This is in response to “Deafening silence over the assault on `brush'” (Voice of the people, Jan. 15), from Petra M. Blix of the Cook County Forest Preserve District Community Advisory Council, regarding the Chicago Audubon Society’s stance on Wooded Island. We stand where we consistently stand: on the side of responsible habitat management.
The section of Jackson Park’s Wooded Island that was managed was an area that was thickly overgrown with non-native plants such as buckthorn and mulberry. It will be replaced with native species such as serviceberry and nannyberry, which attract a greater variety of birds. The sterling example of habitat management at North Park Village comes immediately to mind. During the eight years before management was commenced at NPV (1988-1995), an average of 80 species per year were identified at the site. After management was started in 1996, the average number of bird species seen jumped to an average of 115 per year (1996-2004). The change was immediate, with 82 species seen in 1995, and 119 in 1996, an unheard-of total up to that point. There was an increase of 35 species per year, with the only variant being management of the habitat. The board of directors of the Chicago Audubon Society favors careful, well-thought-out plans for habitat management, and looks forward to seeing the fruition of the work that has been done at Wooded Island.
