USDA shooting cattle egrets?

[hikatz]

Has anyone heard anything about USDA notifying the public about KILLING some of the cattle egrets (white birds you see in the trees) at Seaside restaurant in Hilo!
There are 4-5 USDA vehicles in the back of Seaside parking lot!!!! The men are out in a boat and for almost 2 hours they have been shooting and setting of flares, dead birds on the banks and in the water of the pond.
6.00pm, still shooting the birds as they return to their nesting trees. Neighbors notified the police, their response it is private property!!

7.20pm the boat came just came in, men had rifles, some of the birds they brought in, were injured, they just picked them up and smashed their heads against the rocks.[V]
This is wrong, if there is a problem there has to be a better way of solving it!

[Nalu]

Whoah..that's terrible..I would say best recourse is to write a letter to the editor in Tribune Herald, that has worked well for me. They'll have to respond.

[dmbwest]

We drove by from swim and wondering why everyone was staring out ... Birds eating fish ?

edit to add .... ugh : (

aloha,
pog

[Obie]

The egrets are routinely shot near airports because they are a hazard to aircraft.
There is also this

In Hawaii, they prey upon native waterbird and seabird
chicks, including the native black-necked stilt (Stone and Anderson 1988).
When feeding their chicks, an adult egret can consume over 50% of its
body weight each day.

The black neck stilt in endangered in Hawaii .

[hikatz]

Newspaper received many calls and is looking into this.
The problem, there was no advanced warning and the gunshots/ blasts continued on and off for over 2 hours.

[Cagary]

quote:

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Originally posted by hikatz

Newspaper received many calls and is looking into this.
The problem, there was no advanced warning and the gunshots/ blasts continued on and off for over 2 hours.

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If there had been some kind of advance notice ("Egret Shooting Today at Seaside Restaurant in Hilo!"), imagine the uproar and imagine the crowds!

[MarkP]

The bottom line is the population dynamics of the species involved, otherwise how are they any different than rats?

[Obie]

They wouldn't have to post a notice in the paper because they have an EA.Basically they are considered to be rats or mongoose with wings.

NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY - HAWAII: The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services has issued a decision and Finding of No Significant impact on a final Environmental Assessment (EA) entitled “Predator Damage Management to Protect Avian Wildlife in Hawaii”. Wildlife Services has decided to select the proposed action to assist government and private land managers with reducing or alleviating predation caused by introduced mammals and the introduced cattle egret on populations of native forest birds, waterbirds, seabirds, the Hawaiian goose (nene), and introduced game birds. The final EA analyzes issues and potential environmental effects of the proposed integrated wildlife damage management program and alternatives to manage predation. Based on the analysis contained in the EA, Wildlife Services has concluded that the proposed action will not have a significant impact on the quality of the human environment.

You can read the EA here ;

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/regulations/pd...atorEA.pdf

[PaulW]

Has anyone told Sidney Singer??

[hikatz]

If there had been notification, I and others at the beach would have had the choice to leave the area before the shootings, like the owners of Seaside restaurant did!
That way I would not have heard the gunshots or see the slaughter of the birds.

How would you feel if the government came in your neighbourhood and you heard the constant blasting of gunfire for a long period of time. It was like being in a war zone. People complain about the noise of the fireworks and helicopters, that is nothing compared to this!!!!
That is why I am angry, we had no warning.