Best Bird Watching Tips for Birders and Birding

Watching Birds is Great Fun!

Watching birds is fun because birds are fun and it enables you to get outdoors, out of town and see wild birds that you would not see in your yard. Just seeing birds doing what they do everyday is an exiting hobby for anyone who likes to see birds at the bird feeders and bird houses in their yard.

More and more people are now becoming bird watchers and birding will continue to become more popular. More time means more birding time and longer bird watching trips can take place. Also bird watching generates and appreciation for nature, our environment and the fact that we need to protect habitat for the birds.

All new birders need to understand some basic principles before they venture out on their first birding adventures so that they have some success in finding birds and are not disappointed. A bird feeder in the yard is always a good starting point, but to see more and different birds you have to travel further to find different habitat.

Be There At Dawn!

The best time to see the biggest number of birds is very early in the morning when the birds will be extremely active and easier to see. This applies wherever you happen to be when you are bird watching including in the back yard, at a park, in the woods or at some coastal location.

Obviously get a good nights rest during the previous night and get up as early as you can so that you are in position at your bird watching locality before the sun comes up. Yes that early! The reason for starting birding at this time is that the highest numbers of birds are active in the couple of hours right after sunrise. After this time, especially as the sun gets higher in the sky, the number of birds for a birder to see will be less.

Do Not Wear Clothes With Bright Colors!

Bright colored clothes will scare the birds as they will see you easier and take avoiding action by diving into the nearest bushes as soon as they detect your movements and because of this you will not see many birds.

Try to put on clothing that has a more natural and darker coloring that compliments the color of the birds habitat where you will be birding.

Being camouflaged in the foliage or habitat where the birds are located will mean that you are less easy to detect and therefore pose less of a threat to the birds. Even combat type gear might be appropriate if you are very serious about finding the best birds.

Do Not Talk And Tread Quietly

If you are not quiet when looking for birds you are going to scare them all away before you get anywhere near them. Talking and moving quickly are two of the worst things you can do when birding and will always guarantee low bird sightings and you will never hear the birds even if they are close by.

Whispering is a good idea when near birds and if you want to indicate where you think the birds are you should try and use hand signals to tell you friends, but at no time should you raise an arm to point to where the birds might be, as they will see you do this and will just disappear before you get a chance to see them.

Try and remain behind larger things like tree trunks and bushes so that the birds do not see your silhouette or any movement as this will disturb them and they might leave in a hurry.

Do Not Wander Off The Trail

Never chase the birds or try other techniques aimed at flushing out a bird from the undergrowth as this will just stress them and they will fly off anyway so you will not get a chance to see them. Stick to the trail at all times to avoid disturbing the birds and you will get much better views.

Also if you do not already have bird feeders or bird houses in your yard you should definitely put some up in appropriate locations and start feeding the birds as this will get many more birds into your back yard and make them much easier for you to see.

The birds welfare should always be paramount and you should do whatever you can to ensure that the birds you are watching are not disturbed by your actions and always stay away from birds nests.

Binoculars Or A Scope Are Essential

Watching birds from a distance is major requirement when birding as many do not allow close views so you will need a good pair of binoculars and when you become a more experienced birder you may feel the need to get a spotting scope to give much closer views of the birds you want to see.

Bird watching is an enjoyable pastime for any nature lover. Birding can be inexpensive and at some times challenging but above all it is always enjoyable and fun.

It is easy to begin by just putting up bird feeders and bird houses for nesting in your yard and get enjoyment from watching the birds as they come and go.

Enjoy Bird Watching!

Go birding and watch more birds.