Harassment?
By now you may have heard about the Burrowing Owl that was discovered Wednesday morning at Montrose near Chicago. Within hours after it was found by a birder, it was killed and eaten by a Cooper's Hawk in the presence of other birders:
"When Chicago birders flocked to Montrose Beach this week for a glimpse of two strange birds not often seen in these parts, they got something far more: a bloody death scene and a queasy feeling they might be partly to blame."
Link: Full story from the Chicago Tribune
The birder who discovered the Burrowing Owl reported it to IBET:
"The Burrowing Owl was initially seen in the path on the east side of the fenced wildflower garden just south of the meadow. It flew off to the east, flushed again, and flew inside the fenced area that borders the south and east sides of the point. I walked inside the fenced area (I know, people aren't supposed to enter this area) and it flushed once again and flew off to the west and wasn't seen again, despite intensive searching. I'm fairly sure the bird is still at Montrose though. Obviously it's very skittish and difficult to see. I never saw it on the ground for any length of time but did see it in flight well. Hopefully the bird will be relocated."
It didn't take long for other birders to join in on the search:
"Met up with others, all looking for the BURROWING OWL, - he was initially flushed at the eastern edge, and flew out into the dunes - made three stops, one in the dune, one in the foredune and then along the pier. He flew south over the pier and then west back into the trees along the south fence. He was seen by numerous folks."
Only hours later, the gloomy news came across IBET:
"...just witnessed a Cooper's hawk catch and kill the burrowing owl at Montrose."
The birder who originally reported the Burrowing Owl replied:
"Drat. I was worried about this happening, what with all of the Cooper's Hawks and Peregrine Falcons that hang around Montrose. Maybe this is why the bird was so skittish and hard to find."
Ya think?
Question: How ethical do you think it was it for birders to report and repeatedly flush the Burrowing Owl knowing Cooper's Hawks and Peregrine Falcons were hanging around Montrose? Also, the birder admits he entered an "off-limtis" area. Regarding bird behavior, I can't speak for Burrowing Owl, but I notice songbirds usually spot raptors well before I do. There is a terse vocal reaction, swift hiding, silence, and then the apparent absence of birds. Some of you have witnessed this during my field trips. Simply walking down a trail will cause birds to flush, so birding can never really be 100% passive - our very presence affects bird behavior. Due to past negative experiences with birders around owls, it's my policy never to report them to birding listservs.
Burrowing Owl image © Photos.com
13 Comments:
I had to work, so I did not go. Many birders I know at Montrose try not to flush birds especially Owls but it may have been. I wonder how long it would have lived anyway? it was tired and by the pics looked pretty beat up which is what a hawk looks for when getting prey...The weakest. I just know Montrose bird Sanctuary would not be there at all withour Birders dedicating their Time and money. Just my 2cents. Birders just need to use more common sense sometimes. I was not there but I may have gone after the crowds died down if it was still around. I would not flush it on purpose though. Marty Phillips/Montrose Volunteer
Hi Mike -
I can imagine that I might have done what that original birder did out of sheer not-thinking and the exuberance of the sighting. Hearing what happened, I wouldn't do that now, so I think your blog on it has done good.
Morons...that is why birders should never give locations of finds....I mean it you want to give a county, maybe some birder can go out and find another one in the area...never give hot fishing,birding or hunting spots, let people find their own.
Thank you. I can't agree more. Many years ago, while out on a local lake fishing, I spotted a couple of Bald Eagles. They could be seen every time I was out for a couple of years. They were most likely nesting since there also juveniles. I never looked for the nest because I wanted them to not be stressed.
A local parks official who is now an Audubon naturalist wrote about their presence in the local newspaper. The next time I was out, the boaters were harassing the birds. I never saw them again.
g beetham
It sickens me to think that birders would put their desire to see a bird above the safety of the bird. Even though it is natural for predator-prey dramas to play out, it is not "fair" for humans to interfere. I hope that this incident will help birders be more aware of their effect on birds...which should be pretty close to zero.
Thanks for the post/link -- a story I hadn't caught elsewhere, that drives home some important points. As birders we are often so absorbed in our own interests that we fail to fully consider the interests of the bird(s).
Another owl note...dead Saw-Whet owl in middle of Allouez Ave this morning near Green Bay...must have gotten hit by car last night during migration.
Montrose is one of my favorite places to bird--it's right across Lake Shore Drive from my aunt's old apartment, where I used to stay with her and my uncle. As with all of the Chicago downtown and lake shore area, it's got a huge population of humans right where birds are following the lake shore in huge numbers. I keep thinking really, birders, can't we get along and trust one another with hotline birds? But then I keep coming face to face with reality. I think Mike's policy of not reporting rarities is, sadly, one more of us should adopt.
I think birders need to realize when enough is enough. Near were I live, a pair of ospreys built a nest on an impoundment, close to a road this spring. The poor birds were constantly harassed. I spoke to several people asking them to put out the word to stay away. Others who were conerned also spread the word. It seemed to do little good. The local birding festival even led tours to the site. The nest eventually failed and birders were to blame but at least they got their pictures!!!
Heart Sick.
Before this turns into an all out assault on alerting others to the presence of uncommon or rare birds, keep in mind that there are many different circumstances. While repeatedly flushing birds or harassing them at nest sites is uncalled for, there are a lot of situations where a bird can easily be viewed by many and not harassed. To make the general statement that rarities should not be posted is going way overboard...
I think you're being a little harsh here. There was a time span of several hours, 4 or 5 to be precise, between the owl being flushed and it being captured by a Cooper's hawk. No one was present when it was captured, it was seen in the clutches of a hawk that flew past some people who had just arrived looking for the owl. When they glassed the hawk, they realized it had the owl in it's talons and the poor owl was still twitching. They tried to get it to release it's prey, with no success.
Cooper's hawks and peregrines have become VERY aggressive in Chicago in the past few years. Just last weekend at Montrose I saw a Coop snatch a Red-bellied woodpecker while I was trying to get another birder onto it.
Also at Montrose last weekend, a Peregrine repeatedly tried to catch an Avocet which dived under water to escape.
I don't think that the birder's had a lot to do with this bird's being eaten...and it's an odd coincidence that the last IL burrowing owl was also eaten by a hawk...it's remains were found on a fencepost.
Greg,
"I don't think that the birder's had a lot to do with this bird's being eaten."
Leaving open the possibility that they had at least something to do with the owl's demise.
Following the IBET thread, it seems there were a number of birders at Montrose who saw the Burrowing Owl between the time it was originally posted and the time Sue determined that a cooper's had taken it. The IBET thread indicates the owl was flushed by more than one birder, sometimes repeatedly, and in an area that was posted off-limits. What's up with that?
It's interesting that Sue changed your story. You originally reported that she observed the cooper's hawk capturing the owl. Was there a misunderstanding or a collaboration? (I'm kidding.)
But most interesting to me is that while Robert held an active concern for the owl in the midst of winged predators, he repeatedly flushed it nonetheless. Yeah, perhaps that was why it was so hard to keep flushing! Maybe the owl was trying to stay in cover, eh?
We'll probably never know what actual events transpired at Montrose that day, but I can't hold these particular birders totally blameless for what happened.
Mike M.
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