Subject: In defense of the downtrodden
Date: Aug 6 23:18:44 1999
From: S. Downes - sdownes at u.washington.edu


Kelly,
Excellent points. I have said before and agree with you here that once an
area has been urbanized to the exent of the metro area these areas are not
available to native warblers, flycatchers etc.. in the way that non-urban
areas are (not talking about large parks w/in those metro areas like the
arboretum or disco). Sure we can try to control the non-natives, starlings
are far more annoying to me than HOSP, RODO or HOFI. The best course of
action is to be careful in allowing urban sprawl and ruining areas for
natives, by far easier said than done. I am pleased to see that there are
some good discussion topics on tweets lately, bird placemats are all well
and good but discussions on privacy of rarieties, exotics etc.. are
helpful to discuss and perhaps share ideas and learn from one another.

Scott Downes
sdownes at u.washington.edu
Seattle WA

"Birds don't read bird books. (That's why they are seen doing things they
are not supposed to do)." -Mary Wood


On Fri, 6 Aug 1999, Kelly Cassidy wrote:

> Oh, come on. I like native species as much as the next liberal eco-nazi,
> but urban birds take a lot of unfair blame. Does anyone really think that if
> all the Starlings, House Sparrows, and Rock Doves were wiped out tomorrow
> that Seattle would suddenly be filled with warblers, flycatchers, and
> Spotted Owls? Yes, I know that Starlings and House Sparrows compete with
> cavity nesters for limited nest sites but they are only able to be so
> successful because so many other aspects of the environment have been
> altered besides nest site availability. An open landscape filled with mowed
> lawns, concentrated food sources (garbage, pet food left outside and bird
> feeders) removal of brush and decaying litter, etc. all favor a different
> set of species than a forest. If there were no exotic birds in North
> America, then the relative proportions of native birds would still have
> changed drastically in developed and farmed landscapes. Witness Crows,
> Canada Geese, and House Finches.
>
> Personally, when I walk down a dingy concrete canyon and see a House
> Sparrow hopping around looking for crumbs next to some derelict curled up
> around a brown paper bag, I don't think "Gosh, if that House Sparrow weren't
> there, maybe this place would have bluebirds." I'm happy there's a few
> feathered life forms that can survive under those conditions.
>
> Kelly Cassidy
>
>