Birding in Shetland – a privilege and responsibility

Shetland has a growing community of birders who live and work in the islands. It is also an attractive travel option for many visiting birders and, it appears, that the numbers which arrive to holiday in spring, and, especially, autumn, is continuing to rise year on year.

The reasons for this would seem to be simple; it must be the birds?

However, there are other contributing factors. Covid-19 restrictions resulted in many birders refraining from their usual overseas birding expeditions, preferring instead to stay within the UK.

In March 2019, a fire destroyed the Fair Isle Bird Observatory. This event forced some visiting birders to stay on the mainland of Shetland instead of making their usual jaunt to Fair Isle. Of course, locals also go birdwatching and, it seems, in growing numbers but this accounts for only some of the increase.

We think that the main reasons for Shetland’s popularity are the islands themselves, and, of course, the birds!

The birds for the last few years have been spectacular. A whole suite of rare and scarce birds turn up in Shetland with amazing regularity. If you want a chance to see certain birds, Shetland is the place to be.

Autumn birding in 2022, has been incredible, with three American vagrants within three miles of each other, and one of those was a British first!

Apart from the birds, the attractions of coming to Shetland include the warm and friendly welcome that visitors receive. In addition, there is the open access policy in Scotland, giving people ‘the right to roam’.

With these rights, however, come responsibilities. As it states on the Outdoor Access website, ‘when visiting the outdoors, you must behave responsibly,’ which means respecting the interests of other people, caring for the environment and taking responsibility for your own actions.

During the autumn peak for visiting birders in 2022, these responsibilities were, unfortunately, forgotten by some. They may have been in the minority, but there is real risk that they will be the ones who are remembered the longest and that their actions will affect all birders, even those who act responsibly.

It is not the role of the Shetland Bird Club to police the actions of individuals. However, the club actively promotes its Code of Conduct to encourage responsible birding.

Many Shetland Bird Club members will try and liaise with local landowners and residents if they are the first to find a bird that will prove popular to see. We pass on messages, via WhatsApp and the birding information services, giving information about access or potential disturbance.

Nevertheless, there is no guarantee that a discovery will not be broadcast independently, and the network of communication available these days means that there is no way of completely managing information that can be available pretty much instantly. We also use the WhatsApp groups to remind birders of the code.

It is important to say that not all twitches look the same. The bird itself will often dictate how close humans can get before it flies away. A warbler, flitting about in the trees, may allow people to stand near the trees, and, if those folk stand quietly, the bird may come quite close as it feeds amongst the leaves.

A flighty bird, such as a thrush, or shrike, may not tolerate humans getting very close, so the birders will keep back from the bird, possibly only getting as close as a small field away, or, even further, in some cases.

Some birds skulk deep in bushes, or in iris beds, or in clumps of nettles, and are reluctant to come out into the open. These birds are usually only found when a birder walks through such cover, and the bird darts out, before flitting back in again. Some of these migrants may not have come into regular contact with humans, and can show very little regard for us.

Good practice when viewing these skulking birds, would have one or two birders walking through the cover, in an organised way, with time-out in between to allow the bird to rest and feed. After all, these birds have come a long way to arrive in Shetland and are probably hungry!

Of course, we should not forget the positives to be gained from the birders visiting these islands. The hundreds that arrive each year all need accommodation, transport, food and drink.

In the autumn, birders have significantly extended the tourist season, occupying accommodation that would otherwise mostly lie empty at that season.

Birding should be a delight and a source of enjoyment. Its mental health benefits mean that Shetland GPs have issued ‘nature prescriptions’, a scheme which club secretary and RSPB representative, Helen Moncrieff, was at the forefront of promoting.

To appreciate the joy of birding, there is no better introduction than a new book ‘Best Days with Shetland Birds’, published by The Shetland Times Ltd. and edited by club members, Andrew Harrop and Rebecca Nason. Reading it must surely convince anyone that birding is good thing.

The wonders of our natural world are especially visible here in Shetland, and birding here is a privilege indeed.