Essay about cardinal just shows ignorance

When Newsweek arrives each week, one of the first sections I turn to is "My Turn," a personal essay submitted by a reader. It can be on any topic. The Feb. 12 essay described 64-year old Walda Cameron's 14-monthlong obsession with a male cardinal that attacked her home's windows every day.
I immediately empathized because I hear from dozens of readers every year who experience this problem. Some are literally in tears as they write for help. The solution is simple, though not necessarily easy or inexpensive. Remove the window's reflection by soaping it or putting up netting, screens, or a birdscreen (www.birdscreen.com).
Cameron, who lives in Goshen, N.Y., tried a variety of techniques to discourage the crazed cardinal. None worked. She claimed she couldn't sleep, her hands shook and her head ached. She couldn't take it anymore so she bought a shotgun and killed the cardinal.
Newsweek, according to senior editor Nancy Cooper, thought it was an "interesting and thoughtful" story. "We didn't mean to offend anyone," she explained to me in a recent phone conversation. Oops. I'm one of 50 million birders who was offended.
I wondered if the essay was intended to be funny or satirical, but Cooper assured me it was not. The writer's story "speaks for itself," she said.
What it tells me is that Cameron is incredibly ignorant and intolerant, and Newsweek had no clue what a problem birds attacking windows can be.
My objections
Here are just a few of my objections to the essay:
The photo of the 64-year old redhead holding a shotgun across her chest aroused an image of Lucy waiting for Ethel to join the hunt. Slapstick and guns can be a fatal combination.
The Migratory Bird Protection of Act of 1918 protects all native songbirds. It is a federal offense to kill any native bird without a proper permit. Having confessed her crime in a national magazine, I wonder when a U.S. Fish and Wildlife law enforcement agent will pay Cameron a visit.
Though warned at the gun shop that killing a cardinal was illegal, Cameron bought a shotgun, went home and immediately fired at the bird. She missed and somehow cut her finger. She obviously had not taken time for a course in gun safety or hunter education. She decided that the shot was "safe" because there was "only forest" behind the target. I hope that means there were no neighbors living in those woods.
By appearing in Newsweek, this essay communicates to all that the proper way to deal with a problem bird is to buy a gun and kill it. We humans have pretty big brains. We ought to be able to outwit a bird brain without resorting to gunfire. Newsweek should know better.
The proper course of action would be to call a nature center or local wildlife conservation officer to ask for advice. Or check the phone book for an "animal damage control specialist." For a fee, they solve these problems, and they have the necessary permits. Cameron could have used the 70 she paid for her shotgun and probably had a few bucks to spare.
Price increase
Next time you buy a bag of black-oil sunflower seed, you'll probably pay more. A manager at the local feed store where I buy seed told me this week that the next truckload of seed will be priced about two dollars higher for a 50-pound bag. But it's not the winter weather that's responsible for the price increase. It's basic economics -- supply and demand.
The demand for corn to produce ethanol means acreage will be shifted this year from sunflower to corn, so there will be fewer acres of sunflowers planted. Furthermore, sunflower oil contains no trans-fats, so sunflower oil, too, is in greater demand. This increased demand for black-oil sunflower seed, means less for the birdseed market and thus higher prices. Bottom line: The 50-pound bags of black-oil I buy will jump from 11.99 to 13.99.
Send questions and comments to Dr. Scott Shalaway, RD 5, Cameron, W.V. 26033 or via e-mail to sshalaway@aol.com.