The cedars on the north side of the Interpretive Centre provide a nice, warm, snug hideaway for birds on these cold days. There were several cardinals, a few house finches, chickadees, and 7 house sparrows hiding in them. Gone are the days when winter brought flocks of 80+ house sparrows to the garden. Now, if we see a dozen we think that a lot. Whatever one may feel about house sparrows, which are not a native species, the reason for their decline (which is widespread, including in their native land of Britain and Europe)should worry us! Or at least give us pause. Do we know if their decline is caused by a natural falling off in their population, perhaps because as an introduced species they have reached a "critical mass" before falling back to small numbers? Or is something else that may impact on native bird species. Let me add, that I like house sparrows!