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On November 20, 2015 at 11:26 AM &
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Same is true in our daughter=E2=80=99s West Island (Montreal) =
neighbourhood.
From: chris kennedy=20
Sent: Monday, November 23, 2015 7:06 AM
To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca=20
Subject: Re: [NatureNS] sparrows
With all this talk of House Sparrows, I thought I'd mention something I =
noticed this summer while in Toronto, then Philadelphia. In both of =
those cities, I noticed the House Sparrows were more abundant than =
starlings nearly everywhere I went. I could not hypothesize why this =
would be... perhaps someone here knows?=20
-Chris Kennedy in Dartmouth
On Sat, Nov 21, 2015 at 12:15 PM, rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca =
<rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca> wrote:
One thing not mentioned in the discussion Lance was the use of=20
road salt. It very effectively wiped out the Hungarian Partridge on =
PEI.
They went from plentiful to rare in a few years after salt came into =
use.
They would get gravel for grit along the road and pick up salt.
The same may have happened to House Sparrows also - come to think of
it rats - the Norway kind - have had an unlamented decline also.=20
All 3 species are of the invasive kind. The history of most invasive =
species is=20
that they thrive for a time and then die down.
Enjoy the November rain
Paul=20
On November 20, 2015 at 11:26 AM "Laviolette, Lance" =
<lance.laviolette@lmco.com> wrote:=20
Hi Peter,
There are undoubtedly a number of factors contributing to the =
decline of House Sparrows. However one factor which has been pointed out =
by studies in the UK is a reduction in the abundance of insects for =
nestlings. Whatever the cause in the decline in insect numbers =
(pesticides, predators, climate change, etc.), the hypothesis goes that =
less insects mean less protein for the young which results in less =
healthy young fledging from the nest. These less fit birds don=E2=80=99t =
survive very well in harsher, winter conditions.=20
The reason European Starlings are not declining may be attributed to =
their diet also. From the Birds of North America accounts:
House Sparrow - Insects and other arthropods during breeding season.
European Starling - Extremely diverse diet that varies =
geographically, with the age of individuals, and with season. Unusual =
abundances of food items=E2=80=A6 garbage, livestock feed, etc. are also =
exploited.
The diverse diet of starlings gives them a big edge when trying to =
survive and fledge healthy young in areas where no one food type is =
sufficient by itself.
As Paul mentioned, House Sparrows used to be seen closely associated =
with cows and horses and they still are. However most of the large =
animal operations have now been replaced with intensive agricultural =
crop raising farms. I=E2=80=99d call the resulting corn and soya fields =
deserts compared to the diversity rich pastures and =
=E2=80=98wild=E2=80=99 hay fields that used to be common even 20 years =
ago except deserts are much richer in diversity. House Sparrows have =
gone from being abundant and wide-spread to being locally common over =
that time. In my area in summer they are now focused almost exclusively =
around the few horse stabling operations that we have. In winter they =
show up at my feeders.
All the best,
Lance
Lance Laviolette
Glen Robertson, Ontario
From: naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca =
[mailto:naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca] On Behalf Of Hubcove@aol.com
Sent: Thursday, November 19, 2015 5:57 PM
To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca
Subject: EXTERNAL: [NatureNS] sparrows
In Halifax today and a friend was wondering why sparrows have =
virtually disappeared in the city. While starlings are obviously =
flourishing. Wondered whether anyone had the answer.
Peter Stow=20
Hubbards
=20
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<DIV dir=3Dltr>
<DIV style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000">
<DIV>Same is true in our daughter=E2=80=99s West Island (Montreal) =
neighbourhood.</DIV>
<DIV=20
style=3D'FONT-SIZE: small; TEXT-DECORATION: none; FONT-FAMILY: =
"Calibri"; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; COLOR: #000000; FONT-STYLE: normal; =
DISPLAY: inline'>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt tahoma">
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV style=3D"BACKGROUND: #f5f5f5">
<DIV style=3D"font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A =
title=3Dcjkennedy66@gmail.com=20
href=3D"mailto:cjkennedy66@gmail.com">chris kennedy</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Monday, November 23, 2015 7:06 AM</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=3Dnaturens@chebucto.ns.ca=20
href=3D"mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</A> =
</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: [NatureNS] sparrows</DIV></DIV></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV>
<DIV=20
style=3D'FONT-SIZE: small; TEXT-DECORATION: none; FONT-FAMILY: =
"Calibri"; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; COLOR: #000000; FONT-STYLE: normal; =
DISPLAY: inline'>
<DIV dir=3Dltr>With all this talk of House Sparrows, I thought I'd =
mention=20
something I noticed this summer while in Toronto, then Philadelphia. In =
both of=20
those cities, I noticed the House Sparrows were more abundant than =
starlings=20
nearly everywhere I went. I could not hypothesize why this would be... =
perhaps=20
someone here knows?=20
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>-Chris Kennedy in Dartmouth</DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=3Dgmail_extra>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV class=3Dgmail_quote>On Sat, Nov 21, 2015 at 12:15 PM, <A=20
href=3D"mailto:rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca">rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca</A> =
<SPAN=20
dir=3Dltr><<A href=3D"mailto:rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca"=20
target=3D_blank>rita.paul@ns.sympatico.ca</A>></SPAN> wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=3Dgmail_quote=20
style=3D"PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc =
1px solid"><U></U>
<DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12pt">One thing not mentioned in the =
discussion=20
Lance was the use of</SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12pt">road salt. It very effectively =
wiped out=20
the Hungarian Partridge on PEI.<BR></SPA