Feeding the birds - Is it a good idea?

     One of the things that I noticed while counting this spring was,  people feeding the birds; the swans, the geese, the ducks and the gulls.  Of course, most of us realize that we shouldn't do that anymore but do we really know why?  I see the signs posted by the Town, yet I still see families come walking down the path , clutching their bags of white bread and throwing pieces out to the waiting birds. Is it such a bad thing?  Don't the birds need us to feed them?  Aren't they only better off from us doing this for them?

     Well, the short answer is STOP IT!!!  No, the birds do not benefit from eating white bread (or any bread, actually!).  

  

   Have you ever seen any of the water birds looking like the ones above?  You may even feel bad for them and you just know in your heart that they're not going to make it.  They'll probably be dead soon because obviously they have something wrong with them.  What happened to them?

     What happened is that people have been feeding them!  Instead of them eating what nature has dictated they should consume (pond grasses), they've been gorging on bread, crackers, cookies and other totally non-nutritious foods that are robbing their bodies of the minerals and vitamins they require to be healthy!  Most of these birds were young when they started being fed by people. They never received the proper nutrition to enable their bones and joints to form properly.  The result is called "Angel Wing" , "Slipped Wing" or "Crooked Wing" and it always results in the bird's early death.  The condition itself is not fatal, but the bird can no longer fly, and thus no longer able to escape predators.  And unless they live on an island very, very far from shore (that a predator would never be able to swim to), this bird is a walking time bomb.  There is absolutely no cure or treatment that will enable these birds to heal.

     I'm guilty of feeding birds.  When I was a child, we would always go to the park or the beach and feed whatever birds happened to be around.  And then I started studying Environmental Science and learned that we can really kill something with kindness.  I'm so very grateful that we now have this enlightened awareness of how our actions can impact our environment.  While I was growing up, we never considered the consequences.  We truly believed we were doing the right thing.  Now, we know better!

Over For Another Year

Well, we've finished for another year!  We had a pretty successful year of counting.  While it wasn't the busiest year we've ever had, it was much better than a lot of the previous years of counting.  We counted over 6,000 fish and that puts it in third place overall!  We did have some weather challenges with having a very cold winter and spring, but the fish did eventually come through!

So, thank you to everyone who helped out this year.  We somehow managed to fill most of the counting slots.  The final numbers have been sent off to the folks at Fish & Wildlife and I am anxiously awaiting the grand total.  I will definitely post the overall total as soon as I receive it!

Until next year...

One of our counters has a brother who is an amazing photographer and I just had to share these pictures with you!

His name is Robert Kelley and his sister is Betsey Godley, one of our counters.  They were so fantastic, I just had to share!!!

And, the fish are still coming!  The warm weather from the last 2 days has really spurred them on, so hopefully they'll keep coming.  We are on day 34 and we could have another couple of weeks to go.  So, if you want to go enjoy the beautiful weather we're having and want to do something useful, please look at the schedule and sign up for some of those open hours!!

And thank you Betsey for these unbelievable pictures!

Hi Counters!

I made an update on the chart for the year-to-year comparisons and you can see that we are right in line with the past 3 years.

We think that the Alewives have moved on through and now we're getting the Bluebacks.  On a really warm and sunny day, the fish are really coming up the river, so pray for warm weather for the rest of the week!!

Please check out the schedule and if you happen to have some free time this week and weekend, feel free to let us know if you can count!  And thank you so much for all of your hard work!

Fellow Counters:  We have some openings coming up later this week.  Please check the schedule and let me know if you can take any slots.  Thanks for all your work on this project.

On a good note the Town of Barnstable has approved funds for the design of a new Fish Ladder for our run here at Rt. 28 & Rt. 149.  The ladder and dam took a beating this winter and we look forward to replacing this structure that dates back to the 1970's.

The Three Bays website back up and we need to rewrite the Herring count blog.  If you have any photos that you would like to share please email them to info@3bays.org and we will add them to the new site. Thank you for your efforts counting and lets hope for a strong run.

They are definitely here!!

    We are having such a great run this year!  Let's keep our fingers crossed that it continues! All of the counters have been great and the fish look healthy and big!  

Fish in the run
Taken by Rhonda Lockwood

Comparison Chart from 2012-2014

     So, I put together a chart that shows how very different the runs are from year to year.  You can just never tell how it's going to go.  The weather is such a determining factor in how many fish come up the river and when they make their long trek.  If you remember, 2012 was a banner year for us.  The run started really early because we had such a glorious spring!  But, then we took a little 2 week vacation because the weather turned so cold.  When the fish did come back, they came back with a vengeance.
    In 2013, we had a very slow start but it built up to a great run in about 3 weeks.  This year, the fish have come in big numbers right from the start.  So, it's going to be interesting to see what develops this year.  The weather is supposed to get cold this week and I even heard rumors of snow on Wednesday!!  Keep your fingers crossed and Happy Counting!!
    We do have quite a few empty counting slots beginning this weekend, so look over the schedule and see if you can fill any of them in.

They're Here!!

So, we think they've finally arrived.  Over the weekend we noticed a few fish in the run and by Monday, there seemed to be a few more.  So we are officially starting the counting process on Wednesday, April 9th!  So, if you want to count, please go to the schedule, notice which slots are open, and sign up!!  And if you've already signed up, please double-check the schedule and remember when you're due to count!  
The first few days will probably be a little slow so don't be disappointed if there are a few zero counts.  The water temperature is still a little chilly, so as it warms up in the afternoon, the fish will get more active.
The video above is from Susan Meyers and this is the first documented fish for 2014!!  She took this on Sunday. Thank you Susan!!
Please send an email with any questions to : herringcount@yahoo.com

Almost!

     So we've done a little work on the run in anticipation of the arrival of the fish.  We've cleaned up a little trash and the counting box is in place.  The thermometer, the counter and a laminated sheet of instructions are all in the box. The white board is in place and now we wait! 
     We're not really all that late.  While two years ago we started the count on March 21st (we actually had a spring that year!) the latest we've started was on April 20th in 2007.  The water temperature was 45 degrees this morning so we are inching up towards the magical 51 degrees.  One bright spot is that the osprey are back!!

  It's just a matter of time...

Not yet!!

So, even though it's almost April, the fish have not arrived yet.  So, don't go and start your counting unless you hear from us that they've arrived!  We've been keeping a close watch on the water temperature and this morning it was only 36 degrees!  A little too chilly for them, I think.  And now with this blizzard bearing down on us, I think it may be a few more days.  It is supposed to warm up this weekend, so keep your fingers crossed...

Last Year's Swans

Photo by Betsey Godley

This is a really sweet picture from last year's cygnets at Mill Pond.  He seems like he was thriving!!

Hopefully, we'll see more this year and Mom won't want to attack any of us like she did last year!

We had a wonderful turnout for the Herring Count Training meeting last Saturday.  It looks like it's going to be a great counting year!  The weather was so nice that Lindsey took everyone down to the run to have a look around.  And even though Elliott Carr had to cancel at the last minute, his wife Susan stepped in and did a tremendous job with a PowerPoint presentation about the Herring Run in Brewster.  The pictures were great!

The Americorps Crew!

Explaining how to count!

Susan Carr standing in for her husband.  Extraordinary pictures and presentation!

Learning how to work the lock!

Herring Training Reminder

Just a short reminder that the 2014 Herring Count Training meeting is this Saturday!!

When:                   Saturday, March 8, 2014 

Time:                     1:00 - 3:00 PM

Where:                  Liberty Hall

                              2150 Main Street

                              Marstons Mills, MA 02648

And right after the training session, which is really quite short, please stay for a wonderful presentation by Elliott Carr, author of "Herring Run: Life and Death at Stony Creek"

Another year is starting!!

A new training session at Liberty Hall is announced for the 2014 Marstons Mills River Herring Count Project!

If you have always wanted to be a herring counter, or wondered what exactly it is that a herring counter does, or if you've counted in the past and would like to sign up for another year, then here is your chance!!

We will be holding another herring count training session on:

Saturday, March 8, 2014

1:00 - 3:00 PM

Liberty Hall

2150 Main Street, Marstons Mills

(next door to the Marstons Mills Public Library)

This year we are thrilled to have Elliott Carr attending and he will give a short presentation on his new book:

Herring Run: Life and Death at Stony Brook

He will also have a book signing and the book will be available for sale.

So please attend and bring your friends, and volunteer for this wonderful opportunity!

Liberty Hall would also like you to know that it is available for rent for any of your functions.  If you'd like more information, please contact:

Charlie Thifault

508-737-5899

508-420-3147