found that they generally only winter in the south, and we were really lucky to see them in May.
On the tidal flats at low tide, enjoy the large and small egrets © of the running water mat cat birch
02
Standing motionless on a tree stump watching the sunset cat © birch
This was the first green heron I observed up close, standing on a tree stump, facing the setting sun, standing motionless for a long time, and after I had taken enough shots from various angles, the big brother of the green heron was still there.
At this moment, I stopped my codeword hand and looked at the green heron in the photo, thinking about what it was waiting for in the sunset. The question is clearly not difficult, and it is of course waiting for dinner.
Like the "world's famous bird" night heron (nicknamed penguin), the green heron likes to squat at the water's edge and wait for the delicacy to arrive. Both of these heron birds are relatively shy, especially the green heron, which I used to be so far away that cameras and telescopes could not see it clearly, and through the dictation of the great god, I learned that there was a green heron in front of the big herons. This time it may be because night falls, and twilight puts the invisibility cloak on our group of two-legged beasts.
03
Blackened brown-backed shrike © in the wind cat birch
The car was moving slowly in the field, and the god suddenly said that he saw an XXX bird, and asked me to quickly shoot it (yes, I could hear every word at the time, but the connection was beyond the limit). I quickly grabbed my camera and shot hard, and the wind blew the bird's hair messy, and after a while it flew away. Later I learned that it was a blackened brown-backed shrike.
The brown-backed shrike is clearly characteristic in my impression, the back is reddish-brown, and there is a "blindfold", which is very recognizable. But this blackened one is the first brown-backed shrike I've photographed. The brown-backed shrike is a famous "skewer boss" (who can thread prey on thorns), but unfortunately I have never seen them hunt.
04
The white-throated red-rumped bulbul © found while wandering the streets Cat Xiaohua
In the summer in Guangdong, the foliage is thick, walking on the street, even if I can hear the birds chirping and see the birds beating, I can hardly find the birds (maybe because I am too dish, but I won't admit it).
One day I was waiting for someone when I suddenly heard movement in the tree overhead, and then I saw this white-throated red-rumped bulbul pecking at fruit. The white-throated red-rumped bulbul is also a common bird in Guangdong, but does not appear to be as abundant as the bald and red-eared bulbul. This accidentally harvested white-throated red-rumped bulbul made me hope that the god of luck would favor me more.
05
The silly © coo that ran away in a hurry Cat Xiaohua
In this meadow, the bead-necked dove is a frequent visitor. It was raining that day, there were no people on the road, and this silly cooing was foraging on the grass near the sidewalk. After seeing me, he did not take off, but hurried to his feet (meaning brisk walking) and slipped back three times in one step.
I think goo goo is really silly goo, really silly enough. Later, I saw the popular science of the pearl-necked turtledove to know that it turned out to be stupid and not good at flying, no wonder! But it really looks like that.
06
Brown-winged crow crime scene famous © scene Cat Xiaohua
How hard can a brown-winged crow fight to eat?
When our car slowly approached to about 2 meters, it accelerated its eating speed and could also be seen to be a little wary. Because the telephoto was too close to the frame, I took pictures with a point-and-shoot camera and mobile phone for several minutes, and it ate in a hurry to eat and drink enough before swaggering away. It's really bold.
07
The plain blue-breasted chicken (aka grey-breasted chicken) cat © birch
This plain blue-breasted chicken is really unremarkable, there is no story, and why it is here just represents the chronological order in which I saw it, and I like its color scheme.
It was also the first time I saw a blue-breasted chicken in the field, and I hope to see it again in the future.
08
Finally, put a picture of my favorite ox-backed heron emoji © cat Xiaohua
This is a cow-backed heron hidden in straw but not completely hidden.
The other herons were busy with their own business, but this one was facing us, looking at it with wise eyes, and the breeze brushing its fluffy feathers and highlighting its lush hair. I guess it was giving wind to my companions to see if my behemoth wanted to do something. Although it was very mushy, it was very joyful and one of my favorite photos.
Bird watching made me see too many interesting scenes: the little egret stayed on the embankment, and the car flew away when it was very close; Pond herons can always remain still for a long time; Black thrushes brave heavy rain to forage on the ground (because they are so common, they are laughingly called thrushes); Black-collared starlings are nicely dressed and have "stunning" calls; Dong Ji is super small, it is very easy to be shocked, it is difficult to photograph, I even shot the back paste...
I also have a camera to record these pictures, but for various reasons, the picture quality is too touching, so please make up your brains.
Since participating in bird watching, I have been hearing about birds dying due to human interference. After watching the death of a sea duck and a flower chicken that cannot see the sea: how to prevent "accidents" from becoming inevitable? , I was in a very low mood, and in my heart I denounced the bird-shooters who did not care about the safety of the birds for their own selfish desires.
Then I saw another article: What the hell are you birdwatching for?! , After reading it, I felt the same way, and exclaimed that Mr. Orange Tree is my mouth!
Birdwatching allows me to get out of the house, see how beautiful and harmonious birds are in nature, and have the opportunity to constantly observe and record, which is what I mean by birdwatching.
Written at the end:
Thank you Xiao Xiao Cui for revising and polishing and injecting soul into the text. Thank you Teacher Ye for his silent guidance, even if I often send pasted birds to the teacher, he takes the trouble to help me identify birds, and Teacher Night's encouragement and help give me the confidence to join the bird watching army. Thank you to all the gods, masters and friends who have been guiding and helping me on the bird watching journey.
PS: The content of this issue is from the submission. The long-term call for papers of the Cat League is open, the call for papers is as follows, and we look forward to your talented submission~
Here are past excellent contributions:
If biodiversity could also be on talk shows...
Cut off the mobile phone signal and live in the container, I have long wanted to come to the North China Leopard's house!
While waiting for the crispy roast chicken, I was determined to learn from the birds
The life of a lion cub taken in by a murdered mother
520 I cried in the taxi on this day because I was afraid that I would not be able to save a bird
Tongzhou, where the forest is not large, can you have any bird?
-End-
Become a Cat Alliance Month donor to protect the Chinese wilderness together
---- about birdwatching, you can also read ----
About the fact that our family's wild moon season results in the growth of turtledoves
When I see the spot-headed grebe, it's like seeing a round kiwi
By squatting in front of my house, I achieved owl freedom
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