THE IMPORTANCE OF BIRD LIFE.

Forest and Bird, Issue 21, 1 July 1930, Page 20

THE IMPORTANCE OF BIRD LIFE.

(By G. Inness Hartley.)

(Extract.)

Conservation of its wild-life resources is now a policy of the United States Government, and for it as a national policy we have to give thanks mainly to two men, Theodore Roosevelt and Dr. T. S. Palmer. During the Presidential administrations of the former, no less than fifty-three Federal bird refuges were established, to say nothing of several national bison-ranges and. at least four national game-preserves. And it was the Biological Survey of the Department of Agriculture, under the supervision of Dr. Palmer, that carried out the work laid down by the President. The conservation of bird life in the United States, although still only in the stage of infancy, is now fostered in the following ways:—-(1) Through the enactment of sane game laws. (2) Through the education of the public to encourage the presence of birds, around their homes and farms. (3) Through Government or State wild-life refuges and sanctuaries. (4) Through privately owned preserves, refuges, and sanctuaries. (5) Through State game-farms for propagating birds. (6) Through game protective and breeding associations. (7) Through Audubon societies. (8) Through wild-life protection societies. The value of game-laws has been discussed and requires no further mention here. A word, however, needs to be said about education. Wild-life study is now being taught in most of the public schools of the United States. Childrqn are familiarised with the common plants, trees, insects, animals, and birds. They are taught to recognise the commoner species and learn something of their habits. To further this work many States have set aside a “bird-day,” similar to and often in conjunction with an “arbor-day,” on which the public school children plant berry-trees or shrubs, build bird-houses, and make excursions into the woods and fields under the guidance of teachers to study close at hand what they have been taught indoors. In other words, there is a general trend of popular sentiment towards, teaching the younger generations to take an interest in birds and other forms of wild life. A number of agricultural colleges have also taken up the study of economic ornithology as a prescribed course in their curriculum; and the newer generations of scientific farmers are being educated in regard to the cash value of birds on the farm.

Lecturing staffs are maintained by the game commissions of various States. The lecturers travel about the State equipped with interesting films and slides which explain better than words, what is being done. Their views on conservation are also got to the public through articles printed in local newspapers or in pamphlet form ; and some States issue regular monthly magazines setting forth the doctrines of conservation. The educational results of this work have proved far beyond what was hoped or expected. ' * 1 f Again, much of the teaching has been undertaken by the National Association of Audubon Societies* and similar organisations. Small Audubon societies are scattered thickly all over the country wherever there happen to be a number of bird lovers living in one community. The object of these societies is not only to study birds, but locally and nationally to arouse public interest, in them, to wage war against the human enemies of birds, and to seek legislation for their benefit. The national association maintains a staff of lecturers, as well as a large number of special game wardens for bird refuges. National bird refuges thus far established have been mainly for water-birds or as resting places for migratory species on their way north and south. The land set apart has with few exceptions consisted of rocky islands or ledges, or tracts of marsh of no agricultural value, which would always have been waste land. These reservations have proved of immense value to bird life, providing homes free from molestation for millions of water-fowl and herons, which otherwise would now be extinct. And, following the example set by the Federal Government, many States have purchased or otherwise acquired waste lands which they term game preserves, refuges, sanctuaries, or State parks, on which no further shooting is permitted. . These lands, however, must not be confused with the sometimes gigantic State forest preserves where shooting, under certain conditions, is generally allowed. Game refuges or sanctuaries are tracts ranging from a few acres up to several thousand. They are carefully guarded bywardens, sometimes heavily stocked from State game-farms, and serve as oases for game which gradually filters out beyond their boundaries to replenish the dwindling stock of the surrounding territories. Some refuges are actually owned by the State; others are merely held for a term of years under a lease; and still others may be protected for specific periods of time upon request of the owners.

*Bird Protection Societies

Let us cite briefly what has been accomplished on the dozen or so reservations in the small State of Massachusetts. As soon as the land is taken over by the .State, every effort is made to exterminate its varied population of vermin and to make it habitable for game. It is then restocked, if necessary, with gamebirds, and placed, if the size of the territory warrants it, under the control of a caretaker.”