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Basic equipment

What equipment to buy is always a daunting subject for a beginner. Do you immediately get the very best binoculars, every field guide in the shop and a full set of clothing for all possible weather conditions? Or do you make do with the bins your dad used in the Second World War, The Observer’s Book of Birds and an old anorak?

As you might expect, the best approach to choosing equipment for wildlife watching is somewhere in between. Don’t be tempted to get everything at once: start gradually and you’ll be less likely to buy something you don’t really need. On the other hand, there are some items of equipment that you really should get before you go out in the field for the first time.

Binoculars

There are several things to think about when choosing a pair of binoculars:

Price: How much can you afford?

Weight: Whether or not this bothers you may depend on how long you plan to carry them, and how far.

Specification: For general wildlife watching you need an all-purpose pair of bins that will give you a reasonable-sized image, a good field of view, and be able to cope with reduced light conditions at dawn and dusk. For this reason it’s usually best to buy a pair with 8x magnification (10x if you do all your wildlife watching in the open or at a long distance); and an objective lens measuring between 32 and 42 millimetres: i.e. an ‘8 x 32’, ‘8 x 40’ or ‘8 x 42’ specification. This will provide a good, bright image.

Optical quality: This really is the key factor – make sure that the image is sharp, bright in low light and reproduces colours faithfully.

Design, handling and build: Design is very much a matter of personal taste. Some people prefer the more traditional look, others something more modern. More important are whether or not they are waterproof (vital if you plan to go out in the rain or in areas of high humidity), and the general build quality. But if you are only using them to watch the birds from your back window, then ruggedness isn’t all that important.

Other factors: If you want to watch butterflies or dragonflies, then choose a model with the closest focus available. Make sure you buy your binoculars from a specialist shop, not from one of the high street outlets. You’ll get much better advice and the prices are generally more competitive. Allow plenty of time, too, to try out different types and styles – ideally by watching real wildlife out in the field. If you get the chance, try out a couple of pairs belonging to your friends before you buy.

Other equipment

There are all sorts of items of specialist equipment you will need if you are taking an interest in a particular group of creatures, such as small mammals, moths or bats (see Advanced Equipment on page 176). In the meantime, there are a few things that are always worth having:

A good-quality magnifying glass: essential if you want to get close-up views of wild flowers, insects and other small creatures.

Storage tubs, tanks, etc.: especially if you plan to collect insects, pond life or rock pool creatures to take a closer look.

A point-and-shoot camera: great for taking habitat shots or close-ups of wild flowers or other creatures to help you identify them later when you get home. Digital models are getting cheaper all the time and are ideal for wildlife watching as they allow you to snap away without worrying about the cost of developing and printing.

Bill's top tip

_ Ultimately, the best advice is to get the best binoculars you can afford – and possibly even pay slightly more. Remember that, as with most things, with binoculars you get what you pay for and the best don’t come cheap. A good pair will never wear out and, with care, can last you a lifetime. A portable digital camera is a real asset when out in the field.

Clothing

If you’re new to watching wildlife, you may not realise there is a dress code! Birdwatchers often have a woolly hat, dark green jacket and walking boots. If that’s what you like to wear, this is good, practical kit, and if it isn’t, ignore it. The two important things you need to consider is how you will keep yourself comfortable in bad weather, and also that bright colours might scare off wildlife.

Wearing layers such as a T-shirt and fleece with a waterproof or light coat on top is a good combination. Windproof fleeces are excellent – some are even showerproof so you can wear them as a top layer in most weather conditions. Wellingtons are the cheapest waterproof footwear, but can be quite heavy if you are going for a longer walk, and can cause blisters. Don’t forget that you lose about one-fifth of your body heat through your head, so wear a hat!

Waterproof walking shoes or boots don’t come cheap, with a good pair costing around £80, but they will last you a very long time. Like binoculars, you get what you pay for. Waterproof overtrousers are also essential in wet weather.

If you’re going out for more than a couple of hours, think about how the weather might change. You might want to shed some layers so, if this is necessary, can you tie them round you? Or do you have enough room in a rucksack to store them? It can really take the fun out of a walk if you end up carrying more items of clothing than you are wearing.

In terms of what not to wear, then the rules are quite simple: avoid very bright colours, fabrics that rustle (especially if you want to get close to mammals or birds), and anything that is uncomfortable or makes you look like a fashion victim. If in doubt, go to a reputable outdoor clothing centre and ask their advice.

Bill's top tips

_ It’s best to avoid cotton shirts and T-shirts as they tend to trap sweat and get clammy, whereas new synthetic fibres draw or ‘wick’ the moisture away and keep you much more comfortable.

_ Open yourself up to learning from children’s guides or pamphlets – they are often very well laid out, simple and yet with enough detail for you to pick things up, but not so much it becomes overwhelming.

Field guides

Many wildlife experts, especially birders, are sceptical about using field guides. They claim, with some justification, that you end up spending more time looking at the picture in the book than at the creature you are trying to identify!

In the ‘good old days’, every birder carried a notebook and made field notes as they were looking at the bird, then used these to identify it at leisure afterwards. You may not have the patience (or skill at note-taking or drawing) to do this, but it’s worth giving it a try.

The other problem with field guides is that they can lead you down all sorts of false alleys, often making people believe they have seen something that they haven’t. Others cover far too large an area. For the beginner, avoid anything that has the word ‘Europe’ on the cover – with birds, this more than doubles the number of species included, while for other groups such as mammals, butterflies and dragonflies you’ll find that around nine out of ten species included are not found in Britain!

The other dilemma is whether you choose a guide with photographs or illustrations. Most experienced naturalists prefer illustrated guides, as photographs can, paradoxically, be much more misleading due to differences in light quality and colour reproduction, whereas artwork is more consistent.

With some groups of wildlife, a shortcut is to use one of the laminated sheets produced by bodies such as the Field Studies Council. These usually include only the species you are likely to see, and are well illustrated and designed for use in the field: they’re waterproof!

Site guides

Once you’ve been watching wildlife for a while, you may want to explore sites a little further afield, or even plan a longer trip or holiday. At this stage, site guides (or ‘where to watch’ guides, as they are often known) can be very useful.

Site guides are usually written by local experts who can point you to the best places to watch wildlife in a particular part of the country. They also contain maps to help you find the place you’re looking for, along with practical information on access.

Site guides began back in the 1960s, with a famous volume called Where to Watch Birds in Britain. Today there are birding guides to every part of Britain, most of which are both comprehensive and excellent. Unfortunately, there are not so many guides to watching other forms of wildlife, though some groups (notably dragonflies) are covered (see Reading List, page 186).

The perils of using a site guide are that you may become convinced that you will see every species mentioned in the entry for a site, then turn up and find that there is nothing there. And sometimes it is best just to go out and see what you can find, without too many preconceptions.