life list birds...

[actionfinch]

Do we think we should add birds to our life lists , if we see them in zoos and other places of the like?
And do we think we should add a bird if we hear it, in the wild?
Im at a quandry i see a goshawk and a barn owl , both of which i have never seen before ( in the wild or elsewhere) at a pub where a falconary center was displaying some of its raptors.
I was in awe of them and to be so close and to touch the barn owl was an experience ... but after we left i wondered about adding them...

[Ladywell]

Why be obsessed by lists!! I have loved looking at birds for over 30 years but I don't feel compelled to make lists of what I have seen or when or where. I just enjoy seeing them. I realise that we don't all think the same.

[actionfinch]

Good point .. Reading your post has a big point.
I suppose a list is an easier way to remember what you have seen
(obviously) ,and I know I will never fill a whole one up or get even close.
I had seen a spotted flycatcher the other day was over the moon ( and still am ) thinking it was the first time I had seen one , then got home and found out i had already seen one a while ago..
I suppose thats one reason I create a list.
And like yourself I see the same birds day in and day out in my back garden , and never get bored of them...

[Ladywell]

I have special moments in 'my head' - first time I saw not one but 2 hobbies over our land following the migrating swallows and house martins. Also the day I saw a female goshawk come up out of our garden area at the farm (where our hens are) having missed grabbing one. And also the day I saw an osprey over our house in June (confirmed by others). I don't need a book!!

[Adam Cheeseman]

Originally Posted by actionfinch

Do we think we should add birds to our life lists , if we see them in zoos and other places of the like?
And do we think we should add a bird if we hear it, in the wild?
Im at a quandry i see a goshawk and a barn owl , both of which i have never seen before ( in the wild or elsewhere) at a pub where a falconary center was displaying some of its raptors.
I was in awe of them and to be so close and to touch the barn owl was an experience ... but after we left i wondered about adding them...

Depends what your list is. If you are counting native wild birds then definitely not. If you are counting species you have seen regardless of their state then it is purely up to you. Just don't try telling a birder you've seen a Bleeding Heart Dove in London (zoo). They'll just laugh.

[Jackaroo]

I try to keep an up to date list complete with photos. Not necessarily my own photos, any photo that comes close to what I've actually seen does the job. The reason I try to keep this list is because my memory is really shockingly bad and in order to make as sure as possible that I am not searching for something I've already seen and having to hunt for ages through guides and on-line galleries unnecessarily I should be able to find it relatively quickly in my abridged version. Because I know that the vast number of what's in the British and European guides will never be more than food for my fantasies.
If I were to keep an orthodox birdwatching list I think I would find it hard to justify putting in zoological specimens whether they were native to Britain or not. I don't believe that would be in the true spirit of the hobby. I might note them but not in my main list. Different strokes for different folks.