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Birdwatching
Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescope, by listening for bird sounds, watching public webcams, or by viewing smart bird feeder cameras. Most birdwatchers pursue this activity for recreational or social reasons, unlike ornithologists, who engage in the study of birds using formal scientific methods. Birding, birdwatching, and twitching The first recorded use of the term ''birdwatcher'' was in 1712 by William Oldsworth. The term ''birding'' was also used for the practice of ''fowling'' or hunting with firearms as in Shakespeare's '' The Merry Wives of Windsor'' (1602): "She laments sir... her husband goes this morning a-birding." The terms ''birding'' and ''birdwatching'' are today used by some interchangeably, although some participants prefer ''birding'', partly because ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twitcher
Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescope, by listening for bird sounds, watching public webcams, or by viewing smart bird feeder cameras. Most birdwatchers pursue this activity for recreational or social reasons, unlike ornithologists, who engage in the study of birds using formal scientific methods. Birding, birdwatching, and twitching The first recorded use of the term ''birdwatcher'' was in 1712 by William Oldsworth. The term ''birding'' was also used for the practice of ''fowling'' or hunting with firearms as in Shakespeare's ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' (1602): "She laments sir... her husband goes this morning a-birding." The terms ''birding'' and ''birdwatching'' are today used by some interchangeably, although some participants prefer ''birding'', partly because it in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Binoculars
Binoculars or field glasses are two refracting telescopes mounted side-by-side and aligned to point in the same direction, allowing the viewer to use both eyes (binocular vision) when viewing distant objects. Most binoculars are sized to be held using both hands, although sizes vary widely from opera glasses to large pedestal-mounted military models. Unlike a (monocular) telescope, binoculars give users a stereopsis, three-dimensional image: each eyepiece presents a slightly different image to each of the viewer's eyes and the parallax allows the visual cortex to generate an depth perception, impression of depth. Optical design evolution Galilean Almost from the invention of the telescope in the 17th century the advantages of mounting two of them side by side for binocular vision seems to have been explored. Most early binoculars used Galilean telescope, Galilean optics; that is, they used a convex lens, convex objective (optics), objective and a concave lens, concave eyepi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wildlife Observation
Wildlife observation is the practice of noting the occurrence or abundance of animal species at a specific location and time, either for research purposes or recreation. Common examples of this type of activity are bird watching and whale watching. The process of scientific wildlife observation includes the reporting of what (diagnosis of the species), where ( geographical location), when (date and time), who (details about observer), and why (reason for observation, or explanations for occurrence). Wildlife observation can be performed if the animals are alive, with the most notable example being face-to-face observation and live cameras, or are dead, with the primary example being the notifying of where roadkill has occurred. This outlines the basic information needed to collect data for a wildlife observation; which can also contribute to scientific investigations of distribution, habitat relations, trends, and movement of wildlife species. Wildlife observation allows for the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Birding Association
The American Birding Association (ABA) is a nonprofit organization, founded in 1969, dedicated to recreational birdwatching, birding in Canada and the United States. It has been called "the standard-bearer for serious birding in North America." Originally concentrated on finding, listing, and identifying rare birds, the ABA now seeks to serve all birders with a wide range of services and publications. History In December 1968, in the first issue (volume 0, number 0) of ''The Birdwatcher's Digest'', Jim Tucker proposed the formation of a group to be known as the "American Birdwatchers' Association" for the exchange of information and the comparison of birding lists. On the suggestion of Stuart Keith, the next issue of Tucker's newsletter bore the name ''Birding'' (volume 1, number 1). This January/February 1969 issue included a statement of intentions and objectives and three pages of lists, including the birders with the top ten lists for the world and for the area then cover ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Citizen Science
The term citizen science (synonymous to terms like community science, crowd science, crowd-sourced science, civic science, participatory monitoring, or volunteer monitoring) is research conducted with participation from the general public, or amateur/nonprofessional researchers or participants of science, social science and many other disciplines. There are variations in the exact definition of citizen science, with different individuals and organizations having their own specific interpretations of what citizen science encompasses. Citizen science is used in a wide range of areas of study including ecology, biology and conservation, health and medical research, astronomy, media and communications and information science. There are different applications and functions of "citizen science" in research projects. Citizen science can be used as a methodology where public volunteers help in collecting and classifying data, improving the scientific community's capacity. Citizen sc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Life List
A life list, or life-list, is a list of all biological species seen by a person. The action of tracking which biological species one has observed is known as lifelisting. The phrase is particularly common among bird watchers and fishermen, though it can be applied to many animal types. Those who compile life lists may compete with each other to have the largest list with the most unique species. Lifelisting can take many forms, as it is up to each individual what they "count" for their list and what they don't. Some birders will only count birds they see, while others might take a vocalization as evidence enough to add the species to their lifelist. In other cases, a birder might be in a group of people bird watching when only one person sees and identifies the bird, and the others may choose whether or not to add it to their list. Birding There is some controversy surrounding the concept. As there is no way to prove one has seen every bird they claim to, the entire concept ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight Bird skeleton, skeleton. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the bee hummingbird to the common ostrich. There are over 11,000 living species and they are split into 44 Order (biology), orders. More than half are passerine or "perching" birds. Birds have Bird wing, wings whose development varies according to species; the only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which are modified forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly, although further evolution has led to the Flightless bird, loss of flight in some birds, including ratites, penguins, and diverse endemism, endemic island species. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ornithology
Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds. It has also been an area with a large contribution made by amateurs in terms of time, resources, and financial support. Studies on birds have helped develop key concepts in biology including evolution, behaviour and ecology such as the definition of species, the process of speciation, instinct, learning, ecological niches, guild (ecology), guilds, insular biogeography, phylogeography, and bird conservation, conservation. While early ornithology was principally concerned with descriptions and distributions of species, ornithologists today seek answers to very specific questions, often using birds as models to test hypotheses or predictions based on theories. Most mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NMAAHC Bird Walk
The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), colloquially known as the Blacksonian, is a Smithsonian Institution museum located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in the United States. It was established in 2003 and opened its permanent home in 2016 with a ceremony led by President Barack Obama. Early efforts to establish a federally owned museum featuring African-American history and culture can be traced to 1915 and the National Memorial Association, although the modern push for such an organization did not begin until the 1970s. After years of little success, a legislative push began in 1988 that led to authorization of the museum in 2003. A site was selected in 2006, and a design submitted by Phil Freelon, Freelon Group/David Adjaye, Adjaye Associates/Davis Brody Bond was chosen in 2009. Construction began in 2012 and the museum completed in 2016. The NMAAHC is the world's largest museum dedicated to African-American history and culture. In 202 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twitchers' Vocabulary
Twitchers' vocabulary is the set of jargon words used by twitchers (committed birdwatchers who travel long distances to see a new species to add a species to their "life list", year list or other list). Some terms may be specific to regional birding communities, and not all are used due to dialectic and cultural differences.Anon. 2008. "The A to Z of birding." Australian Geographic 90: 104-105.Saha, Purbita. "The Audubon Dictionary for Birders" http://www.audubon.org/news/the-audubon-dictionary-birdersSwick, Nate. "The Birder Jargon Dictionary" https://thedrinkingbirdblog.com/the-birder-jargon-dictionary Terms ;Big Day: a birding event in which a birder or team of birders tries to see as many species of birds as possible within a calendar day. ;Big Year: a birding event in which a birder tries to see as many species of birds as possible within a defined area (county, state, ABA area, etc.) within a calendar year; originated with the American Birding Association, and the basis f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Montagu (naturalist)
George Montagu (1753 – 20 June 1815) was a British military officer and ornithologist. He was known for his pioneering ''Ornithological Dictionary'' of 1802, which for the first time accurately defined the status of Britain's birds. He is remembered today for species such as the Montagu's harrier, named after him. Life and work George Montagu was born to James Montagu (1713–1790), who was great-great-grandson of Lord James Montagu (d. 1665), who was younger son of Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester. Montagu is best known for his ''Ornithological Dictionary'' (1802) and his contributions to early knowledge of British birds. He showed that many previously accepted species were invalid, either because they were birds in summer or winter plumage or males and females of the same species. His study of harriers resulted in the discovery that the Montagu's harrier was breeding in southern England. He was also involved in the first British records of cirl bunting, whose breeding ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
