Oh yes Merlin, I agree that everyone is entitled to go at this hobby in their own way. I was just outlining my own approach, for what it's worth.
This was brought home to me a few years ago, when a school teacher I know, described how he walked to school each day & as a keen bird man, he took a note each day of the species & number he saw. This gave him a fascinating insight into how numbers were going up or down & these were all common species he was dealing with, too.
It just struck me, that this was a far more worthwhile & I would think, far more satisfying & rewarding pass time, than just dashing round the country ticking a lot of names in a book.
Both approaches, I'll grant you, are about numbers, but to me one approach is quite frankly pretty pointless & little better than trainspotting!
So I guess what I'm saying is I reckon the tickers, are simply the Anoraks of our hobby.
