Bird Watching

Bird watching or birdwatching has long been a popular hobby among birding enthusiasts and bird watchers who like watching birds. Birds are fascinating creatures that exist nearly everywhere on the planet, in every climate imaginable from Antarctic snows to the burning desert. Many of the physical adaptations that allow them to fly -- feathers, for one -- are unique in the animal kingdom. Birding, or Bird Watching, is one of the most popular hobbies around. Millions of people love nothing better than spending the weekend with an identification book and a pair of binoculars, attempting to track down the less common members of the bird family. Armed with a pair of binoculars, telescopes, and/or cameras as well as a field guide for identification, bird watchers can be found in nature preserves or in their own backyards. The National Audubon Society, the Nature Conservancy, and other local, regional, state, and national organizations can assist avid bird watchers in finding the best locations in the country for pursuing their hobby. Birdbanders, who are licensed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, collect information on bird age, dispersal, behavior, and migration. This section provides information on bird-watching, bird breeding, bird feeders, birdhouses, binoculars and other bird-watching equipment.