Over the past six years or so, we have watched as Perry Phillips Lake, in southeast Columbia, has morphed from a farm lake with surrounding natural habitat to a suburban lake, bordered by a mix of "development." In concert, house sparrows have become increasingly common along the loop trail.
Immigrants from the congested cities of Europe, house sparrows have thrived in the sprawling cities, suburbs and farms of America, feasting on discarded food, waste grain and other human handouts. Visit a wilderness area and you will not likely encounter these gregarious birds but, the closer you get to human settlements, the more abundant they become.
Such is the case at Perry Phillips Lake. When we first began visiting the Park, house sparrows were rarely encountered. Now that suburban homes, apartment complexes and business parks have sprouted around the lake, house sparrows have also moved in (I counted at least 40 yesterday). To paraphrase the lyrics of Joni Mitchell, they like parking lots and we are paving over paradise!
