[TN-Bird] Re: north american bird mortality
- From: "Mcdonald, Kenneth" <kenneth_mcdonald@xxxxxxx>
- To: David B Coe <davidbcoeauthor@xxxxxxxxx>, TN-Birds <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 6 Jun 2014 16:49:44 -0500
I think the operative point is scale of risk. The example given at the
beginning of the thread was areas that see a lot of pressure from birders.
My own example was the Smokies: it's America's most visited National Park.
The NPS looks at both individual and cumulative effects - the risk of one
person performing an act and the risk of millions of people repeating the
act. The same can be said of areas frequented by large numbers of birders
each year. There is the impact I, as an individual might have ...then there
is the aggregate, cumulative impact of many people on the same area. I
present some literature below that touches the surface of how casual human
encounters can shape the behavior of individual birds and the structure of
avian communities.
Gill, Jennifer A. "Approaches to measuring the effects of human disturbance
on birds." *Ibis* 149.s1 (2007): 9-14.
Cresswell, Will. "Non‐lethal effects of predation in birds." *Ibis* 150.1
(2008): 3-17.
Fernández-Juricic, Esteban. "Can human disturbance promote nestedness? A
case study with breeding birds in urban habitat fragments." *Oecologia* 131.2
(2002): 269-278.
Miller, James R., and N. Thompson Hobbs. "Recreational trails, human
activity, and nest predation in lowland riparian areas." *Landscape and
urban planning *50.4 (2000): 227-236.
On Fri, Jun 6, 2014 at 4:35 PM, David B Coe <davidbcoeauthor@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
> As I understand it, there is no law concerning spishing or recordings.
> The Migratory Bird Act protects birds from direct harm. And specific
> localities have banned these activities, as is their right. But there is no
> law against spishing, and outside of breeding season I’m really not
> convinced that it is a harmful practice. Using recordings might be
> somewhat more intrusive, and I think that discussing the ethics of both is
> a worthy use of this forum. But I think that Stephen raises an excellent
> point about the relative harm that spishing might do. And I also think
> that the point Rick raised about any foray into a natural environment being
> a disturbance is an excellent one. How many of us have accidentally
> flushed an owl or hawk only to have that bird mobbed by crows as a direct
> result. I know that I have, perhaps to the detriment of the owl. So am I
> to give up birding? Of course not, and I realize no one is saying that I
> should. But I just think that there is a balance to be found between being
> aware of the harm we can do on breeding grounds and endorsing blanket rules
> that are beyond what is necessary to protect wildlife.
>
> *****
> David B. Coe
> www.DavidBCoe.com
> www.dbjackson-author.com
>
> Now Available:
> THIEFTAKER, by D.B. Jackson
> THIEVES' QUARRY, by D.B. Jackson
>
> Coming Soon: A PLUNDER OF SOULS, by D.B. Jackson
>
>
>
>
> On Jun 6, 2014, at 4:26 PM, Mcdonald, Kenneth <kenneth_mcdonald@xxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>
> One is still a violation of the law, though.
>
>
> On Fri, Jun 6, 2014 at 4:22 PM, David B Coe <davidbcoeauthor@xxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>
>> And I have to say that I would be utterly shocked if the number of deaths
>> caused by spishers and birders using recordings came anywhere near the
>> upper end of Stephen’s estimate.
>> *****
>> David B. Coe
>> www.DavidBCoe.com <http://www.davidbcoe.com/>
>> www.dbjackson-author.com
>>
>> Now Available:
>> THIEFTAKER, by D.B. Jackson
>> THIEVES' QUARRY, by D.B. Jackson
>>
>> Coming Soon: A PLUNDER OF SOULS, by D.B. Jackson
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Jun 6, 2014, at 4:09 PM, Carole Gobert <cpgobert@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>
>> oil spills, habitat degradation/destruction, natural predators,
>> pesticides... it's a wonder there are any birds left
>>
>> Carole Gobert, Knoxville
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> Date: Fri, 6 Jun 2014 17:02:59 -0400
>> Subject: [TN-Bird] Re: north american bird mortality
>> From: wgpu@xxxxxxxxxxx
>> To: SStedman@xxxxxxxxxx; tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>
>> Windmills and desert solar arrays.
>>
>> Bates Estabrooks
>> Anderson Cty.
>>
>> --- Original Message ---
>>
>> From: "Stedman, Stephen" <SStedman@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> Sent: June 6, 2014 4:56 PM
>> To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> Subject: [TN-Bird] north american bird mortality
>>
>> Estimated bird deaths caused by free-roaming cats in North America: 1
>> billion per year.
>>
>>
>> Estimated bird deaths caused by bird-strikes against windows in North
>> America: 100 million per year.
>>
>>
>> Estimated bird deaths caused by bird-strikes against structures other
>> than windows in North America: 10 million plus per year.
>>
>>
>> Estimated bird deaths caused by illegal shooting in North America: 5
>> million plus per year.
>>
>>
>> Estimated bird deaths caused by collisions with automobiles in North
>> America: 1 million plus per year; but automobiles are a net plus for birds
>> because of all the bird predators that are also killed by collisions with
>> automobiles.
>>
>>
>> Estimated bird deaths caused by spishers in North America: 1000-10000 per
>> year; I pulled this figure out of the air but I doubt it is out of touch
>> with reality by much.
>>
>>
>> Now where should those enforcing the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 be
>> focusing their attention?
>>
>>
>> Stephen J. Stedman, Ph.D.
>> Professor Emeritus
>> Tennessee Technological University
>> 2675 Lakeland Dr.
>> Cookeville, TN 38506
>>
>>
>> 931-528-3820
>>
>>
>> http://iweb.tntech.edu/sstedman/birds.htm
>>
>>
>>
>
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> --
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> *Kenneth W. McDonaldEnergy Biologist U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service446
> Neal StreetCookeville, TN 38501Office: 931.525.4990Fax:
> 931.528.7075kenneth_mcdonald@xxxxxxx <kenneth_mcdonald@xxxxxxx>*
>
> Energy and persistence will conquer all things
> - Benjamin Franklin
>
>
>
--
*Kenneth W. McDonaldEnergy BiologistU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service446 Neal
StreetCookeville, TN 38501Office: 931.525.4990Fax:
931.528.7075kenneth_mcdonald@xxxxxxx <kenneth_mcdonald@xxxxxxx>*
Energy and persistence will conquer all things
- Benjamin Franklin
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