In article , david
writes
"cats a responsible for 55 MILLION wild bird deaths per year."

So if one in 4 of them laid 6 eggs each year and the average life of each
bird is 4 years, that's 95 million extra birds in year one, 625 million in
year 2, 3,750 million in year 3,
and if each bird deposits just half an ounce of droppings a day, year 3
would result in more than 520,000 tons of droppings A DAY.
All I can say is thank heaven for cats.

You obviously don't use guano as a fertiliser in your nursery, then....!

Think what you could grow if you used 520,000 tons a day :-)

Mind you, as many of the small birds caught by cats weigh less than an
ounce (Blue Tit - 10-15 grams = one-third to one-half of an ounce),
their output isn't going to reach half an ounce a day. 10-11 gram birds
produce about 0.7-0.9 grams dry weight per day(1).

(1) Isn't it fascinating what people have studied???

--
Malcolm

Recently, Andrew Thomson uttered:

What a good idea! Run over cats to save the birds!


"Bart Bailey" wrote in message
news:3e97df2f.3545169@bartman...
On Fri, 11 Apr 2003 14:36:43 +0000 (UTC), "Essjay001"
wrote:

Just so all the cat lovers know, cats a responsible for 55 MILLION wild
bird
deaths per year according to the TV last night.


How many cats succumb to vehicles per annum? ;-)



Road Kill Cat

the road kill cat didn't cross at the green
a big truck was coming, that couldn't be seen
to the left,
to the right
this cat didn't look
and now poor splat is as flat as a book

Copyright ©2002 amy jaye

Bart

Kill not the Moth nor Butterfly,
For the Last Judgement draweth nigh.
He who shall train the Horse to War
Shall never pass the Polar Bar.
The Beggar's Dog & Widow's Cat,
Feed them & thou wilt grow fat

William Blake
--
\\(º`¿´º)//
It's all on http://support.microsoft.com/ somewhere....
If you can be bothered to look for it....

"...Mind you, as many of the small birds caught by cats weigh less than an
ounce (Blue Tit - 10-15 grams = one-third to one-half of an ounce), their
output isn't going to reach half an ounce a day. 10-11 gram birds produce
about 0.7-0.9 grams dry weight per day(1)...."


But thy are more than made up for by Blackbirds, Magpies etc.



--
David Hill
Abacus Nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

In article ,
"david" wrote:

"cats a responsible for 55 MILLION wild bird deaths per year."

So if one in 4 of them laid 6 eggs each year and the average life of each
bird is 4 years, that's 95 million extra birds in year one, 625 million in
year 2, 3,750 million in year 3,
and if each bird deposits just half an ounce of droppings a day, year 3
would result in more than 520,000 tons of droppings A DAY.
All I can say is thank heaven for cats.

--
David Hill
Abacus Nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk



True, but the grass under my bird table (on which the birds sit,
taunting my cats) grows markedly lusher and longer than anywhere else in
the garden.

Bird poo evidently has quite high nutritional value...erm...if your a
plant that it.

--

"I go online sometimes, but...everyone's spelling is really bad,
and...it's depressing"

In article , david
writes

"...Mind you, as many of the small birds caught by cats weigh less than an
ounce (Blue Tit - 10-15 grams = one-third to one-half of an ounce), their
output isn't going to reach half an ounce a day. 10-11 gram birds produce
about 0.7-0.9 grams dry weight per day(1)...."


But thy are more than made up for by Blackbirds, Magpies etc.

Even a Blackbird, weighing up to 3.5 ounces isn't going to produce half
an ounce a day! And not many cats catch Magpies otherwise the
anti-Magpie brigade would have their solution :-)

--
Malcolm

We live in the country so lots of mice here - when we moved into this house
a year ago the house & garage had many mousy residents too - there were even
droppings in the kitchen cupboards & airing cupboard (how the previous
owners lived like this I have no idea!). We live near a farm which keeps
free range chickens, so I'm sure the mice grow fat on the chicken feed.
Our previously "towny" cats took to country life very quickly & were soon
presenting us with 5 or 6 mice a day. We are now mouse free & they only
catch the occassional one - definitely more environmently friendly pest
control that putting down poison.


"Bigjon" wrote in message
I agree, 100%. Having been forced to live on the edge of a notoriously
badly designed and run council estate, we were overrun with mice and rats
at first. Our cats are a godsend, and keep them at bay. Without them, we
would be suffering who knows what damage and disease ( that is not to say
I
agree with killing mice and rats, but they are part of the felines natural
prey ). The damage a few mice & rats can do in a small garden is
unimaginable unless you have seen it.... We now live with a garden that
has
a six foot fence all around it, and it's heaven - we can shut out the rest
of the world and relax in peace thanks to our felines !

"Bigjon" wrote in message ...
:
Are you a Moderator? If not, don't read it if it offends you.

What offends me is people walking in here grinding their private axes on a group unrelated to their particular
obsession.
We don't have or need a moderator because we look after ourselves and give short shrift to those people who try to abuse
the group for their own ends.

Rod

In article ,
"Jayne" wrote:

We live in the country so lots of mice here - when we moved into this house
a year ago the house & garage had many mousy residents too - there were even
droppings in the kitchen cupboards & airing cupboard (how the previous
owners lived like this I have no idea!). We live near a farm which keeps
free range chickens, so I'm sure the mice grow fat on the chicken feed.
Our previously "towny" cats took to country life very quickly & were soon
presenting us with 5 or 6 mice a day. We are now mouse free & they only
catch the occassional one - definitely more environmently friendly pest
control that putting down poison.


Back in the early 70s Downing Street was over run by a plague of mice
resistant to all then available poisons. The solution was to acquire a
cat - problem solved inside a month.

--

"I go online sometimes, but...everyone's spelling is really bad,
and...it's depressing"

Rod scribbled:

"Essjay001" wrote in message
...
Just so all the cat lovers know, cats a responsible for 55 MILLION
wild bird deaths per year according to the TV last night.

So?
This is not an appropriate place for posts of this nature.
Lets talk gardening.

Rod

Ok lets talk gardening. Has any one noticed that there are less wild birds
eating seed heads and and garden pests these days.

Being as the subject of cats often appear here I would say yes this is an
appropriate place.
There cannot be many gardeners that haven't noticed the decline of the wild
bird population over the last few years.

"Essjay001" wrote in message ...
Rod scribbled:
So?
This is not an appropriate place for posts of this nature.
Lets talk gardening.

Rod

Ok lets talk gardening. Has any one noticed that there are less wild birds
eating seed heads and and garden pests these days.

Being as the subject of cats often appear here I would say yes this is an
appropriate place.
There cannot be many gardeners that haven't noticed the decline of the wild
bird population over the last few years.

So which do you want to talk about? Cats in gardens or wild birds in gardens?
There is little connection between the 2 subjects. There has been a very significant degradation of our wildlife over
the years which has not been matched by any changes in the population of cats - domestic or feral. Even if there had
been you would need much more than that to prove a causal relationship.
The picture with wild birds in gardens or in the country as a whole is mixed. There are some well known crashes and not
all are fully explained. Many other species are doing very well. Some of this is local variations. Birds you used to see
in your area are often doing very well not far away. No one is managing their gardens or farms just the same as they did
20 years ago - you might think the changes are insignificant but they are often sufficient to make life easier or more
difficult for certain species so you will see these changes.
We only see Goldfinches in 2s & 3s now but then we don't grow as much groundsel and docks as we once did, Sparrows are
only in certain farmyards, Starlings in the towns and far fewer. Wrens, most Tits, Thrushes & Blackbirds OK. Warblers &
Hirundines not good - remember years ago when your car was plastered with insects if you drove for any distance? Not
anymore so what do the swallows eat? Buzzards up - rabbits in the garden down ;~)))
No Rookery nearby now so we're plagued by chafer grubs in the lawns and by Badgers digging them up.

Rod

Rod scribbled:

"Essjay001" wrote in message
...
Rod scribbled:
So?
This is not an appropriate place for posts of this nature.
Lets talk gardening.

Rod

Ok lets talk gardening. Has any one noticed that there are less wild
birds eating seed heads and and garden pests these days.

Being as the subject of cats often appear here I would say yes this
is an appropriate place.
There cannot be many gardeners that haven't noticed the decline of
the wild bird population over the last few years.

So which do you want to talk about? Cats in gardens or wild birds in
gardens? There is little connection between the 2 subjects.

How can you say the is little connection between the 2 subjects 55 MILLION
is quite a BIG connection.

Recently, Rod uttered:


"Bigjon" wrote in message ...
:
Are you a Moderator? If not, don't read it if it offends you.

What offends me is people walking in here grinding their private axes on a group unrelated to their particular
obsession.
We don't have or need a moderator because we look after ourselves and give short shrift to those people who try to abuse
the group for their own ends.

Rod

I think both Cats and birds are a very relevant garden forum subject, but
as you obviously dislike cats, you are attempting to troll any cat lovers.
Tough.
The thread continues, despite your attempts...
--
\\(º`¿´º)//
It's all on http://support.microsoft.com/ somewhere....
If you can be bothered to look for it....

Recently, Ian Cundell uttered:

In article ,
"Jayne" wrote:

We live in the country so lots of mice here - when we moved into this house
a year ago the house & garage had many mousy residents too - there were even
droppings in the kitchen cupboards & airing cupboard (how the previous
owners lived like this I have no idea!). We live near a farm which keeps
free range chickens, so I'm sure the mice grow fat on the chicken feed.
Our previously "towny" cats took to country life very quickly & were soon
presenting us with 5 or 6 mice a day. We are now mouse free & they only
catch the occassional one - definitely more environmently friendly pest
control that putting down poison.


Back in the early 70s Downing Street was over run by a plague of mice
resistant to all then available poisons. The solution was to acquire a
cat - problem solved inside a month.

I think anybody who lives in the countryside, especially us Farmers, would
agree wholeheartedly that a Cat is a definite bonus to a house and grounds,
especially in the garden where they can roam freely and prevent not only
Mice and Rats, but Rabbits and marauding birds that raid the Vegetable
garden. It doesn't take long for the word to spread in the animal world
that a Cat is in residence, and you are troubles are halved !!
BTW, They are also very good company on long winter nights....
--
\\(º`¿´º)//
It's all on http://support.microsoft.com/ somewhere....
If you can be bothered to look for it....

In article , nightjar@?.?
writes

'Despite the large numbers of birds killed, there is no scientific evidence
that predation by cats in gardens is having any impact on bird populations
UK wide.

A few years ago there was an article in the telegraph about some
research that had been carried out at great expense to the tax payer.
The result of this research was that there are fewer birds per square
area measurement (can't remember what the units were) in areas where
there were cats than in areas where there were no cats. (Well, I could
have told them that and saved the tax payer a lot of money!!)

So, when the cat population increases to the extent that there are no
cat free areas, we can say that cats will have a very definite impact on
bird populations UK wide!!!!
--
Jane Ransom in Lancaster.
I won't respond to private emails that are on topic for urg
but if you need to email me for any other reason,
put jandg dot demon dot co dot uk where you see deadspam.com

"Jane Ransom" wrote in message
...
In article , nightjar@?.?
writes

'Despite the large numbers of birds killed, there is no scientific
evidence
that predation by cats in gardens is having any impact on bird
populations
UK wide.

Not my words, but those of the RSPB.

Colin Bignell