Great Article and very important connection!
Jul 20, 2002
Count birds- for they count on you
FLYWAYS & BYWAYS
JERRY UHLMAN
Do birdwatchers get involved in conservation as much as they should? In the
most recent issue of Birding, a publication of the American Birding
Association, a thought-provoking editorial chides birders for enjoying their
hobby without making the connection to the underlying need for conservation.
We are shortsighted, it said, because we fail to vigorously support
conservation activities that help ensure plentiful birds to enjoy in the
future. The editorial raised the question: What should birdwatchers do to
promote conservation?
I turned to the Internet birding community for answers and asked some of the
most active birders in Virginia: What can we do to have an environment that
protects and nurtures birds and other wildlife. What actions can individuals
take on a day-by-day basis to make this happen?
I received a bewildering array of suggestions from birders from all corners of
the state.
Most suggestions dealt with backyard landscaping, volunteering one's time and
money, personal attitudes and habits, and activism. Several birders noted that
some of us are comfortable with political action, others with education or a
scientific approach. We need to find our own niche, based on individual
talents, and get involved.
On the backyard scene, we should plant native species and make the space as
natural as possible. Get comfortable with weeds, but if you feel compelled to
remove them, dig them out rather than use herbicides. Rely on natural methods
rather than pesticides to control insects. Use less fertilizer and less water
on lawns. In fact, maintain as little lawn as possible and plant more
bird-friendly bushes, plants and flowers.
Educate your friends and neighbors about the value of natural habitats and
encourage them to develop their space with nature in mind.
Volunteering and contributing your time to birding activities was another
popular suggestion for promoting conservation. Get active in a local birding
club and lead field trips. Volunteer to work with local park staffs and
naturalists to promote birding activities, such as developing a bird checklist
or leading a bird walk for schoolchildren.
Become a citizen scientist: Volunteer your time to participate in breeding bird
surveys, Great Backyard Bird Counts, Christmas Bird Counts and surveys
sponsored by Cornell University, such as Project Feederwatch. Over time,
surveys help document whether bird populations are stable, growing or
declining. This is valuable data that can help park staffs and planning
organizations with land management decisions that affect bird and wildlife
populations.
Volunteer your time for educational activities that have tremendous future
conservation payoffs. Educate children, because children who understand nature
will grow to be adults who care about protecting it. Take a child on a bird
walk. Build bird houses with a local Scout troop. Support outdoor recreation
camps and sponsor a child's membership in a birding club. Invite a child to
look through your spotting scope when you're out birding.
Personal attitudes and daily habits can have a direct bearing on bird
conservation. Recycle everything possible, even though it may be inconvenient.
Buy fuel-efficient vehicles and combine errands to use less gasoline. Manage
your cat's behavior and keep it inside, because the number of birds and small
mammals killed by cats is staggering. Buy shade-grown coffee, because our
breeding birds that winter in the Southern Hemisphere have found sanctuary in
shade-grown coffee farms as their rain forest habitats shrink.
By far, Virginia's birders believe that we all should join one or more groups
to preserve habitat and support conservation measures. One Northern Virginia
birder expressed a common frustration:
"How to find the best ways to support conservation has plagued me for years.
When you see uninhabited land being gobbled up by land developers as rapidly as
we do, you feel powerless to stop the trend. My conclusion has been that there
is very little I as an individual can do except join every conservation group
that I can afford to and hope that collective clout will make a difference."
There is a widely held belief that birders, be they backyard birdwatchers or
world travelers, should be on the front lines of the conservation effort. Three
groups enjoy wide support from birders: The Nature Conservancy, the American
Bird Conservancy and the National Audubon Society. Other groups that birders
join are the League of Conservation Voters, World Wildlife Fund, Defenders of
Wildlife, Wilderness Society and the Sierra Club.
Another active Virginia birder expressed the need to promote conservation this
way: "The biggest issue in the world of conservation is waking people up and
letting them know that they can make a difference. We say that the nucleus of
the family is the foundation of society and a good home is where it all begins.
It is the same in nature.
"Habitat destruction is the wrecking of nature's home. The three main areas of
concern are the same now as they were to many great minds of past centuries:
overpopulation by humans, habitat destruction and pollution.
"In our country, nothing is more precious to the people in charge than votes.
Since they have chosen this path, let them know that they have lost your vote
unless they choose a more scrupulous path when it comes to waste and the
environment."
In the current issue of Bird Watcher's Digest, Ken Kaufman, the popular writer
and birding adventurer, proposed a novel way to keep a life list linked to
conservation: Count only those birds that you've personally helped to protect!
While most of us may start with a very short list, there are many opportunities
to do more for the conservation cause based on our talents and individual
interests.
If you want to become a better advocate for conservation, plan to attend the
Virginia Audubon Council's half-day grass-roots advocacy training session next
Saturday at the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries office at 4010 W. Broad
St. in Richmond. The morning meeting will focus on strategies and resources
available for activism. For more information, contact Corry Westbrook,
Audubon's regional grass-roots coordinator for Virginia, by calling (202)
861-2242, or via e-mail at cwestbrook@xxxxxxxxxxx.
Next month, I'll wrap up this dialogue on conservation and focus on two
insightful responses that I received that capture the range of ideas and sum
things up quite nicely.
. . .
You're cordially invited to join The Richmond Audubon Society for meetings and
field trips throughout the year. Information is available from the Society at
POB 804, Richmond 23207-0804, by telephone at (804) 257-0813 or
www.richmondaudubon.org.
Flyways and Byways is a regular birding column that appears on the third
Saturday of each month. Want to suggest a topic for a future column? Got a
question about birds or birding? Send questions or comments to the Richmond
Times-Dispatch, P.O. Box 85333, Richmond, VA 23293, or e-mail at
flyways@xxxxxxxxx. 2002 Jerry Uhlman. All rights reserved.
This story can be found at:
http://www.timesdispatch.com/entertainment/MGBB8W2FU3D.html
Denise Ryan, League of Conservation Voters
(202) 785-8683
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