Category Archives: bird identification

Tweet of the Day from BBC Radio 4

Sir David Attenborough will launch Tweet Of The Day on May 6th

Sir David Attenborough will launch Tweet Of The Day on May 6th

Birdsong is to be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 as part of a new series titled Tweet of the Day, which will air before the Today programme for the next year.

From 6 May, early risers will hear a different call or song from British bird species, followed by a story and facts about the tweet in question.

Sir David Attenborough will present every 90-second episode during May.

Other wildlife presenters including Miranda Krestovnikoff, Steve Backshall and Chris Packham will then take over.

Each episode will feature the song of a particular bird followed by insights into that bird’s behaviour and habits. The series will also tell the birds’ stories through science, social history, culture, literature and music, the station said.

Sir David Attenborough said: “I’ve seen some of the most incredible animals on my travels around the world, but Tweet Of The Day is a nice reminder of the teeming world of birds on my doorstep.”

There are 596 species on the official bird list in Britain and producers at the BBC Natural History Unit have trawled through more than 1,000 bird recordings in the BBC sound archive.

But the station must make new recordings of species like the nightingale, the greenfinch and the garden warbler because of gaps in its archive. There will be 265 instalments of Tweet of the Day.

Radio 4 controller Gwyneth Williams said: “I’m thrilled to have birds flying into the early morning schedule on Radio 4. David Attenborough, of course, will rule the roost.”

The series will be broadcast every weekday morning at 05.58 with a special tweet repeated on Sundays at 08.58. Every episode of Tweet Of The Day will be available to download.

Why Not Draw Some Birds?

Recently, in an email discussing technology, a birder friend of mine said that she had promised herself to get offline and watercoloring by 1:00 PM.  So, I asked her about her painting and got this for a response:

A couple of years ago the nature center had a Women’s Nature Retreat which I attended. Nona Estrin was one of the naturalist’s and taught a watercolor/sketching workshop.  A week later when hiking, I thought, why not sketch all the things I’m always photographing and checking about in my field guides?
For the last couple of years I’ve been sketching (pen and ink, sometimes colored pencils) almost daily and loving it.  I never knew I could draw.  Perhaps, I wouldn’t have been able to before this time.  This fall I decided to expand and learn to paint with watercolors.  So, although, I’ve had other work exhibited, I have a little ways to go before watercolors are hanging for the public.  Love being focused on nature. My artistic endeavors have helped me in birding, quickly being able to see field marks or GIS.
photo by jimmiehomeschoolmom

Drawing can help you focus on some of the details of the bird, and “cement” them in your memory.  photo by jimmiehomeschoolmom

That last comment about field marks and GIS got me thinking of a book I read a while back.  It’s a fine little book by David Sibley called Sibley’s Birding Basics.  In it, Sibley recommends field notes and sketching.  He says, “The act of doing that is enough to ‘cement’ the memory, even if the sketch or words are a very poor representation.”  Of course, Sibley is an accomplished artist but his point is well-taken as it forces us to look for details and get them on paper.  Cameras are great but there might be a lower-tech and satisfying way to describe that bird as well.

One of my favorite bird blogs is Red and the Peanut, written by a woman in Cincinnati, who is a fine photographer and very active illustrator as well.  Another blogger who is a great painter is Julie Zickefoose whose book, The Bluebird Effect, I reviewed here.  A third blogger/artist is Vickie Henderson who has a gallery of watercolors here.

So, we started out with an example of someone who discovered a talent and love for drawing and painting that she never knew she had.  Perhaps, as we slog through the rest of winter, it is a good time to think about whether that’s something that you might explore or rediscover.  It’s a good way to relax and refine those bird identification skills.  Good birding.

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