I love the birds.
I’d rather see these gorgeous, colorful creatures flying in the air,
dancing around in the gardens, playing in the birdbaths and flipping from tree to tree
than all the cats in the world,
roaming around the place ready to pounce on one of my beautiful bird friends!
We don’t have cats!
I’ve decided to take it one step further to help preserve these radiant creatures
for future generations.
Are you aware that about ¼ of the bird population has gone missing since 50 years ago?
I thought it was just me since I could never find enough of them,
or see nearly as many as I remembered seeing when I was growing up.
And then I found out it’s really true; they are leaving us through no fault of their own.
There are many issues, mostly human-caused reasons, that are leading
to the slow demise of our beautiful feathered friends.
I’m sure you are familiar with many of them,
like much less environmentally friendly habitats due to a
constant clearing off of lands to provide for concrete, pavements, buildings,
structures and cities.
And then there are the cats, the outdoor ones including pets, along with the feral cat colonies that live in cities, rural areas and public lands.
These account for the deaths of over 100 million birds per year.
It’s also estimated that over a billion birds die from impact after hitting windows and buildings during both day and night flights.
Do I even need to mention that pesticides and plastic waste are killing off
a lot more than the bird population? Of course, I don’t, we are all aware.
So, that brings me to coffee!
We all like our coffee, but it’s hard to swallow it when we become aware
that it could also be causing the demise of our beloved feathered friends!
Coffee itself isn’t the problem. How it is grown is! (Yes, you can breath now...)
Traditionally, coffee was grown in the shade, in a tropical and environmentally friendly habitat for plants and wildlife, including our birds.
In more recent times, the rain forests and tropics have been
and continue to be replaced with sunny, modern coffee plantations,
among other things.
The coffee bean plants are exposed to the sun instead of being sheltered by
tall trees and plants, and therefore require more pesticides.
Less shade and more chemicals cause harm to our birds
who are without protection or defense.
Coffee bean plants, next to tobacco plants, are sprayed with more chemicals than any other food product that we consume! How’s that for a sad fact!
But wait, there is hope. There exists a small percentage of coffee
being grown naturally and in the shade, in our country and around the world.
You and I can buy shade-grown coffee beans
by checking for dealers and individuals who raise it organically and naturally.
If we get the word out there, more naturally-grown coffee will be available
and purchased and enjoyed without repercussions
to ourselves and our feathered friends, the birds.
Understand that I’m not here to advertise coffee,
but if you are like me and you want to sip a better cup-a-coffee in the morning
while you are bird-watching with a clear conscience,
buy some “shade-grown coffee” and quick!
~ Gwen of IRISH ACRES
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