Birds and butterflies in the eucalyptus forest

The deadline for sending comments to the California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) about their draft reassessment of blue gum eucalyptus is Thursday, July 31, 2014 (send to info@cal-ipc.org).  We are hoping to inspire you to write your own comment by sharing our personal favorites of some of the goofy statements Cal-IPC uses to justify its classification of blue gum as “moderately invasive.”

Eucalyptus trees do NOT kill birds!

Our regular readers have heard the absurd claim that eucalyptus trees kill birds by “gumming” up their noses or beaks with the nectar of the eucalyptus flowers.  We have published detailed critiques of this claim, so we won’t repeat them because you can visit those posts by clicking HERE and HERE.

Of course, all of this detailed information was provided to Cal-IPC when the original request to reconsider their classification of blue gum was submitted in December 2013.  In their draft reassessment, Cal-IPC now sinks to a new low by claiming Ted Williams as the source of the claim that eucalypts kill birds.  Mr. Williams writes an opinion column published by Audubon magazine, which is appropriately entitled “Incite.”  In 2002, Audubon magazine published Mr. Williams’s opinion of eucalyptus, which he called “America’s Largest Weed.” 

Ted Williams is not a scientist or a journalist.  He is a commentator. His column in Audubon magazine is not entitled “Insight,” because it is intentionally inflammatory.  It engages in rhetoric and hyperbole in support of Mr. Williams’s opinion.  In an article in High Country News, Mr. Williams describes “Incite” as a “muckraking column” and he calls himself an “environmental extremist.”  Citing Mr. Williams as a source of information undermines the credibility of Cal-IPC’s draft reassessment.  Quoting Mr. Williams on the subject of eucalyptus is a bit like quoting Rush Limbaugh on the subject of immigration.

But let’s be more specific with examples of the absurd statements Mr. Williams makes and the evidence that these statements are not factually correct.

The truth about Anna’s hummingbirds

Cal-IPC’s draft reassessments says, “Williams reported that PRBO found that 50% of the Anna’s hummingbird nests [in eucalyptus] are shaken out by the wind, while only 10% of nests are destroyed by wind in native vegetation.”

Cal-IPC’s quotes from Williams are not found in any publication of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory (PRBO), which Williams claims as the source of the information.  Statements about the nests of Anna’s hummingbird are explicitly contradicted by Cornell Ornithology Laboratory, America’s preeminent research institution of bird biology and behavior:

• “In the first half of the 20^th century, the Anna’s Hummingbird bred only in northern Baja California and southern California.  The planting of exotic flowering trees provided nectar and nesting sites, and allowed the hummingbird to greatly expand its breeding range.”
• “Anna’s Hummingbird populations increased by almost 2% per year between 1966 and 2010, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey…The Anna’s Hummingbird is the most common hummingbird on the West Coast, and it has thrived alongside human habitation.  Its range has increased dramatically since the 1930s, when it was found only in California and Baja California.  Thanks to widespread backyard feeders and introduced trees such as eucalyptus, it now occurs in healthy numbers all the way to Vancouver, Canada.”
• “Females choose the nest site, usually a horizontal branch of trees or shrubs 5-20 feet off the ground (occasionally higher) near a source of nectar.  They often build nests in oak, sycamore, or eucalyptus trees…”
• “They [Anna’s Hummingbirds] are notably common around eucalyptus trees, even though eucalyptus was only introduced to the West Coast in the mid-nineteenth century.”

In other words, the nation’s most prestigious ornithological research institution tells us that Anna’s Hummingbirds have benefited greatly from eucalyptus trees, which provide both winter sources of nectar not otherwise available in California as well as safe, secure nesting habitat.  Since Anna’s Hummingbirds nest preferentially in eucalyptus, their populations would not be increasing if 50% of their nests were destroyed, as Mr. Williams claims.

Furthermore, the implication that eucalypts provide a less stable nest site than native trees is also explicitly contradicted by a study that Cal-IPC cites elsewhere in its draft reassessment.  Stephen Rottenborn studied the nesting choices and reproductive success of red-shouldered hawks in Santa Clara County.  He found that the hawks prefer eucalypts to native trees and that their nests were more successful when they made that choice.  He attributes that greater success rate to the fact that eucalypts are “large, sturdy trees” that provide “greater stability and protective cover.”

“Fourteen of 27 nests in 1994 and 38 of 58 nests in 1995 were in exotic trees, predominantly eucalyptus.  Nesting and fledging success were higher in exotic trees than in native trees in both years, owing in part to greater stability and protective cover.  Most nest trees in upland areas were exotics, and even in riparian habitats, where tall native cottonwoods and sycamores were available, Red-shouldered Hawks selected eucalyptus more often than expected based on their availability.  Of the habitat and nest-tree variables measured at each nest, only nest-tree height and diameter were significantly associated with reproductive success, suggesting that large, sturdy trees provided the best nest sites.  Red-shouldered Hawk populations in the study area have likely benefited from the planting of exotic eucalyptus and fan palms.” (1)

 Magic!  Turning 2 dead birds into 300

Cal-IPC’s draft reassessment says, “Stallcup reported finding two dead warblers and ‘about 300 moribund warblers with eucalyptus glue all over their faces’ over the years, including ‘a large number of gummed-up Townsend’s warblers, yellow-rumped warblers, ruby-crowned kinglets, Anna’s and Allen’s hummingbirds, and a few Bullock’s orioles. Anyone who birds around eucalyptus trees sees it all the time’ (Williams 2002).”

This particular quote from Ted Williams is easily discredited because Rich Stallcup published his theory about birds being harmed by eucalyptus trees (available HERE).  In this publication, Mr. Stallcup reports seeing just two dead birds (one hummingbird and one ruby-crowned kinglet) in the eucalyptus forest during his long, illustrious career as an amateur birder.  He says nothing about seeing “300 moribund warblers” in his publication.  A small measure of common sense enables the reader to evaluate Mr. Williams’s claim:  If Mr. Stallcup had seen 300 dying birds, why would he say he had only seen 2 dead birds in his published article in which he is trying to make the case for removal of eucalyptus?

Overwintering monarch butterflies use predominantly eucalyptus

Cal-IPC’s draft reassessment says, “Natural experimental evidence from mixed stands (native trees mixed with eucalyptus) show that Monarchs do not consistently cluster preferentially on eucalyptus, and at times, appear to prefer native trees in some seasons and locations. (Griffiths & Villablanca 2013)”

This is a misleading statement because it implies that monarchs have the option of overwintering in native trees.  In fact, the reference cited by Cal-IPC is speaking specifically of three species of native trees with small native ranges:  Monterey pine, Monterey cypress, and redwoods.  The study is reporting observations of monarchs within the native ranges of these three tree species.  These tall trees provide a similar microclimate to overwintering monarchs.     However, the native ranges of these tree species are small.

Monterey pines are native in “three disjunct populations in San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, Monterey County, and San Luis Obispo County.  The native population of Monterey cypress is significantly smaller:  “The native range of the species was confined to two small relict populations, at Cypress Point in Pebble Beach and at Point Lobos near Carmel, California.” Where Monterey pine and cypress have been planted outside their native range, they are being eradicated by the same public land managers who are eradicating eucalyptus.

For example, when UC Berkeley destroyed approximately 18,000 non-native trees over 10 years ago, many were Monterey pines.  Their plans to eradicate 80,000 more trees include all Monterey pines in the project area.  In San Francisco, the plans (SNRAMP) of the Natural Areas Program propose to destroy many Monterey cypresses on Mount Davidson.  The GGNRA has destroyed about 500 Monterey pines on Hawk Hill in Marin County and many Monterey cypresses throughout their properties.

Furthermore, both Monterey pine and Monterey cypress have much shorter lives than eucalyptus.  Monterey pine lives at most 150 years and Monterey cypress about 250 years, compared to E. globulus, which lives in its native range from 200-500 years.  Therefore, even where they are not being eradicated, they will die long before E. globulus and are unlikely to be replanted outside their small native range by public land managers who are committed to a “natives-only” policy.

We are unaware of any attempts to eradicate redwoods outside their native range, in the few locations where they still exist. They seem to have escaped the wrath of nativism. However, the range of redwoods is very narrow:  “The redwoods occupy a narrow strip of land approximately 450 miles (724 km) in length and 5 to 35 miles (8-56 km) in width.  The northern boundary of its range is marked by two groves…within 15 miles (25 km) of the California-Oregon border.  The southern boundary of redwood’s range is marked by a grove…Monterey County, California.”

Although native plant advocates may be willing to plant redwoods outside their native range, they do not have that option because of the horticultural requirements of redwoods.  Redwoods require more water than Monterey pine and cypress and they do not tolerate wind, which prevents them from being successful in many coastal locations, where monarchs overwinter.  Redwoods cannot be successfully grown south of Monterey County where the climate is warmer and drier than its native range.

In other words, monarchs do not have the option of roosting in native trees in most of the places in California where they overwinter.  This is a more accurate description of the behavior of overwintering monarchs and the alternatives that are available to them in about 300 locations along the entire coast of California, where they have overwintered in the past:

“Three types of trees were used most frequently by roosting monarchs:  eucalyptus (75% of the habitats primarily Eucalyptus globulus), pine (20% of the habitats; primarily Pinus radiata), and cypress (16% of the Cupressus macrocarpa).  Twelve other tree species were identified…with a combined prevalence of only 10%…The negative sign for this indicator means that habitats had smaller populations when the roosting tree type was a species other than eucalyptus, pine, or cypress…our long-term analysis showed that abundance has historically been greater at habitats dominated by eucalyptus, pines, or cypress than at those with ‘other’ species.  Stands of these three signature taxa may be more likely to produce a community structure and associated microclimate that increases the residence time of monarchs.  Furthermore, these taxa may produce a more attractive landscape architecture in terms of sensory cues to migratory monarchs arriving in a certain region.” (2)

For the record, we will add that we would be happy to have more Monterey pines and cypress and if public land managers would quit destroying them, we would consider them attractive alternatives to eucalyptus.  However, for the moment, we must assume that the crusade against all non-native trees will continue unabated.

What is your personal favorite?

We have shared our personal favorites with you, but everyone comes to this issue from a different place.  We have been flabbergasted by the unfounded claims that the eucalyptus forest is devoid of life.  We wonder if the people who say that, really believe it.  Or is it just one of the many strategies used to justify their demands that our non-native landscape be destroyed?

Please choose your own personal favorite and write your own comment by Thursday, July 31, 2014.  Are you primarily concerned about the herbicides that are needed to prevent the trees from resprouting when they are destroyed?  Are you concerned about the loss of your protection from wind or noise?   Or do you value eucalyptus as a sight screen or for shade in an otherwise treeless environment?  Are you concerned about the carbon loss that will contribute to climate change?  Please help us to save our urban forest from being needlessly destroyed by telling Cal-IPC why they should take blue gum eucalyptus off their “hit list.”

Thank you for your help to save our urban forest.

Update:  On March 13, 2015, the California Invasive Plant Council published its final reassessment of Blue Gum Eucalyptus (available HERE).  Cal-IPC has downgraded its rating of invasiveness and ecological impact from “moderate” to “limited.”  Although the detailed assessment is less than perfect, the over all rating itself is an improvement.  Thanks to those who sent comments to Cal-IPC.

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(1)    Stephen Rottenborn, “Nest-Site selection and reproductive success of urban red-shouldered hawks in Central California,” J. Raptor Research, 34(1):18-25

(2)    Dennis Frey and Andrew Schaffner, “Spatial and Temporal Pattern of Monarch Overwintering Abundance in Western North America,” in The Monarch Butterfly Biology and Conservation, Cornell University Press, 2004.