One is conservation related--the very existence of Grenada Dove is being put at risk by the decision of the government of Grenada to sell off part of a national park to make room for a luxury resort. This is a discraceful decision, and if an online petition pops up to help prevent this development I will post a link. An excerpt from the Birdlife International press release:
"A ‘high-end luxury resort’ threatens one of the last remaining refuges for the Grenada Dove, a Critically Endangered species with a global population of just 180 birds. In an unprecedented move the Government of Grenada looks set to sell the whole of the Mount Hartman National Park to make space for a Four Seasons Resort, on the basis of its biodiverse location and “sea-view”.
"The Mount Hartman National Park – also called ‘The Dove Sanctuary’ - in the south-west of Grenada, supports at least 22% of the global population of the Grenada Dove - equating to just 20 pairs. With such a low population in just a few remnant patches of forest, Grenada Dove is facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the near future."
The second story involves a birding lodge that I have very fond memories of from my first overseas birding trip, Rancho Naturalista in Costa Rica. Apparently it has gone severely downhill in the last few years, and a former employee of the lodge, Andrew Walker, describes its current state here. One of the more disturbing incidents described is the felling of a tree with an ACTIVE Cinnamon Becard nest (see photo below), despite the fact that the management was aware that nestlings were still in the nest. Birding lodges should be models of conservation, showing that birding and ecotourism can bring substantial amounts of money to a region. Such counterproductive measures as destroying nesting birds not only sets a bad example that reflects poorly on the lodge itself but shows a shameful lack of consideration for the birds themselves.
The second story involves a birding lodge that I have very fond memories of from my first overseas birding trip, Rancho Naturalista in Costa Rica. Apparently it has gone severely downhill in the last few years, and a former employee of the lodge, Andrew Walker, describes its current state here. One of the more disturbing incidents described is the felling of a tree with an ACTIVE Cinnamon Becard nest (see photo below), despite the fact that the management was aware that nestlings were still in the nest. Birding lodges should be models of conservation, showing that birding and ecotourism can bring substantial amounts of money to a region. Such counterproductive measures as destroying nesting birds not only sets a bad example that reflects poorly on the lodge itself but shows a shameful lack of consideration for the birds themselves.
3 comments:
It's all about the money...sad isn't it.
this is Joe from G&G's computer.
they maintain that the cannot respond to your blog but i see that i can, so i will pass this on to them.
happy xmas and chanukka....oops, no spell check on the blog!
lova ya and miss ya.
uncle joe
Hi, Josh
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