What happens to your brain when you see a bird in nature?
From National Geographic:
Do you see a bird right now? Can you hear one chirping? If so, you might be getting a mental health boost.
A study recently published in the journal Science found that being in the presence of birds made people feel more positive.
For two weeks, study participants using a smartphone app were prompted to fill out a questionnaire three times a day. They were asked questions about their surrounding environment and their mental state. Emerging from the app’s data was a discernible trend—study participants who saw birds were more likely to report a better mood.
Research is increasingly finding that getting outside is good for our brains, which is why scientists want to know more about what aspects of nature may be the most therapeutic.
“This kind of study helps us understand how people’s everyday experience with specific elements of nature, such as birds, can be restorative,” says Lisa Nisbet, a psychologist at Trent University in Canada, who was not involved with this research.
Scientists have two main theories for why nature may be a soothing balm for our overworked minds. The first is that because homo sapiens evolved in nature, urban environments create a constant background stress.
“And we can recover from that stress in natural settings because that’s what we evolved for,” James says of the theory. “We as human beings like nature because that’s where we’re meant to be.”
The second theory is called attention restoration theory. Similar to the first, it theorizes that the constant strain of daily life—stressful commutes and constant Zoom calls—requires intense focus. Nature allows us to disengage that focus and engage in a sort of open-eyed meditation as we watch a bird flying from branch to branch.
Yes! This is exactly the sort of thing I focused on when I was studying ecopsychology in graduate school! If you’re interested in more of this sort of thing, here’s a link to my master post of the many ways nature is good for us.