Something Troubling

For two years, I have been a member of a Facebook group called

"Kansas Birding" .  Since Keith was dying a great part of that time, I did not have time to go 

out and take shots and contribute to it, but I loved seeing everyone else's shots. 

I learned so much from it. 

Today, I learned something that hurt my heart.  A man who posts multiple times

daily, and whom I really admired... posted a picture of what appeared to be a cage. 

I jokingly referred to it, saying that sparrows had to eat, too. 

Imagine my surprise as I read down the comments, and realized it 

was a cage to trap and kill sparrows during the winter, which he 

considered a trash bird.  Not release them somewhere, but kill them, 

presumably by drowning, a horrible death. 

I was stunned.  I am still stunned, an hour later. 

This person often shows one of his children with him, teaching him the 

ropes of birding.  What stunned me even more was that there was a long list of 

people cheering him on, also referring to the sparrows and how they polluted everything and ate all the seed. 

I guess it worries me that someone is teaching a child it's okay to love SOME things, but to kill those you don't. 

Those of you who have read Calamity Acres over the nine years I have blogged, 

know me well.  We have had llamas, a pony, mini horses, turkeys, geese, 

chickens large and small, 

beloved dogs and cats, and my dear goats. 

I know what a "trash bird" can do to a henhouse: 

But, you know what?  We didn't poison or kill the starlings. 

As a matter of fact, a  very nice man has been working on this henhouse, which may be ready by spring... and has sealed off all the entry points by which they came in. 

That is how I roll. 

Prevention. 

I know you can't prevent sparrows from coming into your yard, don't worry. 

I feed the starlings, too, along with everything else that's hungry in the 

winter.  To see hundreds of  starlings feeding is something else, and no, I don't love it.  But I work around it.  I feed after they have gone away, so the little birds, blue jays, juncoes, titmice, 

cardinals (last to eat) and the crows, plus all the sparrows... have a chance.  Yes, the bills are higher... so what. 

A former neighbor took his martin houses down in the fall... 

so the sparrows would not take them over. 

Prevention. 

Like I said, I am so disappointed in this person, and have quit following him. 

I'll probably stop following Kansas Birding as well, because, you see... I don't bird in my 

limited time because I want to see hawks and owls and other birds of prey.  I bird because I love all the birds, large and small.  I stopped on a country road this afternoon to watch two swans with 

a group of geese on a farm pond,  but I stop just as much for the smaller birds, too.    It doesn't have to be spectacular. And for the heck of it, I saw a Northern Harrier up close and personal on my way back from the feed store, just before the swans, so see... nature is all around us. 

It doesn't have to be something spectacular. 

Joe Petersburger, a photographer whom I follow on Instagram, often says 

"keep a small footprint, and see what's RIGHT AROUND YOU".  

My beautiful Lilly, just 30 minutes ago.  She is not feeling well, and goes to see the dogtor tomorrow afternoon.   You can't see it in this picture, but there is a large bare spot on her other side, 

and I suspect ringworm, but we will see. 

Not killing this one for doing what comes natural to protective roosters, either. 

He came at me several times today, but got surprised each time.  He will soon learn. Noise and slapping a stick in your hand goes a long way. 

I took twenty minutes to pitchfork out under the roosts in the hen spa. 

Ugh.  Normally I would put this on the compost heaps, but today, I let it 

drop in the henyard for the hens to pick through again, and put fresh straw on the area.  

Jester was loath to start his day this morning, but it turned into a glorious fall day, 

55 and sunny! 

Rant over.