Low-Tech Birding in High-Tech Times
A recent intriguing article on high-tech birding that was originally published in the Wall Street Journal (of all places) has peaked my interest.
With 45 million Americans willing to shell out $6 billion annually (according to figures from 2001) on bird-related items, it’s not too surprising that the financial wizards on Wall Street would be trying to convince middle- and upper-class Americans that they need the latest technological gadgets to optimize their birding experiences.
At the risk of exposing myself as a total Luddite, this is my public confession that I am a very, very low-tech birder. When I go in search of birds, I like to travel light. I take with me a pair of binoculars, a field guide or two, pen or pencil, and a notebook (the paper kind). I’ve also been known to use printed checklists occasionally, and printed maps if I’m in unfamiliar territory.
I do not use any of the following technologies for birding, nor do I have an interest in running out and buying any of these electronic marvels anytime soon:
With 45 million Americans willing to shell out $6 billion annually (according to figures from 2001) on bird-related items, it’s not too surprising that the financial wizards on Wall Street would be trying to convince middle- and upper-class Americans that they need the latest technological gadgets to optimize their birding experiences.
At the risk of exposing myself as a total Luddite, this is my public confession that I am a very, very low-tech birder. When I go in search of birds, I like to travel light. I take with me a pair of binoculars, a field guide or two, pen or pencil, and a notebook (the paper kind). I’ve also been known to use printed checklists occasionally, and printed maps if I’m in unfamiliar territory.
I do not use any of the following technologies for birding, nor do I have an interest in running out and buying any of these electronic marvels anytime soon:
This topic has also been discussed at 10,000 birds, Birdchick Blog, CrunchGear, Eureka Nature, and Sportsmans Blog, among others.birdjam Blackberry devices CD players cell phones digiscoping gear digital audio players digital cameras electronic bird finders GPS units Handheld Birds iPods laptop or notebook computers laser pointers listing software MP3 players (.pdf) Palm devices parabolic microphones PDAs phonescoping gear recreational vechicles tape recorders video cameras
posted by John L. Trapp at
3/12/2007 06:17:00 PM
2 Comments:
That's really sad that you don't have a laser pointer. You can slow down those warblers by shining it in their eyes.
It works great. Get the green laser. It works best.
It's wrong to draw out birds with recorded or mimicked birdsongs, because it expends their precious energies on a lost cause. It could even mean the difference between life and death for a bird with low energy stores (e.g., recently migrated across the Gulf of Mexico).
Shame on those ignorant birders!
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