Thanks for your report Jason. The potential link between your observations and the decrease in bird sightings is very disturbing, to say the least. Big Ag is slowly poisoning our air, water, and land, and there seems to be little we can do to stop it.
My wife and I were in South Africa a few years ago, and visited several vineyards just outside of Cape Town. What a world of difference in how they view the land and wildlife when compared to the majority (but certainly not all) of our agricultural community. The vineyards we visited had areas of natural vegetation interspersed in the growing areas. There were also tall T shaped poles spread at intervals throughout the vineyards. It was explained to us that typically chemicals were not used in the vineyards, and they welcomed wildlife since it was considered to be a natural part of the landscape. The natural vegetation areas also provided cover for rodents, which would feed on the grapes, so their answer was to provide poles in the vineyards which were used as perches by Owls, which fed on the rodents and kept the populations under control. We were told this works very well and is standard practice for vineyards in South Africa. I can attest to the abundance of birds around the vineyards. Much to the chagrin of my wife, I spent more time birding at the vineyards than sampling the wines, most of which were excellent, as was the birding. I don't know if these practices carry over to the growing of other crops in South Africa, but it was certainly a wonderful experience to see the harmony between nature and agriculture. Paul Worwa -----Original Message----- From: Jason Frank [mailto:jmfran...@gmail.com] Sent: Monday, October 9, 2017 2:42 PM To: MOU-NET@LISTS.UMN.EDU Subject: Re: [mou-net] Lack of Birds at Bird Feeders I've noticed it too here in southwest MN. I work in Canby, and in early August people began mentioning to me that their feeders were deserted. The most conspicuous absence was Robins. Other "town birds" like Chickadees, Grackles, Catbirds, Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers, Mourning Doves, Nuthatches were scarce as well. Most of the towns in Lac qui Parle and Yellow Medicine Counties are full of Eurasian Collared Doves, but they prefer to feed on spilled grains at the elevators, so I don't think they're out-competing the others. Back in May, I located a few pairs of nesting Bluebirds, but after the heavy rain and cool weather mid-month, they either starved or abandoned their sites. Very few pheasant and turkey nestlings survived that period. There weren't as many Chimney Swifts this year. Nighthawks were fine, but all summer long, I hardly saw any bats, and a lot of other people have mentioned this to me. Wild grapes, berries, and nuts did very well this year. One pattern that's apparent is that the birds we're missing are all likely to live close to human activity. Beginning in August, Canby began spraying twice a week for a strange late-season mosquito infestation (there were virtually no biting bugs in May, June, or July). The spray had no effect on the mosquitoes, but coincided with the emptying of the feeders. Area farmers sprayed more this year than any year I can remember (the amaranth out here is now resistant to Roundup, so they're spraying Dicamba, which is more prone to drift and even the fumes will poison nearby plants during evaporation); in the last 2 weeks of July and first 2 weeks of August, we had crop dusters in the sky EVERY day, even during extremely windy conditions. I noticed some elderberry shrubs along field edges whose leaves showed the telltale cup-shaped shriveling associated with Dicamba, and the berries (which were intact) were stripped as soon as they ripened. Considering how much wild fruit grows along fencelines and field edges, and also knowing that it's decimated beehives around the country, I'm wondering if this summer's slash-and-burn pesticide offensive may have something to do with it. Circumstantially, the timing works out: peak wild fruit time, and also about the time when Goldfinches are nesting and eating wild thistle seeds. Jason Frank Lac qui Parle On 10/9/17, Alan Stankevitz <a...@iwishicouldfly.com> wrote: > Since August, our bird population at our feeders has been way down > here in SE MN. Others in Houston County who regularly feed birds are > also noticing the same scenario. I do see and hear a few chickadees, > titmice, woodpeckers, blue jays and goldfinches but currently only the > goldfinches seem to be eating regularly at the feeders. > > I have been on the lookout for predators such as hawks and kestrels, > but haven't noticed any depredation as the cause. > > I'd be curious to know if this is only local to our area, or elsewhere > in the state. We have had other years where things slow down during > this time of year, but never to this extent. My speculation is that > food is in abundance right now and that most birds are feeding > naturally. Last year due to a late freeze we had very little (if any) > tree nuts, but this year nuts are in abundance. > > Alan Stankevitz > Mound Prairie Township > Houston Co. MN > > > ---- > Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net > Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html > ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
