Ira Shulgin wrote to this list yesterday: "I don't now what kind of project is under way, but this week ALL small willow trees were cutted at Honda wetland of Glacier Ridge MP, Union Co. It means, NO Willow Flycatchers will be singing at this part of the park any more. And for some other birds the habitat was lost also." I recommend asking. I too would be upset if good bird habitat is lost, but I have learned to trust that the Metro Parks respect wild species and have long-range plans to protect them all in a larger ecological context. If I heard they were plowing a prairie or cutting trees to put in a soccer field or a place to hand-feed deer, I'd be bothered. But below is what they told me, and what they'd have said if anyone else had asked: "The Honda Wetland Education area is managed as an young successional or open wet meadow/prairie wetland complex. Managing the habitat at this stage of development requires intense mowing and burning regimes every few years. Since the wetland complex has been restored, Metro Parks staff has mowed and burned selected areas in an effort to promote the open wet prairie habitats. This also maintains flight lines for the variety of waterfowl that may use the area during migration. Many years may go by that mowing and burning opportunities are not available due to water levels, ground moisture and a lack of frozen conditions for equipment. Without some type of regular management, successional stages advance quickly. Sometimes we are presented with an opportunity, such as we have experienced this winter, with extended periods of frozen ground that allow us to mow larger expanses of the wetland. This is an ongoing management effort, with our goals guiding us through the variable seasons and years, as we strive to promote healthy balanced ecosystems. It is why each of our parks is not one habitat type, but a patchwork of habitats that go through successional changes and various habitat management activities. As mentioned, willow flycatchers (as well as a number of other species of wildlife) are attracted to the young successional willows and shrubs that occur in the wetlands. If no management efforts were implemented the wetlands would succeed to trees and would likely become unsuitable to their habitat needs in a few short years. Just to the north of the Honda Wetlands we are managing a second wetland complex towards reforestation, which will provide a large expanse of suitable successional habitat for the next few months. Additionally, there are a number of willows along Kile Ditch and portions of Indian Run that should also provide a diversity of necessary habitat. Metro Parks general management philosophy is to manage restoration and natural areas as communities and ecosystems with the idea that the individual species will be present if the overall habitat goals are met. Metro Parks is grateful to our visitors for their care and concern regarding what is happening in the parks and we are always happy to share our management goals as we work to responsibly steward the more than 27,000 acres of natural area parks in Central Ohio." This reassures me that if willow flycatchers will have no habitat in this particular place for the next few years, that they will have more habitat elsewhere nearby, and within a few years in this same place, just as they might if humans didn't live here and natural forces ruled. I have learned to trust the parks with the big picture, and I also trust people know that I would gripe if I felt otherwise. Fitz-bew, Bill Whan Columbus ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]