Anthea Fleming spotted this on the Guardian Unlimited site and thought you
should see it.
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Note from Anthea Fleming:
Few Australians would worry if sparrows disappeared from our continent, but
this story may have some implications for our native birds. Land-clearing for
instance.
Anthea Fleming
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To see this story with its related links on the Guardian Unlimited site, go to
http://www.guardian.co.uk
Where have all our sparrows gone?
Alok Jha
Wednesday May 07 2003
The Guardian
Into the bellies of the nation's beloved pussy cats, if the Royal Society for
the Protection of Birds is to be believed. But this may well be only one reason
for the dramatic decline in sparrows.
The number of British house sparrows has fallen from 12 million pairs in 1970
to around 7 million pairs now. In London, sparrows have almost disappeared
completely.
Cats certainly must claim some responsibility. A study carried out in
Bedfordshire showed that, over a year, they were killing up to half of the
sparrow population. If this was the sole reason, we should be seeing declines
in all bird populations which isn't the case. Ornithologists agree something
else is picking off the birds.
In the countryside, for example, sparrows have become the sad casualties of
modern intensive farming methods. Like many rural birds, their winter food
sources have dwindled as farmers have switched from spring-sown to
autumn-sown wheat. Also, grain stores have been made increasingly impregnable
to the birds.
In London, the sparrow population dropped by 70% between 1994 and 2001. St
James' Park lost the last of its sparrows in 1999 and, of all the royal parks,
only Kensington Gardens has any left. No one knows why but there are plenty of
theories.
Changes in building practices in towns mean that sparrows are finding it more
difficult to make nests. The results of a survey in Bristol suggested that loft
insulation in homes could be deterring the birds. Airborne fibreglass was
thought to have adverse respiratory effects on the birds.
Our attempts to clean up the environment could also be having inadvertent
consequences on the birds. In the past, weeds in gardens and on the ground were
a rich source of seeds, and sparrows could also forage for food on undeveloped
land in towns.
Lead-free petrol may also be to blame. Researchers are looking at whether the
chemicals used in the petrol to replace lead might reduce the number of
greenfly in towns - sparrows feed their chicks these aphids in the first few
days after they have hatched. The flies are also being eradicated by increased
use of pesticides in town and country gardens.
Finally, bird lovers may also be under suspicion. One of the most popular
dishes of the day at bird tables is black sunflower seed and some scientists
believe that it may not be good for sparrows - stale bread crusts or bacon
rinds would be much better. Additionally, feeders and bird tables that are not
cleaned properly may be spreading diseases.
As a result, the RSPB has mobilised its volunteer army for a spot of mass
birdwatching this week.
People are being asked to venture into their gardens and report the number of
sparrows they see on any given day. They will also need to collect additional
information such as whether or not the sparrows are nesting in the garden and
if they are seen feeding. The RSPB hopes that it will elicit a huge response -
they expect around 100,000 people to write in. They particularly want data from
less populated parts of the country.
The British Trust for Ornithology is running a complementary house sparrow
poll. Though it expects fewer people to take part, its survey will be more
detailed than the RSPB's.
To take part in the RSPB survey, which runs until Sunday, go to
www.rspb.org.uk/sparrowatch or call the house sparrow hotline on 0870 601 0215.
It's fine to take part for only one day. For more details on the BTO survey,
send an email to
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