Bird Language, a skill worth having.

preacherman

I have just come back from a bird language course at Institute of Permaculture and Nature Awareness in Kerry, run by Aebhric O Kelly, a former student of Jon Young and Tom Brown and have had my eyes opened literally at the importance of knowing bird language for bushcraft/survival activities.

Before this weekend I would have heard the birds obviously but was not interpreting their sounds properly and therefore not getting the most out my trips out. I learned to recognise the different calls and behaviours of the birds and how to move quietly through the woods so as not to set off alarms which would hinder any possibility of seeing wildlife.

The birds can tell us who is in the woods if we learn to hear them properly. When I signed up for this course I didnt realise how important a role bird language could play in a survival situation or even in a bushcraft night out where you would like to stay under the radar. The birds can warn us of any approaching predator/human, allowing us to slip quietly out of sight until the danger/imposter has passed.

Normally your average walker in the woods will not see any wildlife because the birds have alarmed and all of the animals will have moved away out of sight. By learning bird language over the weekend I had a field mouse come and walk around at my feet while I was walking quietly through a section of woodland. This fieldmouse did not seem to mind that I was there and continued to potter around my feet for a while before going about his business.

Now, I have only spent one weekend learning bird language so I cannot even begin to call myself anything other than a beginner at this but I am really looking forward to continuing on to get to know all of the calls and behaviours of the birds. I want to progress from a fieldmouse to a fox pottering around my feet. That will take years and years of practice no doubt, and might never happen, but its a great excuse to get out in the woods a few times a week, all throughout the year.

I rate this skill right up there with fire lighting, shelter building etc. for the type of activities we take part in. I wonder if anyone else on here has done anything like this or even agree that it is an important skill to learn.

I am prepared for scepticism on this but I really believe that it is a vital skill for nature awareness/bushcraft/survival, call it what you like.

Now where can I hide......

Discostuy

Sounds pretty cool Preacherman.
Im not to up on bushcraft but it sounds like a cool tool to have.

Out of curiousity, how does it work? Do you react to certain noises with certain movements? or do you whistle back or what?.

preacherman

Basically you have to learn to move through the woods very quietly. There are a few different routines we learned on the course. We learned how to use all of our senses when in the woods so as to not alarm the birds and animals. The birds are the alarm system for the woods and all other birds and animals recognise these alarms. We learned to recognise the different bird calls including alarm and also the bird movements associated with alarm or otherwise. We did not need to know the names of the birds but it helps and we did not need to make bird sounds.

When you use all of your senses in the woods eventually you are moving in such a way that does not alarm the birds which will increase your chances of seeing wildlife in their natural environment rather than seeing or hearing them run away. When this skill is mastered (a long way off for me yet) you will appear to belong to the woods (if you sit quietly and in tune with the surroundings for long enough you can give off the impression that you are just a log or something) so the birds are comfortable with your presence. When the birds are comfortable they will not alarm and identify your location to anything else in the woods.

In a survival/bushcraft situation if you are tuned in to the bird language and you know that you are not the one causing alarm then when you do hear an alarm you can identify the direction the predator/imposter is coming from and decide whether to approach or avoid.

I would suggest that you just get out to your nearest woodland, find a quiet area and sit quietly and see what happens. I think that you will get more from your walk in the woods than if you march in or even wander in your usual manner.

Discostuy

Very interesting to know.
I must try it some time when im out. I do see it with the pet birds i have at home. If i enter the room at night and they cant see you, they go hysterical...once they see its me they are fine.

preacherman

I'm sure if you google a bit you will come up with more info. After that its practice practice practice......

Dave!

Could be useful for if you get hungry

*whistle whistle* Here birdy...!
*grabs bird, breaks neck* Bird sandwiches for all!