I have always found the question about which of the two superpowers to choose – to be able to fly, or to be invisible – an intriguing one. For me, it has come down to a choice between extroversion – flying – and introversion – invisibility.
How to answer this question from a birder’s perspective? My hunch is that most birders are more on the introversion side of the whole spectrum, though I am sure there are many exceptions to this (hello Peter!). But of course, this means to look at the question from a general, not a birder-specific perspective.
One could imagine that as a birder’s fascination with flight is likely to be more intense than that of a non-birder, flying would be the choice of most birders. And that may well be true.
However, at least for me, the real joy is in watching birds – ideally without interfering or being noticed by them at all. So, for me the choice would be clear – I would go for invisibility. Particularly if there is an option to make my camera invisible, too.
What would you choose?
Photo: Pied Kingfisher, Nanhui, Shanghai, July 2020
That’s an interesting question! I think I would also choose invisibility. Flying would certainly be exciting, but I wonder how long that thrill would last. Invisibility, on the other hand, could be useful in many different situations and moments, as long as you can’t be smelled or heard either!
Clearly, flying is the one to go for. Invisibility comes at a severe cost: finding a mate if invisible is a challenge to say the least. Whereas flying comes with the need for some serious pectoral musculature – that’s a turn-on on all sides of the gender spectrum. On a personal note, flying would make us birds (not bats, we are diurnal). Male birds are generally speaking prettier than female birds and that would really improve my personal aesthetic… Although with my luck, I’d probably become a dotterel or a phalarope.
It seems the extrovert (flying) versus introvert (invisibility) association works quite well so far …