[TN-Bird] Re: On the pluses and minuses of feeding birds
- From: "Charles P. Nicholson" <cpnichol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 3 Apr 2008 20:58:28 -0400
After I posted this, a reader kindly pointed out to me that they could only
access the abstract of the article and not the full article. If anyone
wants a copy of the full article, send me an email off line at
cpnichol@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Chuck Nicholson
Norris, TN
-----Original Message-----
From: tn-bird-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:tn-bird-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Charles P. Nicholson
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2008 7:54 PM
To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [TN-Bird] On the
An interesting analysis of the effects of bird feeding on bird populations
was recently published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the
Environment. The article is available online for free at
http://www.esajournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-pdf&doi=10.1890%2F060152.
Below is a press release on the article issued by the Ecological Society of
America.
The article is very interesting in that it shows bird feeding can have
beneficial effects on the reproduction of the birds being fed. It can also
have negative effects due to increased predation pressure and disease
transmission. It is important to note, however, that there are relatively
few rigorous studies of some of these effects.
The article does not address one potentially major issue, the effect on bird
populations from the many thousands of acres of land devoted to producing
the food we feed to birds. Much of that land may otherwise be productive
tall grass prairie, bottomland hardwood forest, longleaf pine forest, and
other productive bird habitats.
I think the bottom line of this is that our bird feeding only directly
benefits a small number of birds, most of which would be pretty numerous
even if we did not feed them. And it probably benefits the feeder as much
or more than the fed.
Chuck Nicholson
Norris, TN
-----Original Message-----
From: Ecological Society of America: Society News and Business Only
[mailto:ESANEWS@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Nadine Lymn
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2008 9:06 AM
To: ESANEWS@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: ESA News Release: Bird feeding benefits up in the air
Ecological Society of America News Release
Food for Thought
Bird feeding benefits up in the air
Millions of people tend bird feeders in their backyards each year, often
out of a desire to help the animals. But a new survey of research on
the topic finds that feeding may not always bring a positive outcome for
the birds.
Published as a Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment e-View paper
(www.frontiersinecology.org), the meta-analysis led by Gillian Robb
(Queen's University Belfast, UK) and by Stuart Bearhop (University of
Exeter, UK) reviewed results from more than 50 pieces of research
conducted over the last decade.
In many cases, bird feeding was shown to have immediate positive
outcomes. A number of studies indicated, for example, that chicks which
were given supplemental food were far more likely to fledge than those
that were not given extra food.
But feeding is a complex business and can lead birds to make poor
decisions later in life. Attractive feeders can become ecological
traps, encouraging birds to settle in an area that cannot support them
once supplemental feeding has stopped. In those cases, feeders create a
population level that cannot be sustained by natural levels of food.
There are also times when feeding can affect the timing of a bird's life
in unexpected ways. One study, for example, showed that Florida scrub
jays breeding in suburban habitats with access to supplementary food
breed earlier, but find themselves out of sync with natural food items
which are important when rearing nestlings. This means the extra food
can lead to a decrease in breeding success rather than an increase.
Surprisingly, the research team also found evidence in several studies
which indicated that the flurry of activity caused by bird feeding does
not increase the birds' risk of predation. Counter-intuitively, the
presence of feeders has been associated with lower levels of predation
by domestic cats.
Robb and Bearhop say that the wide variety of outcomes they discovered
in their work point to a real need for more comprehensive research on
the topic. Although bird feeding itself may seem somewhat marginal, an
incredible number of people do it. Surveys conducted in the US in 2003
revealed that more than 43 percent of those asked give birds some kind
of food. In the UK, surveys indicate that as much as 75 percent of the
general public feeds the birds.
"Changing the natural dynamics of food supply at such a large scale
represents a major intervention in the ecology of birds," says Robb.
"But we have a remarkably limited understanding of the impacts of bird
feeding."
There have been relatively few studies conducted which incorporate urban
and suburban yards, for example, and very few studies have run for more
than one or two years or considered more than one species. Robb and
Bearhop plan to continue their investigations at field sites in Northern
Ireland and Cornwall.
"It seems highly likely that natural selection is being disrupted," Robb
says.
The Ecological Society of America is the world's largest professional
organization of ecologists, representing 10,000 scientists in the United
States and around the globe. Since its founding in 1915, ESA has
promoted the responsible application of ecological principles to the
solution of environmental problems through ESA reports, journals,
research, and expert testimony to Congress. ESA publishes four journals
and convenes an annual scientific conference. Visit the ESA website at
http://www.esa.org.
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=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================
The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with
first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation.
You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds
you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should
appear in the first paragraph.
_____________________________________________________________
To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
_____________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send email to:
tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
______________________________________________________________
TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society
Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
endorse the views or opinions expressed
by the members of this discussion group.
Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Andy Jones
Cleveland, OH
-------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Dave Worley
Rosedale, VA
__________________________________________________________
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ARCHIVES
TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/
EXCELLENT MAP RESOURCES
Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp
Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif
Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com
_____________________________________________________________
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