Conservation Conversations: Why birding benefits us and the planet- Dr Matthew Zylstra (14May24)

BirdLife South Africa is a firm believer that conservation needs to start with conversation.
On 14 May 2024 at 19:00 (SAST) BirdLife South Africa's biweekly webinar series ‘Conservation Conversations with BirdLife South Africa’ hosted Dr Matthew Zylstra (Kwendalo Institute), who helped us explore different ways in which birding benefits us in ways we might not realise. We explored the science of "nature connection" and new research revealing how bird watching promotes well-being as well as motivation to care for nature.
Don't miss this important episode of #ConservationConversations.

[@bluehillescape]

Great words of wisdom from Dr Zylstra - get into nature and do some birding to restore your soul.

[@mash359]

Strongly agree, the sound of birds has such a calming effect on me. Especially in the summer mornings in my plot when I hear the mellow sound of the Southern Boubou, the beautiful sound of African Grey hornbill and even a thin sound Blue Waxbill and Dark capped bulbul. I cannot imagine life without birds. Lets all join hands in protecting our birds.

[@user-zi5js7mt7b]

From the presenter: Two other key points I omitted and would like to mention here are:
1. Birding is capable of getting one into a form of psychological "flow state" ... what you might term as "being in the zone". This state can emerge spontaneously and is often catalysed by curiosity, heightened concentration and sustained engagement. Being “in the flow” releases endorphins, quietens mental chatter, enhances perception and this delivers a profound sense of satisfaction and wellbeing.
2. It is hypothesised that a key reason that birdsong is soothing for the nervous system is rooted in our evolutionary history. Birds tend to sing more when danger is absent. When they sense danger, they fall silent or sharply alarm. So hearing birdsong could be a subconscious cue for our primal mind that it's safe and ok to relax and feel at ease. However this needs to be nuanced as it depends on which predator and various other circumstances, such as what the predator is doing or whether it has recently eaten. Also bird language dynamics is very much dependent on the ecosystem (eg forest vs savanna) and clearly not all dangerous animals to humans in our landscapes (eg elephant, buffalo and rhino) will reliably produce bird alarms, silences or song. In general, what’s more likely is that people relax when they hear bird sound because they start paying attention to their senses in a more peripheral, stereo 'soft fascination' way, which is usually relaxing for the nervous system. Thanks, Matt Z