No matter what you want to learn, your best resource will always be your ability to research a subject. It will be well worth your while to spend a little time developing this skill - it will prove itself invaluable, and quite probably in short order, too!

When it comes to birds, even if you can't find any books on breeding the species you're interested in, you can still learn a lot by researching their native environment. Check out seasons, annual daylength and temperature variations, and note the extremes, both daily and seasonal. Look up what types of plants grow there, and find out which foods tend to be available, and when. Look at what other kinds of birds, animals, or insects share the environment, and as much as possible try to find out how they are known to interact with each other.

Another great resource for learning about breeding your birds, is bird clubs. If you don't belong to one already, join one! Experienced breeders can be one of the most invaluable resouces of all to a new birdkeeper - if anybody will have experienced the problems you are likely to trip over, it's them. If you can't find a club to join, keep hunting. They're out there!

Common sense is always the best yardstick, and should be applied to any advice you are given. No matter where you hear or read it, search out all sides of a topic, and just as carefully apply it to your local situation. Good advice for the warm humidity of Florida may be completely wrong for the cool humidity of the Pacific Northwest. Although they both have many miles of seacoast, and very humid climates, there is little else similar.

Talk to everybody you can find who has any experience they are willing to offer you. Write letters if there's nobody local to you. The idea is to learn as much as possible from those who have already had the experience. Remember, though, that they don't owe you any of this advice or insight - it is up to you to convince them that you are worthy of their confidence.

When, finally, you feel that you have exhausted your sources (or the birds get tired of waiting for you and begin to breed), it will be time to remember that the birds themselves are your best source of information. Learn your birds' body language. Watch them carefully to learn if they are comfortable or tense, and when. Use what you know of the environment they evolved in to help you imagine what to provide them to make them more comfortable.

The happier and more secure they feel in their environment, the more inclined they will be to breed, and with higher success rates, too!

One thing about watching, though - don't let yourself stare! A fixed stare is the exclusive trademark of the predator in a wild environment, and will instinctively cause great discomfort to any prey species. It may be seen as a challenge by the larger ones, which can provoke a defensive reaction - which is often taken by a puzzled human as 'an unprovoked attack'.

From the point of view of a creature which evolved as a prey species though, being stared at is plenty of provocation, and fight or flight is the immediate response, triggered by fear. This is true of wild or wild-caught birds especially, but even hand-tame birds can be very protective of their privacy when breeding. Either way you will not be regarded as a desireable or benevolent presence if you make a habit of staring fixedly at your birds.

Learn to be aware of what your body language is telling the birds, from their point of view. Once you understand how they tend to see things, you can use posture, language, and movement to impress on them the fact that they are safe around you.

In general, my usual approach is something like this. I adopt an observation post lower than the habitat of the birds I want to observe. I go directly there without looking at the birds, and settle myself. I try to move slowly, and calmly, but not sneakily, and I deliberately make some noise, such as talking quietly to myself.

In the process of getting settled, I allow myself to glance at the birds, but make sure that my gaze travels over them, rather than stopping at them and them passing on. I try to keep my attitude casual, and my body and voice relaxed and calm.

Once in my 'area', I begin to pretend I am another bird, and 'forage' little bits of invisible nothing from the floor at my feet, pretending to eat what I am finding. In the process I allow my glance to travel over the birds I am watching, never allowing my gaze to fix on them, but still generally looking in their direction.

I will pretend to preen my hair or clothes occasionally, take small sips of my coffee, and perhaps even read a few lines of a book or magazine between glances. With all this going on, the birds will eventually realize - if they haven't already - that you are no threat to them, and will relax around you.

Another widely used technique to help birds relax is the use of a radio or T.V. An often- cited reason for this is that it amuses the birds. Perhaps, but it also gives them another important message. In almost every wild environment on the planet, silence is associated with the presence of a predator.

A typical rainforest is quite noisy by day. But if any of the inhabitants should spot a known or suspected predator, they will give a single short, sharp call. Instantly every creature within hearing range of that call will freeze, hunting with all their senses to learn where the predator is.

To a creature with this instinctual inheritance noise means safety, and so we commonly find birds who love to talk when their owners do, their volume rising to equal the level of their surroundings. I have seen this instinct lead to some quite funny scenes, the birds 'doing their thing' to the bemusement of their loving but very puzzled people.

Birds are extremely sensitive to environmental poisons. For them, clean air is not just something nice to breathe occasionally - it can mean the difference between life and death. Birds have air sacs instead of lungs. These air sacs have no way to filter out small particles, fumes, and pests, such as our lungs provide us with. This means that they are very susceptible to problems and ill health when denied clean, fresh air. Many houses can become dusty and dry, particularily in the winter, and the birds living in them can suffer as a result.

One tool I rely on to keep dust and dirt on the floors where it can wait for clean-up rather than floating about in the air where the birds and I can breathe it, is a negative ionizer. This is simply a little needle of iron or steel, sometimes found in its own fixture but more often included in an arrangement with a fan and air flter, which is used to generate negative ions. These ions bond with dust particles in the air, increasing their weight and causing them to settle to the nearest surface. If you have ever smelled the air after a thunderstorm, all clean and fresh-smelling, you already know what heavily negatively ionized air smells like. Heavenly!

Cleanliness is a must, of course, but be very aware of which cleaners you use. Common household bleach can cause irritating fumes when used with hot water, for example. If you find you must use some strong chemical or other, be sure and remove the birds from any possiblity of exposure, and allow ample time and extra for the air to clear before returning them to the area. Better yet, refuse to allow yourself to say 'must', and find an alternative. The range and scope of non-toxic cleaners available is growing every day.

So now perhaps you have a few more ideas to try out. Have fun and learn from your birds, and when you figure out some more neat tricks, don't forget to share them with the rest of us!

Until then, Happy Birding to You and Yours!

R C 'Robirda' McDonald
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