Surely the House Crow, Common Mynah,
Common Starling etc are perceived as dull and ugly, whereas Cattle Egrets are
white and fluffy, therefore acceptable. Similarly, Red-whiskered Bulbuls and
Goldfinches are generally accepted as they are ‘pretty’ but House
Sparrows are brown and unattractive.
Around 90 pct of the birds I get in my
suburban back-yard are Spotted Turtle-doves, they are much more prevalent
around here than Mynahs or Starlings, yet no one seems to be building traps to
get rid of them.
By the way, my garden is half wilderness
with no chemicals used, my neighbor’s garden has not been touched for
years, but I never get any small birds at all except the odd House sparrow. On
the other hand I get all of the large birds from Starlings up to White-faced
Herons. I have planted small grevillias and bottle-brushes, but no luck at all.
Regards, Mike Simpson
Penrith, NSW, Australia
