Birdwatching is a fun hobby for many people. Birdwatchers like to watch birds in the wild (野外). They take photos and record birds' sounds to learn about them. According to Xinhua, there are more than 100 million birdwatchers in China now. Young people are a big part of it.

Zhang Liang is an experienced birdwatcher and photographer (摄影师). When he was a college student, he got ill for a while. His doctor advised him to go outdoors more often. He then decided to take photos of birds. 

Once, he took a photo of a small black and yellow songbird, he tagged it as a sparrow (麻雀) online Soon, someone corrected him. The bird was actually a finch (芬奇). This embarrassing (尴尬的) thing made him check out on a field guide. It also made him interested in birdwatching and photography. 

"    ★        " Zhang told China Daily, "My life slows down. I've made new friends. I've also met many birds I didn't know about."

"It's difficult to describe such feelings, especially if you have spent a lot of time in finding the bird and learned more about the bird," he said, "I feel my heart race, my eyes widen and almost begin to smile."

Besides watching, Zhang Liang also takes photos and records sounds on field trips. Such photos of birds or other animals can also help people understand the importance of protecting animals. "Wildlife photography can catch fantastic moments in nature," Zhang said, "They encourage (鼓励) people to earn more about what is out there and why it's worth (值得) saving".