[Tweeters] The Sparrow Wars-“still all men who wear a mustache…..”—-“Meet the Little Brown Bird That Holds a Mirror Up to Humanity | Audubon”

[Constance Sidles]

Hey tweets, House Sparrows are also quite uncommon at Montlake Fill. There are a few in the neighborhood nearby, but not many. Some hang out in the low bushes in the FedEx/Wells Fargo parking lot alongside 45th St. Sometimes there is a singing male in the dense bushes abutting the ceramic arts building along Mary Gates Blvd. Lastly, I think a few nest along 36th Ave or 37th Ave NE. But that's about it. Although they do exist in the neighborhood in small numbers, they rarely come to the Fill itself to forage, though there are certainly plenty of seeds. The Fill lacks the dense, low bushes House Sparrows seem to like, however, so maybe that's a factor. 

I will also note that White-crowned Sparrow numbers at the Fill are way, way down too. On the other hand, Song Sparrows seem to be doing okay. 

These are all seed-eaters, so what gives? Dunno. We see only such a small slice of the lives of most birds, we are mostly ignorant of micro-factors that may have large effects on bird populations but remain obscure to us. - Connie


> On Jul 13, 2023, at 10:00 AM, Dennis Paulson <dennispaulson at comcast.net> wrote:

> 

> I don’t think pesticides are responsible for House Sparrow declines, as they are primarily seed-eaters, and most of our seed-eaters seem to be doing fine. Perhaps a steady decline in nest sites, as we clean up the place, but it could be something else. House Sparrows have declined greatly in Europe, where they are native, and as far as I know, they haven’t come up with any clear ideas of the cause.

> 

> We had up to 30 House Sparrows at our feeders when we moved to this house in 1991, and for several years now we have scarcely seen one. A House Sparrow at a feeder is an exciting event! Same with starlings, although we see a few from time to time.

> 

> Dennis Paulson

> Seattle

> 

>> On Jul 13, 2023, at 9:46 AM, Alan Roedell <alanroedell at gmail.com <mailto:alanroedell at gmail.com>> wrote:

>> 

>> Very informative and interesting article.

>> I've noticed a steep decline in House Sparrow numbers in Seattle. Pesticides?

>> 

>> On Mon, Jul 10, 2023, 11:35 PM Dan Reiff <dan.owl.reiff at gmail.com <mailto:dan.owl.reiff at gmail.com>> wrote:

>>> 

>>> https://www.audubon.org/news/meet-little-brown-bird-holds-mirror-humanity

>>> 

>>> 

>>> Sent from my iPhone

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