Invasive Species

Video that details birds you don’t want at your feeder

There are many bird species nonnative to North America that have proliferated to such a point that they put a strain on the ecosystem; pushing out native creatures. Many of them became this way due to humans intentionally introducing them. While it’s impossible to deny that some of these birds have had a negative impact on native species, there are many different trains of thought when it comes to dealing with these birds. Some people are on the side of doing whatever it takes to eliminate them altogether. Others are on the side of gently dissuading them from inhabiting feeding and nesting places used by native birds. Then there are those that want the invasive species to be left alone and to be treated the same way one would a native species. As we found out in one of our videos, suggesting any of these viewpoints can be quite controversial. A lot of people grow attached to the birds they see regularly around their house, and often times they are invasive species such as House Sparrows and European Starlings. This can lead to very emotional reactions when someone suggests getting rid of them and thus, the debate begins.

Bird Viewing and Photography Ethics

Birders vs photographers can sometimes be a contentious relationship in and of itself with birders often viewing photographers as being obsessed with getting the perfect shot more than caring about the birds. While this is of course a generalization and its not right to paint an entire group of people with a broad stroke, there have been some documented cases of people behaving badly to get a photograph, or even just birders trying to get a closer look. There have been numerous issues with people getting too close to sensitive species and even accidentally chasing away rare birds.

The type of bird that has traditionally been at the epicenter of problems involving people getting too close are owls. There have been numerous issues with Snowy and long eared owls in particular getting repeatedly harassed by birders and photographers. Another thing that causes problems is the practice of owl baiting. Owl baiting is exactly what it sounds like, bringing a small animal, either alive or dead to a place where an owl is and placing it out in the open for the owl to come take. The reason people do this is to try and get flight shots or hunting shots of owls and other birds of prey. For obvious reasons, many people disagree with owl baiting, but others believe it to be okay.

In general, since everyone has a somewhat differing code of ethics when it coms to birding and photography, a lot of arguments start about the proper way to behave when out in the field.

Ivory billed Woodpecker

Oh the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. Who would have thought that talk about whether a bird is extinct or not could generate such rage. Surprisingly, that’s exactly what it does. There are two main sides to the Ivory billed woodpecker debate. One side believes the bird is extinct, and any discussion, time, or money put into looking for it is a waste. The other side believes it is still alive somewhere in the forests and swamps of the American South. Oddly enough, both sides can become quite aggressive in arguing their point, with Ivory-billed Woodpecker deniers viewing the other side as swindlers or conspiracy theorists, and ivory-billed Woodpecker believers viewing the other side as not having an open mind to the potential evidence out there. This debate has raged on to such a degree that ivory-billed woodpecker discussion has been banned from many different Facebook groups, and bringing it up will be a surefire way to start an argument or simply get booted.

Use of Playback

Playback is the process of using the call or song of a bird to lure it in closer or out in the open. It can be done to try and get a better look, to try and get a photo, or to see unique behavior. It seems that the majority of people believe that using playback sparingly to make an identification is likely okay, but there are ethical dilemmas associated with this topic. When people use playback during breeding season it may force birds to abandon their nests, leaving them open to parasitism, making them waste valuable energy, or making them move to different locations thus interrupting their breeding efforts. Additionally, there have been instances of people continuously trying to call an individual rare bird day after day to try and get the best looks possible. While one time, selective usuage likely won’t have much impact, prolonged playback can greatly interrupt the normal lives of birds and force them off their territory. Additionally, sensitive species are particularly suseptible to disturbances from playback and as a result, certain rules have been put in place for species such as black rails to prevent people from harassing them.

Gate Keeping

Piping Plover (Photo by Bill Grossmeyer)

Gate keeping is when a person or group of people are the deciders when it comes to who is allowed to see a bird or know where a bird is located. This can happen when a rare bird shows up in someone’s yard and the homeowner doesn’t want a mob of people descending on their property, or when a person or group of people know the location of a bird but only want to keep it to themselves or their own group of friends. Situations like this happen fairly often and they definitely turn in to controversial topics and ethical dilemmas. If a homeowner only wants a limited amount of people to be able to come see a bird on their property how are those few people decided? Are people entitled to be able to see any bird that is found? Who can be trusted to view rare birds in an ethical way and who cannot? These are all questions that make gate keeping in the birding world a complicated and certainly controversial topic.

Summary

Any hobby or activity will not exist without at least some controversy, especially one with as many different personalities involved as birding. It is amusing how seemingly innocuous things can generate such debate and in some cases such anger. It seems that anything that involves humans will have some sort of controversy attached to it.

The House Sparrow is one of the most common birds in the United States. Its adaptability and hardiness make it abundant in places where other species don’t live. With a fierce attitude, this aggressive bird out-competes other species and is considered to be an ecological pest.

Much of the distain toward the House Sparrow stems from the fact that it was not originally native to North American, putting it at the top of the list of avian invasives. So where did the House Sparrow come from? And what do we do with it now that it’s here?

Before we look into the story of the House Sparrow let’s take a minute to understand it as a species. The House Sparrow is a stout bird with a round head and short bill. Males have a chestnut back, gray crown and underside, white cheeks and a black bib. Females are light brown with buff and brown striped backs and a buffy eye stripe. The House Sparrow’s native range is Europe, Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East. They live in groups and can be found near humans as they take advantage of scraps left behind in cities. House Sparrows are extremely territorial cavity nesters that will attack other birds trying to nest in an area they inhabit.

Now for the House Sparrows westward expansion: let’s go back to the year 1850. Millard Fillmore had just become president after Zachary Taylor died in office, the entire western half of the US was territories, and the fugitive slave act was passed by congress. This is pre-civil war America and in the midst of a migrant boom with over 30 million European immigrants making their way across the Atlantic between 1836 and 1914.

At this time in American history, a fascination arose for trading wildlife from one continent to another. Many wealthy individuals and societies on the east coast began dabbling in this hobby. One such organization was the Brooklyn Institute in New York.

To know the story of the House Sparrow we have to know the institute’s director: Nicholas Pike. Pike cemented his spot in the story as the man responsible for the first House Sparrows brought to the United states when he had 8 pairs shipped over in 1850. The cited reason for the introduction? To control an infestation of insects (either canker worms or larva of the linden moth). A secondary reason was to bring a species to America that European immigrants would be used to and find pleasant. Yes, that’s right, pleasant. At this point in time, nobody knew of the negative consequences introducing a nonnative species could have on native wildlife. As a result, the importation of the initial birds was met with little resistance.

In 1851 the first 16 birds were released. Here is where the story gets a bit murky. Pike is quoted as stating that the first 16 birds “did not thrive” upon their release. Some argue that this means all 16 birds perished. Others suggest this may just mean that they disappeared, perhaps dispersing and starting their lives as the first colonists to one day spread their species all across the new world.

In 1852, Pike was appointed Consul General to Portugal and sailed to Liverpool where he made a large order of songbirds including 50 pairs of House Sparrows. The birds were shipped over on the steamship Europa. Pike however was on his way to Portugal and was not present when the sparrows made it to America. 50 of these birds were released in the Narrows in 1852 and then another 50 were released at the Green-wood Cemetery Chapel a year later in 1853. The problem is that Pike did not witness the release of these birds, and his account is the only one to go off of as it pertains to the initial three releases. As a result it’s impossible to say which batch of released birds was the first to gain a foothold in the United States. But let’s pause for a second, because something important happened in 1854 that changed the landscape of world bird life.

In 1854, half way around the world in Paris, the Société zoologique d’acclimatation was founded by French naturalist Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. The goal of this group was to bring in flora and fauna that could be useful for pest control and food sources. In America, copycat societies were starting to pop up as well., including one in New York.

Now, lets get to know another important man in this story, Eugene Schieffelin. Schieffelin was a pharmacist and amateur ornithologist very interested in the importation of European bird species. He was a prominent member of the American Acclimatization Society and started by importing House Sparrows as pest control around his Madison Square home. Schieffelin was not only responsible for the release of many House Sparrows, but is almost single handedly responsible for the release of another invasive, the European starling. But that’s a story for another time, Anyway, Schieffelin certainly played a role in the propagation of the House Sparrow and along with other sister organizations such as the Cincinnati Acclimatization Society continued to release European Species into North America. Some other bird species released by these groups were Song Thrushes, Wagtails, and Skylarks, but the House Sparrow was one of the few that was able to succeed. Why?

For starters, the house sparrow is hardy and adaptable. They eat a wide variety of foods including grains, insects, and even fruits and berries. They are perfectly comfortable living alongside humans and take advantage of city structures to nest in. They are prolific breeders having multiple broods of usually over 3 chicks at a time. In addition, they nest earlier in the year than most migratory species, allowing them to establish nests before other species migrate back to compete for nest sites. To make life even easier for the House Sparrow, they lacked natural predators in North America, thus allowing them to multiply totally unchecked.

In the following years house sparrows continued to be introduced by various organizations. Portland, Maine in 1854, Nova Scotia in 1856, New Haven in 1857, and Peacedale, RI in 1858. By 1870 House Sparrows could be found as far west as Texas and as far south as the Carolinas. In 1871 House Sparrows were introduced to San Francisco and Hawaii, they were in Salt Lake City in 1872, and established as a breeding bird in California by 1910.

In the late 1800’s people were beginning to notice the potential negative impact of the House Sparrows. In 1887 and 1895 Illinois and Michigan spent a total of 117,500 dollars on efforts to eradicate the species; the modern equivalent of about 2.2 million dollars. In 1898 the department of agriculture wrote an article labeling the House Sparrow “one of the worst avian pests”

So why are house sparrows bad for North America? The biggest reasons have to do with competition with native species. The House sparrow is particularly aggressive when it comes to nesting sites. They have been known to kill other cavity nesting birds including adults, juveniles, and eggs. Many bird lovers have nothing but disdain for the house sparrow, especially those who have ever had bird houses invaded by them.

So what are people doing about this invasive species? Right now, not much. The House sparrow is so well established that it would take a massive initiative to even make a dent in their population. In addition, it’s estimated that anything capable of wiping out house sparrows would also have immense negative effects on native species. For now, any efforts on removing house sparrows is focused on removing them from locations inhabited by sensitive species and are occurring on a small scale. With a population of 540 million worldwide it would seem the house sparrow is not going anywhere anytime soon.

Are there any positives about House Sparrows living in the US? Well, they might eat some insects that are harmful to crops such as alfalfa, maybe.

The House Sparrow’s story is one of intrigue. This is the story of a hardy and aggressive bird coming to colonize a foreign land and stretching its reach east to west across the continent. It is a story of a misguided introduction effort in an attempt to bring some of the old world to the new. And it is a story of an unwanted human companion that has been with Americans even before the civil war started. Sure, many detest them, but that hasn’t deterred the house sparrow from making itself at home in the land of the free.

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