I've spent almost the entirety of the past few years observing animals, studying them, and teaching people about them. One of the main questions people ask me, is "How can I see what you see?". Well, here are some of my secrets. These are my personal tips on how to see more animals while you are hiking or just outside, even for an hour.
- Look Up. Birds are the most obvious animals that you might see while looking up, though just over a week ago, a person in my hiking party spooked a roughed grouse from right under her feet, so always keep your eyes all over the place. Believe it or not, some species that people usually see on the ground can easily be found in trees. Black snakes and green snakes are animals that can easily "pop out" in your eyesight from above, as they are very good at climbing in trees. Bears and groundhogs also commonly go up into trees, despite many people's beliefs about them.
- Look Down. Looking down gives you the opportunity to see more salamanders, frogs, chipmunks, and even animal tracks. If you can find animal tracks, identify them, and take a mental note of what is around. Look for the specific animal while continuing to walk.
- Walk Slowly. Some of you might be reading the above bullet points and are thinking "How can you both look up and down at the same time?" Well, you can't, so walk slowly so you can repeatedly do each. Walking slowly also can be a quieter type of walk, lessening the chances of you scaring wildlife.
- Pish! Pishing is making the sound "pish" with your mouth, repeatedly for a few seconds. This is a little naturalist and biologist trick to scare birds from their hiding places, making them fly out from thick leaves or brush. This can be tricky though, as some birds will get too scared and fly off very fast and very far.
- Look for both color differences and movement. Black bears against a green background and red cardinals against white snow are some really easy examples of color differences you should look for. It's easy, as a lot of animals stick right out against various backgrounds, even the most camouflaged ones. Animals move, sometimes extremely slowly, but they move! Even the most camouflaged wildlife will move, providing a better opportunity for you to see them, as they move against these different backgrounds.
- Get outside. This one is pretty self-explanatory, but it's one of the most important. Just walking a mile in your local park a few times a week can provide very interesting wildlife sightings. Increase your chances and get another excuse to get outside.
- Use binoculars. Binoculars really help you hone on the wildlife you have detected using your regular eyesight. They can also be used to scan large fields and meadows from a distance, limiting the chances of you scaring the wildlife when you first enter a field.
- Use your peripheral vision. Most animals that I see are seen first by my peripheral vision. This happens because this type of vision can detect movement very effectively. Color differences are also picked up easier if you use your peripheral vision more.
- Protect your eyes while in the woods. If going off trail or walking on a property with no trail, I highly recommend wearing sunglasses or safety glasses. I commonly wear shooting glasses, as they are easily accessible to me, and are very effective. I've both been told this (by other biologists, as well as multiple conservation officers) and learned the hard way to always protect your eyes. Going into the woods might mean that branches and thorns will be in the way of you. This very easily leads down to a road of pain and misery. Also, gnats have a harder chance of getting into your eyes if you wear sunglasses. Protect those eyes! You'll be glad you did, besides, if you have injured eyes, it's very hard to see wildlife.
- Invest in a field guide. Some field guides provide useful information on whereabouts of certain animals, especially at different times of the year. It's worth a few dollars if you are outside all the time.
- Get High! Ascend quietly onto ridges and small peaks in a forest. Be extremely silent as you are going uphill. Once you get to the top, look down and look for movement. This is how I often see deer, bear, and turkeys.
