Cindy, one's own personal sentiments about the natural world aside, it's illegal to intentionally harass wildlife.
Snowy Owls are tundra ambush predators, who usually hunt from a slightly elevated static perch in open areas. This hunting strategy permits Snowy Owls to conserve energy in the often bitterly cold temperatures of their habitats. To intentionally get within their zone of comfort, causing them to flush or move position is illegal harassment. Furthermore, approaching Snowy Owls carelessly is also to disturb the movement of prey upon which these creatures depend for food. It's worth remembering many wild birds are often a meal or two from starvation. All birds are not the same and all birds are not disturbed in the same way. Species such as warblers or sparrows are much less bothered (unless nesting), by unintentional disturbance, since it is in their nature to move a lot. Also, it's a specious argument to contend that because other birds are disturbed at times, that this makes it okay to intentionally or carelessly disturb Snowy Owls. Understanding the natural history of wild animals and treating them with respect and consideration are civilized acts. Best, John Laver On Fri, Feb 17, 2012 at 12:43 PM, Cindy <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi all, > > First off, thanks to everyone for all the supportive comments and kind > words following my last post. I had not opened my email again since posting > till last night and it was a pleasant surprise! (still not finished reading > them all). What an interesting discussion this has been... so many points > of view. And credit goes out to everyone who maintained an air of civility > during this heated debate. > > On a personal note, I finally went out to see the Breezy Point Snowy Owl > earlier this week. I went twice, late in the day on Tuesday and Wednesday. > The weather on Tuesday was cold and sunny with a brisk breeze. Judging from > the footprints in the road to the beach, there had been no recent visitors > on Tuesday and only one other person besides myself on Wednesday. I found > the owl sitting alone, way out in the dunes, fluffed out and hunkered down > against the wind and looking like a nearly shapeless snowdrift against the > sand. There was nobody else... just me and the owl and that vast dune > landscape, and absolute silence except for the sound of the wind and the > waves. It was eerily awesome to see this bird just sitting there spending > its days in this desolate, seemingly lifeless wilderness (or as close as we > can get to wilderness within the shores of NYC). I thought about how far > this bird had traveled and how far it had yet to go on its journey back > north. I also noted how there were no photographers, no tripods, no > scopes... no people at all. Just the wind, the sand, the sea, and this owl. > Which got me thinking. Perhaps the problems that arise happen mainly on the > weekends, when most folks have time off. On weekdays it seems the owls (or > other "hot" birds) are more or less left completely alone. These birds, you > must admit, must be pretty tough to endure these long journeys and their > harsh environments. While I'm in NO way advocating that unethical birders > and photographers be allowed to continue their behaviour, I'm wondering if > they are truly having the negative impact on the overall health of these > birds that some people on this list imagine. If these birds are being left > to live their lives in solitude and peace for, say, five out of seven days > in a week, with only a handful of inconsiderate people causing them > discomfort on the other two days, perhaps we need not worry so much. After > all, how often do we inadvertently flush juncos or white-throated sparrows > or other more common winter migrants as we pass by them in our walks? Could > this also be seen as harassment? But we rarely give these species much > thought. Yet the process, and its impact, can be seen as the same whether > it concerns the smaller passerines or the "star quality" raptor species. > I'm not saying it's OK to get close to the Snowies, or any other owl or > wild creature. All these animals deserve our respect and our best efforts > to minimize our impact on their environment. But armed with the information > to report the "bad guys" to the proper authorities, it may be wise to look > at the bigger picture before making the call. Being trigger-happy serves > no-one well. Redirect and educate where possible. And perhaps above all, > understand that these birds on the whole can, and do, survive much more > than we give them credit for. The challenges they face are much greater > than that of the occasional inconsiderate human being. > > Cindy Wodinsky > -- > *NYSbirds-L List Info:* > Welcome and Basics <http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME> > Rules and Information <http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES> > Subscribe, Configuration and > Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> > *Archives:* > The Mail > Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html> > Surfbirds <http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> > BirdingOnThe.Net <http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html> > *Please submit your observations to **eBird*<http://ebird.org/content/ebird/> > *!* > -- > -- John L *Goals are dreams with deadlines.* -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
