This evening I had the opportunity to speak with the owner of the house that has had the Golden-crowned Sparrow frequenting his feeders. When birders first started showing up last month, he was quite tolerant and even enjoyed talking to folks about the bird he was responsible for hosting at his feeders. Unfortunately, a few recent encounters has soured him to the whole bird chasing phenomenon.
He was frustrated with people walking onto private property without any apparent concern for the owners. Furthermore, he was appalled that people were posting his address online. He indicated that most people who showed up were quite considerate and friendly but a few groups were downright rude. He says if things get worse he will take down his feeders, a loss for him as he enjoys the birds and a loss for the birding community as many folks have visited and enjoyed this pretty little bird. When I asked how we could rectify this situation, he said it would be great if visitors could stay on the road and not wander onto the private parking lot just south of his house. Particularly since the incorporation of social media and ebird to the birding community at large, consistent unusual or rare birds can be an issue for private land owners. Lets all try hard to be as courteous and respectful as we can and hopefully give the birding community a better reputation. Rob Raker Lakewood, CO -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/ddb2232d-a202-41fe-93d3-f4efcdf0865c%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
