When did it all begin?

It was not one sunny afternoon in May 1948, but much, much earlier……

For many, the first glimmer of the spirit of birding dates to Sir Thomas Browne, an Englishman who in 1662 assembled a rough list of birds for what would later become his” Notes and Letters on the Natural History of Norfolk”.
By 1737, “A Natural History of English Song-Birds” appeared, revealing inside its pages, perhaps the earliest picture of birdwatchers. “A man and a woman sit at the edge of a field. The man holds a nest with three openmouthed chicks, and his well-dressed female companion points at the birds as if to reach for them, her brow wrinkled in what could only be thought of as wonder and intrigue! These are eighteenth century birdwatchers, complete with gaudy cap, breeches, full skirt and daring décolletage” (1), but recognizable to us digi-kids by the passionate glint of excitement in their eyes.

The emergence of birdwatching from the larger category of natural history and the great Victorian ornithological, scientific project of the time is truly a remarkable story. The movement away from a fanatical fascination with Linnaean classification towards a fundamentally different form of environmental engagement is inspiring. It is indeed testament to the inherent, marvelous, romantic nature of mankind. Embodied in William Bartram the great American ornithologist, was a holistic approach to the natural world and in this we witness the birth of a delightful obsession. Bartram sought a connection between the human and the natural in his observations of nature. For the first time in our history, humanity began to find beauty in nature and watching birds in their habitats was the catalyst.

The birdwatchers of the 1800’s did not want to tame the natural world, they wanted to appreciate and understand it. Wilderness areas that had been perceived as “hideous and desolate” (2) were now valued for their evocation of the sublime. Coleridge, Wordsworth and Shelley wrote poems about it and the great painters celebrated the wild landscapes on canvas. 

Whether the triumphs of a rare sighting, a Birding Big Day or the discovery of a new nest site are shared with birding companions or merely jotted in a private journal, birdwatching is about seeking connection. Arguably, behind the urge to look at birds is a desire to see ourselves and to realize that they are not like us but they certainly bring us together. (3) In this context we gaze back in time and witness the emergence of a wonderful new institution. We witness with pride, the development and rise of the bird club.

Among the most vocal and visible of birders of the early 20th Century was President Theodore Roosevelt. He recounts” People looking into the White House grounds and seeing me stare into a tree no doubt thought me insane” To which his wife added “And as I was always with him, they no doubt thought I was the nurse in charge!” (4) Fittingly, I would like to bring to our own President Steyn’s attention, the fact that after completing his term of office, President Roosevelt was then elected President of the Long Island Ornithology Club, which he regarded as some what of a promotion. So you are indeed in good company, Sir.

Joseph Conrad warned us that humanity has a dark side. The explosion of the Industrial Revolution and the expansion of our population as a super-species has seen us begin to devour that which makes us inherently civilized. The natural beauty and life of our planet is under threat and we are self-destructing in our masses. The bird club of today is therefore still evolving. The story of the birdwatcher still continues.

So we briefly put down our binoculars and ask ourselves. What are the responsibilities of the birdwatchers of this new millennium?

Firstly, we must record and protect our precious past. The noble story of the ancestral birdwatcher must be cherished. We echo Sir Thomas Browne’s actions of more than three hundred years ago, “birding connects us to our history – not only a history of the natural world, but the history of human experience”. (5) In this spirit, it is with great pleasure that I announce the formation of the Cape Bird Club Editorial Committee, which has been established to archive our 60 years of existence. This is a mammoth and lengthy task. The end product will see us being the first bird club on the African Continent and maybe the world, to produce a book capturing our wonderful and important past.

It is hoped that this project will inspire birdwatchers to remember what it means to be in a club. We hope that our story will contribute a valuable chapter to the legacy of mankind’s beautiful and wonderful affair with nature. We thank the committee of Mel Tripp, Otto Schmidt, Sandy Schmidt, Leni Martin and Jo Hobbs and we wish them much success with their work.

The second responsibility of the New Age birdwatcher is an obligation to the environment. Climate change, land degradation, acidification of the oceans and loss of bio-diversity are the rallying calls and we must rise to the challenge. It is here that we unite with the ornithologists and conservationists. It is here that we recognize our scientific allies and remember what Bertrand Russell wrote: “Science in its beginnings was due to men who were in love with the world.” (6). Together we have a chance to make a difference. We have become the scientist’s foot soldiers, fighting hand in hand against that which will take away our beloved birds forever. So we embrace Birdlife South Africa and we welcome its new executive director, Mark Anderson into our club.

Mark is the perfect example of a universal birdwatcher. He is a gifted birder, a skilled scientist and a passionate conservationist. He embodies our new ideals and we assure him and his team of our full support. We realize that BLSA has a difficult path ahead and we understand that they have inherited many difficult problems to solve. Good luck Mark and please, when you have a moment, urgently sort out the Membership System!

The Cape Bird Club is greatly honoured to have been the recipient of the BLSA 2008 Owl Award for our substantial contributions to the Society over many years. It is truly a special achievement, when one considers that we are the first bird club to ever be lauded in this way.

The third and final responsibility of today’s birdwatcher is of course to go out there and enjoy bird watching! Despite its name, it is an experience of the ears and intellect as much as it is of the eye and it demands a level of concentration that alters the entire act of seeing. (7) Birdwatching has brought us all together and birdwatching is at the core of our clubs existence. Bearing this in mind, it is now time to say thank you to some of our birdwatching friends.

The Western Cape Birding Forum, now comprising eight bird clubs and representing over 2000 birders, has continued along its steady path: educating the youth; monitoring E.I.A’s across the Province; addressing critical conservation issues and developing birding eco-tourism. We thank all the Forum members and congratulate our Honorary Secretary Sylvia Ledgard and Honorary Treasurer Brian Dennis on another year of exceptional service.

The Main Committee of the Cape Bird Club allows us all to soar higher and sing louder than all the rest. Without this dedicated small group, we would surely have gone the way of the Dodo a long time ago. They make a fantastically creative team, all bringing diverse skills and ideas to the feeding tray, the end result being a birding feast enjoyed by all of us. So a huge thunderous thank you must go to: Helen Fenwick; Dave Whitelaw; Anne Gray; John Magner; Priscilla Beeton; Frank Hallett; Janet Hallett, Julian Hare and of course, my very special vice-chairperson, the unwavering Heather Howell.

I would also like to say a special thank you to our Honorary President.

Peter, it is of great comfort to me having a man of gravitas standing quietly and patiently in the shadows, ready to step forward and provide wise council, should the moment dictate. Your support and encouragement is sincerely and greatly valued and the prestigious Eagle Award bestowed on you by BLSA, at their AGM last year, is a rich reminder of your pioneering, ornithological pedigree.

My address today has a nostalgic tone. This is for good reason. 2008 was after all our birthday year. We are the second oldest bird club in the Land and we can sit back and say with confidence that last year “was one hell-of-a 60th birthday party!” (8). It was, without doubt, the busiest, most fun-filled, most spectacular year in our history. Whether we were wrestling with lemurs in Madagascar, arguing over pipits in Kimberly, looking for lost delegates at Cape Town International Airport or enjoying designer-branded champagne in this very room, it was a resounding success. Amongst all the frivolity and revelry, was of course a higher purpose. All the hard work resulted in us presenting the Albatross Task Force with a cheque for R50 000.00, going towards their important work in seabird conservation.

We must therefore thank the talented Anniversary Sub-Committee of Chairman Mel Tripp, Otto Schmidt, Sandy Schmidt, Klaus Hoffman and Jo Hobbs for an exceptional job. Your work has set another new standard in organizational achievement.

With regard to the Anniversary Year, I would like to add another special thank you. John and Jane Magner put their 35th wedding anniversary celebrations on hold to manage the tsunami-like, Pan African Ornithological Congress’s transportation requirements. They worked tirelessly all weekend, late into the night, making sure that every delegate arrived at the venue safely. Their efforts resulted in over R20 000.00 being raised for albatross conservation. Thank you for your generous and unselfish efforts and well done.

To Helen and Earl Fenwick and Klaus Hoffman, another special thank you for your financial assistance in making the beautiful albatross painting a reality. The raffle of the painting was integral to our fund-raising efforts.

Promerops continues to shine as the leading periodical of its kind. We thank our editors Jo Hobbs and Otto Schmidt for another year of excellence. We are particularly grateful to you for your considerable, extra labors and mitigation measures regarding the management of the “membership crisis, “created by BLSA head-office in Johannesburg.

We also thank the Courses Sub-committee of Sylvia Ledgard, Brenda Anderson, Gill Ford and all their many helpers for a wonderful array of courses. How they manage to come up with new, 

innovative topics is testament to their passion for the club and their free-thinking minds. Thanks must also go to Professor Les Underhill, Doug Harebottle, the rest of the ADU atlasers and their citizen scientists, as they continue to expand the success of SABAP2 across the Region. The critically important data that they are receiving and assimilating is a worthy reminder of our important relationship and commitment to them.

A big thank you must go to Heather Howell for her inspired management and development of the Junior Bird Club. These children are the embodiment of our confidence in the future of the Club.

We thank: Joan Ackroyd our membership secretary; Peter Cooper our outings and camps co-ordinator; Mike Buckham for manning or rarities hot-line; Gavin Lawson our webmaster; Gavin and Anne Greig our book-sales experts; Jan Hofmeyr our slide-librarian and last, but certainly not least, Des and Mary Frylink our CBC shopkeepers. All these office bearers complete a dynamic team that makes up the beating heart of the Cape Bird Club.

And so the story of the club has been told. We have been reminded of our place in history and of the importance of people, in the nuanced relationship between the natural world and the act of birdwatching. A true birdwatcher requires vision, not just to see the bird, but to look deep into the past and even further into the future for we are the custodians of a delightful obsession.

Thank you.

Vernon Head

1, 2,3,4,5,7. - An exhilaration of Wings, edited by Jen Hill.
6.- Austin Roberts, a lifelong devotion to S.A.’s birds & beasts, Bob Brain.
8.- unknown CBC member quoted at the Birthday Party!