As regular CFZ-watchers will know, for some time Corinna has been doing a column for Animals & Men and a regular segment on On The Track... particularly about out-of-place birds and rare vagrants. There seem to be more and more bird stories from all over the world hitting the news these days so, to make room for them all - and to give them all equal and worthy coverage - she has set up this new blog to cover all things feathery and Fortean.

Monday 1 September 2014

Jack Miner Bird Sanctuary seeks missing biblical bird bands

Jack Miner Bird Sanctuary is attempting to compile a list of all Bible verses the conservationist banded on ducks and geese since the early 1900s.

Jack Miner was a pioneer in banding migrating waterfowl, starting to clamp bands on birds in 1909 in Kingsville, Ont.

The tagging started five years after Miner founded the migratory waterfowl refuge system by opening a sanctuary for birds. 

In 1915 Miner came up with the idea of putting Bible verses on his bands, after being inspired by a young girl who made a calendar which had a Bible verse written on every day of the year. 

"He suddenly realized that this would be a perfect way to put his biblical verses on the bands and then he would have missionaries of the air. So wherever his birds flew, the word of God would be passed on," said Mary Baruth, the executive director of the Jack Miner Migratory Bird Sanctuary foundation. 

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