Snake River Birds of Prey: History

Snake River Birds of Prey – History

Music; Ambience: prairie falcon

JM: We’re listening to the sounds of a prairie falcon in search of prey. Witnessing raptors in action is what draws many tourists to Idaho’s Snake River Birds of Prey Sanctuary. I’m Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet. Each spring, falcons and other raptors use the Sanctuary’s canyon walls for breeding, and its surrounding habitat for nesting. Run by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the Snake River Sanctuary boasts one of the largest concentrations of hawks, eagles, falcons, owls and vultures in the world. Bruce Haak is with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

BH: “The national interest in birds of prey really was created in the early seventies when the endangered species act came along. Most states didn’t protect birds of prey until that time. It was still legal to shoot them any time you saw them. We know that these birds of prey serve an extremely important agricultural interest. They eat a lot of the pests that eat crops that people put in. We know that birds of prey are some of the best environmental barometers we have. They tell us in the health of their populations about the health of our own environment. They feed at the top of the food chain. DDT was, of course, identified primarily because of its effect on these high level predators, and their position in the food chain. So, if we have good, healthy raptor populations, that’s a good indication that our environment is clean and healthy.”

JM: Even though the sanctuary draws these birds from as far away as Argentina, their habitat, and population, is under constant threat by factors such as wild fires and pesticides. To hear about our new CD, please visit pulseplanet.com. Pulse of the Planet is made possible by the National Science Foundation. I’m Jim Metzner.

Snake River Birds of Prey: History

Raptor populations such as the hawk and prairie falcon, can directly indicate the health of our earthly environment.
Air Date:05/30/2001
Scientist:
Transcript:

Snake River Birds of Prey - History

Music; Ambience: prairie falcon

JM: We're listening to the sounds of a prairie falcon in search of prey. Witnessing raptors in action is what draws many tourists to Idaho's Snake River Birds of Prey Sanctuary. I'm Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet. Each spring, falcons and other raptors use the Sanctuary's canyon walls for breeding, and its surrounding habitat for nesting. Run by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the Snake River Sanctuary boasts one of the largest concentrations of hawks, eagles, falcons, owls and vultures in the world. Bruce Haak is with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

BH: "The national interest in birds of prey really was created in the early seventies when the endangered species act came along. Most states didn't protect birds of prey until that time. It was still legal to shoot them any time you saw them. We know that these birds of prey serve an extremely important agricultural interest. They eat a lot of the pests that eat crops that people put in. We know that birds of prey are some of the best environmental barometers we have. They tell us in the health of their populations about the health of our own environment. They feed at the top of the food chain. DDT was, of course, identified primarily because of its effect on these high level predators, and their position in the food chain. So, if we have good, healthy raptor populations, that's a good indication that our environment is clean and healthy."

JM: Even though the sanctuary draws these birds from as far away as Argentina, their habitat, and population, is under constant threat by factors such as wild fires and pesticides. To hear about our new CD, please visit pulseplanet.com. Pulse of the Planet is made possible by the National Science Foundation. I'm Jim Metzner.