My advice for beginner birders I is to first get comfortable and confident with the identification of most local species, then add to that knowledge by taking short trips or while traveling, and lastly, always hold the pleasure of experiencing the environment over chasing a life list.
I have gotten into the habit of taking GPS coordinates for just about any and all desirable birds I find, not just rarities. It's a big help to other folks birding the same spots (I live in New York where there are tons of other birders) and it's great practice for road birding, boreal birding, ocean birding, and other applications where taking GPS coordinates are a must. Also, I love when new birders find great stuff. In late november, my friend got a text from some folks we'd met in the field saying "is there anything around that could be mistaken for a gray kingbird?" As it turns out, the only thing that can be mistaken for a gray kingbird in late november in New York is the city's first ever record for gray kingbird. It stayed for a few weeks and was amazingly cooperative for the duration of its stay, and was a minor celebrity.
It's similar to the situation where you're birding with someone and one of you is on a bird trying to explain to the other person where it is. People are sometimes lazy in giving directions ("By that big branch." "Uh, WHICH big branch?"), and it can be really frustrating. Be as unambiguous as possible. GPS coords are the ultimate in unambiguous directions.
Just starting last few months, appreciate the research advise a lot. Looking at common birds before heading out on a hike has helped so much. Sometimes I can’t tell all these sparrows apart but when I see something cool, looking up what it could have been after helps me nail the ID next time. It’s a process!
Love the video, my suggestions are: 1- is the exact same as you! Leave the camera door open when the card is in the laptop!! 2- when buying your binoculars, don’t “splurge” and buy higher magnification. 8x42 or 10x42 are what you want. 3- similar to what you said, don’t go out and buy a expensive camera with a steep learning curve for beginning. A Bridge camera like you mentioned, or Nikon CoolPix, or Canon Cybershot are great and healed me out ID/learning birds after they were long gone
I'm a beginning birder with 50+ years of experience all over the world. This is helpful. Although I would put forgetting one's binoculars ahead of the SD card
Being humble when making mistakes as a beginner (and even as an advanced birder!) is key to becoming a successful birder. When you make mistakes turn them into opportunities to learn instead of just trying to prove yourself right or excuse your mistakes. You’ll improve more rapidly if you do!
Great note about gear! I was quite motivated to get a fancy camera and lens shortly after being gifted a CoolPix B500. After using the point and shoot for several weeks, I realized investing in fancy photography equipment without proper training in how to dial in settings for certain lighting, shutter speed, depth of field, etc would have been a huge waste of money. I was happy to upgrade to a Nikon CoolPix P950 which still required learning how to use basic and intermediate photography settings, but didn't cost thousands of dollars. I'd definitely recommend the Nikon bridge cameras 👍
I can relate to the last one 😂 A fork tailed flycatcher appeared 3 blocks away from where I was at the time, and as soon as I found out, I rushed to the location, got there 15 minutes later. And it was gone!! We looked for it with some fellow birders for about two hours and a half, but it just seemed to have vanished.
I feel quasi famous mentioning how I helped you with the kingbird! Glad to see this video because I got a new camera and thought I had charged it, but hadn’t. I was in Big Bend birding with no camera! Hope to bird with you again at some point.
Good advice! My camera has a setting that prevents taking a photo unless there is a card in the slot. Doesn’t help if you don’t have a card with you, but then at least you won’t think you took all those great photos!
Hi! We love your videos. They've helped us a lot on our birding trips. We're heading your way this summer. 😊 I've left my sd out too 😂 tips. Great tips...thanks!!
These are great.At the time of writing this literally half an hour ago I got my 100th Bird! Eurasian Siskin.Anyway.1.Ugh I went to my favourite place.Forgot my telescope.Went to another place called Arklow to see Greylag Geese.Forgot my binoculars.Horrible.I don't really have anything for 2.3. The opposite happened to me.I was at my favourite place.There was a large Black bird.We get Great Cormorants very often so I thought it was one flying over.It was a Glossy Ibis which normall lives in West Africa and It flew right over me.Anyway great video.
Good video, as are all of yours! I'm just getting back into birding after a l-o-n-g break. To me, research is critical - especially studying field marks. I used to spend hours with my copy of Roger Tory Peterson's Birds of North America to get familiar the characteristics that distinguished similar species. Plus, it's a way to keep birding even when you're not out in the field.
I'm a beginner birder in Florida. I mistook a Snail Kite for a Northern Harrier, because of the white rump. What I didn't know is that Snail Kites have it too. I guess it's possible to mistake rarities for commons.
These are all excellent pieces of advice, and yes, I’ve made all of these mistakes. I got in the habit early on of keeping a backpack with all my birding gear packed and ready to go (binoculars in there, batteries recharged, camera’s photos downloaded to my computer and deleted from the camera, extra cold-weather layers, couple of energy bars so I can skip that bowl of cereal), and ALWAYS getting it ready to go again as soon as I get home from birding. I’ve never regretted it. Still remember the time I went on a day-long drive into an awesome, restricted-access location we were scouting for an upcoming Christmas count, arrived at the destination, and only then realized I’d left my binoculars at home. Never again. 🙂
One of the things I love about my camera (Sony a7R IV) is that it can charge through a USB-C port, and also get pictures off the SD cards via the same port. So I use that to get the pictures from the camera to my NAS, then stick the camera on a charger. That makes it basically impossible to forget the SD card, since it's never removed. And my spare battery stays in my camera bag, along with my superzoom lens, binoculars, cleaning kit, etc. The big disadvantage of that camera is that it's so high resolution that any slight mistakes you make (or defects in your lens) will be visible when zoomed in to 100%. So it requires quite good optics, which means it gets rather expensive. It'll force you to improve your photography skills, because you'll *know* you can get amazing images.
This video come just at the right time. I literally went birding two dats ago and forgot my sd card so now I can't know if i saw a rarity who cane from America or the most common seagull because I don't have pictures 😭
The last one is totally relatable. I miss rare birds all the time because I can't ever go immediately. The one exception was when there was a Long-tailed Duck was reported. I wasn't able to go for two weeks, but it was still around when I went to look for it.
The biggest one I see is people rely on Merlin app so much that they report whatever the app says it is and unfortunately a lot of the time its wrong especially with similar species or sparrows.
I like to identify birds by hearing before seeing them. I use the National Audubon society app to look at the pictures of the birds while playing a recording of the call.
@@dixxebell yeah I use it in the field. It is more convenient than the book field guid because my camera I use is an iPhone attached to a monocular. The monocular works surprisingly well for under $100.
I'm notorious for not checking my battery level. So I have to keep turning my camera off and on to preserve battery life. I really should consider getting spare.
when i started birding i mistook an american wigeon (first time id seen one) for a gadwall 🤦 fortunately someone from ebird emailed me to let me know lol
Sandy Komito's #1 Rule of Chasing Rare Birds: GET THE BIRD FIRST! Don't stop for coffee, donuts, breakfast...don't stop to look at another bird...don't stop for ANYTHING! You don't want to waste time en route and then show up and find out the bird was seen for the last time just minutes ago. GET. THE. RARE. BIRD. FIRST.
My advice for beginner birders I is to first get comfortable and confident with the identification of most local species, then add to that knowledge by taking short trips or while traveling, and lastly, always hold the pleasure of experiencing the environment over chasing a life list.
Good tips!
Yes! Enjoy nature and wildlife first and a bonus if new birds are found.
I have gotten into the habit of taking GPS coordinates for just about any and all desirable birds I find, not just rarities. It's a big help to other folks birding the same spots (I live in New York where there are tons of other birders) and it's great practice for road birding, boreal birding, ocean birding, and other applications where taking GPS coordinates are a must.
Also, I love when new birders find great stuff. In late november, my friend got a text from some folks we'd met in the field saying "is there anything around that could be mistaken for a gray kingbird?" As it turns out, the only thing that can be mistaken for a gray kingbird in late november in New York is the city's first ever record for gray kingbird. It stayed for a few weeks and was amazingly cooperative for the duration of its stay, and was a minor celebrity.
Nice! That's a great find!
It's similar to the situation where you're birding with someone and one of you is on a bird trying to explain to the other person where it is. People are sometimes lazy in giving directions ("By that big branch." "Uh, WHICH big branch?"), and it can be really frustrating. Be as unambiguous as possible. GPS coords are the ultimate in unambiguous directions.
I love my cool pix! I took a pic of the moon once w/o a tripod and the details of the moon were very clear.
The P1000? That thing has CRAZY zoom!
Just starting last few months, appreciate the research advise a lot. Looking at common birds before heading out on a hike has helped so much. Sometimes I can’t tell all these sparrows apart but when I see something cool, looking up what it could have been after helps me nail the ID next time. It’s a process!
Definitely! And each time you go out you learn a little bit more!
Love the video, my suggestions are:
1- is the exact same as you! Leave the camera door open when the card is in the laptop!!
2- when buying your binoculars, don’t “splurge” and buy higher magnification. 8x42 or 10x42 are what you want.
3- similar to what you said, don’t go out and buy a expensive camera with a steep learning curve for beginning. A Bridge camera like you mentioned, or Nikon CoolPix, or Canon Cybershot are great and healed me out ID/learning birds after they were long gone
I'm a beginning birder with 50+ years of experience all over the world. This is helpful. Although I would put forgetting one's binoculars ahead of the SD card
Being humble when making mistakes as a beginner (and even as an advanced birder!) is key to becoming a successful birder. When you make mistakes turn them into opportunities to learn instead of just trying to prove yourself right or excuse your mistakes. You’ll improve more rapidly if you do!
Great note about gear! I was quite motivated to get a fancy camera and lens shortly after being gifted a CoolPix B500. After using the point and shoot for several weeks, I realized investing in fancy photography equipment without proper training in how to dial in settings for certain lighting, shutter speed, depth of field, etc would have been a huge waste of money. I was happy to upgrade to a Nikon CoolPix P950 which still required learning how to use basic and intermediate photography settings, but didn't cost thousands of dollars. I'd definitely recommend the Nikon bridge cameras 👍
I love my Lumix 80!
I can relate to the last one 😂
A fork tailed flycatcher appeared 3 blocks away from where I was at the time, and as soon as I found out, I rushed to the location, got there 15 minutes later. And it was gone!!
We looked for it with some fellow birders for about two hours and a half, but it just seemed to have vanished.
I feel quasi famous mentioning how I helped you with the kingbird! Glad to see this video because I got a new camera and thought I had charged it, but hadn’t. I was in Big Bend birding with no camera! Hope to bird with you again at some point.
Haha, yes! Thanks again for the insights! And oh no to the Big Bend part! Are you going to be in South LA at all this month?
Good advice!
My camera has a setting that prevents taking a photo unless there is a card in the slot. Doesn’t help if you don’t have a card with you, but then at least you won’t think you took all those great photos!
Haha, yeah it's rough either way.
Good things to remember!
I leave my camera sitting upside down to remind me there is no card or no battery inside...These are some great tips...you shared
Thanks!
Hi! We love your videos. They've helped us a lot on our birding trips. We're heading your way this summer. 😊 I've left my sd out too 😂 tips. Great tips...thanks!!
Thanks so much! We do offer tours as well if you’re interested :)
@BadgerlandBirding thanks! That would be awesome. We'll let you know. We've watched all your videos and feel we know you 😊
@@dnasbirdingadventures love it! If you’re interested just shoot us an email :) Badgerlandbirding@gmail.com
These are great.At the time of writing this literally half an hour ago I got my 100th Bird! Eurasian Siskin.Anyway.1.Ugh I went to my favourite place.Forgot my telescope.Went to another place called Arklow to see Greylag Geese.Forgot my binoculars.Horrible.I don't really have anything for 2.3. The opposite happened to me.I was at my favourite place.There was a large Black bird.We get Great Cormorants very often so I thought it was one flying over.It was a Glossy Ibis which normall lives in West Africa and It flew right over me.Anyway great video.
Congrats on getting your 100th bird!
Cool video and tips!
Thanks!
100% can relate to most of them (maybe all) I’m definitely doing the camera door open, thanks you
You're welcome!
Thank you
Great tips - especially not jumping into a lot of expensive (or heavy) gear you may regret!
Yeah, start simple and work your way up!
That was wonderful information Derek.
Thanks!
Have really messed up on number #5, learned now if the bird is there you better go!
Excellent information Derek.
Thanks, Mark!
Breakin' the law heh heh Crap no Beavis emoji 😆 I've got to do a video !
Very helpful
Good video, as are all of yours! I'm just getting back into birding after a l-o-n-g break. To me, research is critical - especially studying field marks. I used to spend hours with my copy of Roger Tory Peterson's Birds of North America to get familiar the characteristics that distinguished similar species. Plus, it's a way to keep birding even when you're not out in the field.
Great point!
Great info thanks.
Cool video and great tips! Happy birding!
Thanks! Happy birding to you, too!
Nikon cool pix is a good camera. I used it before I got my Sony rx10iv. Great tips, thanks 😊
You’re welcome! I’ve heard good things about the cool pix but have never tried it myself.
Some great advice!! Nice video, Derek!
Thanks, Gabe!
Great advice from experience! I can relate.
Thanks!
I'm a beginner birder in Florida. I mistook a Snail Kite for a Northern Harrier, because of the white rump. What I didn't know is that Snail Kites have it too. I guess it's possible to mistake rarities for commons.
These are all excellent pieces of advice, and yes, I’ve made all of these mistakes.
I got in the habit early on of keeping a backpack with all my birding gear packed and ready to go (binoculars in there, batteries recharged, camera’s photos downloaded to my computer and deleted from the camera, extra cold-weather layers, couple of energy bars so I can skip that bowl of cereal), and ALWAYS getting it ready to go again as soon as I get home from birding. I’ve never regretted it.
Still remember the time I went on a day-long drive into an awesome, restricted-access location we were scouting for an upcoming Christmas count, arrived at the destination, and only then realized I’d left my binoculars at home. Never again. 🙂
I think that’s definitely the best way to do it!
One of the things I love about my camera (Sony a7R IV) is that it can charge through a USB-C port, and also get pictures off the SD cards via the same port. So I use that to get the pictures from the camera to my NAS, then stick the camera on a charger. That makes it basically impossible to forget the SD card, since it's never removed. And my spare battery stays in my camera bag, along with my superzoom lens, binoculars, cleaning kit, etc.
The big disadvantage of that camera is that it's so high resolution that any slight mistakes you make (or defects in your lens) will be visible when zoomed in to 100%. So it requires quite good optics, which means it gets rather expensive. It'll force you to improve your photography skills, because you'll *know* you can get amazing images.
Yeah, using the charging cables it a good call!
Where exactly can you get rare bird notifications? (Very new to birding)
On eBird! Under explore and alerts! th-cam.com/video/HAkcodD1m6Q/w-d-xo.htmlsi=HjYsNeLphPzASUfd
@@BadgerlandBirding Thank you!
This video come just at the right time. I literally went birding two dats ago and forgot my sd card so now I can't know if i saw a rarity who cane from America or the most common seagull because I don't have pictures 😭
Throw some granola bars in your bird-out bag. 😀
Good call! I always tell Ryan we need to bring more birding snacks, haha. - Derek
The last one is totally relatable. I miss rare birds all the time because I can't ever go immediately. The one exception was when there was a Long-tailed Duck was reported. I wasn't able to go for two weeks, but it was still around when I went to look for it.
Yeah sometimes they surprise you!
The biggest one I see is people rely on Merlin app so much that they report whatever the app says it is and unfortunately a lot of the time its wrong especially with similar species or sparrows.
That’s a good point, especially the call ID app which can be very inaccurate.
How do you contact people through ebird?
I don’t think there’s a way to do it through eBird. I normally look for them on Facebook.
Occasionally people have their email address on their ebird profile, but generally not.
@@holdengreen2151 thx
I like to identify birds by hearing before seeing them. I use the National Audubon society app to look at the pictures of the birds while playing a recording of the call.
I like the Audubon App for a "field guide" it's a good one and has all the info you need to help id with sound and sight..
@@dixxebell yeah I use it in the field. It is more convenient than the book field guid because my camera I use is an iPhone attached to a monocular. The monocular works surprisingly well for under $100.
I'm notorious for not checking my battery level. So I have to keep turning my camera off and on to preserve battery life. I really should consider getting spare.
I would highly recommend it!
when i started birding i mistook an american wigeon (first time id seen one) for a gadwall 🤦 fortunately someone from ebird emailed me to let me know lol
It happens! It’s really helpful to have those eBird reviewers and photos as well!
Lol I have forgot my scope a few times 🤦♂️
Ryan forgot his camera once 😂 but remembered only a few minutes after leaving
I forgot my scope to a seawatch once and I swear I could here all those marbled murrelets laughing at me
@@pauraque oof. That’s a brutal one.
@@BadgerlandBirding Lol it was. All my friends were looking at jaegers and black-vented shearwaters, and I found a single fulmar :(
@@pauraque at least you get fulmars 😞
There isn't a better feeling than correcting an eBird reviewer 😅
Don't clear your card unless you're sure you've copied to computer.
Spent all day birding and had amazing photos of green jays... All lost😞
That's a good point, too!
This video was not sponsored by Quaker Oats.
Haha, good one.
Are you still making the number 1 TH-cam video mistake?
Probably
Sandy Komito's #1 Rule of Chasing Rare Birds: GET THE BIRD FIRST! Don't stop for coffee, donuts, breakfast...don't stop to look at another bird...don't stop for ANYTHING! You don't want to waste time en route and then show up and find out the bird was seen for the last time just minutes ago. GET. THE. RARE. BIRD. FIRST.
Rules to live by 👍