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‘Grey birders’ take flight

July 19, 2019 Don Knowler

I’ve received a steady stream of mail from the “grey birder” fraternity following a column I wrote saying that bird-watching had been proven to slow the ageing process.
It seems that many correspondents can confirm the finding by the American Institute of Ageing that for older people our feathered friends can be good for mind, body and soul.
A reader in Claremont wrote to say in no uncertain terms that “bird-watching is great”, a view influenced in part by the sight of two white-bellied sea eagles flying close to his home overlooking the Derwent.
“The excitement still has me trembling of the event,” he said.
“Looking out of our kitchen window I saw two large birds flying towards us. Two sea eagles no more than 50 metres away. The pair swooped and soared over our neighbourhood, then circled round.”
The reader said, as the eagles circled and spiralled, they were buzzed by a small hawk or falcon, which made two passes above them.
After putting on their aerial display, the eagles then crossed Bilton Bay and headed for Mt Direction to the east.
“I’ve never known so much excitement with nature,” said the reader. “It was beautiful.”
The US Ageing Institute has in recent years been extolling the benefits of what it describes as “a low-key activity that lets older people spend time in nature with purpose, which can be done alone or with others, and inspires gratitude for life’s small gifts”.
Birdwatching, as the institute notes, can be an activity to suit older people whatever their level of mobility. It is also a way of making friends to ward off the loneliness often felt by older people, keeping them connected within the community.
Another of my interests related to birding this winter has been advocacy for gardening for birds and, talking to both seniors and gardening groups, I found that gardeners and pensioners were on the same page.
Both birding and gardening serves to keep people active and involved, with positive life-affirming outcomes, whether it be tracking down a bird species or nurturing a tree or shrub in the backyard.
It occurs to me the two hobbies mesh. Although the latest research into social trends in the US revels that birdwatching has actually overtaking gardening in popularity, the Ageing Institute also throws its weight behind gardening for those who might not be interested in birds. Better, though, to pursue both.
Birding specifically offers multiple cognitive benefits, beyond exercise which can be provided by gardening. There’s a range of sensory stimulation and memory exercises for older adults and these enhance older adults’ reflex skills, mental alertness, and can even benefit dementia.
By coincidence, at the time I received the reader’s letter I was visiting his neighbourhood to address the Claremont Gardening Club on how to create bird-friendly gardens.
Although sea-eagles might be beyond the scope of the average Claremont yard the sighting of the birds of prey proved another interesting point of discussion along with the bird-attracting merits of bottlebrush, banksia and bramble.

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