twitch |twiCH|
verb
Twitching is a British term used to mean "the pursuit of a previously located rare bird." In North America it is more often called chasing, though the British usage is starting to catch on there, especially among younger birders. The term twitcher, sometimes misapplied as a synonym for birder, is reserved for those who travel long distances to see a rare bird that would then be ticked, or counted on a list.
Personal illustration project depicting my favourite birds for the year. All of them were found by other birders, but all involved very exciting experiences, beucause of their extreme rarity where they were seen: Ivory gull (adult) was a first for Portugal, Blackwinged Pratincole was seen in Belgium on my birthday and Blue-cheeked Bee-eater was also a first for Portugal.
