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From: seb@mtgzz.UUCP (s.e.badian)
Newsgroups: net.rec.birds
Subject: Re: The Great Net Cleanup Part IIb
Message-ID: <1029@mtgzz.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 6-Aug-85 21:14:24 EDT
Article-I.D.: mtgzz.1029
Posted: Tue Aug  6 21:14:24 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 12-Aug-85 01:42:29 EDT
References: <697@gatech.CSNET>, <849@mtuxo.UUCP>
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	I have often wondered what this continent would be like
without the ever-present starling imported from England. It looks
like the house finch may fall in the same category, though house
finches are a bit more attractive. House finches probably eat
fruit and seeds, which make them a menance to fruit farmers and
other native seed-eating birds. Is there evidence that the house
finches are driving away the native finches? Are they stealing
nesting sites from the other birds? Obviously their prescence
has some impact but is their introduction detrimental to other
birds or are they filling a niche that was empty? (I find that
hard to believe!) Now that they're here, what do you do about
them? What do you do about house sparrows and starlings? They
seem to be so cantankerous that we can't throw them out anymore!
And what if we could? Would removing them from the ecosystem now
have disasterous effects? How many insects do starlings, house
sparrows and house finches eat? If we could rid of them all would
the native birds be able to eat up all the extra insects? Would
they be able to eat all the extra weed seeds? It seems it's aw-
fully hard to turn back once you're played with the ecosystem.
	The thing that bothers me most about the introduction
of non-native species is all the other little native birds that
are driven out. I've never seen a bluebird because all the starlings
stole their nesting sites! And replacing the bluebird with a
starling seems absolutely criminal!
	Man has to have his hand in everything. And more often
than not he screws up with his short-sighted attempts to play God
and make money.

Sharon Badian
ihnp4!mtgzz!seb