Two thoughts on the subject:

>From the environmentalist's viewpoint two conflicting things were happening
here: on the one hand exposing threatened species to the public so that they
come to love the critters is good, but this one is supposed to need and
prefer old-growth forests, not trees in a median strip. A lot of effort has
been expended to link spotted owls with old-growth forests in the minds of
the public (and rightfully so).

What does it say about our society if we think that someone would actually
1) shoot an owl that is doing us a service by eating starlings and 2)
endanger lives by doing this in a urban environment?

Maybe we should set up a captive breeding program and sell the owls to
farmers and towns that have starling problems. Of course we'd have to do
something about those anti-owl crows.

Dave Spencer
merdave at televar.com

-----Original Message-----
From: mpdossett at juno.com <mpdossett at juno.com>
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Date: Thursday, November 19, 1998 6:33 AM
Subject: Re: Owl Captured


>Well, what can I say?
>
>I really believe that there are some alterior motives at work here. I
>believe that the owl was trapped simply because it was creating such a
>stir. People wanted to see it, and chances are that a few out there
>probably wanted to either kill it or use it to throw fuel to the debate
>of logging.
>
>Was it in the best interest of the bird? Probably makes no difference.
>The bird was apparently happy. It's life might have been in a little
>danger because there are some wackos out there, but let me ask you this.
>If it was something like a Xantus' hummingbird, or something equally rare
>and out of place (Hooded Warbler in Discovery Park is another good
>example) would they have tried to trap it? Of course not. Of course
>they would want to make sure that it was healthy! Oh, and of course they
>need to put it back in its proper habitat! I'm sorry, but if you ask me,
>they should have let it be.
>
>Fustrated,
>
>Michael Dossett
>Bothell, Washington
>mpdossett at juno.com
>
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