Tim Dewar / City of Boulder City
Boulder City officials are working to reduce the incidents of supplemental feeding of wildlife at Veterans Memorial Park.
Thursday, Sept. 26, 2019 | 2 a.m.
Boulder City officials are asking residents to not feed ducks and other waterfowl at Veterans Memorial Park.
Creating artificial feeding conditions in urban areas, although well-intentioned, does more harm than good, said Roger Hall, Boulder City’s director of parks and recreation.
“We see the impacts it has on animals who live near our boat pond, the fish pond and throughout our parks system,” he said.
Those impacts include an increase in bird waste decomposition of uneaten food, which affects the water quality at Veterans Memorial Park and other attractions around Boulder City, spokeswoman Lisa LaPlante said. Duck and goose waste may potentially contain E. coli, salmonella, Campylobacter or cryptosporidium, thus increasing the chance of disease spreading in animal and human populations, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Bird waste contains pathogens that cause a number of environmental and health issues,” she said. “We felt it in the best interest of the wildlife and the health of the ponds to remind visitors that feeding the birds is not allowed and can even be detrimental to the birds.”
Some of the foods given to the birds, like bread and crackers, can also be harmful because they contain “zero nutritional value,” said Marion Brady, a Las Vegas-area bird expert.
“Bread is all carbs. It fills them up but has no nutritional value,” Brady said. “It would be like us eating ice cream all the time. We wouldn’t survive very long.”
A high-carb diet can also cause a condition known as “angel wing,” according to the National Audubon Society. The condition causes wings to grow outward, away from the body, making it so the birds can’t fly or defend themselves against predators.
Supplementing the diets of area wildlife can also alter the behavior of the birds, which range in number from 40 to more than 100 at the park, by delaying migration and unnatural competition, according to the New York State Department of Conservation.
It is never a good idea to feed wildlife, even if it's food designed specifically for them, because it can cause changes in their habits and food-gathering skills, LaPlante said.
“We humans shouldn’t interfere with wild animals and their natural instinct,” she said.
Hall suggested that anyone who still wishes to provide for local animals can donate to their local animal shelter.
“We hope people will think twice about feeding wildlife, even if it is food that is designed specifically for that type of animal,” he said.
