Sent from my iPod Begin forwarded message: > From: Rebecca Dobson <[log in to unmask]> > Date: July 6, 2010 12:02:37 PM EDT > To: Kenn Kaufman <[log in to unmask]> > Subject: Re: "Raptor nest sites?" A report > > Ok, I'll weigh in at the risk of appearing stupid (see Steve's list > of factors, haha). > > Re: the additional stresses caused by introduced peregrines. Dr. > Rick Relyea with The Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology has been doing > interesting work with predator stresses on frogs. Tadpoles can > tolerate a given quantity of Roundup when in a tank by themselves. > When he introduced a predator such as a helgrammite to the tank, the > tadpoles died, not from predation but just from the additional > stress. (They did not die from stress when the Roundup was not > present). He is surmising the stress makes them more susceptible to > the herbicide. My point being that the stress of the peregrine > flyovers might have more of an impact than we realize. Interesting > to think about.... > > Becky Dobson > Kinsman, Ohio > > Sent from my iPod > > On Jul 6, 2010, at 1:01 AM, Kenn Kaufman <[log in to unmask] > > wrote: > >> I agree with Bill Whan that it would be a fine thing to see more >> actual >> discussion on Ohio-birds, and I have no idea why such discussion >> doesn't >> take place. A few times I have posted things that I hoped would >> spark some >> discussion, and in those cases I have usually gotten some private >> responses >> but often no public responses on the listserve. Seems a little odd. >> >> Regarding the Peregrine introductions to urban sites, in areas >> where they >> had not been known to nest historically -- I am uneasy about that >> practice. >> Sure, we all love Peregrines and love to see them, and a few >> isolated pairs >> out of place probably don't have too much impact on the ecosystem, >> but still >> ... A couple of years ago I was going out repeatedly to the "sky >> ponds" >> east-southeast of Fremont during mid to late summer, when that area >> had big >> numbers of shorebirds. It seemed that every time I focused on a big >> shorebird concentration, a Peregrine would make a pass and flush >> all the >> birds. Historically it would have been exceptionally rare for a >> Peregrine >> to be around this area in early August, but now the urban birds from >> downtown Toledo probably make the rounds of all the shorebird spots >> in n.w. >> Ohio every day during peak season, repeatedly flushing the birds >> and adding >> one more bit of stress to populations that are already facing a >> variety of >> challenges. >> >> Regarding birds that are shifting, or have shifted, to nesting on >> manmade >> structures: I've always been fascinated by this phenomenon. >> Chimney Swift >> is a prime example: their propensity for nesting in chimneys was >> already >> well established two centuries ago. Purple Martin is a bird that >> goes both >> ways: populations in eastern North America practically all nest in >> houses >> put up for them, but in the Southwest they still nest commonly in >> natural >> cavities. Barn Swallow is another bird that has adapted to our >> structures >> in a big way. In years of birding around North America I had seen >> Barn >> Swallow nests in barns, of course, and on porches, in sheds, under >> bridges, >> in culverts, etc., but until a couple of years ago I'd never seen a >> Barn >> Swallow nest in anything that could be considered a "natural" >> site. When I >> got to visit West Sister Island out in Lake Erie, I was impressed >> by a lot >> of things about this federally-designated wilderness area (the only >> one in >> Ohio?), but one of the impressive small things was the presence of >> Barn >> Swallows nesting on the cliffs on the east side of the island. The >> cliffs >> have enough of an overhang that the nest sites appear to be >> protected from >> the elements. It seemed like a hint of the kinds of situations the >> swallows >> would have used before we so thoughtfully provided all these >> structures for >> them. >> >> I would be interested to know: Has anyone found Barn Swallows >> nesting in >> truly natural situations elsewhere in Ohio? What about Purple >> Martin or >> Chimney Swift? >> >> Kenn Kaufman >> Oak Harbor, Ohio >> >> ______________________________________________________________________ >> >> Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological >> Society. >> Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. >> Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/ >> . >> >> You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: >> http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS >> Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask] ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. 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