As I point out to my students, every human has an environmental impact. Our=
goal as individuals should aim at minimizing our impact...it will never be=
zero! On that note, I believe as environmental stewards, we should think =
long and hard about using bird calls to lure in birds for whatever purpose.=
..always weigh the pros and cons, but think again about the cons before we =
act.
Sent from my iPhone
> On Jan 5, 2014, at 10:05 PM, "Chris Harrison" <> wrote=
:
>
> In answer to Eric=E2=80=99s statement, audio playback is banned in most p=
arks and refuges as it should be.
>
>
>
> I am not only interested in recording natural sounds, I am also a birdwat=
cher and have been birding for 30+ years. This issue comes up frequently i=
n birding circles, as you can imagine. I think we as consumers of these w=
ildlife resources, even if only through watching, recording, or photographi=
ng, should be the most staunch defenders of protecting the resources we cla=
im to love. No one ever really needs a particular photo, recording, or bi=
rd on their lifelist. Never. You may have been hired to get a recording o=
r a photo by agency, but you don=E2=80=99t really NEED to have it. This me=
ans there should NEVER be a reason to play a bird=E2=80=99s call back to it=
. I hear birders talking about =E2=80=9Cconfirming the species identity=
=E2=80=9D etc. as justification, but you didn=E2=80=99t need to know what i=
t was enough to justify disturbing it. (I=E2=80=99m aware that simply bein=
g in the animals habitat is disruptive, but we should aim to minimize our d=
isruptive footprint as best we can.
>
>
>
> Birders will happily play owl calls to bring in birds so they can see the=
m or impersonate or play a bird=E2=80=99s call to get it close. Doing so i=
s disruptive to the wildlife. If it wasn=E2=80=99t, it wouldn=E2=80=99t wo=
rk!
>
>
>
> I am guilty in that I have =E2=80=9Cpsssshed=E2=80=9D to bring a bird out=
into view (mimicking the alarm call of other birds) and whistled a call ba=
ck to a bird to get it to come into view. But it is wrong to do so and I d=
on=E2=80=99t do it as a rule.
>
>
>
> BTW =E2=80=93 the same playback thing works with frogs and I have seen a =
lot of frog recordings that have =E2=80=9Cresponded to playback of call=E2=
=80=9D in their descriptions.
>
>
>
> Think about this - which has greatest potential to harm the species you a=
re interested in: playing back a call to it or throwing a beer can out of y=
our car at the site? I say the former is more disruptive even though the =
idea of littering raises more people=E2=80=99s hackles and is perceived as =
=E2=80=9Cworse=E2=80=9D.
>
>
>
> Lastly, it doesn=E2=80=99t make it OK to do it just because you think you=
are the only one that would do it in that area. If it would be wrong for =
100 people to do it, it is wrong for you to do it. By that logic, throwing=
one beer can out the window is ok because very few people come here so I=
=E2=80=99m probably the only person who would litter.
>
>
>
> clump, clump, clump (stepping off soapbox)
>
>
>
> Chris
>
>
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