[TN-Bird] Re: Hiwassee Whooping Crane
- From: "Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "TN-Bird" <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2002 00:24:16 -0600
Dear Mr. Trently:
You don't owe this list an apology for a message that has nothing to do with
cats,
indoors or out nor that it does not speak badly of any other birder. You
have permission to post something about birds in Tennessee, but please
refrain from doing this too often.
Did you and Allan Trently, Anthony Whitted and Ed Manous even stop for one
minute to think about how your LOVING A BANDED WHOOPING CRANE
TO DEATH at the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge might kill that bird? What good
would that do?
Your looking at this banded bird could possibly, probably, maybe, perhaps
cause
this bird to die. It might strangle on its food from being strared at by
you
LOVING A CRANE TO DEATH. It may, likely, possibly, see the sun reflected
off the band on its leg and be blinded while flying to escape your stare and
crash into an object and die.
If you guys ran out there to get the band number, what would that have told
us that we don't already know about Whooping Cranes? What would your
report of that number tell us that we need to know? You would just have
caused the death of the entire known population (100%) of a Whooping Carne
in a specific county in a specific state killed by banding.
What difference does it make what leg the band is on? Did the bander
stop to think that the band may have been better off on the bird's lower
right
leg rahther than on its upper left leg? What if that bird was blind in one
eye
on the right side of its body and would not have seen the reflection you
guys
caused and therefore didn't get killed? Does the banding office of the U.S.
Goverment not instruct birder to not stare at birds with bands? What good
could possibly come of you guys even being there? Why do you think you
have a right to be out there LOVING A BANDED WHOOPING CRANE
TO DEATH when you could be here on TN-Birds LOVING BIRDS TO DEATH
by sending messages like this one?
I certainly hope you were not out there making noise in front of those
Mallards, Gadwall and the Great Horned Owl. Did you pissh to get the
RUSTY BLACKBIRD to come to a cow pasture south of the refuge? If they
were in enough supply would you have advocated that a bander put a band
on them?
Rusty Blackbirds have been included in numerous previous research studies
and so have Whooping Cranes. Why would we want to justify a banding
report on TN-Birds of that bird which is a "one-of-a-kind" species in light
of
the fact that information is readily available to anyone willing to spend
the time reading or researching without having to read about birds in
Tennessee
on TN-Birds.
All I ask is that you think twice about reporting a banded "one-of-a-kind"
stray
in Tennessee in a single county on a single area -- and I pray that you
don't kill out
a species of birds in a region by "loving it to death by reporting its
banding."
You need to spend more time "hating birds to life." I have friends who
hate
starling so bad they can't stand them. They also hate crows and blackbirds.
Look at how good their numbers have become because they are "hated to life."
Isn't that good? I just love it. Look what you guys good have done by
"hating
the Whooping Cranes to life" until their numbers grow to establish an
eastern
migratory population. Just think about that. Just think.
Just because we can love something doesn't mean that we should -- and just
because we can report the presence of a "one-of-a-kind" banded species of
birds on TN-Birds to other birders doesn't mean we should -- and just
because
a bird-watcher who has a Wildlife Viewing tag on his car stares at birds
doesn't
doesn't mean he or she should!
I had four dozen e-mails tonight complaining about your mesage not being
about cats, indoors or out and that it does not speak badly of any other
birder.
I have had personal telephone calls expressing the same thoughts that I have
written above. I received four Christmas cards last week asking why I
didn't
stand up and take a position on "hating more birds to life." Two TN-Birders
came
by my house to personal express their appreciation of what I have written in
this e-mail and they hadn't seen it. They hate birds also. I respect that
in a
good TN-Birder and a good house cat :-) Oppps! I said the "c"-word.
Excuse
me.
Please don't think I have a wicked sense of humor. It couldn't be more true
:-)
Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN
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TN-Bird Net Owner: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx (423) 764-3958
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