My perspective on birding karma, is that unless you are going to see a
known bird/group of birds at a known location [eg BBBQ at Inskip Pt] or
you have detailed notes as to where to look and what to look for [eg
Carpentarian Grasswrens on McNamarra's Rd], you will not find the
species you are looking for. You will find other birds, and some of
which may well be "ticks", but the fact you are looking for a species
will put the mockers on your search.
For example, if you go to do some pelagic twitching in an area you
haven't been to before, and you want to see Petrel X, you will in fact
get to see Petrels Y & Z [possibly ticks] but not X. I'm not sure if
Douglas Adams described this sort of thing [I know he discussed the
inability of people to see "someone else's problem"].
Sometimes, the best way to see a target species is to keep a casual eye
out in at a spot where you aren't counting on seeing it. For example,
I hadn't seen Rufous Bristlebirds before my recent visit to Melbourne.
I was told that they were at Pt Addis, so on my way to the Pt, my car
load of passengers and I stopped off at Bells Beach to see what all the
surfing hype was all about. The second bird I saw when I hopped out of
the car was a Rufous Bristlebird, and there were other birds calling in
the heath. When I proceeded to Pt Addis, there were no Rufous
Bristlebirds to be seen or heard.
Similarly, because I was looking for neophema parrots both at the WTP,
there were no parrots of any description to be seen.
Regards, Laurie.
On Friday, August 3, 2007, at 07:54 PM, Carl Clifford wrote:
Carl,
I recently had a Karmic birding experience. In April I started off an
11 week birding trip to Thailand and Malaysia. I began the trip at
Khao Nor Chu Chi in S. Thailand to try and see the legendary Gurney's
Pitta.
On my first morning there I set off to do a walk along the famous "U"
trail, thinking that I would be pretty lucky to see a Gurney's in the
4 days I was to spend there, let alone that morning, but i would have
a wander and see what turns up. Less than an hour into the trail, I
heard a male Gurney's calling. After more than 10 minutes of creeping
along the trail, trying to look as much like a part of the landscape,
there he was perched on a termite mound calling away at the top of
his voice. I had an excellent, though brief view of this beautiful
little bird before he spotted me and was off. I have read of people
who spend days on the tails at Khao Nor Chu Chi and not see the little
blighter and I saw it in the first hour. Was I pleased with myself.
I paid for that smugness at 4 AM next morning when my mobile rang. It
was a friend of my Mother, calling to say that Mum was seriously ill
in Hospital and I had better get back. So off I went and said bye-bye
to Thailand. I will probably get back one day, but I won't be so smug
about my sightings, particularly in a Buddhist country where Karma
seems to work so well.
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