birding-aus

Re: birding-aus Bird totals !

To: Tony Russell <>, Birding-aus <>
Subject: Re: birding-aus Bird totals !
From: (Richard Johnson)
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 08:42:59 +1000
Hi All

A point to note in that US description of birder's heaven: 'all the birds are 
seen in
perfect light and don't fly away prematurely'.

A perceptive person once told the story of how a recently-departed fisherman 
ended up in
a place where every cast yielded a fish of superlative size and beauty. After 
the tenth
or twentieth cast, he found that things began to pall. He commented to the 
person fishing
beside him that this was all a bit easy and maybe heaven wasn't such a great 
place after
all. 'Oh no' said his companion ' this isn't heaven, this is hell!'

Maybe birding would be a lot less interesting if all our ticks came easily.

Richard

Tony Russell wrote:

> >
> Hi all, I thought this response sufficiently zany to retransmit.
>
> From: "Donald Messersmith" <>
> >
> >Tony:
> >       As an American birder deeply interested in Australian birds,
> >birding, and birders, I have been following the twitching (listing,
> >that is) debate with great interest.  Apparently your rules to add a
> >bird to your lists are very similar to ours in spite of translation
> >difficulties with our common language.
> >
> >       I might be able to clarify one of your questions included in your
> >message to Jesse.
> >
> >       At a recent meeting of the ABA (the initial "A" stands for American,
> >not Australian in this case) the amount of heat generated by
> >discussions among "listers" boasting about their lists was so great
> >that a rising bubble of  superheated air ascended upward just as a
> >passing Bald Eagle drifted overhead and sent the unfortunate bird
> >upward so high that it reached Birder's Heaven, stayed briefly and
> >when it descended later, non-the-worse for the experience, and was
> >captured, it had a message attached to its leg from our recently
> >departed birding Guru, the late Roger Tory Peterson, who sent a
> >message saying that Birder's Heaven is located directly over North
> >America and that there is presently a great debate going on between
> >the Birder Angels (they are those departed souls with a Life List
> >over 700 North American birds) as to whether twitchers can even be
> >admitted to that heavenly place where all the birds can be seen in
> >perfect light and don't fly away prematurely.  A few who've been to
> >those distant lands where twitchers are endemic are arguing to admit
> >them.
> >       So, carry on, Mate, some of you from OZ may get there yet.
> >                                                               Cheers!
> >                                                               Don 
> > Messsersmith
> >               And look at this!!!!    --------------------    Lister--- 
> > YERK!!
> >                                                               Australian 
> > List - 475
> >                                                               (and coming 
> > for more)
> >                                       (Eds note)      Just a beginner.
>
> Tony Russell,
> Adelaide, South Australia
> 08 8337 5959
>
>    There's nothing quite like the feeling of seeing a new bird is there?
> To unsubscribe from this list, please send a message to
> 
> Include ONLY "unsubscribe birding-aus" in the message body (without the
> quotes)

--
+----------------------------------------+
Richard Johnson
Senior Conservation Officer, Habitat Case Studies
Roma District
Tel: (07) 4622 4266  Fax: (07) 4622 4151
E-mail: 


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