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BACK TO THE MANCHESTER BIRDING WEBSITE HOMEPAGE -> Manchester Birding Forum -> GENERAL BIRDING DISCUSSION -> in county /out of county lists etc
Post Info TOPIC: in county /out of county lists etc
Joe Wynn


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RE: in county /out of county lists etc
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Steve Suttill wrote:

Paul Heaton wrote:

Nice blog Joe, and excellent photos.




Yes, Joe. Must agree with Paul about the blog and the photos - he's not completely mad, you know

Steve



I'm afraid its pan calling kettle black with photography, I may not list but boy do I take photos!

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Steve Suttill


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Paul Heaton wrote:

Nice blog Joe, and excellent photos.




Yes, Joe. Must agree with Paul about the blog and the photos - he's not completely mad, you know

Steve

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Paul Heaton


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Nice blog Joe, and excellent photos, its funny when you see a photo and know the precise location, down to the inch.

Sale water park is part of my birding area. In fact, i also know that swan,i had it out of the water a few weeks ago to remove some fishing line.

Keep it up.

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Joe Wynn


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Yep Steve, know what you mean now!

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Steve Suttill


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Joe Wynn wrote:

I've been birding 7 years now and have never listed properly.




Now you see what I mean, Joe?

Steve
(who quit listing before it took over his life )

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Paul Heaton


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Okay suppose I must confess!
I first list was the I-Spy book of birds, then my mum got me Birds of Britain and Europe, I knew I was in trouble.

My first list big list attempt was January 1st 1977, and I have never missed a New Years day birding since.

I recall as a teenager hitting 150 the 250 then 350, as for getting into the 400 club, it was slight let down, the rush had died down by then, in fact getting into the GM 200 club was a shock when I first counted my list up and realized I had missed some birds in Manchester.(sorted that out quick) and still is my most important list.

My year list attempt in 2008 was a real hoot, and could not have been done without the help of the GM birders and the A-Z.

Listing is great but should be personal or for fun, for the rest of the winter try reading the following,
Arrival and Rivals Adrian Riley
UK 500 birding in the fast lane J Hanlon
A Twitchers Diary Richard Millington
Going for the Biggy Stuart Gibson
The Biggest Twitch Alan Davies
Birding on Borrowed time Phoebe Snetsinger

Go on keep a list its fun.

Keep Birding


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Mike Passant


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If I'd travelled down from the N. E. to twitch the Winter Hill Snow Bunting, most people would quietly consider me crackers anyway. The north east lads would, (as we've got about 50 round Teesside presently).

If I was sat watching it and it was persisting in remaining several yards stubbornly in Lancashire as opposed to "the right county" I'd simply be amused (honestly!). It's part of the fun of birding when things don't go quite to plan!
They're great little birds wherever they are, so just enjoy.

(I should come clean, and this rather diminishes my point; - I don't need one for GM anyway).

Regards,
Mike P.

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JOHN TYMON


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Ian McKerchar wrote:


I know photographers feel the same frustration sometimes at birds which don't permit a decent shot to be taken. I also know a certain photographer who didn't bother looking at the cracking Rindle male Ring Ouzel this year despite calling in there, because the bird was too far for a decent shot

John Tymon Wrote

That photographer must have been a misserable beggar as when i was looking there,I couldn't find the ouzal at all, til tha found it wi thi scope ,and I had crackin views through it,then still couldn't find it wi mi bins after





>

-- Edited by JOHN TYMON on Thursday 8th of December 2011 07:38:21 AM

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Ian McKerchar


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Having spoken personally to many of the observers who have made the pilgrimage to see the current Snow Bunting at the top of Winter Hill, plus I've read and re-read the posts on the relevant thread, I don't think anyone has said or intimated that the bird was a 'let down'. On the contrary, all have been rightly impressed by the little cracker but their comments about it being in the 'wrong' county I can understand.

If you've never been a competitive lister or indeed twitcher then you'll never understand the draw, nay the compulsion, for this side of birding. Some think it pointless but it can often be anything but and for many at our county level, year, site, borough or even life listing gets birders out into areas they wouldn't normally venture, see birds they might not normally see and learn much about the county, its sites and it's birds. It has contributed to the finding of many of the counties best birds in the past few years too On the other hand though, to some (nationally that I know of, not in the county) they might as well be ticking train or bus numbers and have no appreciation or love of birds themselves. That's a real shame and you're right John, sometimes the lists can become more important than the birds themselves for a few.

Birders experiencing some frustration, even slight dissappointment, at the current Snow Bunting remaining in Lancs is fairly understandable to me though. Not withstanding it's a cracking little bird, they're relatively hard to catch up with in the county and one staying for anything other than a day or two at the most is very uncommon. I know photographers feel the same frustration sometimes at birds which don't permit a decent shot to be taken. I also know a certain photographer who didn't bother looking at the cracking Rindle male Ring Ouzel this year despite calling in there, because the bird was too far for a decent shot

It's all horses for courses guys, each to their own

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Dennis atherton


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i totally agree with Steve here, i do know of year listing sending birders to almost insanity, almost breaking up relationships, it a crazy thing,
Doing a year list, site list, county list and so on is a great way for us to channel our OCD though, c'mon admit it, you know youve got OCD too, yes i am talking to you, you know who you are, admit it

just kidding everyone,

Im a proud member of the Gmobsessivecompulsivebirding website





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Steve Suttill


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Joe Wynn wrote:

I've been birding 7 years now and have never listed properly.




Don't start, Joe, if only for the sake of your mental health!

You only have to read some of the posts on this forum to see where it might lead

Steve

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Joe Wynn


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I've been birding 7 years now and have never listed properly. I have made holiday lists in the past, but only really to quantify to others how good (or how bad) a place if for birding, without bringing rarity value into it. As someone who has hoarded and collected stuff in the past, I can see the attraction of having the biggest list, but I have never, especially since taking up photography, actually made a county list, or a year list, although I did try to make a life list (i'm sure i've missed some though!)

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Rick Hall


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Hi John,

I'm relatively new to birding. I haved enjoyed building up a pretty poor year list this year, but this was nationwide, with no boundaries except the confines of our island. I understand the importance the of county recording, but i agree with what you're saying. If i saw the snow bunting in Yorkshire it would have been just as exciting to me. This may be because, I'm new and have never seen one before, but I'd like to think that in a few years time I'll be just as excited to see one, wherever it turns up.

On the other hand, I can see the draw of making a county bird list, and can imagine the frustration of seeing a bird from the county, but being able to count it on that list. I can't imagine people are genuinely disappointed, I would hope they are still delighted, just slightly frustrated at a matter of yards. I can see both sides to this one.

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JOHN TYMON


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Personal thought,but I cannot understand how a birds becomes a let down seemingly,all over the place these days because its not 20 yards to the left,right,in county out of county ,in town,out of town.Is it just me or are lists becoming more important and enjoyable than seeing the bird in the first place

It may just be me ,but at one time no one really cared what others saw,they were only interested in fiding new birds for thier patch etc but now it seem a bit of a numbers game. It may be that im getting long in the tooth and been here a long time,but I must be the only one not interested in lists.

I may be generalising and enjoy the odd pop to a new bird,but quite often i read dissapointment in threads due to a bird not being in county/town etc.

p.s
I don't know why suddenly paragraphs don't work when posting-i have to separate by a few lines to break it up or everything posted ends up as one long paragraph.

-- Edited by JOHN TYMON on Wednesday 7th of December 2011 01:06:01 PM

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