Randy's comment about the pheasants got me thinking... For one many now
older farmers grew up hunting birds etc, what I call easily seen wildlife.
The call of the bobwhite quail for instance is rarely heard anymore in
central va due to habitat loss... But pulls at the heart string every time
when heard now!

Anyway as I see it unfortunantly all the neonics news etc I believe drives
a wedge between beekeepers and farmers, we seem to demonize the farmer
carving a living like we all do (I'm generalizing here), but thats the tone
I often get. So the farmer to beekeeper relationship is already strained.

Add to the fact it's a much harder sale to say please spend money and time
planting "weeds" and habitat for insects (spiders, wasps, flys, bees, etc)
that many can not be heard or seen easily and have a less emotional
childhood tie... Now compare that to pheasants or quail with boyhood
memory's or thoughts of one day teaching your son or grandson how to hunt
birds again!

To me if I wasn't a beekeeper id buy into the bird habitat every time....

But here is my point, many habitats if developed together can benifit both
game birds and insects, even specialized insects like honey bees... Would
it not be easier to work with already developed and highly respected groups
for game birds and other animals that have in roads to farmers already to
develope a joint program? After all many game birds eat insects too!

Just seems like a faster more efficient approach and one where the farmer
can simply manage one program regardless of who or what are benifiting...

Why reinvent the wheel... Unless of course the government will pay more to
plant honeybee hedge rows versus animal hedge rows then for me it would be
a simple economic choice...$$$$$$

Just a random thought and rant....




-- 
"Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old
paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for
your souls..." Jeremiah 6:16

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