Does anyone care that 300 to 500 wild birds died in an oil spill in southeastern Alberta last week? This is another environmental tragedy related to the oil and gas industry in this province.
Readers may recall the loss of 500-plus ducks on a toxic tailings pond last April.
That incident obtained significant attention all over the world but especially here in this province.
What you might be shocked to know is that unnatural wild bird deaths occur in huge numbers every day.
The difference is that they are spread out: a window strike here, a power line zap there, a vehicular collision somewhere else.
These hazards occur daily and on every continent.
Does this mean it is okay for us to sweep this latest incident under the rug? After all, many of the dead birds were 'just songbirds'.
The fact is, songbirds are in real trouble everywhere; indeed, wildlife continues to decline world wide, at an alarming rate in many cases.
Though this latest spill was a small one - 60 to 90 barrels of sweet, heavy crude - the death toll is significant to anyone who cares about wildlife conservation.
According to the vague reports released to the public, the majority of the songbirds were swallows.
Thus far, no one has said which species of swallow was involved.
Four species breed here in the summer, including Tree, Cliff, Bank, and Barn swallows, all of which are fabulous insectivores, consuming millions upon millions of flying bugs such as mosquitoes.
Anyone who knows anything about wildlife knows that each species occupies an important space in the overall megastructure of ecosystems.
If you think of them as lego blocks and the planet as a lego castle, each missing block creates a weakness in the overall structure.
The size of a wild animal has nothing to do with its value in maintaining the integrity of the overall health of the planet.
In studies where songbirds have been experimentally 'excluded' from a forest, the result was a marked decrease in forest productivity in just three years! Oil spills have killed millions of wild animals all over the world.
So have power lines, windows, outdoor cats, vehicles, and pesticides.
For those of us in the wildlife conservation business, the facts are overwhelming and more than a little disheartening.
Watch for our series of articles on all these hazards along with some helpful hints on mitigation for the average homeowner.
To despair without action is pointless.
Each of us can make a difference through our own behavior and lifestyle choices.
We can start by leaving small ecological footprints and by creating backyard havens for birds which include educated landscaping and ornithologically accurate nest boxes.
[Please stay tuned.
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