by Tashi Tshering aka Taxus Tashi -Dragon Birding Amegos, Samtse.
Birds inspired me when I was a kid. I used to look at them flying and driving through the air above. I saw them as free spirits. As a human, I could only imagine flying like them and be wherever I want to be.
Fortunately, when I was pursuing my Diploma in Forest Science in 2000, the studies on birds really drew my interest into it. I started browsing more on birds and how to study them. I was already starting to take pictures of birds found in Bhutan. After my graduation, I invested to buy basic equipment to shoot birds in the place where I was posted as a Forest Ranger. I compiled albums on different species of birds found in Bhutan. I used to spend lot of time browsing the pictures of birds. The more I look at them, the more they inspired me. For me, birds represent freedom and independence. Although I was studying vocational subject, birds made me more independent and free. I thought no matter what subject I studied, in the end it was up to an individual to face life as it comes. Like the birds.
So, a lot of pictures of birds were piling up on my computer. They inspired me to turn them into books. So, I published a few books on birds in Bhutan (Co-authored Birds of Jomotsangkha Wildlife Sanctuary and Birds of Samtse). And my passion for birds lives on.
Picture: Green Cochoa (Cochoa viridis)
You have been another inspiration to many young birders like me. Wishing to see more togather…