[Tweeters] bird watching

[Marv Breece]

One of the aspects of bird watching that appeals to me is the way it relates to human sensation & perception. As a rule, we humans do not understand our sensory tools all that well. Magicians have made a living by demonstrating this for eons. 

Take this video, for example: [ https://flic.kr/p/2nCn4cK | https://flic.kr/p/2nCn4cK ] While looking at this video, if you focus your eyes on one section of ground and move around the video, you will not likely see the 3 sandpipers. But if you blur your vision, which is to say focus farther away, your eye will pick up the subtle movements of the 3 peeps, if blurred, and you will find them. 

In the 1980s, there was an outdoorsman and author by the name of Tom Brown, who went into the Pine Barrens of New Jersey for lengthy periods of time and survived by truly living off the land. From one of his books, I learned his term "splatter vision". This term applies to the previous paragraph. I have no doubt that many birders use splatter vision, aware or not. Have you ever not seen a bird that was right in front of your nose, because though you were looking right at it, your eyes were focused in the distance? You were looking right through the bird and not seeing it. The human eye cannot focus on a very large area. Give splatter vision a try the next time you go birding and see what happens. 

Being a bird watcher can teach you a lot about yourself. 


Marv Breece 
Tukwila, WA 
marvbreece at q.com 
Pbase Images : https://www.pbase.com/marvbreece 
Flickr Videos : https://www.flickr.com/photos/138163614@N02/ 
Youtube : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHbkNzr4TaZ6ZBWfoJNvavw/featured 
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