How to Seawatch

Step 6 Jizz.

You will not always get the chance to seawatch.

The weather might be too bad, work and family commitments may get in the way, but you can still work on your knowledge of jizz.  Jizz is a birding term for "general impression of shape and size" .  There is a myth that is was acquired from WWII aircraft spotters (hence the illustration), but the term pre-dates WWII by over two decades.  With practice, how a bird acts is as much a key to identification as what it actually looks like.

A midsized dark bird flying between bushes at ankle height will be a blackbird.  The similar bird in a small flock overhead will be a starling.

Browse your birdbooks, especially any specific identification guides, getting to know the key characteristics of the birds you are likely to see.  Do not neglect the commoner species - if you are familiar with them, then rarer birds will be more likely to stand out.

Use your video guides, or go online (see the next step) to watch video clips of the birds in flight, swimming and on the ground.  Look for patterns in the wing-beats, or how the wings are held (stiff, curved, droopy?).  What is the flight-path like?  How high does it fly?  Do you see flashes of lighter or darker patches?

All of these will give clues to allow quick identification of birds you see.  The more familiar you get with jizz, the quicker you can spot a new or rare species, simply because it doesn't "feel right" - if the jizz isn't familiar, get as good a look as you can, as quickly as you can.