Grants Tea Rooms

Here are emails between myself & Cheryl Campbell of Grants Tea Rooms:

Dear Cheryl & Geoff

I note from your attractive website that you encourage the artificial feeding of native birds at your tea rooms. You may or may not be aware that this practice is most detrimental to the health of these creatures. Recent findings of dead rainbow lorikeets in Melbourne have been confidently connected to artificial feeding. I therefore wonder if you’ve considered the idea of ensuring the maintenance of natural habitat in the area of your tea rooms so that native birds can enjoy their natural food without danger to their health. Perhaps the installation of pay binoculars through which visitors could view birds in their natural habitats would compensate, at least partly, for any loss of revenue from the cessation of artificial feeding. The sale of wildlife books & books on attracting birds to gardens might also help fill the gap. And who knows, such changes may well attract a lot of aware bird lovers who might otherwise keep their distance from your tea rooms.

With best wishes

Thank you for your comments.

I quite like your idea of binoculars being available to the customer, and we do already sell wildlife books.

I would encourage you to visit our Park to see the strategies that have been put in place by Parks Victoria, to ensure that our Birds remain happy and healthy.

There are restrictions on the amount of seed going out into the Park each day. Extensive testing of the birds by Parks Victoria is showing that the birds are still happily foraging the surrounding forests, and teaching their young to do the same.

With the health of our birds a premium, Parks have now introduced a specific "bird feeding area, with time restrictions (9am to 5pm)" to limit the area where people can feed.

This allows us to more closely control, monitor, and provide a sanitary environment for both the birds and the people.

The seed supplied, and stipulated by Parks Victoria, is especially rich in Vitamins and Minerals, with a low a fat grey sunflower seed mixed through.

The practice of feeding wild birds at Grants Picnic ground has been ongoing for the last 50 years,

and is hugely popular with visitors (International, Interstate and even local residents.)

For more information, you could contact Parks Victoria.

Thank you for your interest and concern,

Warmest Regards,

Cheryl C.

It's quite apparent that nothing will change at Grants Tea Rooms in relation to artificial feeding of birds, especially while

• the current regime is supported by Parks Victoria which "legitimises" what is occuring
• profits are being made from the current regime

This seems to be one of those cases where dripping water wears away the stone. Perhaps the provision of iinformation sheets about the risks to birds from artificial feeding in strategic locations would be one of those drips.

Is there someone in Parks Victoria who has a different view of artificial feeding from the one being officially promoted at the tea rooms and who could exert appropriate influence? Or am I flogging a dead horse, if not dead rainbow lorikeet?