You are allowed to vent, Joe. Well put.
Unfortunately, too many birders treat the birds they watch as if those birds
were put there expressly for their own entertainment and amusement, and they
can treat them as they like.
To make matters worse, those same people cannot understand how and why "the
kids" are so enamored with Pokemon Go! At the very least, the Pokemon-finders
are not condemning nests to predation and nestlings to exposure and stress.
As for the fee-dodging, it is indeed baffling, especially when the fee-dodgers
are driving a big SUV and wearing all-khaki, micro-fiber activewear and
sensible shoes. It CAN'T be about the money.
Clay Taylor
TOS Life Member
Calallen (Corpus Christi) TX
Clay.taylor@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
401-965-9064
-----Original Message-----
From: texbirds-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:texbirds-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On ;
Behalf Of Joseph Kennedy
Sent: Saturday, April 29, 2017 3:40 PM
To: 4 Texbirds Maillist <texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [texbirds] Plovers, least terns and access or why do birders do what
they do
I have had several meetings with other birders along the coast recently that
make me wonder why some or many birders have little regard for the birds. And
have little regard for cost and effort needed to keep some of the best birding
areas in the country looking good. Having just spent a couple of weeks in
California, I know that they do not act there like they do when they come here.
And why would anybody continue to post about birds if it attracts such people
rather than those that enjoy and care about the birds.
I met a nice gentleman out on bolivar flats who wanted to take pictures of
snowy plovers. Especially if they are nesting. He mentioned that he had been
out on the flats on east beach and gotten pictures. Since the flats are
barricaded and marked with keep out signs, that seemed a little odd.
But when I went to east beach to where the plovers nested last year and where 2
pairs were present again what did I find but a broken rope and footprints going
out to the plovers.
One the same day, a group complained that the walk from the parking on east
beach was so far from the birds that they could not bird. I explained that the
area by the jetty for the fishermen was a short walk but they stated that
people from their state do not pay to go anywhere to bird. And they parked at
the bollards with no parking permit and went into high island on Winnie street
so they did not have to pay. When I was in their state, they sure charged me to
go to most good birding areas but then some of the highways near parks almost
are blocked so people can walk in for free. 5 out of 5 cars at the bollards the
other day had no parking stickers.
And then last year there was the "professional photographer" of least terns and
their babies who spent a couple of weeks at bolivar to document that least
terns feed fish to the babies which no one knew before. He climbed into the
nesting area when no one was around, when asked to move more than
10 feet from a baby tern waiting for food, he said 5 minutes and more than an
hour later he was still there. May have stepped on or next to an egg outside
the barrier that was well marked but it was too much trouble to walk 5 feet out
of his way. Never posted anything so the pictures are buried in the back of his
closet. Fishermen called the game warden several times but the wardens were
across the bay and the deputies were also tied up otherwise there would have
been a solution to the problem. And no sticker for the 2 weeks.
Anyway, enough grumping for the day. Enjoy birding but think of the birds first.
--
Joseph C. Kennedy
on Buffalo Bayou in West Houston
Josephkennedy36@xxxxxxxxx
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