Tene A Uw B.OeN ei Bs tla Male 21 
‘RETURNING HOME’ 
by Mrs. Mary Koga, Chicago 
Courtesy of the Nature Camera Club 
of Chicago. 
tended to reduce the numbers of songbirds. Perhaps such a change has 
taken place because of the tremendous competition in that area for avail- 
able food and nesting sites. This will be worth watching—and reporting. 
The figure of 140 species is impressive, but also a bit misleading, for 
16 of these species consist of just one individual of its kind. These include 
the Horned Grebe, Harlequin Duck, Osprey, Peregrine Falcon, House Wren, 
Indigo Bunting, LeConte’s Sparrow, and Sharp-tailed Sparrow—some truly 
rare birds, and some relatively common, but not in winter in Illinois. 
My conclusion is that, except for birds that we encourage—either by 
negligent farming practices (as the blackbirds) by spreading urbanization 
(sparrows and starlings) or by wildlife management policies—the waterfowl 
—we have less, rather than more, of the desirable wild birds than we had 
25 years ago. Man is nature’s worst enemy. 
—Paul H. Lobik, 22W681 Tamarack Dr., Glen Ellyn 
