Killed sparrow to go on display

By Geraldine Coughlan
BBC News, The Hague

The museum is planning an exhibition on sparrows

A sparrow which was shot dead for knocking over 23,000 dominoes in the Netherlands is to go on display at Rotterdam's Natural History Museum.
The bird almost spoiled a televised world record attempt before it was killed with an air rifle.

The shooting caused a public outcry. Animal rights groups condemned the bird's killing last month and a website was erected in its honour.

On Friday, the bird's killer was fined for shooting a protected species.

Prosecutors said the exterminator who killed it should have known better and fined him 170 euros (£114; $200).

more here

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4519446.stm

You live and learn

they are the symbol of the city & vanished in the 1990s, from millions there in the 80s to you would not see one there today unless you have a bird finder show you where

all over europe, not just in netherlands, they are vanishing

no one knows why

it is scary, if a species of hundreds of millions, maybe billions, can vanish in a decade, it can happen to us too

we need to figure this out

A bane. A scourge. The house Sparrow will slip into an occupied bird house to kill adult Bluebird or Tree Swallows, eggs and young. Like flying rats they contaminate food stocks and spread diseases. They will harass Purple Martins and crowd out desirable species at bird feeders.

After nearly a century and one half they are still called "introduced" here in the U.S. and have little value. I have seen fires started where they balled nest of dry straw and feathers create a perfect torch. As part of the diet for birds of prey the House Sparrow may be a heavily contaminated food source. The House Sparrow is not a worthy bird, in death maybe.

'serious' threads don't get the response animals ones do, that's sad to me. I will read animal threads because I love them. Not all the 'serious' threads interest me. Sorry if that's so. But that is the way it is. Poor bird.

Dachshunds are a breed apart. I love animal stories but have a very strong reaction to two species: House Sparrow and European Starling.

The genetics of the U.S. population of House Sparrows may now be distinct from the European origins. In Britian there is concern that the House Sparrow is declining. But in my backyard a House Sparrow is unwanted. They are unprotected throughtout the U.S. though protected by the Dutch.

has my respect.. Even the lowly alligator lizards & mice, and all the "mutt-birds" too..They are all welcome in my yard:)

I have a nice array of birds and animals but I have to admit I wish had those lizards. Even the mutt birds to you may be exotic to me. But those darn House Sparrows...





http://www.sialis.org/hospattacks.htm

and then I have to catch it before a cat does.. The little ones are ok, but the bigger ones BITE.. They don't really have teeth, but they startle the hell out of me when they clamp onto my wrist or finger..

You live such an exciting life! Corralling biting lizards and all.

not exactly Godzilla:)

Alligator Lizard, Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata



California native

The different species range through a variety of habitats, generally frequenting moist areas of foothills and mountains, but also found ranging down into the drier grasslands, staying near rivers and streams. Secretive in nature, they hide under windfall, undergrowth, and in rocky crevices. Pugnacious when caught, they will thrash around, often delivering a painful bite.

Alligator lizards sport a flat, wedge-shaped head. There is little neck definition, with the body about the same width as the head. The legs are small, thin, and end in five fine toes. Notable is a distinct lateral fold running along their lower sides from the corner of their mouth to their tail. Their scales are large, slightly keeled, and shingled. Ground color is pale to medium brown with darker crossbands. They shed in one piece, like a snake.

Temperatures
Daytime temperatures should range from 70-80 F (21-26 C), with a basking area of 85-90 F (29-32 C). Nighttime temperatures should drop to 65-75 F (18-24 C). UVB lighting required, or regular access to unfiltered sunlight.

Food
Insectivores, they feed mainly on arthropods, snails, and occasionally eggs. In captivity, larger animals may feed on mice. Diet must be supplemented with multivitamins and calcium.

Reproduction
Most species are egg layers, with females guarding their eggs. G. coeruleus (Northern Alligator lizard) and some montane species are ovoviviparous.

Species

Coastal North America, from Washington to Baja. Three subspecies. To 20 inches (50 cm). Shades of brown with black crossbands, white edged posteriorly. Ventral scales with indistinct dark lines on scale rows. Male head broader than female. Oviparous, laying 1-3 clutches of 5-20 eggs in May-July. Inhabits grasslands, chaparral, oak woodland, and open pine forest. Partly nocturnal during warmest part of the year. Diet includes slugs, scorpions, centipedes, insects, and spiders, including black widows; will also eat small lizards and mammals. May climb bushes and trees in search of prey, including bird eggs and chicks.

G. panamintus Panamint Alligator Lizard (Protected Species)
Very localized to Inyo and Mono Counties, California. To 18 inches (45 cm)? Light yellow or beige with broad brown crossbands. Ventral markings may form longitudinal stripes down center of scale rows. Male head broader, more triangular, than female. Thought to be oviparous. Ranges through scrub desert and Joshua Tree zone into the pinion-juniper belt. Eats insects, arthropods.

I didn't know there was an Alligator Lizard. Glad I do now. I've got to get out there and see especially the lizards and Aves mutticus socalicus.

sparrows are very dependent of spill from seeds (cereals) to get through the winter. Modern dealing with seeds makes them less available even on the countryside. In European countries with a colder winter climate, it can be a decisive factor. Besides modern housing prevents nidification and pesticides play a role. The average decline in Europe is 50%.

The fact that they were introduced (classical lack of care) to the US can of course lead to unwanted competition with local species. It seems that they are slowly evolving into a new species. The problem seems to be that they are so many that total eradication seems impossible. The best solution would be to support the habitat and access to food of the species they compete with.

curiously the other sparrow (tree sparrow - passer montanus) seems to be a welcomed curiosity.

If you know the difference kudos.

1) http://www.birds.cornell.edu/BOW/ATSP/

2) http://levee.wustl.edu/~rlk/wgnss/ets/

that they still could have gotten into the Guiness Book of World Records for having a sparrow topple the most dominoes.

That this post gets 4 responses immediately, yet one I made 30 minutes ago about a torture forum in Boston tomorrow has garnerned zero, and another one made 5 minutes ago about Cindy Sheehan visiting Downing Street has also garnered zero.

I see your priorities and think it is time to seek a forum that has its priorities in order.

It's the ability to say something. Some things, like the torture and the war and the disdain of the government for the people of this country are just too hard to articulate at times, just the thought makes you mute, freezes your brain. It's a lot easier to go off on people who kill birds for stupid reasons...while seeing, in our minds, the killing of our children and our citizens. For stupid reasons.

So it's not really the priorities that are out of order. It's just the ability to act on them.

more than a "bird" story

it shows that people are taking ecological matters much more seriously. There was no need to kill the sparrow, specially because it's becoming a more and more endangered species in Europe. Basically it's a matter of respect for animal life. It becomes a symbol, but it's a question of attitude.

If that attitude had been common through the ages, a lot of species wouldn't have disappeared. Maybe reduced though human change of the environment, but not for hunting pleasure, to fabricate fancy artifacts.

basically the Dutch react against the fundies teaching that only the humans count and the rest shall be enslaved, killed and tortured at will.

I predict your home's windows and car grill have taken out birds in past year few alone. One bird is not a concern. I just saw a Sharp-shinned Hawk take a Tree Sparrow feet from my window feeder. I wish it had taken a House Sparrow instead. I do not feel guilty planting the shrubs in which the hawk hunted nor apologize that I lured a long distant migrant to its doom at my feeder. The truth is I like the hawk. There are fewer Sharp-shinned Hawks than Tree Sparrows. I have little trouble with one birds death. It is the great piece-meal devouring of the world that concerns me.

or protecting your local birds habitat against an invasive species that is the reprehensible thing.

what pissed people off was that the bird didn't have to be killed because of a stupid game. It's not the same than accidents with windows or cars (even if there are ways to try to limit that too). You can put a picture of a bird of prey on the windows that reflect the sky.

If the bird had been on the list of nuisances (a few are in Europe), nobody had complained. It's a declining species and the guy needed only to shoo him away. Since you normally don't carry a gun (even an air-gun) at a domino event, it must have bben premeditated (I don't know the details).

in Europe we try to get rid of or limit some American species too : ducks, frogs and CANADA GEESE.... nothing wrong with that, it's exactly for the same reasons : competition with local species.

But the Dutch incident had nothing to do with above. It was like killing a bluebird in the US in similar circumstances.

You sound being into birding, I am too

But I still come to think of it as just one of those nasty House Sparrows (that is declining in Europe).

Go to this link and see:

http://www.sialis.org/hospattacks.htm



Yes I bird and am glad to share. Where are you from?

and you are welcome to go birding here, you'll see species you can only see in the Aleutians otherwise.

BTW on a trip to the US, the Eastern bluebird was the first new world species I saw.

With Swiss heritage. Glad to chat with you. By the way its good to know an American is welcome in France!

Do you think this flag looks familiar?

but it's merely a coincidence. I checked the story, it's interesting. And you have an eagle on too...!

http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/flags/ia_flag.htm

the colors of the French and American flags are the same. Originally the three 3 colors were used on different
occasions, and were popular at that time in Europe (Russia, Serbia, Luxemburg, Holland).

When the French dismantled the Bastille, their flag was blue and red, the colors of Paris. But Lafayette introduced the white by respect for the American revolution and made them the official colors of the French National Guard, which was the embryo the revolutionary army. The Convention of 1794 ratified it.

http://fotw.vexillum.com/flags/us-ia.html#hist

Full of symbolism Gebhardt chose the colors of the Iowa State Flag for historical reasons. Iowa was under French rule twice before becoming a state. It was annexed formally by France in 1682, ceded to Spain in 1762, and returned to France in 1800. In 1803, it passed to the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase. Iowa's flag colors, similar to France's own national flag, were chosen to signify France's part in what is now Iowa. The colors also have another deeper significance, as well. White was chosen to symbolize the unwritten page of history at our state's beginning, when the Indians, the first Americans, lived on Iowa's prairies. Blue is a symbol of loyalty, and red stands for courage. The center of the flag depicts a soaring eagle carrying a banner of our state motto, "Our Liberties We Prize, and Our Rights We Will Maintain." By combining the eagle, a symbol of our nation, and the state's motto, Gebhardt wanted to convey the fact that Iowa is now an integral part of the United States.

Dubuque and Marquette are Iowa settlements with French derivations.

About 95% (+) of the threads on DU are trivial.
No debate on the birds, cats and dogs argument, though.

:popcorn:

:popcorn: