Wonderful book, app combo will get you twitching
THE couch society of natural exploration’s Big Debate this week: can a birder, specially a newbie, have too many good bird books/apps?
The answer is a definitive no, and we have the proof in about three hours, I transformed a fresh, shiny, new copy of Veld Birds of Southern Africa: The Complete Photographic Guide into a well-worn, been-in-a-hide-fordecades version.
Authors Burger and Niel Cillié, Phil Penlington, Trevor Hardaker and Karin Wiesler have accomplished a mighty task. They identified the 991 species recorded in the region and then tracked down pictures at least two clear photographs of each, either male and female, or adult and juvenile – nearly 2 000 photographs. To put this into perspective, a distribution map appears for every listing, as is usual in good bird guides, but some of the birds recorded here are so unusual they appear as a tiny dot. It’s like a spot-thedot competition. And yet, they have the photographs.
An un-bloody-believable and spectacular achievement. And in English and Afrikaans.
It also differs in its categorisation (well, at least in my limited experience of these things). They are grouped in what you see, most often very briefly: the general shape, outline and behaviour. I was going to get all show-offy and say GISS (general impression, size and shape), but that would be like using the one French word you know and saying “bonjour” and ending up red-faced and spluttering when the person responds in a stream of French.
But anyway: it’s often the LBJS that get you, blitzing about inside shrubs, making identifying details hard to see. This is where this guide is fabulous if you can catch a glimpse of what it is pecking at (that is, eating) you will know the general shape, its favourite food and how it eats; on the wing, back on a hidden perch, in the leaf litter, or on top of a tree. Then you go to the group with those behaviours, find the picture and get good basic information.
It’s just easy.
Calls are covered by an app download it, scan the picture in the book and you get the song.
As with any new hobby, learning is key and that’s why I like this book/ app. I have a few now, some with very detailed entries and calls. One I can’t live without, but I have struggled to identify new birds just by their, um, GISS and habitat (my jungle garden). Now, with this one as a companion, I am fully armed. Plus I love holding books.
Some sad news. The kids rescued a kitten. Gorgeous, feisty little grey boy that has all the dogs under control and lives with two rescued free-to-roaminside starlings who pecked him into his place from the start. But his new mom found a dead bird this week and brought it in to ask what it was
a beautiful crested barbet, subject of many emails from wonderful fellow twitchers helping me learn.
I was very cross. Little does he know he’s losing his knackers next week. I’m going to be smug, and look for a bell and collar.
The suggested retail price is R695, but I found some online that cost less.