10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 9, 2014

This bit of science is a nice final counterpoint to an account that has emphasized art, history, and literature. Fuller has not preached about the evils of the human practices that killed and dislocated the Passenger Pigeon; he hasn’t moaned and groaned or sentimentalized. It wasn’t just the mass killings in so many ways.

2014 160

2014 Killing Michigan Kentucky 160

10,000 Birds

MARCH 20, 2011

What could motivate gunmen (I cannot call them hunters) in two states to deliberately kill North America’s tallest and most critically endangered bird? My friend Vickie Henderson , who has some serious long-range vision, looked at the science behind Tennessee’s crane hunting proposal and found it badly wanting. Here’s the petition.

2011 242

2011 Hunting Kentucky Hunters 242

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 24, 2012

What’s not to like about citizen science, conservation, and transforming a day of slaughter into a day of enjoying being outside watching birds? Dropping the $5 fee to encourage more participation is great but naming the event in a way that everyone feels welcome would be too.

Saudi Arabia 144

Saudi Arabia Pakistan Abandon Abandoning 144