■ That various kinds of fishes and most fish-eating birds are protected by- 

 law j ei-ther Federal or State, proves that both groups have considerable public 

 value and that neither should be favored to the exclusion or detriment of the 

 other. The fact that many fishing enthusiasts also are interested in and ■ 

 appreciate bird life indicates that decisions as to public policy regarding 

 bird-fish relationships vjill not in the end be prejudiced. There is often 

 found an extreme attitude either for or against the birds, however, on the part 

 of -groups influenced only by local or personal interests. It is perhaps natural 

 for an ardent angler or commorc:|.al fisherman to consider the problem largely, 

 if not entirely, from the viewpoint of fishing interests and to wish for exter- 

 mination of every creature that ho believes is enimical to his interests, 

 Likevjise the extreme sentimentalist or impassioned bird lover has little or no 

 toleration for any degree of control of any form of bird life. Each group of 

 enthusiasts should remember that the number of those with different interests 

 is by no means small, that under such conditions compromises are almost alvjays 

 necessary, and that scientific methods should be relied upon to solve the diffi- 

 culties. 



In considering the groups of birds commonly classed as fish-eaters, it 

 is well to point ^.'ut that they represent many families, the habitats and habits 

 of which vary considerably, and, therefore, that the degree of predation of the 

 various species differs materially. Some of them, including the yellow-crowned 

 night heron and some of the sea birds, as dovokios, shearwaters, and petrels, 

 rarely consume fish. Others prey only to a slight degree upon fish, and those 

 chiefly species of no economic value. In fact, many of the so-called fish- 

 eaters are no more piscatorially inclined than are some of the common land ■ 

 birds. In the present system of bird classification, as recorded in the 

 American Ornithologists' Union's Check-List (1931), the families popularly 

 considered to be fish-eating birds comprise 198 species and subspecies or 

 varieties, or aliTiost 14 percent of the total number of recognized forms of North 

 Mcrican birds. They include the gulls, terns, loons, grebes, petrels, murres, 

 pelicans, cormorants, mergansers, h'-^rons, bitterns, and ibises, besides a number 

 of land birds, including the osproy, bald eagle, kingfisher, and water ouzel. 



Public opinion will not condone extreme aggressive measures against so 

 large an assemblage of interesting birds, Furthermore, a large proportion of 

 those birds are protected by Federal and State laws and cannot legally be 

 killed except under official permit. Unwarranted control or extreme persecu- 

 tion of any of this group vJill bu sure to bring effective opposition from 

 interested organizations throughout the country. 



Value of ITongame Birds 



The question is frequently asked by those v/ho vjould have nongam.e birds 

 greatly reduced or exterminated locally, "V/hat good are they and vjhy object to 

 such extermination?" Such inquiry has an economic motive, and it is true that 

 on economic grounds alone the protection of various birds cannot be strongly 

 urged, yet they may have esthetic appeal that is ample reason for their preserr- 

 vation and encouragement in reasonable numbers. One might as vjell inquire xvhat 

 good is a masterpiece of Rembrandt or Corot or an orchestral symphony of 

 Beethovenl Their value is no less real than is that derived from the sale of 

 stocks and bonds or of agricultural produce* The natural scene would be vjoe- 

 fully' incompletu without 'its living actors— emong ivhich many of the fish-eating 

 birds, largo, beautifully -colored, and of interesting habits^ can ill be spared, 



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