Guest Post: Respecting Wildlife by Ernie Allison

Respecting Wildlife

Ernie Allison loves nature. More specifically, he loves birds and wants to teach others how to appreciate them, too. To help further this mission, he writes birdfeeders.com, provider of  hummingbird feeders.

As children, one of the rules of every classroom and situation was respect. We were told to respect our teachers, our parents, our peers, and ourselves. We were told to leave things as good as or better than we found them in order to respect our environment.

One thing that may not have been emphasized as much is to respect animals as well. We might have gotten a general “wildlife” feel from that environment rule, but no specific “respect all living creatures” tenant.

One of the reasons that children are recommended to have pets is to improve their relationship with people. When you have a pet, you must care for it and interpret its needs. The same goes for people around us. We need to care for those in our lives, and to do that we must interpret their needs.

There are other juxtapositions in the relations of people and animals. In literature and film, animals are often introduced in order to bring more humanity to a situation. In many an action film, people are slaughtered mercilessly, but the scene where the dog dies is deliberately a tear jerker. In order to make a character more sympathetic, they will likely have an animal accompany them. For some reason, animals bring out our humanity.

Because of this, it is important to intentionally make respecting wildlife a deliberate part of our lives, and to teach our children to do the same. Here are some ways to do so.

Get Out There

You can’t very well learn to respect animals if you’re never exposed to them, can you? And the family beagle is one thing, but there is something special about meeting animals on their own turf, where they were intended to be.

Of course, there are a lot of precautions to be taken in the wild for both you and the animals. If you’re out hiking, beware of bears, dear, and other wild creatures. Even animals that are not predators can hurt you out of panic if caught off guard. And just like when you’re at the zoo, don’t feed the animals. Not only do you not want to cause animals to be dependent on humans, or not be wary of them (causing them to be easier targets for hunters), but the food you would give them probably isn’t healthy for a human constitution, let alone an animal body not used to it.

There are a lot of ways to safely enjoy wildlife. Hiking and camping are the most popular and obvious choices. There are a lot of different types of camping: trailers, tents, yurts, and just sleeping under the stars. You can choose the amount of the modern day that you take with you. If you’re up to it, try to experience nature as purely and unaffected by human technology as possible.

As I write this, it is snowing outside and I realize that now may not be the time to be promoting the outdoors. Most of us want to be snuggling up inside as much as possible. But if you bundle up properly, nature has a lot to offer in the winter. Though a lot of the animals are holed up as well, some of them are still quite alert, on the lookout for much needed food. It can be very magical to watch small animals lope through the snow. Winter hikes, snow shoeing, and cross country skiing can all be great winter nature activities, provided of course that you take the proper safety precautions.

Wildlife Garden

Sometimes we don’t have the time to get away from our homes to experience nature. Luckily, bringing nature to us can benefit the earth as much as it benefits us. By planting native plants and providing other natural food sources, we can attract native species to our landscape and encourage the local ecosystem to flourish.

Research what plants are native to your area and what animals are attracted to them. Birds, squirrels, and many types of insects are the most likely creatures you’ll see in your yard, but depending on your surroundings, you may see deer, rabbits, and other wildlife as well. You’ll also want to consider what to do if you don’t want these critters nibbling on your garden. Pesticides are never a good answer, but certain garden setups can discourage unwanted trespassers.  There are a lot of articles with advice on feeding birds and other animals.

Attracting animals to your yard, especially birds, can have a lot of benefits to you. Your yard gets some natural biodiversity, and you get the opportunity to see and photograph nature’s creatures up close and personal. Just seeing squirrels playing in the yard or birds at the feeder can bring a smile to an otherwise dreary day.

Minimizing Your Impact

A big part of respect is consideration. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our busy lives that we forget we aren't the only beings on this earth. We go through our consumerism-driven lives without thinking of the effect it has on the world around us. Simply stopping to pick up litter or taking the time to compost instead of filling the landfills can do great wonders to minimize our negative impact on the planet. By taking the time to consider other people, animals, and just the earth in general, you can show the most respect of all.

"Birding Jargon"

 This is a guest post from Natalie Hunter . 

If you’ve dipped a tick on your big day list and the twitcher on the
next patch over is gripping you off about it, just keep in mind that
the bird may be twitchable and you might be able to tick it off your
big year or life list tomorrow.

 A dedicated birdwatcher, or “birder” as those within the community refer to themselves, would have no trouble understanding the specialized jargon in the above sentence. Birdwatching as an organized pastime is becoming more popular than ever, especially among young people, as interest in conservation continues to grow. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that nearly 48 million Americans enjoy birdwatching as an organized hobby, a nearly 20 percent increase over similar estimates a decade ago.

This burgeoning interest has created a $31 billion-per-year industry
as companies from birdseed manufacturers to camera makers to travel companies specializing in birding tours position themselves to gather a share of the market catering to the wants of the birding community.

 Much of this growth in birding can be attributed to the advent of the Internet, which has allowed millions of people to connect with others who share their passion for birdwatching. Young people especially have shown a great interest in birding, as the pastime allows them to take part in citizen science projects where their observations and recorded data can help build a better overall understanding of changes that may be occurring within bird populations.


To help young new birders ease into the hobby, below is a listing of some of the specialized jargon used within the birding community, starting with those in the first sentence of this article:

Dip: A failure to observe a reported rare bird on an outing. Example:

"I went to Jerry's favorite park to find the Red-headed Woodpecker he was bragging to me about, but I was dipped."

Patch: One's favored birding location or area. Also referred to as
"local patch," as in "The State Park along the river is my favorite
local patch for birding."

Tick: To add a newly sighted bird to one's lists. Derived from the
process of "ticking" off marks on a checklist.

Life list, Big day list, Big year list: Variations of the lists that
dedicated birders compile as a record of their observations. A Life
list is a complete record of all the species observed by a birder to
date. A Big day list is a record of all the species observed in a
single day, usually as part of an organized birding competition.
Similarly, a big year list is a record of a birder's observations for
a complete calendar year.

Twitch: The seeking out of a reported rare bird sighting, often
traveling long distances to do so, (twitching). Used as a noun
(twitcher), refers to a birder who twitches regularly in an effort to
see the rarest of birds.

Twitchable: Conversely, twitchable refers to a bird that is easy to
find in a local park.

Grip, Grip off: To brag to another birder about a rare sighting that
they have not made themselves. A good-natured form of bragging about one's birding prowess.

Now that the first sentence can be deciphered using the list above,
budding young birders can move ahead into the world of birding
confident that they won't become lost and confused by the jargon of
their respected birding elders. But just in case, there are a few more
comprehensive lists of birding jargon that can be found here  and here.

Natalie is not a birder herself,  but was inspired by her Aunt Jaime to do the post, because she and her husband are avid birders. Thanks for the article Natalie!

Great News For Birds!

We often about the destruction of habitat and the declining numbers of various species of birds. Here is some good news for both birds and birders. The following is a guest post from David Childs of the Boreal Songbird Initiative. Please direct any comments you might have to David or visit The Boreal Bird Blog. I wanted to help spread the good news to anyone who wasn't aware of it. (photo courtesy of “Innu Nation”)

There have been two wonderful announcements for birds in the past week or so. It started last Sunday when the Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, announced that the province of Quebec was protecting around 4.5 million acres of Boreal Forest through the creation of 14 new national parks and adding land to an already existing park. The total land protected is more than double the size of Yellowstone National Park (around 2.2 million acres).

This has enormous implications for many of the migratory birds that breed in the Boreal Forest to our North. While many of us get excited in the spring for incoming migrants like the Blackpoll Warbler, it’s easy to forget that their health and numbers largely depend on the status of their breeding grounds in Canada. 300 of the 700 species of bird that occur in the US and Canada breed in the Boreal Forest.

Just one day later, the US added to the momentum. President Barack Obama signed a landmark conservation bill that protected around 2 million acres spread across 9 US states. The land protected included a diverse selection of wilderness, including wetlands, forests, and desert – all of which will be beneficial to a wide variety of North American birds.

Together, about 6.5 million acres were permanently protected over the span of two days and two countries. While the timing was coincidental, this one-two punch of great news made last week a truly great week for North American birds and the birders who adore them.

David Childs
Boreal Songbird Initiative &
The International Boreal Conservation Campaign
1904 Third Avenue, Suite 305 Seattle, Washington 98101