Mist Netting & Bird Banding; Right or Wrong?

[Jay Gould]

Artie, this has been online all day and not one comment - I will keep you company.

"I just do not like being told, "That bird looked at you. You are disturbing it. You are a criminal. All bird photographers are criminals.""

Has someone recently said this to you? Whom and where? Did you appropriately respond to the person, or were you unfortunately tactful?

[Arthur Morris]

Artie, this has been online all day and not one comment - I will keep you company.
"I just do not like being told, "That bird looked at you. You are disturbing it. You are a criminal. All bird photographers are criminals."" Has someone recently said this to you? Whom and where? Did you appropriately respond to the person, or were you unfortunately tactful?

Hi Jay, I appreciate your company. I sort of expected to get castigated for this post, and in no way did I expect indifference.

As regular BAA Bulletin readers know, I (along with my group) was told by the refuge biologist (at a mandatory--for photography groups only as far as I know) session, "If a Snow Goose raises its head to look at you, you are disturbing it." This, at a refuge where hunting is allowed.

As a lover of what is (www.thework.com), I was quite tactful and lots of good came out of the meeting. (Do a search for the Bosque Volunteer Project in the Bulletin Archives.)

I added the "criminal" part as a comment on the continuting war against (nature) photographers. If you are not aware of this conflict, then you must live in the boonies or have your head in the sand. Here are just a few: Ding Darling closed on Fridays and open only at 7:30 am daily regardless of the time of sunrise partly to give the birds a break from photographers and--according to a volunteer--partly as punishment. Well, as they have managed the birds away from the roads it is no big deal now, and a tram only poliy is coming soon.

Bosque: a threat to restrict visitors to their vehicles.

Fort DeSoto Park, where windsurfers often disturb large flocks of shorebirds, the closing of The Point as a nesting area during the nesting season only three years ago. Only one bird--an oystercatcher--nested successfully in the area and lost its chicks because of human disturbance--North Beach Lagoon is one of the premier beaches in the US. Least Terns and skimmers attempt to nest at the point most years, but never succeed as there are simply too many people in the area which in addition, is subject to storm flooding every spring. With virtually zero success one might expect that The Point would be reopened. Instead, it has been closed permanently year round.

At a NWR in northern Missouri-I forget the name, all visitors MUST be off the tour roads by sunset. When I asked the refuge manager why, he stated that it was to protect the integrity of the refuge. Strange, as there are numerous hunting clubs on the eastern border of the refuge where the geese are shot at dawn each day.

The reconstructed fence and the phony signs at the Cave Store Cliffs in LaJolla, the premier place in the world to photograph breeding plumage Pacific Brown Pelicans.

Biolgists railing at photographers for approaching a shorebird nest too closely while they are dragging the tundra with ropes, handling the chicks and eggs, and otherwise causing havoc.

The list goes on and on. The fact is that most refuge managers view all nature photogphers more as criminals than as allies.

I would love to hear from others, especially from the biologists. Hey, I have often stated that one team of researchers in a tern colony causes more disturbance on a single day than all US bird photographers combined in a year.