250 



W. T. MUNRO AND R. W. CAMPBELL 



haps we should discourage fishing by nets in 

 areas where large numbers of seabirds aggre- 

 gate to feed. 



We also need to know more about the ef- 

 fects of chemical pollutants on individual 

 species and on their reproduction. Of para- 

 mount importance, and one which biologists 

 tend to neglect, is communication among all 

 disciplines interested in seabirds. For 

 example, a comprehensive file of the history 

 of seabird colonies in British Columbia is es- 

 tablished at the Provincial Museum. It would 

 be a waste of time and money to duplicate 

 that file and have three or four scattered 

 across the country. We would be better ad- 

 vised to tackle another phase of work yet to 

 be accomplished. Communication assures 

 that seabirds benefit and are not unduly 

 harassed. 



Annual meetings, both local and interna- 

 tional, of persons interested in marine birds 

 should be arranged so that problems relating 

 to seabirds can be discussed. For example, 



populations of glaucous-winged gulls in 

 British Columbia have increased exponen- 

 tially in the past 10 years. If they are a threat 

 to the existence of other seabirds (e.g., 

 Leach's storm-petrel, double-crested cor- 

 morants), should they be controlled, and, if so, 

 how? Such meetings would also help develop a 

 pattern of universal census methods and tech- 

 niques that could be put to use along the 

 Pacific Coast to provide comparable data 

 from different areas. 



Finally, in today's world, natural resource 

 agencies must operate on limited funding. 

 How can one convince administrators to di- 

 vert a significant portion of those funds to the 

 investigation of species that are widely re- 

 garded as having little social importance? 



A detailed bibliography of seabirds of 

 British Columbia is available from either of 

 us. 



We thank D. F. Hatler, J. B. Foster, and 

 A. L. Allen for comments on the manuscript. 



