Why should we all love birds? | Washington Wachira | TEDxGateway

Washington Wachira wants us all to get to know the marvellous species of birds that share the planet with us. If you're not already a fan of earth's feather makers - or concerned about their conservation - you will be after you watch this delightful talk.

Washington is an ecologist, safari guide and nature photographer based in Kenya. He has been involved with birds since he was a 14 year old boy. Today, he runs Cisticola Tours LTD, a safari company that leads top birding and nature tours across Kenya and East Africa. Washington continues to be a voice for conservation across Africa and the entire world.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

For the past ten years,
I have been very fortunate

to work with and study wildlife
in Kenya and other parts of Africa.

Over this time, birds
are one group of animals

that I've been very fortunate
to work with.

For me, birds are my passion,

and I want to change the way you all look
at birds from today henceforth

because among all the world's animals,

I know that birds are some
of the most misunderstood species,

and I'll help you today.

For us humans, world records represent
skills, strength and even wisdom,

and we are always very proud of ourselves
when we set these records.

But did you know that even birds
have their own world record holders?

I'll show you some examples.

Owls, like this guy here,
are very, very common around the world,

and many societies
have different stories about them.

Some view them as good birds;
others view them as a source of bad omen.

But did you know that these amazing birds

are able to hunt for rats and mice
in complete darkness?

They use their ears as a screen
to view their entire surroundings,

and among all the wild birds, the barn owl
has the keenest sense of hearing

and that gives him a world record.

Cheetahs have been
portrayed for many years

as being the fastest animals on earth,

and probably some of you
still believe that.

But a bird, the peregrine falcon,
is indeed the fastest animal on earth.

These incredible birds can attain speeds
of up to 188 kilometers per hour,

compared to the fastest man on earth,
who is at about 44 kilometers per hour.

If he were to compete against this bird,
he would need to move four times faster.

And the most amazing thing is
they are only 19 inches big.

For us humans, who are earthbound,

birds represent a lot of freedom
by the way they fly.

They have managed to use
their feathers to engineer wings

that enable them to conquer gravity,

and to us this means freedom.

But one bird has even taken flying
to a whole new level,

and this is the common swift.

This amazing little bird is able to fly
for ten months non-stop, without landing.

Just imagine flying for ten months!

(Applause)

And you don't land anywhere.

I'll give you the whole illustration.

They move all the way from Scandinavia,

they go to Africa for winter,

and then they move back north
to go and breed in Scandinavia.

And you know the best part?

During this entire migration,

these birds are able to drink, to eat,
and even mate while they are still flying.

(Laughter)

(Applause)

Some scientists
are now even starting to believe

that they do sleep a little
while they are still flying

for them to refresh their brains.

But not all records
are probably worth clapping for,

and you might think twice
after listening to this story.

This very beautiful bird behind me
is called the hoopoe,

and the hoopoe is one bird

that I doubt goes around
boasting about its world records,

because this very beautiful bird
holds the world record

for having the foulest-smelling nest
among all the birds.

So in human terms, this would mean
you are receiving a gold medal

for having the worst-smelling
bedroom in the entire world.

And this record coming
from such a beautiful bird

is so incredible because
indeed it's a beautiful bird.

So the Englishman was right
when he said that looks can be deceiving.

(Laughter)

Birds are indeed very intelligent animals,

and they are able to use their skills
and ingenuity to do very amazing things,

and I'll give you some two examples.

The birds behind me
are called weaver birds,

a name they are given
for the way they make their nests,

and then those nests act as their homes.

The role of making the nests
is performed by the males,

and they do this by using
just their beaks and their feet.

They don't have hands -
their hands are into wings.

They start by using a single straw
of grass or a single stick.

So you can imagine making such a nest
starting with just one grass.

How do you even balance it?

Once the males are finished,

they invite the females
to come and inspect.

And if the females are happy,
then they'll move in and form a family.

However, if the nest
is not up to standard,

mister, you'll have to try next time.

(Laughter)

A very interesting thing
has been observed by us

as we study these birds.

We've noticed that some
notorious males build multiple nests,

and then they strive
to get multiple tenants

for each of these nests.

And therefore they can have
multiple families!

(Applause)

Another interesting group of birds
are called the hornbills,

and you can see their beaks
are big and they look like horns.

But these intelligent birds have adopted
a very interesting way of breeding.

They breed in tree cavities
or crevices inside rocks.

What they do is that
the female moves inside,

and together with the male,
they seal the entire opening,

leaving just a small gap for the beak.

The female will stay inside during
the entire breeding time with the eggs,

and later on, she even
sheds all her feathers

and stays there with the chicks
until they are able to fly.

During this entire time,

the male hunts for food
and brings it to the nest,

passing it to the female
through that small opening

for the entire breeding season.

The most incredible thing

is if anything were to happen to the male
when he's on a hunting expedition,

then you can expect

that the female, who automatically
has no feathers, and the poor chicks

will most likely perish in that nest.

And for me, I love birds so much

because I know they help us
in so many ways,

and we humans need to start understanding
that we need to start helping birds.

They help us to pollinate our food crops
and even disperse seeds from our fruits.

Without these amazing birds,

the world would indeed struggle
to sustain agriculture.

Another group of birds, the birds of prey,

are very important in that they control
the populations of other animals on earth,

and this control ensures
that our environments remain stable

and that our ecosystems
are balanced at all times.

So these incredible hunters
are very important.

Another group of birds, the scavengers -

the vultures, the crows that we see
around our homes and even our towns -

these incredible birds see
your garbage and trash from your house,

and they start salivating
because that's what they feed on.

This enables our environments
to remain clean and avoid bad smells

that would otherwise make
these places inhospitable.

So they are very important.

But we humans are causing
so many problems to birds,

and every day, we're endangering
their existence here on earth.

We do many things that contribute
to this endangerment,

and, indeed, the populations of birds
that we see around the whole world

are a clear reflection
of our own activities as humans

and even the ethical values
that we believe in.

We contribute to things like habitat loss,

especially through deforestation,
poaching, and hunting of wild animals,

especially wild fowl or what we call
the wild bird shooting.

We also contribute to poisoning
and pollution of our environments,

especially using plastics,
which affects birds a lot.

And we cannot ignore the contribution
of climate change and its impacts,

such as desertification.

All these things are threatening birds
on a daily basis, thanks to us humans.

But I'm going to give you
a solution today.

There is now an easy way
for all of us here today

to start contributing to the conservation
of birds across the entire world,

and we can do this
by becoming citizen scientists.

We live in a world where mobile phones
have become a daily-use electronic,

and in fact, we joke that we spend
so much time on the phone

that we forget to enjoy
the beautiful birds up there -

I hope you are not using your phones now -

and these phones present
a beautiful opportunity.

Because there are now
mobile phone applications

that have been developed
and are available for you to download

and start sharing data with scientists
about the birds you see wherever you go.

These incredible mapping projects
have enabled scientists

to prioritize conservation
where it matters the most.

And I'll give you some examples
that you can download today

and start mapping birds right now.

We have, for example, eBird,
iNaturalist, and BirdLasser,

and these mobile applications

can help you to even practice
and become a better bird watcher

because every day you are working on them,
then it's a chance for you to practice.

And most importantly,
you'll be contributing to projects

that are helping to save birds
all over the world.

We live in a world of 7 billion people,

and in this world, there are
about 10,000 species of birds.

This means that if all of us were
to be involved in conservation of birds,

every single species on earth

would have 700,000 humans
dedicated to saving that species.

For me, that's more than enough people

than we need to conserve
every species on earth,

and I believe that
we together can all do it.

So from today, you are now
informed about birds,

you understand
that they are part of our lives

and part of our ecosystems,

and you know how incredible they are
and their interesting lives,

so go home and tell your family
and friends about birds.

Please join us in citizen science,

and tell us about the birds
you're finding in the places you visit.

Even simpler, spend a few minutes
in your daily schedules,

whether you're at home,
at school, or even at work,

to enjoy the beautiful birds
you see around you.

Because I believe the day
we make bird watching part of our lives

is the same day that we shall get the urge
to start saving these species.

Buy yourself a pair of binoculars and see
just how beautiful these birds are.

Please come and join me

in sharing the love and the passion
for birds across the entire world.

Thank you very much.

(Applause)