I can't argue with the distinctions that Michael Hobbs has made concerning my
flippant parenthetical comparison of nest box reared birds and hatchery fish.
The similarities may well be superficial, at best; both have an element of
human interventation at a critical point in their life history. I have been
involved in discussions of the possible maladaptive consequences of providing
boxes for birds but the concerns are more a matter of speculation than established
fact (of course, many of the accusations against hatchery rearing of fish are
also speculative). I would like to know that the cavity nesters I see are being
reared in natural cavities, not so much because I think it makes them better
birds but because I think it reflects better on habitat conditions.

Kelly McAllister
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Olympia, Washington
Reply to: mcallkrm at dfw.wa.gov