Archive for the ‘Bird Watching’ Category

The bird watching backyard craze is quite the rage with a special collection of hobbyists. It has definite advantages as well as some shortcomings. It allows all the conveniences of your own backyard without the necessity of tramping through fields and underbrush in search of your avian objective. If there are biting bugs or crawling things, safety is just a few steps away back indoors.

It often takes a blend of luck, skill and patience at times to spot the more elusive of the species but happily it is something anyone can do. By attracting different birds into your yard it gets fairly easy to observe and record sightings.

For bird watching backyard enthusiasts step one is creating a yard attractive to many different varieties. But don’t forget that birds are natural prey to many cats. It is a bad idea to bring in birds only to have the cats kill them. Carefully situate your birdbaths or feeders to prevent a sneak attack.

Your backyard suited for birdwatching can be started by planting a thoughtful selection of trees, flowers and shrubs. They provide food, resting spots and shelter for the birds you want to watch. Depending on the birds you want to attract your choice of trees and shrubs will differ. Check a good book or the Internet for information on the birds in your region. Don’t forget to offer food for wintering birds as well. Some of the most rewarding backyard birdwatching days might be during the winter.

You should also know that some types of plants can be poisonous to humans, make sure and check with the nursery expert when selecting various plants and flowers for your backyard.

The next step in the bird watching backyard process is to have suitable feeders. Like the trees and shrubs that will attract them, different backyard birdfeeders are suited to different species. Again, a little time spent in research is a good idea.

Once the landscape and food is in place, different birds will show up and maybe even choose to nest. If you provide the right type of bird house, nesting birds will soon make their homes and might continue to come back annually.

The bird watching passion is one that can stay with you year by year and is not limited by age. Creating a habitat for birds in your backyard is well worth the time and planning.

Do you like Birding?

If you are a serious bird watching enthusiast, then a good spotting scope like a Kowa spotting scope is a necessity. However, before getting into the best options on the market, let’s examine what a spotting scope does.

A spotting scope is really nothing but a compact telescope. They were invented originally for star gazing but can be used in any situation when binoculars won’t do the trick and you need a much higher magnification.

These scopes are perfect for watching birds and other wildlife from a long distance away. In addition, they are suited for digiscoping, astronomy, surveillance, and many other applications.

So if the magnification is much higher than binoculars, then how high is it? Well, depending on the brand and design of the scope, the magnification will range from about 10X to 250X. Eyepieces can usually be interchanged on spotting scopes to give different magnifications. The eyepiece mount layout will be straight or angled (45 degrees to the scope body). You will buy your eyepiece separately from the scope in most cases.

So which scope should you buy for birding? Well, I have tried many, but I am a big fan of the Kowa spotting scope.

They have several models available with the two most popular being the Kowa TSN-824and Kowa TSN-4.  Kowa scopes like many other brands including Nikon and Questar and may cost you anywhere from $800 to $3000. However, what I like the most is they have a lifetime warranty. I learned a long time ago that you get what you paid for so I refuse to buy cheap equipment any longer.

The Kowa quite simply provides the most beautiful, vibrant image of any scope that I have ever tried and I have tried many. Living in Florida provides me the opportunity to view marsh birds and raptors easily from great distances.

If you have not tried birding, pack up and head to the great outdoors. You will immediately be hooked. Just remember to get yourself a high quality Kowa spotting scope!