I Don’t Get It: Birding
- 12 hours ago
- 6 min read
Editorial Assistant Alicja Krotofil explores the obscure world of Birding, and gives us an exclusive guide to the birds you might spot around campus.
So, you’ve heard this phrase used in social circles or thrown around on social media, but you’ve got no idea what it means? You’re exactly where you need to be right now, because I’m about to take a little deep dive into what birding is—and bring you along with me!
Birding, also known as bird watching, is the act of observing birds in their natural habitat and logging any sightings of them through physical logbooks or digital databases such as eBird or the Merlin Bird ID app. Typically, people who bird watch will travel to certain locations in order to immerse themselves in a wildlife experience and come into contact with more species. However the movement is changing and adapting to become a hobby that can be done every day by everyone–spotting birds on the fly (necessary bird pun) and being able to record it on your phone. If you travel to specific habitats you may have a better chance of spotting both rarer birds and a higher density of them, but the idea of birding is to engage in active observations of them in your day-to-day environment, as birds are present everywhere! It makes it easier for everybody to seek out wildlife when it can fly up to you wherever you are.
Origin Story Time
Bird watching originated somewhere in the 18th century. At this time, scientific knowledge about animals was mainly gathered through the process of killing an animal and dissecting it in order to record information. It was fairly commonplace to go on a cheeky hunt with the lads but instead of smashing beers and riding around in your mate’s ute, you returned home with plenty of specimens to dissect and inspect. This was especially the case for smaller critters such as birds, and many ornithologists hunted down certain species in order to perform autopsies on the body with the interest of gathering knowledge on that particular species.
Ornithologist: someone who specialises in the field of bird study
Ornis (bird) and logia (study of) from original Greek
This was a common practice for many years, so imagine the absolute audacity to suggest that instead of hunting down the bird you intend to learn about, you’re just going to sit around and observe it for a while. Indeed, there are reports from ornithologists' diaries at the time realising that they can learn a lot about the bird simply from watching it exist in its natural habitat. Isn’t that a crazy revelation? (*Head scratch* Bird does stuff when it's alive… and I can see it? Hey Archimedes, the 18th century ornithologists may have one upped you on this one). Even Darwin made considerable efforts to note down information from observing different species of birds. His observations of the Galapagos finches and their different beak adaptations due to access to different food sources became a crucial point in his argument on natural selection and evolution. We could credit a surmountable part of the current theory of evolution to the pure fact that good old Darwin was a bird watcher.
But why? Why is there such a fascination with birds and their behavior to the point of creation of an entire hobby?
As we live in Australia, a country with notoriously aggressive and courageous birds, it is not unusual for people to express their distaste for them. I have friends who shy away from birds that may land near them and the last thing they would want to do is spend a day observing them. To some people, they may seem definitively boring, but I will never stop advocating for these gorgeous beings.
Birds are incredible animals. Their skeletons are hollow allowing them to be light enough to fly. This is something that is unique to their class, which in the animal kingdom is called ‘Aves’. Birds are some of the only animals that have been able to learn human language explicitly and speak it back to us. One of the more intelligent genera, that of crows and ravens, is able to utilise tools and problem solve, and they have incredible memory. They have been recorded remembering faces of individuals who were kind to them or posed a threat to them for as long as 17 years!
Not to mention, my personal favorite piece of bird lore is that birds are the closest descendants of dinosaurs. Fossil records show us how dinosaurs from the Mesozoic era (the last era of dinosaurs, RIP) had very similar bone structures to modern birds, and even would've had feathers. Chances are that your childhood favourite dinosaur looked a lot more like a chicken than a lizard.
One of the most crucial reasons for observing birds is to understand them. Humanity is already to blame for the extinction of many incredible species of animals during our short time on Earth. Every single living creature plays an important role in their ecosystem and their extinction could start a chain of events that ends in our demise. And if we can’t even understand an animal, how can we help preserve it? Here, I draw on the wisdom of my current, and childhood idol:
“If children don’t grow up knowing about nature and appreciating it, they will not understand it. And if they don’t understand it, they won’t protect it. And if they don’t protect it, who will?”
—Sir David Attenborough [1]
Learning about nature and working to preserve it is so important, especially in our wonderful country where we have so many unique and endemic species of birds—’endemic’ meaning native and restricted to a certain habitat. For example, Australia’s famous emu cannot be found anywhere else on Earth, making it all the more special.
If there’s anything you should derive from my deep dive into birding, it’s that it is crucial to take time to observe the environment around us. Birding is a hobby that allows you to nerd out over cool animals but also brings you down to earth by encouraging you to pause and exist in the present. Next time you have a moment, try it out!
My Guide To A Few (Of The Many) Birds Commonly Seen On Campus
Masked Lapwing (Plover) Vanellus mille
These sneaky guys are found across Central and Eastern Australia, usually seen in urban areas. Chances are when you see them they’ll be in a pair as they mate for life. They may get slightly aggressive when protecting their nests, so they are definitely a candidate for that bird that swooped you last week. Their distinctive feature is the yellow wattle on their face, which grows as they mature.
Crimson Rosella Platycercus elegans
If you’ve seen something flying at fast speeds and all you saw was a blur of bright red and blue, chances are it was a Crimson Rosella! Like most of Australia’s native parrots, they feed on different species of bottlebrush. On campus, it's common to see them on the native flora. The young usually also have green feathers in their plumage, and shed them as they mature.
Pied Currawong Strepera graculina
My personal favourite from this list: the Pied Currawong. This guy cosplays as a magpie and somehow has even more cheek. Currawongs are present along the East coast of Australia and you will definitely see them on campus trying to steal scraps off your table. They are really intelligent and can form friendships with humans, bringing back ‘treasure’ in return for food. Yes, I have tried to befriend one and no, we are not friends…yet. Stay tuned.
Channel-Billed Cuckoo Scythrops novaehollandiae
Cuckoos are straight out of a nightmare. They screech incredibly loudly and they have a wingspan of up to 1 metre, longer than our largest cockatoos. Their eyes are also red, which is crazy. They are not native to Australia, they migrate from Papua New Guinea in order to breed during our summer and lay their eggs in other birds' nests. They are both mystifying and menacing.
Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoo Zanda funerea
One of the unofficial symbols of Australia, the Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoo is one of our most elusive birds. Although common across most of Eastern Australia, they are often seen flying high and avoiding other birds. Their screech is higher pitched than a Sulfur-Crested Cockatoo, and they are slimmer and somehow more majestic. They like to feed on native flora, so keep an eye out when you’re on campus next!
If you’re interested in seeing more species of birds that can be spotted at Macquarie University Campus, I encourage you to look up the list on eBird. It’s a great place to have a little browse of our local birds and to get an idea of how often people are observing them and recording sightings. Happy birding!
[1] Learning Through Landscapes. (2014, October 14). David Attenborough - Conserving Wonder [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/ImZhcNIL07s?si=SSQjwpCnd_8w3IiQ
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