Date: Thu, 11 Jan 2001 06:52:48 EST Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Gail Frantz Subject: Re: Snowy Owl situation MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit We didn't deal with the Badly Behaved Birders problem during the Hooper's Island Sandhill Crane Caper and surprise, surprise -- the problem's baaack. Too bad. Solutions were suggested six months ago. The postings below are excerpts from MDOSPREY archives. Kathy Klimkiewicz wrote: << Behaviors such as driving across someones lawn shows nothing but lack of common courtesy and has nothing to do with whether a person is a birder is associated with an organization or not. It has to do with common sense and common courtesy period. >> From Paula Sullivan: <> Suggested remedies from Bonnie Ott on Aug 7: << We have worked out a system in Howard to handle rare birds. We have an e-mail Rare Bird Alert (with a few still getting phone calls). If the bird is in an accessable place then directions and info are sent out to all. If the bird is on private property we have to decide on a "case by case" basis how to handle it. If the person that takes responsibility for the bird (usually the original finder) wishes to co-ordinate a group to see it we usually meet at a central spot and carpool to the location. No directions are given out and folks know it is a one-shot deal to see the bird. This reduces the "trickles" of people that may become a burden to the property owner and also may cause stress to the bird. This has worked quite well and we have yet to have any real problems. It IS entirely dependent however on the efforts of those in our club that take the time and effort to co-ordinate and take people out - plus find the birds themselves! >> Suggested remedies from Bob Mumford's Aug 7 posting: << 1. A person would volunteer (or be assigned from a pool of volunteers) to be the point person for a newly discovered rare bird. He/she would be the sole point of contact and the bridge between home/land owner and the birding groups. 2. The point person would meet with the home/land owner BEFORE an address or directions were posted on the net. During the initial conversation, the point person would brief the home/land owner on the likely response to a posting, suggest some ground rules for managing visitors and ask the home/land owner for his/her own needs/requirements, etc. 3. Only after the home/land owner gave specific permission and identified ground rules would the rare bird be announced with directions on the net. Guidance and ground rules would accompany the post. 4. The point person would be responsible for providing whatever was necessary for the execution of the home/land owner's ground rules: a sign or signs, orange plastic construction type tape to mark off-limits areas, etc. (the cost of these items ought to be borne by the MOS). The whole philosophy should be to make visitors viewing of the bird as close to "hassle free" to the home/land owner as humanly possible. 5. It is not beyond reason to think of a watch system, where an MOS person would be on location, on duty, for perhaps two hours at a time, during weekend hours, to guide visitors, prevent problems and to intercede if untoward behavior was developing. Aren't there enough of us now to staff such a watch? 6. Following departure of the rare bird, the point person would be responsible for preparing a letter signed by, say, the MOS president, thanking the home/land owner for granting access and accommodating the birders. ABA type framed certificates would seem a likely follow-on project. IF WE ARE NOT WILLING TO DEVOTE THIS KIND OF TIME AND EFFORT, WE HAVE NO ONE TO BLAME BUT OURSELVES IN THE FUTURE IF WE ARE CUT OFF FROM ACCESS BECAUSE OF THE UNRULY BEHAVIOR OF A FEW... Bob Mumford>> Gail Frantz Reisterstown, MD guineabird@aol.com ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================