Hi all,
I have been following this debate with some interest - I feel that the nail
was hit on the head when it was suggested Birding-Aus is providing an
alternate and more convenient venue for people to "publish" unusual
sightings. I think Stephen possibly needs to find a way to harness that
power if he wishes AFO to continue to be relevant to birders and amateur
ornithologists.
However that is by-the-by. While I'm sure Evan may have been made to feel
some guilt for not "contributing more" in the past, I was a little alarmed
that no one has offered a counter-example. I agree people should not be
made to feel guilty for enjoying their hobby, and also that it is not
practical for every birder to write down every bird they see every day. It
can be extremely rewarding, though, to feel like you are giving something
back to the birds. There are lots of ways of doing this. You could record
birds you see on a bird walk and contribute this valuable data to an Atlas.
You could volunteer to be part of a threatened species survey. You could
help plant some habitat with a local revegetation project. You could offer
some of your time or expertise to one of the national bird groups (I can't
speak for BOCA but Birds Australia often needs people to help with data
entry and folding envelopes for mailouts, and regional groups always
appreciate people who can provide skills for them such as accounting). To
suggest that everyone who does this is somehow being guilted into it is not
only wrong, but a little offensive. There are many wonderful people out
there who I deal with who feel that contributing something back to a hobby
they get so much pleasure out of is the least they can do. If that's not
for you, that's ok, but for those who want to give their time, and passion,
it is not expected, but is greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Chris
On Fri, May 23, 2008 at 1:18 PM, Evan Beaver <> wrote:
> This whole nonsense of 'blaming someone' for a perceived lack of
> scientific output from birdwatchers holds no water with me at all. I
> know of no other hobby (and I've been heavily involved in a few) where
> so much guilt is levelled at others for not pursuing their hobby in
> the prescribed manner. So what if there are birders out there purely
> enjoying looking at birds? I can't think of a better way to wring the
> joy from my experiences than the thought of writing up every
> observation or atlassing every trip. If you think there should be more
> science output maybe you should work harder? Otherwise, let us enjoy
> our hobby in the way we see fit.
>
> Except for Twitchers, who are clearly evil and responsible for almost
> every problem we face today.
>
> EB
>
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