Day 250 – I received a drone as a gift last Christmas. I have not spent much time using it. Actually, I have not spent any time. The few times it has been in the air, I have not been the one piloting the drone. I guess I’m afraid I’m going to break it. I’m also very aware of how annoying they can be. So, there’s that. I’m sure I will end up loving the little flying machine. However, making sure to use it responsibility will be my number one priority.
When I came across an article about a drone scaring birds aways from the their nesting area, it gave me yet another reason to be a responsible drone user. In a Washington Post article from June 7th, a story was shared about 1,500 to 2,000 eggs being abandoned by a flock of elegant terns. A drone crashed in the nesting area located on the nesting island at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in Southern California. The crash scared away the birds, who most likely mistook it for a predator. The terns never returned, leaving the eggs unviable.
This scenario is repeated countless times around the country and the world. People flying drones where drones should not be flown. One really needs to think about the potential harm a drone could cause before deciding where to fly it.
“These open spaces are a place for wildlife to rest, to breed, to forage and it’s a place where they should feel safe to raise their young and if they truly can’t do that we’re not fulfilling our mission. We need to protect these places.” – Melissa Loebl, an environmental scientist who manages the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve
Tomorrow, removing trash from Mt. Everest.
365 Ways to Save the Planet 