Date: Wed, 5 Mar 2003 21:36:24 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: rob gibbs Subject: Re: Blackwater Tree Planting MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Keith makes an excellent observation. This is a big problem with "Tubex" (the commercial name for those tubes). The purpose of the tubes is to protect young trees from deer but as Keith notes the tubes attract the attention of birds that, once they drop into them to catch a bug or investigate a nesting site, cannot get out again. The manufacturer sells plastic mesh covers to prevent birds from getting stuck in them but often they don't get installed or get blown off by wind or pushed off by deer as they try to reach in to eat the tree. For anyone who may get involved in this project, making sure that the mesh covers are installed properly would be the" bird friendly" thing to do. Regarding tree planting, I think that the idea of reforestation has been oversold to the public. Trees and forests are important and I'm all for them (I manage the reforestation program for Montgomery County Parks), but with new regulations that permit developers to cut mature forest land if they replace them with reforestation on open areas, I fear that we have created a regulatory system that is causing developers to view every piece of open land as potential sites to reforest. We all know how fast development is taking place. The rate at which grassland/shrubland habitats are being replaced by tubex forests is only one step behind. I'm sure that the reforestation project at Blackwater is well planned and an appropriate project that will impove overall habitat needs. But I'm glad to see this string of comments bring this issue to birders attention. If we want to keep habitat for grasshopper sparrows, kestrels, meadowlarks, chats, shrikes, willow flycatchers, yellow warblers, etc. someone needs to speak for preserving grassland and shrub habitat. If birders don't do it, no one else will. Rob Gibbs, Damascus Keith Eric Costley wrote: >Yes, there is something in those plastic tree tubes. Two years ago during >an hour walk I freed an Eastern Bluebird, a Song Sparrow, and a Carolina >Wren from those things. The Wren got my attention first as it desperately >tried get out of the tube. Checking twenty other tubes, I found two dead >Bluebirds, and another bird that I could not id. > >Keith Eric Costley >oriolekec1@comcast.net >Randallstown, BC > >>From: Joe McDaniel >>Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding >>Date: Wed, 05 Mar 2003 10:21:51 -0500 >>To: MDOSPREY@HOME.EASE.LSOFT.COM >>Subject: Re: Blackwater Tree Planting >> >>re Morgan Run trees -- the last time I was there all I saw was a "forrest" of >>plastic tubes. I watched them plant the tubes -- assuming that there was >>something in them -- but have yet to see anything alive resembling a tree in >>virtually any of them. >> >>The tubes and stakes do make for a fair perch, though. >> >>Joe McDaniel >> >>======================================================================= >>To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com >>with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey >>======================================================================= >> > >======================================================================= >To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com >with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey >======================================================================= > ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================