Part 2 of 2

 

From: Paul J. Baicich [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
Sent: Wednesday, February 02, 2011 8:19 AM
To: Paul J. Baicich
Cc: Wayne R. Petersen
Subject: Birding Community E-bulletin - February 2011

 


THE BIRDING COMMUNITY E-BULLETIN (CONT)
            February 2011
 
 
FOUR SHOREBIRDS PROTECTED IN MEXICO
 
In mid-December, the Mexican Federal Government announced the inclusion of
four shorebirds (species and subspecies) on its own Endangered Species List
as either Endangered or Threatened, under federal protection. The two
Endangered taxa were the "frazari" subspecies of American Oystercatcher and
the "roselaari" subspecies of Red Knot and the two listed as Threatened were
the "nivosus" subspecies of Snowy Plover and the Black Oystercatcher.
 
To read more about the effort to secure protection and the partnerships
involved, see the following:
www.whsrn.org/news/article/four-shorebird-species-receive-federal-protection
-mexico 
 
 
SONGDO OPPORTUNITY
 
A massive development project has already filled most of the Songdo Tidal
Flats in South Korea and now threatens what remains. A number of gulls and
shorebirds depend on the area, and the highly endangered Black-faced
Spoonbill nests nearby. (Some of the impacted shorebirds include some
species which breed in western Alaska and Siberia such as Black-bellied
Plover, Bat-tailed Godwit, Red-necked Stint, and Dunlin.) The expansive
project presents itself as "modern and green" and includes a planned
international "Joint University Campus." Unfortunately, the plans also
include potential risks to approximately 1,000 hectares of remaining tidal
flats (known as "Section 11").
 
SAVE (Spoonbill Action Voluntary Echo), based at the University of
California at Berkeley, has presented an alternate plan for Songdo that
blends conservation and ecotourism, especially in Section 11, and aims to
reverse the current development drive.
 
We previously covered this story in August 2009: 
www.refugenet.org/birding/augSBC09.html#TOC09
 
About a dozen prestigious American universities are being courted that may
be able to provide significant leverage over the fate of the remaining 1,000
hectares. Accordingly, SAVE is calling for appropriate pressure from birders
and other conservationists who have connections with those universities.
(SAVE would also appreciate copies of any communications.) Details can be
found here:
http://saveinternational.org/saveinaction/song-do-tidal-flats/
and
http://saveinternational.org/news-room/
(See the selection of article at the bottom of the page under "Newsroom")
 
 
TIP OF THE MONTH: FEEDING TIME!
 
It's backyard bird-feeding time again. Established in 1994, February has
been National Bird-Feeding Month. It's the month when bird-feeding is
front-and-center. This national event was created to promote the feeding and
watching of wild birds in the backyard. Each February, there is a new and
unique theme based on feeding. This year's theme is "Most Wanted - America's
Top Ten Backyard Birds" (with an eastern and a western version of the top
ten list). Here is a link to more information from the National Bird-Feeding
Society: 
www.birdfeeding.org/nbfm.html
 
February is also the month for the Great Backyard Bird Count (GGBW). This
will take place on 18-21 February and is led by the Cornell Lab of
Ornithology and National Audubon Society, along with Canadian partner, Bird
Studies Canada, and sponsorship from Wild Birds Unlimited. This annual
four-day event aims to engage bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to
create a snapshot of where the birds are across our continent. Anyone can
participate, from beginning birders to skilled experts. It can take as
little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like
each day of the event. You can find more details here:
www.birdsource.org/gbbc/
 
The February concurrence of National Bird-Feeding Month and the Great
Backyard Bird Count is a great opportunity to blend the two events, promote
the enjoyment of backyard birds, and contribute information through a
citizen science portal. 
 
 
BOOK NOTES:  FEATHERS!
 
The colorful guide, BIRD FEATHERS, by David Scott and Casey McFarland
(Stackpole Books, 2010) describes the feather ID for almost 400 species of
North American birds, all in fine photographic detail. The vital information
for each species includes measurements of primaries, secondaries, tail
feathers, and additional details on assorted body feathers (e.g., breast,
belly, nape, throat, etc.). The first section of the book - packed into 39
essential pages, introduces readers to feather origins and morphology.
 
It's a handy and inviting book, and might serve as a fine companion to MOLT
IN NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS (S.N.G. Howell, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010)
that we covered in August:
www.refugenet.org/birding/AugSBC10.html#TOC06
 
And, yes, for those concerned about the appropriate and legal behavior
afield, the Scott and McFarland book at the outset covers the issue of
holding proper federal and state permits pertaining to the possession of
feathers of migratory birds. 
 
 
TENNESSEE CRANE-HUNTING CONTROVERSY 
 
On 21 January, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission (TWRC) voted on
whether or not Tennessee should initiate a hunting season on Sandhill Cranes
during the winter of 2011-2012. Citing insufficient data for establishing
such a season, the TWRC decided to delay its decision at least for two years
while more studies could be conducted. 
 
Sandhill Cranes had practically disappeared in the Southeastern U.S., going
back at least to the 1930s, but they have been steadily increasing over the
last two decades. Still, there are disagreements over the exact number of
cranes which migrate in the East, and the slow reproduction rate of Sandhill
Cranes (breeding after 5-7 years and only one in three nests producing a
chick that survives to fall migration) raised concerns over a replacement
rate within the context of a possible hunting season in Tennessee.
 
High levels of response to the proposal (72 percent opposed and 28 percent
in favor) and commission meetings packed with citizens marked the
controversy. But so did courteous and reasoned discussion.
 
Most birders, such as those represented by the Tennessee Ornithological
Society (TOS), did not support making the Sandhill Crane a game species and
initiating a hunting season on this species in the state. TOS took the
position that "the fall arrival and over-wintering of tens of thousands of
Sandhill Cranes in Tennessee should be celebrated as a wildlife spectacle
and a Watchable Wildlife viewing opportunity."
 
Indeed, the state's largest bird-viewing event is the 20-year-old annual
Crane Viewing Days festival, which draws thousands of people to watch the
migrating birds in mid-January. (A total of 11,000 cranes were counted
during the first week of January.) Curiously, Sandhill Cranes have been
attracted to key crane sties in the state because of the corn planted by
TWRA to accommodate waterfowl.
 
At the same time, hunters were not of one mind on the issue. In a TWRA
survey, about 55 percent of Tennessee hunters favored a season on the
cranes, while 22 percent said they did not and 23 percent had no opinion.
(Some pro-hunting elements also called for limiting hours for the hunt, not
permitting it during the festival, and not permitting it when Whooping
Cranes of the experimental population were present.)
 
In any case, the decision has been delayed for two years, during which time
there can be more studies. Melinda Welton, TOS Conservation Policy Chair,
added, "The real question isn't whether Sandhill Cranes in the eastern U.S.
can sustain a hunt at this time, but rather, how do we want to manage this
new-found resource?" 
 
Here are two reports on the decision to delay from two Tennessee newspapers:
www.commercialappeal.com/news/2011/jan/23/holding-pattern/
and
www.tennessean.com/article/20110121/NEWS01/101210355/Sandhill-cranes-hunting
-proposal-may-deferred 
 
 
BIRDS AND REFUGES: TAKE ANOTHER LOOK
 
In December we drew attention to a National Wildlife Refuge System planning
document to be adopted in July at a large public conference in Madison,
Wisconsin. This is intended to guide the NWRs into the next decade and
beyond. Bird conservationists and birders should be an essential part of
these plans. The website for the effort in the past month has been totally
revamped, and input from the public on a variety of issues is being sought.
You can join the online community, engage in the dialogue, and access the
revised website through our previous coverage and description at: 
www.refugenet.org/birding/DecSBC10.html#TOC11
 
 
BILL THOMPSON, JR: 9 AUGUST 1932 - 25 JANUARY 2011
 
William H. Thompson Jr. (also known as Bill Jr.) passed away last month at
the age of 78. To the American birding community, Bill Jr. was best known as
one of the founders, along with his wife Elsa, of the popular BIRD WATCHER'S
DIGEST magazine.
 
They launched the little magazine - initially a collection of reprints - in
September 1978 when they sent out 35,000 copies. They originally got about a
7 or 8 percent return, or 2,500 to 2,800 subscribers. By the next year, that
number reached about 6,000. During its first crucial five years this entire
entrepreneurial effort was located in the Thompson home in Marietta, Ohio.
By 1994, subscriptions grew to over 80,000.
 
Over the years, the BWD experience was able to combine the backyard bird
scene with important outdoor birding skills, engaging bird stories, and bird
conservation. The combination has been highly successful, and the entire
family has been involved in the enterprise, including Bill Jr. and Elsa's
children. (Bill III has become the editor, Andy the publisher, and Laura the
circulation director.)
 
In the early 1990s, Bill Jr. officially retired from the magazine, but he
always remained engaged. 
 
When he was asked a few years ago about re-doing the BWD experience if he
ever had the opportunity, he answered affirmatively, adding: "Once you
become aware of one aspect of nature or the environment, it can't help but
lead you on to others. If you begin to learn about, say, birds, you start
thinking about bird habitat-what birds need, what harms them, and what you
can do about it. And this awareness leads you into other areas of the
natural world. You begin to understand that everything is connected and that
our actions have a direct effect on the world around us and the creatures we
share it with. Being able to educate and interest people in the environment,
as well as to entertain them, isn't something I'd be willing to give up. BWD
has been a wonderful experience."
 
 
BIRDS FALLING OUT OF SKYAND INTO THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
 
Here are some final thoughts for this issue of the E-bulletin, ideas which
actually relate to Bill Thompson Jr's comments above.
 
If there were two bird stories that captured the attention of the public
last month, they were the story of Red-winged Blackbirds falling out of the
skies in Arkansas and elsewhere and the story of an immature Cooper's Hawk
spending a week in the reading room at the Library of Congress in Washington
DC.
 
We won't fill up this page with links to these two stories, since both
achieved national coverage on TV and in newspapers. You can find the stories
yourself through your own web-browser.
 
The important thing to remember about these stories is that there are dozens
of bird-interest stories about birds that occur every month. And each is not
simply "lightweight" news. Each story actually has many potentially
significant things to reveal about birds, bird migration, bird behavior,
bird conservation, and how birds and mankind interact.
 
Finding the stories can be easy. Conveying the lessons to a potentially
curious public is more difficult, however. Whether you're a casual birder,
an ornithologist, a natural resource employee, a hunter, a teacher, or a
nature photographer, there are bird lessons to learn and messages to convey
with every story. 
 
The takeaway message is to encourage the public's interest so that it may
hopefully draw at least some correct conclusions about birds and humans in
our daily lives.
 
- - - - - - - - -
You can access past E-bulletins on the National Wildlife Refuge Association
(NWRA) website:
www.refugenet.org/birding/birding5.html
                                    
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            Paul J. Baicich             
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