OT: Birds and (Hunting) and Such

[Guest guest]

Hey Cindy, other good folks ..

 

> Dale - we've got pretty much the same critters as you, but you left one out -

> the dreaded ground hog.

 

Wasn't for a groundhawg named Phil folks wouldn't know Punxsutawney, PA

existed ;-) http://www.groundhog.org/

 

> This one digs up barns, trees, waddles across the road and causes accidents,

 

We got so many groundhawgs down home that folks learned long ago not to

brake too hard for them .. we just try to get the wheels on both sides

of the rascal and keep going .. better than hitting the ditch.

 

But deer .. more accidents due to them hitting cars .. not cars hitting

them .. than there is due to alcohol. They're like chickens .. stand on

the side of the road and when you approach, the lights make them nervous

and they try to beat you across the road. Hitting a deer can be like

hitting another car .. and folks often die from it.

 

Buck vs Dodge Durango .. http://www.snopes.com/photos/durango.asp

 

Some folks .. especially Europeans, cause they wiped out their wildlife

many generations ago .. think Americans are cavalier in their attitudes

toward deer .. and of course, Walt Disney's " Bambi " also supports their

thinking. What they can't realize is just how much wildlife we have in

the USA .. and how much of a nuisance they can be. Even with hunting

and road accidents, the deer population East of the Mississippi grows

larger each year. Farmers can lose hundreds of dollars per night from a

single cornfield .. every night. The deer come into the fields in herds

of 15-30 and take a bite from this and that ear of corn .. then move to

another one. Same for veggie gardens.

 

Some folks say its man's fault .. we are crowding them. Lotta truth to

that .. but what are the options? The only options I can think of are

war, disease and famine .. but the same folks who object to hunting also

object to these methods of thinning out Homo sapiens. MANY Federal and

State Game Preserves exist .. more land is devoted to game preservation

in the USA than exists in Western Europe .. but you can't corral a wild

critter .. they will migrate and come into contact with man in any case.

 

When I was a yonker growing up on the KY-TN line, folks my age who had

seen a deer were rare .. a hunter who had killed a deer was more rare.

In the late 1950's .. the military brought deer onto Fort Campbell, KY

and released them on the reservation .. and they migrated.

 

Today there are so many deer around home that folks don't even bother

using firearms .. they use bows. Coyotes and turkey .. never saw one

when I was young but now they are everywhere.

 

Wildlife Conservation does NOT mean preserving .. it means balancing the

needs of wild critters with the needs of man. Some folks can't get past

emotions regarding hunting (or controlled harvesting) and historically,

such attitudes have proven to be harmful to wildlife.

 

On one side .. we find folks saying that hunting/trapping is beneficial

http://dnr.state.il.us/orc/Wildlife/benefits.htm

 

On the other side .. we have folks like the Humane Society who take a

negative stand on ALL the positive proof that hunting does this ..

http://www.hsus.org/ace/Article_Printer_Friendly?Content_ID=12043

 

Basically, these folks have gone beyond the original intent and charter

of their society .. and beyond the limits of credibility. And their

attitudes are .. in many cases .. designed to increase the size of their

organization. Sorta like what happened to Labor Unions. ;-)

 

Its an unfortunate reality that the position most folks take on issues

is the one their heart leads them to take. If humans used the noggin'

instead of the heart .. looked at all the facts instead of just those

that fit their line of thinking .. we wouldn't have to strain through

the bovine excrement to make decisions on issues like .. who will be the

next president .. capital punishment .. personal use of marijuana ..

abortion .. immigration .. preservation of the rights of the Three Toed,

Bow-Laiged, Cross-Eyed Hootin' Owl vs the economic well being of the

population of human critters in a particular area of the country .. and

hunting. If we could do that then those who put the spin on facts in

order to support their own organizations or political party line would

be out of a job. And that is about as idealistic a position as I will

ever take again .. on anything .. that's a promise. ;-)

 

Back to Groundhawgs. Was a case in Suthran Kentucky some years back

where groundhawgs caused a freight train to derail. Railroad beds are

elevated so tracks clear the water during toad stranglin' rainstorms ..

groundhawgs don't like to be underwater either so instead of going to

the effort of digging a down and then up (U shape) hole .. they prefer

railroad banks. Was so many of the critters in this bank that it caved

in and wrecked the train. ;-)

 

> and I hear they really love to eat plantain....which seems to have

> taken over most of our lawn. Not much vegetation has died off yet -

> vegetable gardens, of course, but trees still have leaves, but they

> will become beautiful colors and fall off the trees soon. The evergreens

> definitely stay the same year 'round.

 

Those rascals will eat most any wild or cultivated plant they can find

http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/96/2.1.96/facts.html

 

Groundhawg hunting is a popular sport in the South .. farmers are happy

to allow you on their property cause groundhawgs cause a lot of damage.

More than one domestic critter has had to be put down due to stepping

in a hole and breaking a leg. And its a rare Suthran Cookbook that

doesn't have quite a few tasty recipes for groundhawg.

 

> hth,

> Cindy (rural Hunterdon County, NJ, in case you're looking for specific locale)

> Pittstown Soapworks

> www.pittstownsoapworks.com

 

Y'all keep smiling. :-) Butch http://www.AV-AT.com

 

PS: A Conservationist I am. As a Provost Marshal I was responsible for

Game Management/Law Enforcement on many US Military Reservations. I have

supported Ducks Unlimited, Cousteau Society and other societies for many

years .. and because I love Mama Nature's wild critters .. I support

legal hunting as a means of preserving them. I also support the efforts

of Law Enforcement to track down and severely punish violators of game

laws. In Kentucky, hunting out of season results in HEAVY fines .. and

often, loss of all the equipment the person had with them at the time ..

including gun and vehicle.

 

> -------------- Original message from " Dale Bernucca " : --------------

>

> So, I'd like to ask you all that if you have a moment could you tell us all

> what type of vegetation you have native to you at the moment that is

sustaining

> wildlife, specifically birds, near you?

>

> For us, we have blue jays, cardinals, opossum, skunk, fox, deer, nuthatches,

> chickadees, sparrows of all manner, squirrels, downy woodpeckers, pilliated

> woodpeckers, titmouse and yesterday a rufus footed towie (sp?) and today a

> pair of juncos (sp?). The towie and juncos may just be passing through.

> Only time will tell.

[Guest guest]

Same with Forest Management. Doesn't mean not cutting trees down, it

means cutting (or allowing to burn-heaven forbid) trees that are

dangerous to other trees and to man.

 

Karen J

 

 

Wildlife Conservation does NOT mean preserving .. it means balancing the

needs of wild critters with the needs of man. Some folks can't get past

emotions regarding hunting (or controlled harvesting) and historically,

such attitudes have proven to be harmful to wildlife.