The Virginian-Pilot
©
VIRGINIA BEACH
For years, city officials tried to be nice. Please, please don't feed the ducks, they said. Brochures, park signs and educational campaigns reinforced the message. Nothing worked.
Now they're about to lay down the law. The City Council is scheduled to discuss new rules about feeding wildlife on city property at its Nov. 25 meeting. The rules could include a minimum $100 fine.
The rules are aimed at those who offer bread, popcorn, even Froot Loops, to ducks and geese at Mount Trashmore Park's lake. It also would ban feeding seagulls at the Oceanfront.
"It's kind of like feeding your kids cotton candy," said Shawn Hopson, the city's open-space manager.
Food for humans makes animals aggressive and dependent on handouts; spreads disease; fouls waterways; and disrupts migration, he said.
"You pull out a bag, and they're all over you," said Betsy Brown, Mount Trashmore Park manager. "They're not the sweet creatures people think."
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Put up feeding vending
Put up feeding vending machines this isn't going to fix your budget shortfall.....
Just like VB to think of a way to take the fun out of something and milk the citizens who pay them all in one shot....
Better yet leave the bars alone and let us have some fun and forget the economy woes after we pay the fines for our 3 year old feeding the ducks.....We can pay the drunk in public fee before we go home to pay our taxes.....This city’s a joke
Let the ABC board handle it... What about the ducks behavior They should be issued noise violations for all that Quacking and don't get me started on the dirty dancing...LOL Stupid....
Obama ducks
Well, I guess since VB almost went for Obama and the Dems, I guess they don't want the ducks getting lazy and expecting bread-ends/cheetos "wealth re-distribution" from park goers...Light rail, transportation woes, schools, taxes...but no...the ducks must not be fed! Ha ha ha...
huh?
When was the last time that a duck or goose was involved in some incident where someone was seriously hurt, injured or even killed? And then today there is a story about three teens who are dead because of a vehicle accident. Where should the VB police's priorities lie? Yeah giving out tickets for feeding ducks, that's what I thought.
Think about it
Why is it so hard to understand that feeding wild animals human food is bad for them and, due to behavioral/territorial problems, bad for us. I've seen how aggressive and destructive ducks and geese get when they get used to being feed. Same goes for seagulls (we've all seen that). Are they as dangerous as bears? Of course not, but they are a menace and do create eyesores and health hazards. Is this the most important issue ever? Of course not. But it does address a public nuisance.
To the people who think they are somehow helping ducks and birds by feeding them wonder bread, frootloops and Twinkies . . . denial is not just a river. While selfishness, studious ignorance and delusion are not cardinal sins they aren't anything to be proud of either.
I'm guessing many of you just don't care that while feeding these animals you're harming them. Again nothing worth arguing over but that sure does seem to be a nice lesson to teach your kids . . . With any luck maybe you and your kids will get that fine. Now there's a lesson worth teaching,
Dasterdly Duck Laws...
To all the bloggers so far...this is an imaginary note from the City Council:
"Do you really think that we want those laws to be observed? We want them broken! We're after power and [money] and we mean it.
There's no way to rule innocent men.....But just pass the kind of laws that can neither be observed nor enforced....and you create a [city] of law breakers, and you cash in on their guilt!"
(paraphrased from a quote by Ayn Rand)
Yep, they mean to take your money...after all, they just announced a $22M shortfall! Better hurry up and erect those gates at the entrance to the city...LOL!
Instead of...
Instead of taking away the childhood thrill of feeding the ducks, why doesn't the city just do what our local Virginia Zoo did. At their duck pond they have the "candy machine" type containers that have proper duck food in it. That way the city could still make a bit of money off the purchase of nutritional feed for the birds and children could still have the fun of feeding ducks. Sounds like a win-win situation to me.
what a great way to balance
what a great way to balance the city budget. Apparantly City Council must believe that our law enforcement officials have nothing better to do, but bust people for feeding some birds fruit loops. As has been said before ONLY IN VB.
All the signs at the
All the signs at the oceanfront will have to be changed to add another no item. Also, is the City going to quit feeding the sea gulls at the city dump? If this is such a serious issue, then make the fine $1000.00 with a mandatory 90 days in jail. Seems like the current Council has lost focus. May be Jim Spore, City Manager, could spend part of his work week at Mount Trashmore educating the public on the dangers of feeding the ducks.
Teach 'em a lesson!
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws."
Tacitus
So, folks, if you catch your children feeding the ducks, give them a good whipping! (What, you can't do that either)?
Are the birds complaining? Or do they come back for more?
Just another Dem Law
Did any of you "digest" the first part of the article where it said, "For years, city officials tried to be nice. Please, please don't feed the ducks, they said. Brochures, park signs and educational campaigns reinforced the message. Nothing worked"
Hello??? If nothing worked, why do politicians think by passing a law, this will work? oh yeah, it's a LAW. Surely, that'll work!
Sometimes you can't make this stuff up...