If you have ever seen this bird in or around the Grandview Cut, you have witnessed a Vancouver Birding Phenomenon!

Ever since Roger Tory Petersen got things going for amateur nature lovers with his first guidebook, birding has grown enormously in popularity. People travel the world to add to their Life Lists, and one of the prime reasons they come to Vancouver is to see the Crested Mynah.

This Asian starling was introduced to Vancouver in 1897—not long before the Grandview Cut was formed—and is restricted in North America to the Vancouver area. In recent years its numbers have been decreasing.

This is a case of introduction that has apparently been harmless to native wildlife—the Crested Mynah has not ever been common here and hasn't moved much beyond the borders of the city. Rather, it has created for Vancouver a little celebrity in the birding world. This is in contrast to the European Starling, which was released in New York City in the 1890s and in a few years had spread across the United States and southern Canada, supplanting many native songbirds.

As no exhaustive study has been done of the birds nesting in the Grandview Cut, it is not known specifically how the Cut is used by the Crested Mynah—certainly it has been seen here for many years.

For the Crested Mynah, as for the many species of birds that migrate through, nest, or feed in the Grandview Cut, we do know that this small and isolated piece of wild land is unique and special in the context of east Vancouver, and that whatever mitigation measures are taken, numbers of both individuals and species will decline if the SkyTrain comes to roost.

Will the Crested Mynah be one of those who go?