In response to Stuart MacKay's postings, I haven't heard of vagrant
starling records, but there sure weren't many birders watching for vagrants
when the species was introduced on the Atlantic coast. I suppose it was
about as likely as, or perhaps a bit more likely than, the occurrence of
some of the large thrushes on this side of the Atlantic.

I'm sure the only reasonable way to control starlings would be to wipe out
entire roosts at one time. This has actually been done with big
blackbird/starling roosts in the southeast, where they imperiled crops.
Think of this, any of you who think this is a repulsive act. What if the
alternative were to have to plant twice as much cropland to accommodate the
needs of the birds, and cut down all those acres of bottomland forest to
make available the cropland?

And who would have thought those lovable little Ruddy Ducks could pose a
problem? All you have to do is look at introduced species on a worldwide
basis, and it biases you against them pretty fast.

Dennis Paulson phone: (206) 756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax: (206) 756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail: dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416