It’s Gadgets vs. Eyeballs as Two Species of Bird-Watchers Clash

[elleng]

Not long after professional baseball came around to instant replay, the booming world of competitive birding, once seen as a refuge from the clatter of the modern world, is now debating how much it should embrace technology. It is as close as birding, long proud of its honor system, has ever come to an identity crisis, particularly over the issue of whether photography should be required to prove a spotting. In debates among birders, the encroachment of smartphones and digital cameras has become inseparable from another touchy issue, the matter of questionable sightings, known as stringing.

The World Series is held every May throughout New Jersey, a major migration stop for birds heading north, and the event routinely attracts roughly 1,000 of the world’s top birders, who will race around the state from midnight to midnight, often in four-member teams, trying to identify as many species as they can by sight or sound. Their reward will be bragging rights and the Urner-Stone Cup, which resembles a miniature version of hockey’s Stanley Cup, though there are no cash prizes.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/05/10/its-gadgets-vs-eyeballs-as-two-species-of-bird-watchers-clash/?hp

[Curmudgeoness]

1. I think this says more about our society

than just a debate about honesty vs. technology. Apparently we are becoming less trusting, and there may be good reason for that as more people are willing to be dishonest. It becomes a vicious cycle.

Personally, I still am in the honor system crowd. One reason is that there are times when a photo is just not possible, but the sighting is legitimate. Hell, there are times when I can't get a bird to sit still long enough to follow it well with binoculars....I couldn't imagine trying to get a clear photo.