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From: dmark@cs.Buffalo.EDU (David Mark)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: Wild caught v. domestic (was Birdwatchers vs. bird owners)
Message-ID: <8915@cs.Buffalo.EDU>
Date: 31 Jul 89 21:38:30 GMT
References: <3012@nmtsun.nmt.edu> <1316@intercon.UUCP>
Reply-To: dmark@sunybcs.UUCP (David Mark)
Organization: SUNY/Buffalo Geography
Lines: 41

In article <1316@intercon.UUCP> ooblick@intercon.uucp (Mikki Barry) writes:
>
>In article <3012@nmtsun.nmt.edu>, john@nmtsun.nmt.edu (John Shipman) writes:
>> Finally, I'd like to throw one entirely gratuitous flame in
>> the direction of the bird owners.  Please try to avoid
>> buying birds that were taken from the wild.  ...
>
>I've been thinking about this issue quite a bit.  It was generally my opinion
>that catching birds from the wild for export was a bad thing.  But after
>speaking with some owners of quarantine stations, they justify it by saying
>that the birds that are now coming in are in such sorry shape due to habitat
>destruction and lack of adequate nutrition, that the birds will soon die
>in the wild if they are not taken for pets.

Sorry, Mikki, but this reminds me a lot of the idea that we have to shoot
deer in order to "save" them from starvation.  So, as far as the _individual_
bird is concerned, it is best off in the wild (in my opinion).
>
>Personally, I think that taking some from the wild as breeders with the goal
>of perpetuating the species (especially if it is in danger of extinction
>as are many of the amazon parrots and macaws) is ok if done in moderation.

...and done by appropriate agencies, or at least through them.  It is my
opinion that the "agent" doing the captive breeding program should be
a government or UN agency, or the IUCN, or the World Wildlife fund, or the
such.  Now, if those agencies wish to subcontract to well-qualified individuals
to do the breeding, fine.  But the products of that captive breeding MUST be
for re-stocking in the wild, and not for the cage-bird trade.

It seems to me that there are a few "domesticated" species that are well-
established in captivity, hardy, successful breeders, and also (by and large)
from non-endangered parent species.  I'm thinking of canaries, budgerigahs
(shell parakeets to some), zebra finches, society finches, ringed turtle-doves,
...  in fact, the last 2 are so domesticated that we don't even know what
species they were derived from!  Why can't folks who want pets stick to
those, and folks who want a challenge in breeding other, more difficult
species work through the agencies above to contriute to the recovery
of wild populations?

David Mark
dmark@cs.buffalo.edu