| durhamregion.com | This Week | Thursday, December 1, 2022 | 8 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca newsroom@durhamregion.com facebook.com/newsdurham @newsdurham WHO WE ARE Publisher and Chief Executive Officer Neil Oliver Vice President, Content, Community and Operations Dana Robbins Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Managing Editor Mike Lacey Director of Advertising Tanya Pacheco Director Distribution Jason Christie Director Creative Services Paul Gostlin Durham Advisory Council Dan Carter; Esther Enyolu; Jake Farr; Dr. Vidal Chavannes; Cynthia Davis; Elaine Popp/Don Lovisa; John Henry; Sue McGovern; Kerri King; Steve Yamada; Kelly LaRocca; Peter Bethlenfalvy; Dr. Steven Murphy; Norah Marsh; Tracy Paterson; Chris Darling; Christina Curry CONTACT US This Week Phone: 905- 579-4407 Newsroom: 905-215-0462 Sales: 905-215-0424 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Fax: 905-579-2238 Web: www.durhamregion.com Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at durhamregion.com Delivery For all delivery inquiries, call 905- 579-4407 or visit the Contact Us page on durhamregion.com. OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT DURHAMREGION.COM LETTERS & COMMENTARY It was way back in spring when Jack Feeney phoned me. "Where are all the sparrows?" he asked, a pressing question he was curious and concerned about, and hoped I could help him understand, after reading my Great Outdoors columns in the Clarington This Week. It took me a second to figure out he meant house sparrows, twittery flocks of little brown-grey birds, males sporting black bibs, grey crowns and chestnut napes. They're familiar birds hanging out in towns, cities and cattle barns, so common you tend to ignore them. I knew their numbers were dropping, but realized as we chatted that I was seeing far fewer lately just as Jack was. I promised I'd look into the matter and get back to him. So this is for you, Jack! Sorry it took so long; there's been so much else I had to write about! Native to Eurasia and North Africa, these "weaver finches" now live in urban areas all around the world, birds you'll likely recognize when visiting any city, even Yellowknife and Whitehorse. Cavity nesters, they make themselves at home in whatever convenient holes we humans provide, including eaves, street lights and nest boxes. I often see and hear them in strip mall parking lots, coming and going from behind storefront signs. Feisty and bold, they defend their turf from all comers, and are known to take over bluebird, chickadee and tree swallow hollows, breaking eggs and killing hatchlings. They were introduced in Brooklyn, New York, in 1851, intended as a biological control for cankerworm moths -- which didn't work -- as they're mainly vegetarian, except when feeding young. Introduced to Ontario in 1870, they spread rapidly along with European settlers, finding plenty of grains, buds and fruits, their staple diet, in towns and on farms. House sparrow populations dropped substantially when motorized transportation replaced horses across North America in the early 1900s. But the further 80 per cent plunge that's occurred since 1966? I went to my birding guru and neighbour, Glenn Coady, for his insights. His mention of shifting, intensifying farming practices, resulting in a lack of ready access to grain, made sense. The only house sparrows found on the Haliburton Christmas Count anymore live in the last cattle barn in the county. Glenn cited the global decline in insects as another probable factor, leaving fewer sources of protein for sparrows to feed their babies. Diseases spreading when such sociable birds crowd together might also be involved. Plus, there's lots more predation as merlins, Cooper's hawks and sharp-shins discover the bountiful menu available as they move into urban areas. Nature queries: mcarney1490@gmail.com or 905- 725-2116. Metroland columnist Margaret Carney finds so much to discover and marvel at when exploring the great outdoors. DURHAM COLUMNIST ASKED: WHERE ARE THE SPARROWS? MARGARET CARNEY Column A Clarington reader asked columnist Margaret Carney about house sparrows after seeing fewer of them. She learned the 80 per cent plunge in their numbers since 1966 could be due to a combination of factors like fewer insects available, changing farming practices, disease and increased predation. Mike McEvoy photo HOUSE SPARROW ELECTRONIC VOTING AIDED CLARINGTON TURNOUT To the editor: Regarding your article on the election results in Clarington. You noted that the introduction of electronic voting did not seem to increase voter turnout. However, every single other municipality in Durham, other than Clarington, saw a decrease in voter turnout. To me it seems like Clarington's electronic voting helped the municipality fend against the decrease in turnout. I just wanted to note this, as it can show that making voting more accessible improves voter turnout. PETER COHEN CLARINGTON SPEED ENFORCEMENT CAMERAS WORK To the editor: Re: "Photo radar, redlight cameras may be helping to reduce the number of collisions on Durham streets: report." Jeff Mitchell's article makes one wonder if Durham Region, the City of Oshawa and indeed the DRPS can't see the forest for the trees? If they were to collectively look at other regions, cities and towns they would have all the data they need to realize that cameras work! Surely, Insp. Cyril Gillis and other region and city officials know, or should know, the positive impact cameras are having across Ontario. The question is not if Red Light and Automated Speed Enforcement Cameras work, but rather where in Durham would they work best? Mr. Mitchell's article suggests sufficient data is available to make an informed decision now. The article infers data is skewed because of low volumes during COVID-19. It also stated that almost 38,000 tickets were issued during the period under review. Does that suggest that the number of tickets issued would have been significantly higher had there been no pandemic? What about those tickets? How many, literally, thousands of policing hours would it have taken to generate that type of enforcement? Could those policing hours have been dedicated to traffic in the first place? I doubt it. Could those police hours be better utilized elsewhere? I think so. Other regions, cities and towns have shown initiative and been proactive in their approach to camera enforcement and are expanding its use because of its success in every respect. Here in Oshawa, we seem to be waiting for a written guarantee that may never arrive, like waiting for a bus that isn't coming. DAVE BRIGGS OSHAWA