Subject: Sad death of a Blackheaded Grosbeak
Date: Sep 09 09:59:17 1997
From: Diane de Ryss - deryssmacon at halcyon.com


Hi tweeters:

Saw the post about the siting of the black-headed grosbeak in Edmonds.
We have had a female black-headed grosbeak in Ballard for about 5 days
now.

We are, however, in mourning. We have a constant battle with cats coming
into our backyard. This morning our blackheaded grosbeak was murdered by
a cat.

Does anyone have any good suggestions for dealing with the cat problem? I
don't begrudge my neighbors having cats for pets, I just wish they would
stay in their own yards. Our yard is fenced on all sides and we have
worked hard and successfully to increase the bird population (planted 8
trees, 5 bushes, installed bird baths, and bird feeders, etc.).

We have blocked many cat entrances under the fences, but have left one
side fence open underneath since we are also occasionally visited by
raccoons (we'd like to continue to give them a safe place to sleep).

Any suggestions about dealing with cats while allowing wildlife some
shelter would be greatly appreciated. I am so sad about the grosbeak!

Diane de Ryss
deryssmacon at halcyon.com
Seattle, WA