--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Spotting a rare bird is never worth the…" description: "\"Spotting a rare bird is never worth the bite of a cur. Once bitten by a German shepherd, I knew that I preferred cats, even if they are bird-killers. L..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png" --- # Spotting a rare bird is never worth the bite of a cur… ![“Spotting a rare bird is never worth the bite of a cur. Once bitten by a German shepherd, I knew that I preferred cats, even if they are bird-killers. Life is long enough for more than one chance at a rare bird.” quote by James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png) > “Spotting a rare bird is never worth the bite of a cur. Once bitten by a German shepherd, I knew that I preferred cats, even if they are bird-killers. Life is long enough for more than one chance at a rare bird.” [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Chasing rare experiences can be tempting, but safety and practicality should guide choices. **In simple terms:** Rare pursuits are appealing but not worth risky shortcuts. Key Takeaway Weigh risk against reward before acting. Themes risk reward experience decisionmaking Mood cautious pragmatic Type advice reflective When to use this quote - birdwatching trips - outdoor hobbies - risk assessment Key Concepts ethics cost‑benefit analysis personal safety Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards can you set before pursuing a rare opportunity? - How do you balance curiosity with safety? A Different Perspective Risk may outweigh the novelty of a rare find. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Cats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [German](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/german/) [German Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/german-shepherd/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shepherd/) [Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worth/) ## Related quotes > [The older I get, I realize, 'Man, I'm a very rare bird,' and that's not because of necessarily my talent or ability; it so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stokes-mitchell/the-older-i-get-i-realize-man-i-m-a-very-rare-bird-and-that-s-not/) [Brian Stokes Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stokes-mitchell/) > [One often reads about the art of conversation-how it's dying or what's needed to make it flourish, or how rare good ones are. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/one-often-reads-about-the-art-of-conversation-how-it-s-dying-or-what/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [A rare bird on this earth, like nothing so much as a black swan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juvenal/a-rare-bird-on-this-earth-like-nothing-so-much-as-a-black-swan/) [Juvenal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juvenal/) > [An idea is like a rare bird which cannot be seen. What one sees is the trembling of the branch it has just left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/an-idea-is-like-a-rare-bird-which-cannot-be-seen-what-one-sees-is-the/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [A rare bird upon the earth and very much like a black swan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juvenal/a-rare-bird-upon-the-earth-and-very-much-like-a-black-swan/) [Juvenal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juvenal/) > [A good servant is a real godsend, but truly this is a rare bird in the land.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/a-good-servant-is-a-real-godsend-but-truly-this-is-a-rare-bird-in-the/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [We have German Shepherds, gifted by a friend, and the rest are street dogs we have adopted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pooja-bhatt/we-have-german-shepherds-gifted-by-a-friend-and-the-rest-are-street/) [Pooja Bhatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pooja-bhatt/) > [“Thus the headstrong German Shepherd dog, Fritz, and Moritz, the Barbaryy ape, innocently and gallantly defending his mate, plunge Greece into a political void.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-de-bernieres/thus-the-headstrong-german-shepherd-dog-fritz-and-moritz-the-barbaryy/) [Louis de Bernières](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-de-bernieres/) > [“The autumn air is chill and damp. As he does each morning at just about this time, Adolf Hitler emerges from the artificial light…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-o-reilly/the-autumn-air-is-chill-and-damp-as-he-does-each-morning-at-just/) [Bill O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-o-reilly/) > [“Bless those people, for they are a part of my faith’s firmness. Bless the stories my foster mother read to me, the stories of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-slater/bless-those-people-for-they-are-a-part-of-my-faith-s-firmness-bless/) [Lauren Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-slater/) > [I have the brain of a German Shepherd and the body of a 16-year-old boy; they’re both in my car and I want you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-saget/i-have-the-brain-of-a-german-shepherd-and-the-body-of-a-16-year-old/) [Bob Saget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-saget/) > [“He jerked his head around to look at the dog and it was halfway down the pathway, just behind the lions now, its mouth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/he-jerked-his-head-around-to-look-at-the-dog-and-it-was-halfway-down/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The dog, who had sounded so ferocious in the winter distances, was a female German Shepherd. She was shivering. Her tail was between her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-dog-who-had-sounded-so-ferocious-in-the-winter-distances-was-a/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Orafoura was yelling at his dog (not a German shepherd) in German, and I thought, “I didn’t realize dogs can speak German.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/orafoura-was-yelling-at-his-dog-not-a-german-shepherd-in-german-and-i/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“His German Shepherd dog, Scully, sat beside him. She’d been subdued all day, presumably picking up on his mood. He glanced to his right.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serenity-woods/his-german-shepherd-dog-scully-sat-beside-him-she-d-been-subdued-all/) [Serenity Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serenity-woods/) ## More by James D. Watson > [As a child, I lived with being punier than other boys in class. The only consolation was my parents' empathy - they encouraged constant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/as-a-child-i-lived-with-being-punier-than-other-boys-in-class-the/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Take young researchers, put them together in virtual seclusion, give them an unprecedented degree of freedom and turn up the pressure by fostering competitiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/take-young-researchers-put-them-together-in-virtual-seclusion-give/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Polls consistently show that the majority of Americans favour research using embryonic stem cells and yet politicians continue to pander to the outspoken religious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/polls-consistently-show-that-the-majority-of-americans-favour/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [You move forward through knowledge. You prevail through knowledge. I love the word 'prevail.' Prevail!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/you-move-forward-through-knowledge-you-prevail-through-knowledge-i/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [As an educator, I have always striven to see that the fruits of the American Dream are available to all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/as-an-educator-i-have-always-striven-to-see-that-the-fruits-of-the/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [The brain is the last and grandest biological frontier, the most complex thing we have yet discovered in our universe. It contains hundreds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/the-brain-is-the-last-and-grandest-biological-frontier-the-most/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [No good model ever accounted for all the facts, since some data was bound to be misleading if not plain wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/no-good-model-ever-accounted-for-all-the-facts-since-some-data-was/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/one-could-not-be-a-successful-scientist-without-realizing-that-in/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [If we could honestly promise young couples that we knew how to give them offspring with superior character, why should we assume they would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/if-we-could-honestly-promise-young-couples-that-we-knew-how-to-give/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [The way to do great science is to stay away from subjects that are overpopulated, and go to the frontiers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/the-way-to-do-great-science-is-to-stay-away-from-subjects-that-are/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Remember, grab you're future with both hands and mold it into what you want it to be. It's the determined, who create the life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/remember-grab-you-re-future-with-both-hands-and-mold-it-into-what-you/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [I wish there would be more movies about scientists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-wish-there-would-be-more-movies-about-scientists/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [I don't want 100 different cures of cancer. I want, you know, give me five. So if you had, you know, five medicines, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-cancer-i-want-you-know-give-me/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [One-third of all female infertility is the result of blocked fallopian tubes. If fertilization could be done in the lab and then the fertilized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/one-third-of-all-female-infertility-is-the-result-of-blocked/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [I wanted to see if I could write a good book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-wanted-to-see-if-i-could-write-a-good-book/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Explore all 107 James D. Watson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) ## More Bird quotes > [And I have been very blessed, having coached some of the greatest that have ever played the game. But if I had to start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-auerbach/and-i-have-been-very-blessed-having-coached-some-of-the-greatest-that/) [Red Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-auerbach/) > [Some minds corrode and grow inactive under the loss of personal liberty; others grow morbid and irritable; but it is the nature of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/some-minds-corrode-and-grow-inactive-under-the-loss-of-personal/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Set the bird's wings with gold and it will never again soar in thesky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/set-the-bird-s-wings-with-gold-and-it-will-never-again-soar-in-thesky/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [“He unfixes the metal notch and slips his hand around the body of the bird. Feels its heat, its small heart beating. He stares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-schuyler/he-unfixes-the-metal-notch-and-slips-his-hand-around-the-body-of-the/) Nina Schuyler > [I would rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach 10,000 stars how not to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings/i-would-rather-learn-from-one-bird-how-to-sing-than-to-teach-10-000/) [e. e. cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Surely, God could have caused birds to fly with their bones made of solid gold, with their veins full of quicksilver, with their flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/surely-god-could-have-caused-birds-to-fly-with-their-bones-made-of/) [Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/) > [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/) [Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/) > [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/) [Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [When they started to drain a swamp where birds and fish had lived, for a new housing development down the road from his apartment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maile-meloy/when-they-started-to-drain-a-swamp-where-birds-and-fish-had-lived-for/) [Maile Meloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maile-meloy/) > [The bird with the thorn in its breast, it follows an immutable law; it is driven by it knows not what to impale itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-mccullough/the-bird-with-the-thorn-in-its-breast-it-follows-an-immutable-law-it/) [Colleen McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-mccullough/) > [Real like sucks the life out of losers. if you want to fuck with the eagles, you must learn how to fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/real-like-sucks-the-life-out-of-losers-if-you-want-to-fuck-with-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If we studied birds ,maybe we could learn to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/if-we-studied-birds-maybe-we-could-learn-to-be-free/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) [Browse all 4,802 Bird quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Spotting a rare bird is never worth the bite of a cur. Once bitten by a German shepherd, I knew that I preferred cats, even if they are bird-killers. Life is long enough for more than one chance at a rare bird.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. Watson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the-bite-of-a-cur-once-bitten-by/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bird" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the-bite-of-a-cur-once-bitten-by/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/804/james-d-watson-4724_bird_spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the_1474567.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Spotting a rare bird is never worth the bite of a cur. Once bitten by a German shepherd, I knew that I…” — James D. Watson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "James D. Watson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Spotting a rare bird is never...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the-bite-of-a-cur-once-bitten-by/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/spotting-a-rare-bird-is-never-worth-the-bite-of-a-cur-once-bitten-by/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```