HatchLine: Congrats to our 1st Annual Birbie Award Winners!

After the arduous and inexact and -- for the contestants, perhaps also anxious -- task of singling out the sole individuals to receive honors, BirbObserver can now name ALL its winners for 2018: MOST INSPIRING:                                          … Continue reading HatchLine: Congrats to our 1st Annual Birbie Award Winners!

The Eurasian Sparrow & Mao’s Four Pests Campaign, 1958-1960

In China, as part of Chairman Mao Zedong's Great Leap Forward (1958-1962), Mao labeled four animals as pests and launched the Four Pests Campaign. The Campaign enlisted citizen assistance throughout Beijing to conduct the extermination. The four animals designated were flies, rats, mosquitoes, and the Eurasian sparrow. The Campaign specifically targeted the Eurasian sparrow because, supposedly, one … Continue reading The Eurasian Sparrow & Mao’s Four Pests Campaign, 1958-1960