Subject: Re: Tweeters caught in apparent double-standard
Date: Feb 27 14:10:25 1996
From: Laura Saavedra - lsdb at u.washington.edu


It seems that the issue of banding/tagging rare birds (or any
birds) revolves around whether or not the alleged stress is justified. I
think what justifies it is the gaining of knowledge and, most importantly,
the *dissemination* of that knowledge. If someone is going to capture a
bird in the name of research, then do the research and *get the
information out to the public*! What's the use of discussing capturing
birds like the CCLO and then doing it without providing any information
afterwards? Why tag a GGOW unless the tagger provides people who are
genuinely interested with the information gained? The double standard
applies to both those who decry the research yet want to know more and to
those who do the research yet don't let the public know about what's
gained.

I also agree with R. Rowlett that it sure would be nice to find out more
about the more common birds around us (like wouldn't it be great to tag
some of the Montlake Crows to see how far they come to roost?).

David Buckley----------------------------------------------------------------
lsdb at u.washington.edu
West Seattle, USA