RE: Starlings
- To: , ,
- Subject: RE: Starlings
- From: R* L* C*
- Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 11:41:40 -0600
- Importance: Normal
Sorry, but I couldn't let this go by. The House Finch, Carpodacus
mexicanus, is NOT a European import. Its distribution is largely in the US,
Mexico, and extreme southern Canada.
another Bob.
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Robert L. Chehey
Boise, ID, USA, USDA Zones 6a, 6b.
Cool, Mediterranean Shrub-steppe
and frondose riparian forest
N43º38.67' W116º13.68' Altitude: 770M
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-----Original Message-----
From: owner-medit-plants@ucdavis.edu
[o*@ucdavis.edu]On Behalf Of Bob Beer
Sent: Wednesday, October 13, 1999 10:40 AM
To: dave-poole@ilsham.demon.co.uk; medit-plants@ucdavis.edu
Subject: Re: Starlings
They seem to have emigrated to the U.S., along with the sparrows. Actually
they were imported into the U.S., along with other English birds, because
one settler decided that the New World should have all the birds mentioned
by the Bard... If there were ever a time machine, this man would be in
trouble!
Starlings nest in trees by the thousands in the midwest - a popular trick
among high-schoolers was to walk under such a tree in the evening, throw a
stick up into it and then run, leaving your companions behind to be "rained"
upon as the startled birds took off....:) Lincoln, Nebraska, recently
undertook an eradication program because the buildup of guano on sidewalks
and cars downtown every evening was just too much.
But aside from the mess, they are also displacing native birds. Bluebirds
used to be a common sight in midwestern cities when my father was a child;
now you are lucky to see one even in rural areas, because they are pushed
out of their nesting holes by sparrows and starlings. In Arkansas where my
mother lives, there has been a program of putting nest boxes around. The
holes are just large enough for bluebirds but too small for starlings and
sparrows, and bluebirds have made an amazing comeback; I saw flocks of them
last time I visited. However, the house finch, another European import
that expands more slowly, is now moving into the area. They are about the
same size as bluebirds and are displacing them again. As nobody is quite
sure how to handle this development; it seems that in the long run,
bluebirds are going to lose the fight.
Bob
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