Bird decline

[jcoberley]

I feel as mans population incresses that wildlife will pay for us growing. Truly there needs to be some groth controls for man kind! I know it will meen that the goverment will not get a steady incress of tax payers and taxes. However they will have to live as the people do and stop milking the system.

[gonefishin]

'Clean' farming practices that have virtually eliminated hedgerows and overgrown fencelines has been one of the worst things that ever happened to our small game and upland gamebirds. Not only did the fencerows provide unexcelled habitat but it also provided cover for migration, breeding and rearing and a diverse plant community that produced a bounty of food for the native species. The introduction of Fescue has hardly helped as it doesn't provide usefull cover as do native plants and grasses.

With the increase in coyotes I no longer see the occasional Bobcat and it's been several years since I've seen a Fox even tho we used to have a vixen who annually raised a litter in the little cave under a rock ledge on the face of the bluff.

The practice of 'clean' farming was the worst thing that happened to wildlife. I guess 'clean' farms look pretty but I prefer the hedgerows and overgrown fence rows of the farms that I grew up on.

Coyote populations have been hard on a lot of wildlife and are starting to become problematic in a lot of places to pets and even people in some case. Just another example of the balance being upset.

[Al Agnew]

Yep, the coyotes have really been hard on red foxes around here. And our gray foxes got a disease a few years ago and disappeared...we used to have a family around the house. But the coyotes haven't run off our resident bobcat, which we see once a year or so. And they sure haven't harmed our rabbit population. On the other hand, the danged things have gotten two of our chickens in the last week. First one, I was busy painting in the middle of the day and heard the chickens (we let them free-range) going nuts outside. Ran outside just in time to see a big coyote trotting off with our only hen that laid blue eggs. But last night was our fault, forgot to shut the chicken house door. This morning there was a big pile of feathers and one less hen, so I suppose it was the coyote, but ain't sure.

We've always had one covey of quail on our land, and we've figured out that our carrying capacity is exactly 6 birds. By the end of the summer, we'll have anywhere from 10 to 16 quail in the covey, but by the end of the winter we're almost always back down to 6. I don't hunt them.

We had a bunch of rose-breasted grosbeaks come through and stay awhile earlier this spring. We have blue grosbeaks nesting. But we haven't seen an evening grosbeak in a long time, either.

[Terry Beeson]

I did see something yesterday in Nixa that really caught my eye. I can't remember the last time I have seen one and their range is not noted to be quite this far east, but I saw a Scissortail Flycatcher on a fence on Gregg Road.

[skeeter]

I did see something yesterday in Nixa that really caught my eye. I can't remember the last time I have seen one and their range is not noted to be quite this far east, but I saw a Scissortail Flycatcher on a fence on Gregg Road.

Ha ! Saw one in front of Harter House in Kimberling City about four weeks ago. Neat bird ! Almost looked tropical with that long tail and swooping flight pattern. According to the map in my bird I.D book we are at the extreme Eastern limit of their range.

Now if we could just persuade the danged Coyotes that Armadillers taste good !!

Anybody else feed the Hummingbirds ? My neighbors and I have been trying to figure out where they all went suddenly. No one has seen a bird at their feeders in about two weeks and they aren't on the garden flowers either ????

[gonefishin]

I feed them and I have been wondering the same thing. Where did they go???

[Wayne SW/MO]

The late frost?

[Chief Grey Bear]

I still have 4 of them hanging around my house. Mine are coming around very late evening. Sun is down but still light.

[Crippled Caddis]

Yep----we were absolutely covered up with the Hummers a few weeks ago then the majority mysteriously disappeared. Prior to the disappearance we were having to refill the feeders (8) every 3rd day. I've suspected that they went further North where there was a better supply of flowers that were unaffected by the late frost. Still getting a few, but only refilling @ once a week now here in N. Ark. just South of Mammoth Spring.

[gonefishin]

I had several and was refilling the feeders regular. Havent had to refill them for a few days now. There are usually some that nest here and by this time of year I am usually starting to see the little ones but not so this year. I think Terrys giant squid came and gobbled them up or something.