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April 26, 1979 - Natural DisasterApr126, 1979 NATURAL DISASTER focus on nature by Paul Stoutenburgh VICTIM OF TECHNOLOGY—This blue heron met its death when it flew into a high tension line at Mill Creek, Southold several years ago. It is outs one of the casualties rnan-made progress constantly claims among this region's wildlife, including already endangered species. Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Society has dulled many of us so we now take for granted the daily slaughter of wildlife on our highways. It's almost like the human accident rate we take as part of living in today's modern world. There's not a day goes by that some rabbit, squirrel, raccoon, opossurn, fox or turtle, snake or bird is not flattened on-man's highways. Yet this is only one facet of the problem the natural world faces in the ever-expanding technological system we produce. My first realization of other disasters was an electrocuted osprey I found that had taken its early morning meal of freshly- caught menhaden to the top of a telephone pole to eat. What happened was that the wet feet and fish had clasped onto one of the hot electrical wires and, in landing its great wing, also wet from the dive in the water to capture its meal, had touched the other high tension wire. The circuit was completed for its execution.—When we found the great bird beneath the pole, I could plainly see the burnt marks on its feet. And alongside it lay the freshly caught menhaden. Another Osprey Saved Just a few years ago. right in Mattituck, an osprey accident occurred that could have led to another_ fatality of this endangered species. had it 001 been for fast action of a spirited local citizen. A young bo\ had been flying a kite, a good healthy sport for a young boy to be doing. The problem came when he used his dad's monofilament fish line for kite cord. This was very thin and transparent and so when the osprey, intent on fishing, flew into the area it came in contact with the invisible line. Round and round it tumbled as it caught deeper and deeper in the line until it finally landed in the water. It surely would have drowned, but the quick action of the man, rowing out and scooping it up, saved its life. I ,vas alerted and went down to see if I could help. Well, you've never seen a more sorry sight. With I much patience and care the line had been taken off and the bird put on the roof of the house to dry. Thank goodness it survived and took off. The.nice part of this situation is that it was one of the pair that nested in Husings Pond north of the Mattituck Yacht Club and I am happy to report the birds are it back there again this year. Not all stories of man's gadgetry and our technology wind up so well. A few years ago, while driving to school Greenport, I noticed what appeared to be a kite caught in a high tension wire running north of Route 25 by Mil Creek bridge. Each day it bugged -110,me as I drove by, for it just didn't look like a kite, and besides, who would be flying a kite out over the marsh in the winter? The ne4,day I brought my binoculars along to check it out and to my horror it was a great blue heron entangled in the wire! How it ever got there we'll never know for jf. the wires are far apart and the bird seemed pinned to just one. Of course it was dead and all winter it hung as a grim reminder of how the innocent fall prey to the progress of man. It's like the old story goes, if you gain on one end you on the other. Gull: Encounter ?roblems Our good friend the gull is having all sorts of problems with his job of scavenging in our advanced world. If it's not dying from ingesting some plastics or poison, it's being caught in some form or another of plastic throwaways. You can see them up at the dump almost any time. Usually the most obvious is the plastic six-pack holder. It gets a-caught around the necit, bill or leg of the bird and in time semi-strangulates it, which • eventually leads to a slow death by star- vation. These freak happenings are becoming so common that again W2.I'e -starting to be led to the situation of just shrugging our shoulders and passing it by, just as we do the flattened rabbit or turtle on our highway. We've become insenstive to such things.Many of the problens'canbe eliminated. For instance. the flip top on the coke or beer can has caused many.a. fish's death, in some secluded spot after finding one of these .glittering tops and taking it for food. After all, don't we catch fish on bright shiny lures? The single act of not discarding the top overboard would solve the problem and that fish might just be on your line instead. Another example whereckve could have prevented an accident from happening was a few weeks ago when I was called to the Island's End Golf Course in Greenport, where an owl was reported crippled. I im- mediately went up to see what was going on and drove out to where the accident oc- curred. Sure enough there _was the owl, a beautiful big barn owl, semi-crippled on the green. It had gotten caught in an abandoned kite cord. Someone had been flying a kite, the kite went down and the person aban- doned it. Kite Line Traps Owl • The owl, flying low during the night in search of food, ran in: o it and was trapped. In this case, had the p,Tson taken up the old kite line this would never have happened. The crippled bird, with its one wing damaged, could barely fly and therefore I gave it a 40-60 chance of survival. Whether it will hold out during its recuperation period, we'll never know. But birds need food and owls have to fly to feed. We could go on and on about the problems of the natural world and today's society, but I will bother you with only one more tale of woe. One we'd never think of, but one that shows everything, from the smallest to the largest of God's creatures, is involved in this plight. I was alerted that a whale had come ashore over in Westhampton. One had come ashore only a few months ago and I was unable to get over to see it, so I didn't want to miss this opportunity to see one of these great mammals of the sea. Sure enough, there was a forty-foot whale. wallowing in the surf, a great crowd around_ it and man with his great machines attached to its tail trying to pull it up out of the water. Nothing worked. It was much too big. Inch and a half nylon line snapped like a rubber band. This is a rather rare whale today, and what made it especially sad and even more rare was that it was pregnant. This was the great sperm whale of Moby Dick fame. The sperm whale probably did more to start this nation off in the world of trade than almost any other endeavor. The usual whale seen along our shore is the right whale, which is a filter feeder. but the sperm whale is a flesh cater with geeat teeth it uses in battle with ilie great squids and oetupuses of the deep. What had hap- pened to this whale was that it had gotten a half-inch yellow plastic line tangled around its lower jaw. It could not dislodge it and therefore slow death from starvation came to it and its baby. Sele-ritists-S:axiv Carcass A crew of scientists front Yale, Southampton and other colleges were busy studying it, measuring it and dissecting it. The great hulk was being put to use. When I arrived they had already removed the almost full-grown tv.,eive-foot baby. It lay high up on the beach. coverad with blankets like sortie body at a roadside accident. It was sad, yet it was a rere opportunit■., for study :in these days of a diminishing whale population. The loss of the whale to some-plastic rope was bad enough. but to lc:se a baby was too much. The ride home was quiet as we all pondered the future fate of the natural \vorld. Al one time death came by natural means. today there is the added problem of trying to cope with the many intrusions man has made on their world. Perhaps there is something we can all do about it. though. to ease the pressure We must become aware and keep a sharp lookout for the possible problem areas and knowing them and what our wildlife is up against. we must make the corrections for their survival enin g Friday April for our IOStIi, Season Ft. 4,1 Our Topside Deck Dining Area Overlooking Scenic Greenport Harbor and Shelter Island is available for Special Functions or just Excellent Dining. La Carte Menu In Effect All Times Luncheon Served Monday Thru 12 Noon to 211/ 'Extensive Dinner Menn Serred Aroon To 9 PM. Special Dinner Menu 5i- 10 P.M. 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