Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!agate!shelby!portia!hanauma!joe From: joe@hanauma.stanford.edu (Joe Dellinger) Newsgroups: sci.bio Subject: Re: Ecosystemic Contamination Message-ID: <5748@portia.Stanford.EDU> Date: 10 Oct 89 23:31:22 GMT References: <8909272147.AA01656@aristotle.Jpl.Nasa.Gov> <2035@frog.UUCP> <5661@portia.Stanford.EDU> <767.25311054@csc.anu.oz> <5715@portia.Stanford.EDU> <11681@burdvax.PRC.Unisys.COM> Sender: USENET News System Reply-To: joe@hanauma.stanford.edu (Joe Dellinger) Organization: Stanford University, Dept. of Geophysics Lines: 20 In article <11681@burdvax.PRC.Unisys.COM> overt@antony (Christian Overton) writes: >blackbirds (grackles) europe n.a. > seen in large flocks? I don't think you have grackles in Pennsylvania. True, they are "invading" Texas, but I believe the invasion is a natural extension of their central American range. (For those of you who have never seen one, Grackles are dark colored birds. The males can have extremely large tails, and are brightly iridescently colored. They are most known for making extremely loud, extremely strange sounds something like the sound of a squeaky door hinge overlayed on top of a fuzzy buzz. They are unmistakeable.) Another recent natural invader of Texas is the Cattle Egret. They came from Africa, crossed to S.A. apparently by themselves, and have been spreading North ever since. Now they've made it to Texas. True to their name you often see them standing on cows! As for other natural invaders into Texas... how about scrub jays? Armadillos? \ /\ /\ /\/\/\/\/\/\/\.-.-.-.-.......___________ \ / \ / \ /Dept of Geophysics, Stanford University \/\/\.-.-....___ \/ \/ \/Joe Dellinger joe@hanauma.stanford.edu apple!hanauma!joe\/\.-._