I reported (and continue to report) a "rare" bird at my house. Luckily, it hangs out in the front yard, in a neighborhood with wide streets and lots of parking. Also fortunate is the fact that the bird is only rare in this part of Colorado, and it's not an especially photogenic bird. I only report the exact location knowing that the bird won't attract a ton of visitors, and the neighborhood can accommodate people parking for awhile. That's MY choice, but the people on the Hotspot road don't have that choice.
In the case of the owl, if everyone had just used the Hotspot location, and not given out the specific area at the hotspot, maybe things would not have gotten out of hand...but hindsight is always 20/20. That road is narrow, with very few parking pull-offs. If I lived on that road, I'm sure I would be upset too, at increased car traffic and people parked where they should not be, but at this point, what can WE do, except to maybe stay away, or at a minimum, don't report the location on eBird for awhile, in hopes that things will die down, once the photographers get their shots. I think the bulk of us on CoBird "do the right thing", but there are certainly other social media sites where not everyone can be trusted to "Bird Ethically". Susan Rosine Brighton Adams County On Sat, Mar 5, 2022, 5:50 PM MARK CHAVEZ <markcha...@comcast.net> wrote: > Dan, as always right on point. This is not a photographer issue or birder > issue but an evolution of social media. There is a trend that everyone > feels that a specific location is required when reporting a bird. You > should NEVER give specific locations in a neighborhood without speaking to > the homeowner first. Not everyone is comfortable with 100 pairs of > binoculars focused in their backyard. Would you??? The Pine Warbler in > Denver is a perfect example. I refound the bird the first day reported and > had a great conversation with the homeowner. He stated he wanted the > location placed in Ft. Logan like the finder did. He did not feel > comfortable with the idea of people staring at the feeders in the > frontyard. But in the last few weeks people have been giving out the > specific location/home address. > > If anyone was in Broomfield for the Sedge Wren, you understand. A friend > sent me a disturbing video of ten birders in a circle surrounding the bird, > and then counting to ten and taking a step inward everytime, closing the > circle, and attempting to get this poor bird to flush. The individual who > sent me the video never got the bird and no longer goes to these > situations. Once you report an exact location, you can expect sometimes > hundreds of people decending on the location, many to see or photograph a > beautiful bird, get a lifer, or for social needs. I have many owl locations > that I would never give specific locations on. Like Dan stated, it is a > personal decision that needs to be thought out. Once you give the specific > location, it's unfair to point fingers at birders or photographers. I know > many people that don't report specific locations for different reasons > including protecting a patch, the bird, or neighborhood. There's nothing > wrong with using a hotspot and have people "bird" and maybe find something > else. > > Mark Chavez > Lakewood-Green Mtn > > -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ --- 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 cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CACPnx8UtdMhbkkTjX3Zcvg1tHddnR30A4RnYqX8USUx3UHN64g%40mail.gmail.com.
