USDA plans to poison two million Red-winged Blackbirds in order to protect the sunflower seed crop. Besides the targeted Blackbirds, 86 other species of bird will also die a lingering death, including several species of already-declining grassland birds.
The address of the Secretary of the USDA (email address)
agsec@usda.gov
In GQ, a thread was started about dead birds, so I posted this there. Bibliphage asked me to move it here, for a general debate. So here it is.
And how ironic will it be when those sunflower seeds find their way into pre-packaged wild bird seed, which could be used to feed Red-winged Blackbirds?
Or rather, “…some of those sunflower seeds…”
That’s just flat-out idiotic. Is there a link to an article on this? If all they are doing is spreading poisoned seed, the incidental death toll will be staggering. As barbitu8 alluded, there are a lot of seed-eating birds out there.
'course I dislike sunflower seeds and I’m inordinately fond of Red-Winged ( and Yellow-Headed ) Blackbirds, due to some fond childhood memories. So in my very biased mind, the soultion is obvious - We should pay the farmers to produce the crop to feed the birds 
.
I really have trouble with this. I was under the impression that poison bait for coyotes was illegal because it killed Eagles and other raptors, now they’re going to put out poison for red-wing blackbirds? WTF?…
Doesn’t anyone realize that this will kill not only the red-wings, but also ANY finches, including sparrows, cardinals, goldfinches…also Jays, crows, starlings, (I don’t mind losing starlings, but the rest of them I do)…I can’t begin to enumerate all the bird species that will be affected by this.
And come next spring, there will be a lot more weeds popping up, as there will be no birds to eat their seed.
Silent Spring…
I can see it now…Having to run all over the county looking for bags of Bird Safe Black Oil Sunflower Seeds.
The irony here is pretty damn thick. While I know that not all farmers are complaining about wildlife crop damage, folks who grow sunflower seed should know better than most, the poor press this is going to buy them.
On average, we go through five to six hundred pounds of sunflower seed here, all from North Dakota and Montana. That probably sounds like a lot and it is when you have to haul it up the snowy driveway in winter, but I know lots of folks who feed two and three times or more than we do.
I appreciate the heads up barbitu8, guess I should read through some of those birding mags that pile up on the desk, gathering dust while I spend most of my time here in the SDMB.
I just learned that emails don’t count in registering protests. If you want to be heard you have to write. The address is: Ann Veneman, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture
U.S. Department of Agriculture
14th & Independence Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20250
Tamerlane wrote:
Not quite. They’re using poisoned rice, not posioned seeds. According to the EPA document linked to in bibliophage’s message above:
“Under the proposed management program, WS would employ the use of 2 percent DRC-1339-treated brown rice at red-winged blackbird staging areas in the spring to reduce breeding populations and subsequent damage to ripening sunflowers in the fall. DRC-1339 baiting would occur on not more than 50 acres in harvested fields near red-winged blackbird staging areas in east-central South Dakota and target not more than 2 million red-winged blackbirds annually. The baiting areas would be determined based on the most current red-winged blackbird roost site distribution and the areas where red-winged blackbirds stage. Baiting areas and sites would be determined through field observations by trained personnel, and DRC-1339-treated bait would not be distributed until risks to nontarget species were evaluated.”
[emphasis mine]
They’re also using some non-lethal blackbird population control techniques:
“Examples of nonlethal methods include altering farming practices, using audio and visual frightening devices, growing bird-resistant sunflowers, increasing weed control in fields, and growing decoy crops. Additionally, research has shown that opening dense cattail stands, which are traditional roost sites for blackbirds, aids in dispersing blackbirds from nearby sunflower crops. To date, nonlethal blackbird damage management initiatives have been somewhat effective in reducing blackbird damage to unharvested sunflowers, but have not alleviated the problem for all sunflower growers.”
And furthermore, according to the Audobon Society webpage linked to above:
“The compound, DRC-1339, that was used in the area is species specific to blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles and starlings.”
Thanks tracer . I’d already picked up that they were doing an evaluation before proceeding, which mollified me somewhat ( though I still like Red-Wings a heck of a lot more than I like sunflowers 
).
But I am floored that they have a compound that is “species specific to blackbirds, cowbirds, grackles, and starlings.” I’ll have to look into that a little later when I have time, but that’s kind of a shocking statement to me. Are Icterids really that differentiated from other Passeriforms that such a thing is possible? It seems unlikely on the face of it, I’m no expert on toxins. Into the “research later” pile it goes .
Tamerlane wrote:
Differentiated? Hell, I can barely pronounce “Icterids.” Whatever the heck they are.
Look here, quick, before Tamerlane comes back. He’ll never supect a thing…
Darwin’s Finch: Hah! Caught you! Trying to hand out free knowledge and lesson the mystique of specialized jargon. Tsk. The noive 
!
That’s a pretty nice site by the way . I especially liked the little discussion about Great-Tailed Grackles. The only pair I’ve seen was actually at the little oasis of the Zzyzx Field Station on Soda Lake, just outside of Baker. Purple glossy IMHO, unlike the Death Valley birds the author saw .
So just to stay on topic - What do YOU know about Icterid-specific toxins ?
Zzyzx? That’s the magic word that teleports you back to the cave entrance after you’ve picked up the nugget of gold that’s too heavy to carry up the steps, right?
Or was that “Plugh”?
This site mentions the use of DRC-1339 in reducing raven populations in the Mohave Desert; ravens, of course, are not Icterids. It seems to me, then, that perhaps the Audubon Society was mistaken in its claims of Icterid specificity for DRC-1339.
I, too, want to thank you Darwin’s Finch for that link. Very nice. Have any more bird links. (Don’t pay any attention to Tamerlane. If you have some good ones, post them, please.)
Darwin’s Finch: Thanks - That info about the poison makes more sense. I thought the idea of a toxin that specific sounded a little fishy. Perhaps it is just that it was originally developed for use on Icterids or something and the Audobon folk got a little confused.Though if it were true it would have potentially made a GREAT synapomorphy for uniting the family Icteridae .
See, I just knew I could talk someone into doing my research for me .
tracer: Actually Zzyzx was so named as a gimmick so that it would be last word in a phonebook. Really . Before it was a CSU field station, it was founded by a slightly nutty character who’s name escapes me, as a sort of holistic health resort. It’s a neat little place and open to the public most days, if you’re ever driving through Baker in the CA desert.
barbitu8: C’mon now, where would this world be if everybody were educated and had equal access to knowledge? 