A friend recommended a new book, "The Double-crested Cormorant: Symbol
of Ecological Conflict," so I picked up a copy. My heart fell as I
peeked inside the jacket: the author, Dennis Wild, is described as a
writer of outdoor articles, mostly for fishing periodicals. So, even
though he is said to have a degree in zoology, I prepared myself for
some brainwashing of a familiar kind.
        It's hard to find--other than in obscure scientific sources-- objective
material on cormorants and what humans are doing to them here. I went to
our Division of Wildlife's web site to see the latest, but the search
function wasn't working, and the cormorant wasn't in its A-Z Species
Guide, or in the Nuisance Wildlife pages. Why not? I guess it's
understandable that shooting native non-game birds wouldn't be their
proudest accomplishment. Most of what I see these days about Ohio's
ongoing cormorant-shooting project appears, accompanied by friendly
quotes from Wildlife officials, in various friendly hunting/fishing
publications available at the local carry-outs.
        But Wild's book was a surprise. Instead of parroting the party line
from commercial fishing interests, or praising Animal Damage
Control--oh, excuse me, they call themselves "Wildlife Services"
now--over in the Department of Agriculture, he presents a clear-minded
informative picture, with the natural and cultural history of cormorants
in the US and their conflicts with commercial interests since the coming
of Europeans, including the impact of DDT, historical changes in Great
Lakes fish populations, the development of depredation orders to
circumvent the intent of the Migratory Bird Treaty, etc. He concentrates
on the Great Lakes and the catfish aquaculture of the South, but also
treats the actions of Canadian wildlife officials.
        Wild does not evade the difficult questions, and he is not doctrinaire.
I recommend his book as a fair-minded look at the cormorant-killing
controversy. These birds are now returning to their nesting sites. If
you are a recreational birder and prefer not to think about it, don't
worry---you can't hear or see the shooting on West Sister Island just
north of the Magee Bird Trail this spring....too far offshore.
Bill Whan
Columbus

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