alt Hacker News> A big part of birdwatching is identifying small, fast-moving animals that exhibit specific combinations of behaviors at specific times of the year based on specific climatic conditions
So VR birdwatching works, or no?
Remember, if VR birdwatching works, then you can now watch small, fast-moving animals that exhibit specific combinations of behaviors at any time of the year from the comfort of your couch and thus, the benefits of birdwatching can be enjoyed by a much larger population.
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Knock yourself out, if you prefer the VR version
In real life, you have to navigate nature as well.
It's probably better than nothing. From a human and nature perspective, you're not "touching grass". You aren't waiting with anticipation, wonder if you'll see something or what you'll find. You aren't locked in 100% to the experience. I don't think it would be the same.
I think one of the drawbacks of VR birdwatching is that you are served the bird in focus, in frame, almost immediately - there's no search, there's no WTF is making that noise?
Some parts of birdwatching could be Virtual - watching a feeder somewhere (anywhere) waiting for birds to come in and watch what they do - or watching different trees/plants at different points in the year attracting different birds exhibiting different behaviours (eg. I have a love of seeing Tui[NZ] when Taiwanese Cherry or Kowhai are in flower, they gather in the tree at different times of the day when the nectar is at its peak, there are fights for dominance between the birds, there's a racket as they all feast, then boom, as quickly as they arrive they're gone again, off to the next tree)
Are you saying that the population that has access to virtual reality hardware is "much larger" than the population that has access to going outside?