> Last week I heard a baby bird begging on my deck and looked out to see a
> baby cowbird begging.  It was being fed millet by its "parent", an
> ovenbird.  Even though I have seen this many times before, and even though
> this raises some interesting questions about how much the host species
> really knows about its adopted offspring, I was overwhelmed by revulsion
at
> seeing the poor ovenbird out of safer forest habitat just to feed the big
> monster.  I agree with Jerry, I don't understand why cowbirds are
> protected.  It's a problem we caused - shouldn't we fix it?  Removing
> cowbirds would greatly enhance the songbird production of a lot of
habitat,
> perhaps compensating for other sorts of environmental insults.  Jerry is
> right about the Kirtland's warbler.  I was there a couple weeks ago and
> they explain how removing the cowbirds has been a necessary and productive
> feature of the restoration program.  There are lots of other species that
> could use this help, too.
> Paul Bystrak
> Salisbury, Md
> 

Paul and the rest of Maryland,
    All American songbirds are protected. In order for a bird to be
"unprotected", it has to be either a foreigner that got introduced (House
Sparrow, Starling) or a "game bird". This last group includes our beloved
quail and why that remains so is beyond me. Put me in charge and that would
change in a heartbeat.
    As American songbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds are free to expand their
range if the opportunity arises. There are lots of birds undergoing range
expansions and nobody is about to stop them. Just because we opened up the
east and gave the cowbirds a niche shouldn't be a consideration. We might be
doing things that allow other birds to expand, too.
    The Kirtland Warbler project is obviously an exception. I'm sure the
Fish and Wildlife service, who are managing the return of the Kirtland, had
to get special permission to eliminate the cowbirds in the area and this
only after it was shown that they were impacting the Kirtland population.
All I know is that when I was up there the sight of these little jerks in
cages made my heart flutter.
    However trapping them in a small area like that surrounding Mio,
Michigan is one thing. Trapping them throughout their expanded range would
not be a cost taxpayers would want to endure.
     Many Midwestern birds have adapted nesting responses to cowbirds and
are somewhat successful in combating their intrusion. Some simply renest
when they see the cowbird egg and others toss it out. Our eastern birds
haven't developed any of that yet. Be patient. It may only be a few short
thousands of years before they get smart and begin to copy their Midwest
cousins. I know I'm looking forward to it. Aren't y'all?

    Jerry Tarbell
    #1 Cowbird Hater in Carroll County