Bird Day (April 1) - history of the holiday and traditions

Date in 2021: April 1, Thursday.

Man has always admired both the singing of birds and their desire to return home by any means, their selfless loyalty and incredible care for their offspring. The world of birds fills human life with special sounds and feelings. But it’s not enough to simply admire and be surprised. Birds require special treatment and protection. Issues related to the problems of birds are raised in society quite often. And there is even a special holiday dedicated to birds, which is celebrated on the first day of April all over the world.

The well-being of the animal world directly depends on human life. Hunting and entertainment, expansion of farmland and environmental pollution lead to the extinction of fauna. And the first to suffer are birds, some species of which simply disappear without a trace due to rash human actions. It is not for nothing that a holiday appeared when environmental organizations and concerned people try to attract the attention of the world community to the problems of birds.

History of the Bird Day holiday

International Bird Day occupies a special place in the environmental holiday calendar, since the holiday appeared earlier than similar dates dedicated to the protection of representatives of the animal world.

For the first time, the problem of birds was raised by a biology teacher from the American town of Oil City. The event is dated 1894. The teacher organized the holiday together with his students.

The idea was approved and taken up by the broad masses. After this, the celebration began to be organized annually.

Later, the idea was picked up in Europe, where the public joined the celebration.

In 1902, the Convention was signed, the main point of which was the protection of birds. And already in 1906 the holiday entered the calendars of many countries around the world.

It is with the date of signing of this Convention that the day on which International Bird Day is celebrated is associated. In addition, the date of April 1 was chosen because migratory birds would return home by this time.

How did birds appear?

Birds are found in all climatic regions of the planet; in total there are about 10 thousand different species in the world. These creatures appeared about 200 million years ago, that is, earlier than most mammals. It is believed that the ancestors of birds are reptiles (lizards). Trying to survive, some species of lizards began to master climbing trees and jumping from branch to branch. Gradually they acquired the ability to first glide and later fly.

According to another theory, birds are the descendants of a separate line of dinosaurs that managed to survive the mass extinction of dinosaurs and adapted to new conditions of existence.

Gaining the ability to fly was a powerful evolutionary breakthrough, as flying creatures were able to effectively escape from enemies and obtain sufficient amounts of food.

Unfortunately, not all bird species have managed to adapt to existence in a world in which humans have come to dominate. Since 1600 (earlier information simply does not exist), more than a hundred species of birds have disappeared from the face of the Earth.

For example, such an amazing flightless bird as the dodo turned out to be unable to protect itself from humans and predators that were brought by humans to Australia and the islands.

In the modern world, many bird species are rare and are on the verge of complete extinction from the face of the planet. Therefore, hardly anyone has any doubts about the need to take measures to protect birds in general, and their rare species in particular.

In most countries, hunting birds during their migration and during the breeding period is legally prohibited. However, it is not always precisely amateur hunters and even fishermen who pose a special threat in the extermination of birds. Much more dangerous are deforestation, pollution of water bodies, construction of high-rise buildings and other consequences of human economic activity.

Bird's day in Russia

In Rus', many ancient traditions are associated with the spring arrival of birds. It was at this time that it was customary to bake original baked goods in the form of larks, as well as hang feeders and birdhouses.

But the holiday began to be celebrated at the beginning of the twentieth century. He was supported by youth organizations, as well as biologists. Later, against the backdrop of difficult revolutionary events, the traditions were forgotten, but were revived in the mid-20s.

Young people organized events to meet feathered friends by hanging houses in parks. The idea quickly became popular and began to combine ancient traditions and modern approaches.

But against the backdrop of the spread of formalism, the holiday lost its soulfulness and beauty. Stamps and officialdom turned a bright, fun day into events held “for show.”

Bird Day owes its revival to the Bird Conservation Society, which in 1994 initiated the holding of colorful large-scale events.

Modern traditions

Nowadays, a variety of events are organized for International Bird Day. The main purpose of them is to attract people's attention to the problems of bird conservation. Moreover, the holiday is aimed mainly at young people, and not only at students and schoolchildren, but also at younger children.

It can be:

• classes for children and primary schoolchildren, where children are introduced to different types of birds in a playful way. Children are shown photos of birds and told about their habits;

• various competitions and quizzes on knowledge of the species and habits of birds living in the area;

• master classes at which middle and high school students are introduced to the rules of making bird houses. Experts show how to make houses for different types of birds and tell you how to hang them correctly so that their inhabitants are comfortable and the chicks are protected from predators;

• girls, as a rule, are more interested in culinary master classes, where they show how to bake traditional baked goods - “larks”;

• Schoolchildren will also be interested in getting acquainted with the ancient Japanese art of origami, learning how to fold a crane out of paper;

• It will be useful for older children to learn about bird flight techniques. And also about what people have learned from birds and how this knowledge is used in the design of modern airplanes and helicopters.

Many other interesting events take place during the holidays. For example, often at the places where birdhouses are hung in the park, mass celebrations with chants and round dances are organized.

The main task of their organizers is to interest children and avoid boredom. Therefore, every year we need to try to diversify the program and introduce fresh ideas into it.

Since 1999, the holiday has received its own symbol every year. In each locality, a bird species is selected that lives in that area and needs protection. Over the years, the emblem of Bird Day in Russia depicted a barn swallow, an owl, a white stork, a kingfisher, a swan, a bluethroat and other birds living in our country. In 2015, the holiday emblem depicts a redstart, a small bird from the flycatcher family.

Traditions and rituals of the holiday

The main goal of the celebration is to draw attention to the problems of the bird world. But every caring person is able to contribute. It is not necessary to take to the streets with posters and shout slogans.

It is enough to make a house for birds yourself or hang a couple of feeders in your own garden or park.

Be sure to involve children and teenagers in this activity. After all, it is not enough to simply talk about the fact that birds need our protection.

It is better to devote the day to organizing mater classes, organizing the cleaning of the habitats of waterfowl and park birds.

Don't forget to tell the kids what benefits birds bring, and together draw a symbol of the holiday, which changes annually.

And if you wish, you can also remember ancient rituals - bake spring larks, make paper cranes and cheerfully celebrate Bird Day.

Video: Presentation for children “Bird Day”

Interesting facts about birds

Since the holiday is dedicated to birds, we propose to study several interesting facts about these stunning and unusual creatures:

• there is no continent where birds do not live. They live absolutely everywhere, even in the hottest and coldest corners of our planet, and the peculiarities of their plumage and body structure help them survive in such conditions;

• at the moment there are about ten and a half thousand different species of birds on earth;

• Hummingbirds are considered to be the smallest birds - most of these little ones weigh only three grams, and their body length does not exceed five centimeters. Another feature of these birds is speed. Sometimes they fly so fast that it is difficult to see them, and all thanks to their wings, which are capable of making from 40 to 80 beats per second. That's speed!

• the largest bird these days is considered to be the African ostrich, whose weight can reach 150 kilograms and its height is 2.7 meters. According to scientists, species of large flightless birds that once lived on earth weighed about 400 kilograms;

• The Wandering Albatross has the largest wingspan. In these individuals it reaches almost three and a half meters. It is thanks to their wings that these birds are able to fly against the wind without difficulty;

• as experts have established, the largest flying birds were Pelagornis Sandersi. Scientists found their remains, carefully studied them and came to the conclusion that the wingspan of these individuals was seven meters. Therefore, they concluded that this species of birds was the largest of all flying birds in the entire history of the Earth;

• scientists still cannot say for sure from whom birds originated. The most popular theory these days is that birds evolved from dinosaurs;

• plumage is unique to birds; feathers are not found on any other living creature on the planet;

• unlike other animals, birds have two larynxes;

• birds living in the sea can easily quench their thirst with salt water;

• thanks to the special structure of feathers, owls can fly completely silently;

• the very first bird that became domesticated was the goose.

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Congratulations in verse

Without birds, the planets will go numb, Silence will cover the forests and fields, Love will not knock on hearts Without the gentle trill of a nightingale.

Today I congratulate the whole world on this wonderful holiday, Bird Day. Flocks of birds fly into the sky, There are no barriers to them and no boundaries.

Let the birds circle above the earth, Let the storks bring children, Let the sparrow, the eagle, the magpie Find a place among people.

***

There are so many birds in this world, Even children take care of them, They build houses, feeders, They even hang toys, If only the birds don’t suffer, And don’t go hungry in winter, So that they sing and flutter, And don’t fly away from us. Take care of our birds, Don’t be lazy to give insects, Hold out a slice of bread or flatbread on your palm... Let the “Birds” rejoice at the insect offered to them, A crumb of bread or cereal... Help them in their destiny!

***

Our feathered friends, You and I are a big family, Today I want to tell all people that we need to protect these friends. Let the birds sing in the sky, hatch chicks, build nests. Our planet is more beautiful with birds, and this is also our happiness!

***

Without birds, the planet will be empty, Calm will hang around, Give them moments of happiness, Feed them carefully from your hands!

Don’t disturb their peace, Let them soar freely in the sky, And don’t put them in a cage forever. Let them have fun in the wild!

Let's become kinder, Let's arrange a surprise for the birds, Let's hang feeders on all the trees in the neighborhood for Bird Day!

***

Happy International Bird Day! Let the noble choir sing brilliantly and give you joy!

And you take care of them, make a birdhouse, so that starlings live in it, and chicks are born!

***

The bird spread its wings in flight. You won't find anything else like it. A sunny world opens up to her. Let's all stand together and defend him.

Let the amazing birds fly. And beauty is revealed to us all. They give us the concept of novelty. Happiness, flight, spring, depth!

***

On International Birds Day, I want to remind you all how important it is to live for them now, I consider it my duty to save them.

Feeders need to be created, And if they are injured, help them, The birds' peace should not be disturbed, This is very serious for them.

***

The sun and their songs rise together, They give us joy all year round. Winged joy, a messenger of good. All the children love and feed them.

A holiday for our feathered friends. We congratulate them with some bread! Away from them hunger and cold, To chirp to them everywhere and always.

Take care of birds - a gift from the earth. They brought us happiness and laughter. May this day be wonderfully good. What will you bring the birds as a gift?

***

Birds fly across the sky and call us for warmth. So come on this wonderful day, let’s go congratulate them together.

Let's bring the sparrow, the starling, the tit some water to drink and hang up the birdhouses. Look how wonderful the world is!

***

I hurry to congratulate ornithologists on the day of birds, Make out the cheerful chirping May it be up to you.

New, bold discoveries to you In the difficult world of winged ones, Great joy in work and an impressive salary.

***

Let's hang bird houses, let them rise above the ground, birds from wintering grounds are returning today!

Let it be more nourishing and warmer in a foreign land, With spring rays, come home soon!

And let it sound banal, And let us all take care of both birds and all nature, year after year!

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