>Saunders (1982) suspected that wing tags increased the mortality of
>White-tailed Black Cockatoos by making the individual more visible to to a
>predator (Wedge-tailed Eagles in this case), and/or may have affected the
>aerodynamics of the wing. I have decided not to use wing tags on Red-tailed
>Black-Cockatoos because of these concerns - although they would be very
>useful and colour bands on legs is not an option for these birds..
>
>Saunders, D.A. 1982. The breeding behaviour and biology of the short-billed
>form of the white-tailed black cockatoo Calyptorynchus funereus. Ibis 124,
>422-455.
>
My comment may not be "scientific" but to me it is important:
Richard Hill's quotation of Saunders seems to me to illustrate very
clearly an ethical problem: the bird or scientific knowledge.
My own view is we do not have the right, even in "the interests of
science", as our ancestors (only a couple of generations ago! - I am
nearing 60 so I am talking of my grandfather's generation i.e. about 100
years ago) would have said. To do anything to endanger a species (our
ancestors, and not just the last two or three generations, were pretty
good at the endangering bit!) has to be wrong.
If our techniques only allow a course which may endanger a bird species,
then we have the over-riding obligation that we MUST stop. We have to
wait until the boffins, (which for non-British readers means scientists,
inventors etc), come up with a system which will not interfere with the
bird's ordinary life and activities.
Imagine a scenario in which we could spray a bird from long range,
without its knowledge, with an invisible substance, (don't ask me how -
that is a technical detail - doubtless someone like Mr Spock, First
Officer of the Starship Enterprise will know how), which carries and
reports back the codings that the scientists need and the bird was none
the wiser. That would have my absolute support.
Being realistic, if such a "spray" was developed, there are enough
common birds e.g. starlings in Europe, on which it could be tried out
without deleterious effects overall whereas I would not recommend that
the guinea pigs should be, for instance, Mauritius Kestrel or Hawaian
Goose (Nene), even though their limited home ranges would make them
relatively easy to track and monitor - just in case the boffins make a
mistake (not unknown!).
I would be interested to hear if others share my views in regard to the
ethics involved i.e ringing (banding) should not be undertaken lightly.
Forgive me if this has already been aired on this channel but I have
only recently joined it and have no knowledge of what has been dicussed
in the past.
Either tell everyone or, if you want a private discussion, contact me
at:
greymalkin@howardhoulder1.demon.co.uk
Regards,
Mike Watkins