The subtle ways of wildlife watching

I have to declare here and now that I am not a patient wildlife watcher. I find it hard to sit in one place and wait for the animal in question to appear I always become distracted by the other wildlife around me and before long I am off hunting that down rather than the intended species.

I am the kind of watcher who likes to go out and see what nature surprises me with, but even so there are a number of skills any guide book will tell you. Wear clothes that are comfortable and breakup your outline, approach from downwind and walk quietly. Try to arrive before the species and pick a good safe spot to watch from.

For me though there are some other points I would suggest. For these you are required to become part of your habitat. Understand where you are and take a few moments in silence to settle into the habitat, soak in the sounds. Sound is one of the most underrated sense in watching. I often hear an animal before I see it. Animals and birds all move with an element of regularity something that the wind doesn't. Natural features like wind are chaotic and without pattern animals are less chaotic they have a set or parameters and drives that mean that their signs are regular.

I remember learning in my Landscape Ecology lectures about energy flows in nature and in man made landscapes. Humans use energy to force elements in to unnatural patterns, take for example a fence or wall, these are straight linear features which do not occur in nature. Nature abhors pattern and thrives in chaos. You can use this to you advantage, animals like us follow established paths and have regular effects on their surroundings. Sitting quietly you can easily distinguish between a deer trotting through the undergrowth and the wind doing the same.

Still on sound do not forget to listen to the birds. They are excellent watchers and Blackbirds and Great Tits will see you from a mile off and have communicated that to the birds around them. Listen for this, changes in their calls will differentiate between foxes and sparrowhawks. I have used Great Tits many times to track down a top predator, Magpies are especially good for tracking down roosting Buzzards.

Animal especially British Animals are masters of camouflage and so I suggest that what you should look for is what they are looking for from you, the general shape. This is why it is best to crouch or sit low with your back to a fence, tree or wall, it breaks up your shape. Look instead for movement even the tiniest of movements.

Once you have found your species the deepest urge is to look at it. Animals, especially prey species find this very unsettling. In this case it is best not to suddenly twist your head and fix it with your gaze but instead to slowly turn, allow the animal to get used to you not being a threat. Do not make eye contact, this will often make the animal head for cover at a rate of knots. |Reduce all movements to slow gentle ones, avoid sudden movements.

These obvious tips have helped me get close to many different animals and be able to sit calmly in their presence. It all takes practice and I am nowhere near a master.