Beleid en debat

Five species of wildlife with declining populations have been added to New Jersey’s endangered list, and nine species have been added to the threatened list, the state Department of Environmental Protection announced. The newly-endangered are three species of birds - the black rail Laterallus jamaicensis, the golden-winged warbler Vermivora chrysoptera and the red knot Calidris canutus; the gray petaltail Tachopteryx thoreyi, a species of dragonfly; and the Indiana bat, which is listed as federally endangered. The newly-threatened are three species of birds - the American kestrel, the cattle egret and the horned lark; and six dragonfly species.

For some strange reason, since the old beaver families ran out of the food they enjoyed and moved on, our skies have appeared less occupied with winged insect eaters. Before that we saw every single species of swallows, except the purple martin Progne subis. These included the barn Hirundo Rustica, which nested in our old buildings, the tree Tachycineta bicolor, that used our birdhouses to raise their young, and the cliff Petrochelidon pyrrhonota, who built their jug-like nests under our barn eves. The rough-winged Stelgidopteryx serripennis and bank swallows Riparia riparia flew up from the Ashuelot River and over our pond to fill up on insects. The large flocks of swallows were accompanied by chimney swifts (Chaetura pelagica) that nested each summer in one of the flues in our house chimney. (While eating our meals in the kitchen, we could hear them chatter.) There were other insect eaters, too, that appeared for a good feed at the pond. Larger flycatchers such as: Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe), kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus), eastern pewee (Contopus virens), and olive-sided (Contopus cooperi), as well as each of the five species of Empidonax flycatchers. These quite small species are somewhat difficult to separate one from the other, unless one hears them “speak.” Their voices can be differentiated, one from the other. In late years, all of these species, including whip-poorwills (Caprimulgus vociferus), (goatsuckers) have, or nearly have, disappeared from our fields, woods, and dooryard. The change happened gradually, from one year to another, but by now, has become definitely noticeable. Truth to tell, I should not have been surprised to read the cover story in NH Audubon's Spring Issue, 2012, of “Afield” headlined: “Empty Skies: The Decline of Aerial Insectivores,” written by Dr. Pamela Hunt, bird conservation biologist of the organization. My surprise came from seeing in black and white, what had become selfevident in the past few years here at the farm.

Eine der am meisten bedrohten Vogelarten Deutschlands, der Schreiadler, befindet sich weiterhin in einem kritischen Zustand. Der Bestand des „Pommernadlers“ Aquila pomarina ist in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern von 95 Brutpaaren Mitte der 1990er Jahre auf 80 Brutpaare (Stand 2010) weiter gesunken. Als Hauptursachen der Gefährdung machen Experten den Rückgang von extensiv bewirtschaftetem Grünland und die hohe Nutzungsintensität in unseren Wäldern aus. Schreiadler sind sehr störungsempfindliche Vögel, die von Menschen weitgehend ungenutzte Lebensräume benötigen. Ihren Verbreitungsschwerpunkt besitzen sind in Zentral- und Ost-/Südosteuropa. Die Bestände in Nordostdeutschland stellen das westlichste Vorkommen der Art dar. Hier leben sie vor allem in laubholzreichen Wäldern, die von extensiv genutztem Grünland, Feuchtgebieten und Mooren umgeben werden. Zur Nahrung des auch gern zu Fuß jagenden Adlers gehören Frösche, Mäuse, Eidechsen und andere Vögel.

Farmland birds such as grey partridge Perdix perdix, tree sparrow Passer montanus, yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella, reed bunting Emberiza schoeniclus and corn bunting Miliaria calandra have declined by 70 per cent since 1970. This is despite the introduction of agri-environment schemes which pay farmers to put in a range of wildlife-friendly measures on their holdings. Modern farms have far fewer insects and weeds than they did four decades ago as a result of increased use of herbicides and pesticides. Farmers could be paid for feeding starving birds during the winter months under a new initiative. “Time is running out for many farmland birds and we need action right now,” said Peter Thompson, Farmland Biodiversity Advisor with the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT). “Farmland birds are a species in decline so anything to help reverse that trend is to be welcomed,” said an RSPB spokesman.