aussiebirder

Why Birding ? What’s so great about it ?!

Birding has been proven to be a healthy pastime. The very first reason to encourage bird watching or birding as we know it, is that it has been shown to temporarily lower blood pressure, relax and relieve stress and tension including depressive symptoms, especially if done among tall trees. Four of your five senses are stimulated for a truly mindful experience. Hear the birds song, See the colours and patterns of plants, rocks trees and birds, the dappled light, the sky, clouds and shadows. Feel the warmth of sunshine, cool gentle breezes, see the colours and textures of trees, flowers and birds, touch the texture of bark on trees and plants. Breath in the earthy forest smells of bark and flowers. These altogether assist to re earth the human soul. This is a pleasant distraction from the stresses of daily life.

CLICK HERE to discover what Birdlife Australia say about Birding and how it maintains and improves mental health. It will open in a new tab.

Birding is an Inexpensive Hobby which requires only a pair of binoculars, a recent bird Field Guide, a hat, water bottle, sunscreen, walking boots and maybe a camera. Most parks and reserves have free entry but some National Parks require entry fees which can be purchased as a yearly pass.

Birding is a very interesting hobby, full of variety, like Forrest Gump’sbox of chocolates, ‘you do not know what you will get’ each time you go out, which adds a touch of excitement to it.  This is because Australia has such a rich variety of bird species, which live in a  variety of interesting habitats. Many birds occur in different areas  at different times of year. Because most birds fly, and can move about, they make  each visit to a particular habitat different and interesting on each occasion.

Birding is a good pastime for making friends. Birders are generally friendly, knowledgeable people,  enthusiastic and keen to share their knowledge with others of like mind. It is enjoyable meeting other birders you know on the track and share experiences. Many new friends and acquaintances are made while sharing experiences and assisting those new to birding.

Birding is great to stimulate young minds and bodies to a healthy lifestyle,it increases their awareness of life around them, making them more ‘mindful’ and appreciative, not just of birds but of the other aspects of nature and wildlife that they observe. It sharpens one’s senses of hearing and seeing as one tunes in to the world about them and diverts the focus of their stressful life to an enjoyable distraction for a time.  It encourages us to conscientious about conservation and protecting our endangered species. Bird counts are performed annually by many keen birders in an attempt to monitor and save threatened species.

Birding helps us live better lives. We learn a lot about life watching the birds, for this reason Jesus Christ even told us to: Watch and Learn from the Birds. My book release “What Birds Teach Us” now in its 2nd edition, shows how we can learn from the behavior of our birds in order to live a happy and healthy life. Click on the image below to find out more, it will open in a new tab.

Birding has concomitant rewards because birds live in lovely, sometimes beautiful places, thus you get to enjoy more than just birds. We include birding in our holidays and weekends, and we are always blessed with a beautiful appreciation of our rainforests, bush, seascape, riverscape, flora and fauna found in the areas we bird in. This is a wonderful way to become more mindful by adsorbing into our minds and spirit the sights, sounds, smells and atmosphere that the appreciation of nature brings. The peaceful and pleasant memories we experience when out in the bush or park can be carried into our busy work, school or home life to give us mindful moments of pleasant distraction to refresh us and restore a peaceful state of mind and emotion even within our busy day.

Birding is for all ages, and a great family activity, even for the very young. It is a great family activity, which helps encourage family bonding as the enjoyment of spotting birds and identifying them is shared. A pair of binoculars [8x42mm or 10x42mm are best] is a great gift along with a current Australian Bird Field Guide to get their interest and develop a love for the conservation of their natural heritage.

Happy Birding !

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Adv. Dip. in Counselling and Family Therapy.

Member of Birdlife Australia

To introduce people to our unique Australian birds,

And learn from them how to live a healthy and happy life.

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025.