Bread isn't dangerous for birds, it just doesn't contain most of the nutrients they need. If lots of people feed birds bread, it may discourage them from foraging in the wild and gathering those other nutrients. It's exactly like humans really, as part of a varied diet bread is perfectly fine, if all they eat is bread it's not healthy. However, if there's a food shortage and they eat nothing, that's not healthy either!
Feeding them nutritious things like lettuce, peas and oats would be best, but people rarely bring frozen peas to the park with them.
Bread does support goose and duck populations, and there have been numerous reports of underweight or starving geese, swans etc since the don't feed bread campaign.
But these birds aren't starving because they aren't eating bread. They are starving because the waterbody is either is poor health or over populated so you don't have a natural food source. By feeding read we've been propping up these communities, which isn't sustainable.
But the no bread campaign was undertaken due to malnourished birds. If pond is a popular feeding spot, then there's a good chance all some birds ate was bread, not giving them the balanced diet they need.
Some are also concerned with nutrient build up after bread isn't eaten. Excessive nutrient then lead to algal blooms, which then prevent light penetration and strip oxygen out of the water killing fish, invertebrates, and impacting plant colonies. Which then causes a lack of natural food. And some cyanobacteria being toxic to humans and other animals.
It's not a case of no bread, but everything in moderation. Perhaps take some other food sources like oats or frozen peas of your going to feed the ducks.
My advice would be to check with the land owner. The council, conservation body, whoever it is. Some may be fine with bread, others may be trying to achieve a long term conservation objective which bread could impact it's delivery.
itchyfrog on October 16th, 2019 at 06:49 UTC »
Ducks can use printers now
Edit: two silver ducets! Thank you strangers
Tim-Sanchez on October 16th, 2019 at 06:50 UTC »
Bread isn't dangerous for birds, it just doesn't contain most of the nutrients they need. If lots of people feed birds bread, it may discourage them from foraging in the wild and gathering those other nutrients. It's exactly like humans really, as part of a varied diet bread is perfectly fine, if all they eat is bread it's not healthy. However, if there's a food shortage and they eat nothing, that's not healthy either!
Feeding them nutritious things like lettuce, peas and oats would be best, but people rarely bring frozen peas to the park with them.
ZombieRhino on October 16th, 2019 at 07:11 UTC »
It's a surprising complex issue.
Bread does support goose and duck populations, and there have been numerous reports of underweight or starving geese, swans etc since the don't feed bread campaign.
But these birds aren't starving because they aren't eating bread. They are starving because the waterbody is either is poor health or over populated so you don't have a natural food source. By feeding read we've been propping up these communities, which isn't sustainable.
But the no bread campaign was undertaken due to malnourished birds. If pond is a popular feeding spot, then there's a good chance all some birds ate was bread, not giving them the balanced diet they need.
Some are also concerned with nutrient build up after bread isn't eaten. Excessive nutrient then lead to algal blooms, which then prevent light penetration and strip oxygen out of the water killing fish, invertebrates, and impacting plant colonies. Which then causes a lack of natural food. And some cyanobacteria being toxic to humans and other animals.
It's not a case of no bread, but everything in moderation. Perhaps take some other food sources like oats or frozen peas of your going to feed the ducks.
My advice would be to check with the land owner. The council, conservation body, whoever it is. Some may be fine with bread, others may be trying to achieve a long term conservation objective which bread could impact it's delivery.