Ode to Migrants

(Swinhoe’s White-eyes)

These beauties are “migrants,” a term used to describe birds that are not native to an area. These particular arrivals come to us all the way from China.

In the bird world, migrants often arrive by accident—caught up in powerful storms or transported to new regions by men and women intentionally (as pets or food) or unintentionally (as stowaways on trucks, ships, airplanes, etc.).

The term, as used by birders, more likely than not carries a negative connotation based on the fact that newcomers may threaten local populations by competing for food and nesting sites. There are many examples—European Starlings, English House Sparrows, Eurasian Collared-doves, to name a few.

I have begun to think differently about migrants. Might they be promises for the future rather than threats? Their ability to adapt successfully stands as a bulwark to Nature’s mighty law, Change, as well as to thoughtless human action.

A case in point is Barred Owl vs. Spotted Owl. The larger Barred Owl is aggressively expanding its range westward and threatens the Spotted Owl, a species already shrinking in numbers because of logging and climate-related effects on its habitat. It seems very limited in its ability to expand into new and differing territories.

Conservators of the Spotted Owl are so determined to protect the bird that they have won approval to literally shoot 400,000-500,000 Barred Owls. If you’ve read that sentence twice, and are somewhat disbelieving, you are understanding the situation correctly. Horrified, I can only think of the countless disastrous consequences of human meddling in other preservation efforts through the years.

Are there parallels in this story to the xenophobia plaguing our country today? I am haunted by the thought.