Yesterday in the Burlington Free Press, Candace Page wrote an article about Fish and Wildlife officials announcing a plan to control Double-crested Cormorants and Ring-billed Gulls on Lake Champlain. After reading the article, and the 30 comments found online, I find myself perplexed by how often issues like this get forced into black & white solutions rather than a more thorough look at the complexity of wildlife management and it’s implications.  (Photo by Michael L. Baird)

Now, I’m not a wildlife biologist or a researcher. I am an educator, a naturalist, a recreationalist, a community member and a tax payer. So, pardon my brain dump, but I’m hoping this post will lead to further discussion on an issue which people feel strongly about.

1. Double-crested Cormorants are native to North America, but they only began nesting on Lake Champlain in 1981. I guess they are non-native to Lake Champlain when it comes to breeding. The terms native and non-native can be interpreted many ways unfortunately and that adds to confusion.
2. I immediately think about BREEDING colonial waterbirds on Lake Champlain that are impacted by the presence of cormorants breeding, like Great Blue Herons, Black-crowned Night Herons, and the Vermont endangered Common Tern.
3. Research, I look to the research. This summer’s Our Lake, Our Future research consortium had some interesting findings on cormorants. These findings include, the cormorant population is stabilizing rather than growing, with fewer nests being found in their primary colony on Four Brothers Island this summer. AND, cormorants seem to be showing a preference for the invasive alewife as a prey item. Digging a little deeper into the idea that cormorants are competition for those who enjoy fishing, “recent work has shown that measuring their impact is difficult and interpretations are disputed” according to Birds of North America Online under the Conservation and Management section for the Double-crested Cormorant.
4. Economics – as much as I disagree with the premise that cormorants should be controlled because it’s possible they may be impacting the Lake Champlain as a fishery, I can’t ignore that part of the Vermont/New York economy gets a boost from both recreational and sport fishing. People who enjoy fishing spend money on fishing licenses, gas for their boats, equipment, lodging, food, etc and that’s good for our communities. Their voice needs to be heard. However, I won’t ignore the science that is telling me that we don’t have proof that cormorants are a huge impact on our fish populations.
5. Mother Nature rules and we’ve messed with her. It’s impossible to have every thing the way it was in the past and meddling with her scene needs to be incredibly thoughtful, flexible and well, humble…’cuz we’ve certainly made some bad choices.

For me, it’s not about birds vs. fish or birds vs. birds. There really is no black and white with this, it’s really complex. So before either jumping on the “environmentalist” band wagon or the “sportfishing” band wagon or whatever other polarizing stereotype that can be used with this issue….really dig in…really look at the big picture…honestly look at all the pieces and all the players, and then bring all those ideas, thoughts and opinions together when trying to find a solution.

You’re probably sitting there reading this saying…what does she think? Where does she fall on this?

I am for some level of population control, because what I do see in the research is that cormorants are impacting other colonial nesting birds who either are endangered in Vermont, like the Common Tern, or have historically bred on Lake Champlain.  I am for supporting continued research on cormorants, including research about their feeding behaviors. AND, I’m for continued education and dialogue in order to better understand conservation and management issues.

So, have at it…what’s your brain dump on cormorants?

Here’s the eBird report for this month’s monitoring walk at the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge:

We had 10 participants this morning on our monthly walk.

Here’s our eBird list from our first monthly bird monitoring walk at the Missisquoi Wildlife Refuge in Swanton. We had 15 people show up! I was thrilled, especially since March is pretty slow in Vermont when it comes to birding. But with songs of Red-winged Blackbirds in our ears and the consistent flyovers by geese, oh yeah, and the warm temperatures, I guess folks were really keen on getting outside.

Location:     MNWR-Old Railroad Passage
Observation date:     3/20/10
Notes:     First Friends of Missisquoi NWR monthly bird monitoring walk. Counted birds only on the east side of Tabor Road.
Number of species:     20

Snow Goose     8     flyover-1 flock
Canada Goose     105     flyover-4 flocks
Mallard     13
Red-tailed Hawk     1
Killdeer     1     heard only
Ring-billed Gull     3
Hairy Woodpecker     1     heard only
Pileated Woodpecker     1     heard only
Blue Jay     1
American Crow     8
Black-capped Chickadee     4
White-breasted Nuthatch     1
American Robin     2
European Starling     2
American Tree Sparrow     7     singing
Song Sparrow     4
Northern Cardinal     2
Red-winged Blackbird     13
Common Grackle     6
American Goldfinch     1

Our next walk is Saturday, April 17th on Maquam Creek Trail. Join me!

I’ve been tweeting Track Who’s Back! messages with a snapshot of who’ll be coming in for a landing in our region. Below is the full list. The list was compiled by the Mad Birders, a birding club in the Mad River Valley of Vermont, from the Vermont Daily Field Card.

Vermont Spring Bird Arrival Schedule

FEBRUARY
Week 1 -
Week 2 -
Week 3 -
Week 4 – Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird

MARCH

Week 1 – American Kestrel, Killdeer, American Robin, Common Grackle

Week 2 – Northern Pintail, American Widgeon, Turkey Vulture, Northern Harrier, Northern Flicker, Eastern Bluebird, Song Sparrow, Rusty Blackbird

Week 3 – Pied-Billed Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Wood Duck, Canvasback, Ring-necked Duck, Greater Scaup, Bufflehead, Hooded Merganser, Red-shouldered Hawk, Belted Kingfisher, Tree Swallow, Eastern Meadowlark

Week 4 – Snow Goose, Green-winged Teal, Blue-winged Teal, Gadwall, Lesser Scaup, Red-breasted Merganser, Broad-winged Hawk, Golden Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, American Woodcock, Common Snipe, Eastern Phoebe, Tree Swallow, Fox Sparrow

APRIL
Week 1 – Horned Grebe, Double Crested Cormorant, Northern Shoveler, Redhead, Oldsquaw, Osprey, Merlin, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Winter Wren, Water Pipit, Loggerhead Shrike, Field Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow

Week 2 – Common Loon, Red-necked Grebe, American Bittern, Black Scoter, American Coot, Greater Yellowlegs, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Hermit Thrush, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Pine Warbler, Palm Warbler, Vesper Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow

Week 3 – Cattle Egret, Black-crowned Night Heron, Brant, Surf Scoter, Virginia Rail, Sora, Pectoral Sandpiper, Purple Martin, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Bank Swallow, Barn Swallow, Solitary Vireo, Louisiana Waterthrush, Rufous-sided Towhee

Week 4 – Great Egret, Green-backed Heron, Glossy Ibis, White Winged Scoter, Common Moorhen, Solitary Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Upland Sandpiper, Chimney Swift, Eastern Kingbird, Cliff
Swallow, House Wren, Marsh Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Brown Thrasher, Black-throated Green Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Chipping Sparrow

MAY
Week 1- Lesser Yellowlegs, Common Tern, Black Tern, Whip-poor-will, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Least Flycatcher, Great-crested Flycatcher, Veery, Wood Thrush, Gray Catbird, Yellow-throated Vireo, Warbling Vireo, Nashville Warbler, Northern Parula, Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, American Redstart, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, White-crowned Sparrow, Bobolink

Week 2 – Snowy Egret, Semi-palmated Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Swainson’s Thrush, Philadelphia Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-winged Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Prairie Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Mourning Warbler, Wilson’s Warbler, Canada Warbler, Indigo Bunting, Grasshopper Sparrow, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Orchard Oriole

Week 3 – Least Bittern, Black-bellied Plover, Semi-palmated Plover, Short-billed Dowitcher, Bonaparte’s Gull, Black-billed Cuckoo, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Common Nighthawk, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Eastern Wood-Peewee, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Alder Flycatcher, Willow Flycatcher, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, Blackpoll Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat

Week 4 – Ruddy Turnstone, Sedge Wren, Common Yellowthroat

*Taken from the Vermont Daily Field Card, published by the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (1994)

Sketching with Sharon Meyer from WCAX

I’m not much of a photographer, especially birds. But I do enjoy my Olympus Stylus Tough camera. I’m on my second one as a result of a kayaking adventure to see Spiny Soft-shelled Turtles this year. Although the camera is waterproof to 33ft, it really doesn’t matter when you drop it in the lake. I dove three times for it but the soft mud on the shoreline swallowed it up. Tough #2 now has it’s own PFD when I’m on the water.

Anyways, here are just a few photos from my 2009 collection that remind me of all the wonderful adventures I had this year.

Main Image: March in Plainfield, VT

Northern Hawk Owl - January (taken by a friend)

Tree of Life - Patricia de Gogorza artist

Flowering Crabapple - Burlington, VT

Pickerel Weed - Mississquoi River VT

Snow Geese at Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area - Addison VT

The W!LD Center - Tupper Lake, NY

Kilkare State Park during CBC - St. Albans, VT

Happy New Year Everyone!

The 110th Christmas Bird Count starts tomorrow morning. Here’s where I was last year at dawn:

St. Albans Bay, Lake Champlain VT

Where are you birding for the Christmas Bird Count this year?

Click here for list of Vermont Christmas Bird Count circles.

Just under the wire for Wordless Wednesday…enjoy!