It would be a sad, sad, world for sure. Not one I would want to witness!
Imagine no birdsong. Imagine what the insect populations would rise to. If
there were no birds, I imagine I would always be caught up on chores... how
boring that would be.
On Apr 30, 2020, at 8:16 AM, Bill Volkert <billvolkert11@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:####################
Friday we are predicted to have an over-night south wind and warm
temperatures for Saturday. So for those birds that tend to arrive in
early May we should see a nice migration. Each year I try to guess which
birds I will see for the first time when south winds provide ideal
conditions. Of course, birds don't always arrive on the same day every
year since the progress of spring pulses between warm days and colder north
winds, but they do return in the same general order. I find that watching
the migration is a wonderful way to gauge the progress of the season. It
is an experience that is full of anticipation as we wait for the next ones
to arrive.
In years when the season is fairly delayed and the migration has stalled
the woods seem empty for the lack of birds that should be there. And while
we expect their eventual arrival I need to ask, what if the never came?
Perhaps this is something we should ask ourselves? Extinction isn't just
the loss of a species; it is also the loss of an experience. But with the
decline of various bird populations we may lose not only these birds but
also the opportunity to watch them and enjoy some aspect of the season as
spring unfolds.
With our current ability to monitor birds and tally their numbers so
accurately will we simply watch as fewer arrive each year? What if we
knew that we had only so many years to see and enjoy some particular
species? Think of nighthawks, cuckoos, or the song of a
whip-poor-will. Conservation
may be an abstract concept, but to imagine the consequences of failure
maybe we need to ask, what if they never came?
Spring is a time of anticipation and hope as nature renews itself. Lets
hope that we can renew our efforts to save the things we love and preserve
the signs of a season that perhaps we take for granted.
Bill
FdL Co
--
Bill Volkert
Naturalist
www.billvolkert
####################
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