Of late ive become disillusioned with the standards of birding that now apply. No longer the simple days of going out and enjoying your hobby for the sheer enjoyment of reveling in contact with the natural world.
Sharing information was a privilege that others more experienced would only do once they were sure that you could be trusted to act accordingly. These days with the web, pagers and phones it rapidly gets into the public domain.
Recent talks with others have not surprised, that info is now being withheld to prevent the hordes turning up and disturbing the wildlife concerned. Recent behavior at a site has caused disturbance that is completely unnecessary, and because of a pet lip on another info is being broadcast from someone just out of a fit of pique.
I wished i could believe it will improve, sadly i think it will decline further. Our wildlife faces enough pressures with persecution, farming practices, and habitat destruction, the last thing it needs is bad human behavior adding to the woes.
You've summed it up perfectly Brian. The wildlife comes way before any sighting or image. Add this to the disturbance caused by the seeming hoardes of dogwalkers ( few seem to have ONE dog anymore) the wildlife, as you say, is under more & more pressure. There's hardly a piece of rough grassland or sand dune that isn't scarred with the tracks of humans !!
ReplyDeleteTa for the comment John, been going through several decades of notebooks, and noticed the difference between my early birding experiences and comparing them to today. Probably a bad idea as things always change, But as you point out dogs a now a major problem, along with other human activities.
ReplyDeleteOf course our Springs just are not the same, on one day on Holy Island, i had Icterine Warbler, Scarlet Rosefinch, and both Nightingale, and Thrush Nightingale on the snook, soaked through too the skin but completely happy.
I cant get to the places i used to frequent,so perhaps being reduced to local patches does mean more contact with people than wildlife, good to see a few youngsters around to carry on the hobby.
Im just a grumpy old bugger probably.