h a l f b a k e r yCrust or bust.
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Currently Myna birds around the world are taking over other
bird populations and wiping them out. I see them attacking
the
Common Starling "clouds". I see them attacking pigeon nests I
see them
ganging up on any other bird passing by. I read about them
riding international transportation,
perhaps even planes,
reaching almost everywhere.
They are smart. But we still have an edge over them with our
language and planning and tools and technology. So here's the
idea: Train them to behave nicely. Just like dogs can be
trained
not to bite, so birds can be trained not to attack. And birds
can
be trained to teach and train other birds.
Turn the system around. Get the Mynas to want to live in
special
sanctuaries, where the population is somewhat controlled.
And
get them to do something together that benefits the world,
and
doesn't just show us a mirror of how horrible we've become.
[link]
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They had no choice but to attack the pigeons; the pigeons
were thinking about joining NATO. |
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And in general, the mynas are encircled by other bird
populations, that are not mynas, which is clearly intolerable. |
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Just tell the emus the mynas are after their land. |
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Meh, they'll be out bred by starlings, outsmarted by crows and
out eaten by the falcons. |
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[bs0u0155], mynas ARE starlings.[Pashute] we cant even
convince people who claim to want their own land to be
happy on reservations, I'm not seeing this succeeding unless
we move them to islands and clip their wings. Even then, as
Dr Ian Malcolm says... life, uh, finds a way. |
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still laughing every time i read [poc]'s response. |
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//[bs0u0155], mynas ARE starlings.// |
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Huh, there's another autodidactic rabbit hole I've been
down. I only knew them as the budget parrot type pet from
my grandparents childhood tales. |
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Ultimately I'm not into this whole "invasive species" lark
that gets people wound up. Species will get into new
environments, either now, or next time a continent bumps
into another. Yes, it can be alarming to see a population
boom in a species which finds itself in a new environment.
But that's not the species' fault, it's a fitter species for that
niche. Ultimately there will be a correction, a predator will
adapt, a disease will spread, the environment will change,
or all of them. |
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My general cynicism was somewhat confirmed when as a
student, my friend got a summer job planting bracken for
the woodlands trust, it's a great habitat for the insects that
certain birds and bats love. The previous summer, I had a
different friend who worked for the forestry commision (I
think) removing bracken from the same area as an invasive
plant. It's a shame it wasn't at the same time, they could
have met up, agreed to leave it all alone and gone straight
to the pub. I think trying to control a small, versatile &
fecund creature that can also bloody fly, might be a fool's
errand, even compared to bracken. |
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I'm generally up for the idea of ADDING species, especially
big things that spread poorly. I think the US has habitat for
rhinos, elephants etc. We desperately need a deer
predator, hunters would have to be as tough as they think
they are if there were a good sized tiger population. |
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//invasive species... trying to control a small, versatile & fecund creature that can also bloody fly// We are talking about Humans here right? |
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//Species will get into new environments// |
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Yebbut, the rate at which it happens makes a big difference.
When it happens slowly (as it normally does), it leaves room
for a greater variety of different ecosystems. If it speeds
up by orders of magnitude, then, I fear, it tends towards the
same blowflies, rats and stinging nettles *everywhere*, and
not so much of anything else. |
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//We are talking about Humans here right?// |
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Nope, we fail on fecundity, and size, we're an apex predator
that's learned fancy agriculture tricks. |
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