Subject: Re: Grays Harbor Shorebird Festival
Date: Jan 31 18:09:42 1996
From: Dennis Paulson - dpaulson at ups.edu


Steve, that was a fine response that you wrote to Stuart. I agree
emphatically with everything you said. I understand the appeal of the
shorebird festival, and it surely functions in its main purpose, to
establish a high profile for the abundant biological resources of Grays
Harbor. However, I have a lot of sadness that we have to *have* shorebird
festivals (which of course are festivals for people, not shorebirds) to
somehow give the birds validity, to make it OK to preserve a bit of terrain
for them. And terrain, as you wrote, that certainly is not the final
answer to the needs of Grays Harbor shorebirds.

Because of the crowds, and especially because of the hype, I've stayed away
from Bowerman during spring migration for the last decade. Give me a crowd
of people in a pub or a van to discuss just about anything, but give me
solitude in which to enjoy nature. Probably why I love birding in my back
yard so much; not many entrepeneurs there.

At the same time, I'm not denigrating Michael Carmody's call for help in
any way. It's a highly worthwhile endeavor to interpret those magnificent
shorebirds (with or without raptors) for the public; if we can't take care
of such wild beauty, we can't take care of anything!

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