Subject: Re: feral parakeets
Date: Apr 6 09:29:22 1996
From: "Steven G. Herman" - hermans at elwha.evergreen.edu


I quite agree with Don's assessment of the value of research in the case
of Tansy Ragwort, which is under *biological* control as a result of the
introduction of the Cinnibar Moth, and insect that is specific to that
host and which was introduced to control the weed. Another of our
exotics under Biological control is St. Johnswort-Hypericum perforatum,
controlled (i.e., kept at a population level below an economic threshold)
by a couple of (beautiful) beetles. I shouldn't have been quite so hasty
or so sweeping in my condemnation of research, but I've been a bit
sensitized by, for example, a story about an alleged academic roaming the
mudflats of Willapa Bay with a generator and an open microwave oven,
"researching" how to control Spartina! Often "research" efforts generate
significantly more heat than light, especially when they're fueled
primarily by the passion of hatred. And academics are not at all shy
about jumping on the money bandwagon. The migrant shorebird situation is
being used to fuel research on the Spartina problem at Willapa, for
instance. We did the work there and at Bowerman, in '83, and found that
Willapa is *very* significantly less important than Grays Harbor to the
migrants. Of course, that doesn't mean that research wouldn't be
valuable (especially if it went beyond the testing of biocides and
microwave ovens) or that shorebird feeding habitat isn't being lost to
Spartina. But if someone is interested in loss of shorebird feeding
habitat they might expend a little energy reminding the U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service that Grays Harbor NWR will not be that in a dozen years
or so, unless someone scrapes off some of the silted in habitat in
Bowerman Basin. More than 50% of the mudflat that was available there
when I started working at Bowerman in 1978 is now covered with
vegetation. Research yes; silliness no.
Steve Herman

Steven G. Herman
The Evergreen State College
Olympia WA 98505
(360) 866-6000, ext.6063
943-5751 (home)
hermans at elwha.evergreen.edu

On Fri, 5 Apr 1996, Don Baccus wrote:

> >Exotics are often a problem at some level
> >(Purple Loosestrife and Spartina are two examples from the plant world
> >that have raised temperatures locally in recent years) but the fact of
> >the matter is that a fight against them is virtually bound to fail (as it
> >will in the case of those two weeds), but a whole lot of people make a
> >whole lot of money trying (and doing real high powered *research* in the
> >case of the scientific *community*).
>
> While I agree with your assessment that there's not much point in
> worrying about those exotics which obviously are not going explode
> in population, and that some introductions are benign, I must disagree
> with your view of the value of research on controlling those that have.
>
> Such research isn't always doomed to failure. The tansy ragwort
> stands as an example of such research that works. Tansy used to
> be rampant in open areas, at least in the Willamette Valley. I
> used to get paid 50 cents an hour as a kid to pull it by hand from
> horse pastures (horses die eating this stuff). Now, one rarely
> sees it. Indeed, the last time I did, it had been long enough that
> it brought me up short - "what's THAT doing here?".
>
> Obviously, examples of success are rare. It may be as related
> to the amount of money available as to any intrinsict value
> of the research - tansy was a big money problem in Oregon, so
> big money was available to find, test, and introduce a biological
> control.
>
> - Don Baccus, Portland OR <donb at rational.com>
> Nature photos, on-line guides, at http:://www.xxxpdx.com/~dhogaza
>
>