Birders and Conservation

By Ed Slaney

In Birding magazine (June 2002) a very well written article by Paul Baicih received a response from Mark Robbins, University of Kansas. The story is about birders and their disconnection with conservation. Mr. Robbins, chair of the ABA Checklist Committee, comments about birders not getting the connection between birds and habitat. They may simply not want to be bothered.

In light of the up coming CEO (formerly SEAs) ordinance, this attitude is surely short-sighted. I certainly hope this attitude is not prevalent in our Space Coast Audubon chapter. We must be connected to conserving habitat if we expect to see the birds we want to see in the future. I urge you to write, call or E mail your county commissioner’s to support this ordinance. If you have done so, your participation is greatly appreciated. It may however be helpful to remind the county commissioners again, because the up-coming meetings are spread weeks apart. January 26 is the LPA meeting, and February 17 is the first hearing at the commissioner’s meeting. If you can make these meetings it would go a long way in gaining victory.