ROTARY CLUB.

Wairarapa Daily Times, 30 November 1926, Page 3

ROTARY CLUB.

VALUE OF BIRES. The story of how -ladies’ fashions threatened the cotton industry of Egypt was told, by Mr R. H. I). Stidolpli at the Rotary Club luncheon yesterday in an address on bird life. The once numerous egret, a bird of the heron family, relentlessly hunted down by collectors for the purposes of decorating ladies’ hats, said Mr Stidolph, was! decimated in Egypt in an aim tiling manner.' The plume hunters visited the birds’ nesting colonies, destroyed the adults to procure the plumes, and gave no thought to tlr young birds, which were pitilessly left to die of starvation in their nest-s, waiting

hopelessly for the return of their parents'with food. 'Egrets were almost exterminated, and the cotton industry of the country was menaced by the cotton worm. Prompt action by a member of the Egyptian Zoological Service saved the one remaining breeding colony, ■yvhioli was in danger of being wiped out by plume-hunters. A series of village meetings was organised, and the following lesson was well rubbed in: “Egrets kill the cotton worm that ruins vour crops. Plume hunters' kill the egret for the sake of gain, and take the money out of the country. See to it.” The appeal succeeded. -By 1941 thc^ egrets had re-established themselves, and 200,000 birds in that year saved the Egyptian cultivators £2,000,000 by keeping down the cotton worm. Bird-life was equally as important in New Zealand, the speaker went on to observe. In the early days of u'ettlenient the settlers found their crops devastated by armies of caterpillars. It was then decided to introduce birds to combat the pest. Mistakes had been made in acclimatisation, but many of the introduced species were necessary to keep insect pests in check.

New Zealanders should do their Lest to protect the native birds, Mr Stidolpli said; their presence gave an added charm to the bush. The statement lias been made that many native species were' doomed to extinction, but that w.as' not the case. With thfc exception of a few highly-specialised forms, there was no reason why any should disappear. It was only necessary to give them a measure of protection.