At some point or other, we have all felt the desperate need to infuriate a birder. But what to say? Here are twelve statements almost guaranteed to annoy a birder – or bore him/her to death:
1. “Oh, you mean the feathered ones!” (version used by a Vietnamese guide: “Long-legged Pitta” to describe you can guess whom)
2. “You don’t have to go out to see birds” (wife, pointing at feral pigeons)
3. “Do you know that birds are actually dinosaurs?”
4. “You must have amazing patience to just sit there and wait for birds”
5. “There are a lot of birds near my home – you should go there!” (almost exclusively Little Egrets, with a few Eurasian Tree Sparrows and Spotted Doves thrown in for variety)
6. “I saw a bird yesterday – it was brown or maybe black, what bird was that?”
7. “Do you keep birds at home?”
8. “There are a lot more birds here in May” (applicable in all months except May)
9. “There was a pitta here a moment ago, but it just flew away seconds before you came”
10. “Can’t you just take a photo with your phone?” (customized to annoy bird photographers)
11. “How are the birds today?”
12. “I saw something which I think was quite rare. Let me show you, I took a photo with my phone!” (turns out to be a house sparrow)
Obviously, given how important it is to annoy birders whenever possible, we need a broader collection of these phrases. Please add some in the comments!
BIll Oddie had a good one , people describing a pink bird (a jay) but insisting it was something else.
BIll Oddie had a good one , people describing a pink bird (a jay) but insisting it was something else.