ANNALES 11 /'97 

pregledni članek UDK 598.2(497.4) 502.74(497.4) 
SLOVENSK A ORNITOLOGij A NA PRAGU TRETJEGA TISOČLETJA SLOVENE ORNITHOLOGVO N THETHRESHOL D O F THETHIR D MILLENIUM 
iztok GEISTER 

Sf-6276 Pobegi, Kocjančiei 18 
IZVLEČEK 

Avtor primerja dva vrednostna pogleda na ptičji svet, kvalitativni Reiserjev z začetka tega stoletja in kvantitativni Tuckerjev pogled s konc.a stoletja. Oba pogleda sta obremenjena s prioritetnim vrednote­njem. Kakor je bila prerasla Reiserjev pogled, mora Slovenija v prihodnje preseči tudi Tuckerjev popula­cijska obrobja zanemarjujoči globalni pogled na varstvo ptic. Pri tem naj ji pomaga zavest o tem, kako pomembna je pestrost njene ornitofavne. 
Ključne besede: tihožitje ptic, prioritetne vrste, pestrost vrst, populacijsko obrobje 
ABSTRACT 

The author compares two different views of the birds' world, the qualitative Reiser's view from the beginning of this century and Tucker's quantitative view from the end of the 20th century. Both, ho­wever, are burdened with prioritized assessments. The same as Slovenia has surpassed Reiser's view, so it should surpass, in future, Tucker's global view of bird conservation and his utter neglection of marginal populations. Slovenia should be in this respect aided by the cognition about how significant is the diversity of its ornithofauna. 
Key words: "still life" of birds, priority species, diversity of species, marginal populations 
1. UVODN I POMISLI 

Ali bomo slovenski ornitologi zrli v novo tisočletje z daljnogledom optimizma ali daljnogledom pesimizma, je nemara temeljna dilema prihodnjega vrednotenja slo­venske ornitofavne. Če primerjamo zgoščene podatke populacijskih nagnjenj minulih dveh desetletij z ohlap­nimi podatki minulih dveh stoletij, lahko kljub kratko­ročnim katastrofam izluščimo modrost dolgoročne sta­novitnosti večine ptičjih populacij. Ta stanovitnost seve­da ni merljiva s tisočletji, saj je slovenska ornitologija, če štejemo Freyerjev popis ptic iz leta 1841 za začetek tovrstnega delovanja na tedanjem Kranjskem, stara ko­maj nekaj več kot sto petdeset let. 
Torej bi smeli, napovedujoč prihodnost, govoriti kve­čjemu o tretjem stoletju slovenske ornitologije. Ta sred­njeevropski tempo je slovenska ornitologija devetdesetih let kronala z objavo dveh temeljnih del s področja fav­nistike, atlasom gnezdiIk (Geister, 1995) in atlasom pre­zimujočih vrst (Sovine, 1994). 
1. SOME INTRODUCTOR Y THOUGHT S 
The question whether we, the Slovene ornithologists, are going to look into the new millennium through the field glasses of optimism or the field glasses of pessi­mism, is probably one of the basic dilemmas of the fu­ture assessment of Slovene ornithofauna. If we compare the rather condensed data on population trends of the last two decades with the rather loose data of the last two centuries, we may extract, in spite of some short-term disasters, the wisdom of the long-term stability in most bird populations. This stability of course cannot be measured with millennia, for Slovene ornithology is no more than a little over a century and a half old, if Freyer's bird survey from 1841 is taken as the actual beginning of this kind of activity in the former Carniola. In forecasting our future, we may thus speak of the third century of Slovene ornithology at the most. Slovene ornithology of the nineties has crowned this Central European pace with the publishing of two basic works 
59 


ANNALES 11/'97 
Iztok GEISTER: SLOVENSK A ORNiTOLOCIJ A N A PRAG U TRETJEGA TISOČLETJA , s9-6 4 
Naslednji pomislek zadeva vprašijivost zaupanja. Ali le ni preveč tvegano zaupati takšno nalogo, namreč pisanje o tem, kar naj bi se šele zgodilo, nekomu, ki je nostalgično zazrt v preteklost in je pri priči pripravljen spremeniti naslov, ki naj bi se poslej glasil "Ko so ptice samo Se številke" - ornitologu, ki za duhovno pripravo na to nalogo vzame v roke dve popolnoma različni deli: najnovejšo knjigo ustanove BirdLife international "Habi­tats for Birds in Europe", na kateri se je tiskarska barva komaj dodobra posušila, in klasično Reiserjevo favni­stično delo "Die Vogel von Marburg an der Drau", s katerega je bilo najprej treba obrisati prah? 
2. PRIMERJAVA DVE H VREDNOSTNI H SISTEMOV 
Obe deli, tako to s konca kot ono z začetka tega stoletja, temeljita na presenetljivem spoznanju, da se ptičja favna, razširjenost in številnost ptic na preuče­vanem območju, zelo hitro menja. Tuckerjev in Evansov kompendij upošteva podatke dvajsetletnega obdobja (1970-90), Reiserjevo retrospektivo pa zakoličuje nje­govo zdomstvo, ko se je po potepanjih po Balkanu in Braziliji po 34 letih vrnil v rodne Pekre pri Mariboru. 
Reiser je s svojega gozdnega in vinogradniškega posestva od leta 1880 hodil na izlete v bližnjo in daljno okolico, predvsem na Dravsko polje in Pohorje, kakor je sam zapisal "mit Fiinte und verscbiedenen Sammel­geraten". Tucker je z dobro načrtovano pisno anketo v začetku devetdesetih let zbral toliko omitoloških po­datkov iz vse Evrope (z izjemo v vojaške spopade za­pletenih držav), da sta do danes iz tega gradiva nastali dve zajetni knjigi (Birds in Europe, Their Conservation Status, 1994, in Habitats for Birds in Europe, A Con­servation Strategy for the Wider Environment, 1997). 

Pri tem je Reiser v letih po prvi svetovni vojni opazil, da "so posebno v zadnjem času nekatere, prej ne ravno redke ptičje vrste izostale in da se druge pojavljajo le v majhnih in večjih časovnih intervalih", pri čemer ome­nja repaljščico, kupčarja, rumenega vrtnika, kovačka, vrtno penico, hribskega škrjanca, repnika, rjavogiavega srakoperja, črnoglavega muharja, srednjega detla in malo bobnarico. Tucker je ugotovil, da je bilo v ob­dobju 1970-90 v Evropi ogroženih 33, ranljivih 83, redkih 19 in v upadanju 39 vrst ptic. 
Reiser je opazil, da je upad mnogih vrst ptic očiten in da se je slika pokrajine v mnogočem spremenila, Takole pravi: "Tam, kjer je bilo svojčas najti jerebice, kito za kito, stojijo danes predmestja. Prej nedotaknjena listnata streha tihih pohorskih gozdov, kaže zdaj, kamorkoli se ozreš, vrzeli in podmladek ni več bukov in kostanjev, marveč smrekov." še danes ob koncu stoletja vpliva opustošenje gozda na ptičje vrste, katerih število se zmanjšuje, v višini 20% in pozidava ptičjih pre­bivališč v višini 10%. Daleč najmočnejši vpliv (več kot 40% ) pa ima intenzifikacija kmetijstva. 
from the field of faunistics, i.e. the atlas of breeding Birds (Geister, 1995) and the atlas of wintering Birds of Slovenia (Sovinc, 1994). 
The next scruple concerns the questionableness of trust, ts it indeed not too risky to entrust this task, i.e. the writing about something which is still to happen to somebody who is nostalgically reverted to the past and is instantaneously prepared to change the title into "When birds are merely numbers" - to entrust it to an ornithologist who in bis spiritual preparations for this task takes two utterly different books in his hands: the latest BirdLife International's publication "Habitats for Birds in Europe", in which the printing ink has hardly had time to dry up, and the classic Reiser's faunistic work "Die Vogel von Marburg an der Drau", which had to be dusted first? 
2. COMPARISO N BETWEEN THE TW O EVALUATION SYSTEMS 
Both works, the one from the end of this century as well as the one from its beginning, are based on the sur­prising cognition that the bird fauna, distribution of birds and number of birds in the studied area, changes very quickly indeed. In Tucker & Evans's compendium the data from two decades (1970-1990) were taken into account, white Reiser's retrospective is marked out by his absence from home, when he returned, after 34 years of roaming around the Balkans and Brazil, to his native Pekre near Maribor. 
Reiser took a number short or long trips from his for­est and winegrowing estate, particularly to Dravsko polje and the Pohorje mountains - "mit Fiinte und ver­schiedenen Sammelgeraten", as written by himself. Tucker, on the other hand, collected, with a well planned questionnaire at the beginning of the 90's, such a great amount of ornithological data from all over Europe (with the exception of the countries at war) that two thick books have sprung up from this material to date (Birds in Europe, Their Conservation Status, 1994, and Habitats for Birds in Europe, A Conservation Strat­egy for the Wider Environment, 1997). 
in the period following the first World War, Reiser noted that especially "in the last few years some bird species, which had previously not been particularly rare, are now absent and that others occur only in shorter and longer intervals", namely Whinchat, North­ern Wheatear, Icterine Warbler, Willow Warbler, Gar­den Warbler, Wood Lark, Linnet, Woodchat Shrike, Pied Flycatcher, Middle Spotted Woodpecker and Little Bit­tern. Tucker, on the other hand, established that in the 1970-1990 period, 33 European bird species were en­dangered, 83 vulnerable, 19 rare and 39 declining. 
Reiser noted that the decrease in a number of bird species was obvious and that the landscape had changed 

60 

ANNALES 11/'97 
Iztok CčISTFR : SLOVENSK A ORNITOLOG I JA N A PRAG U TRETJEGA TISGČLETIA , 53-64 
Omenili smo favnistična opažanja, navedli okolje­varstveno pomembna dejstva, tretja sestavina pronicljive presoje ogroženosti ptičjega sveta pa je vrednostno mnenje. Sloviti ornitolog prve četrtine tega stoletja se takole opredeli do tega, čemur danes pravimo bio­diverziteta, po domače pestrost ptičjega sveta: "Kako ne bi ljubitelj ptic čutil zadovoljstva, če s krmljenjem v hudem letnem času, s širogrudnim puščanjem naravnih gnezditvenib možnosti (votlih dreves, živih mej itd.) in predpisanim odstrelom kragulja in skobca, na mnogih mestih ohranja bogastvo ptičjega sveta." Bi od i verz i teto pa si predstavlja za današnje pojmovanje karseda ro­mantično: "Pod nadstreškom stanovanjske hiše v Zgor­njih Pekrah sta dve gnezdi mestne lastovke, na robu strešnega žlebu razpirajo nenasitna žrela štiri komaj speljane kmečke lastovke, zadaj za strešno lego skriva bela pastirica svoje gnezdo, na ovijalki, ki se vzpenja po verandi, je videti gnezdo grilčka, v špranji za desko na sosednji lopi skrbi za svoj zarod drevesni plezavček, v vrtnarsko pristriženo robinijo pred hišo znaša gnezdo sivi muhar in vsenaokrog nas s svojim gromkim petjem razveseljuje črnoglavka". Reiser je ta popis ornitofavne kmečkega dvorišča imenoval tihožitje. Danes bi dodali, da upravičeno, saj po sodobnih pojmovanjih ptičja skupnost brez plenilcev, vzemimo skobca, ni življenja polnovredna združba. 
Tucker seveda govori povsem drug jezik, čeprav se zakonitosti populacijske dinamike medtem pri pticah niso prav nič spremenile. Kot enega vodilnih ornitologov in many different ways. He wrote: "In places where floks of Crey Partridges could once be found, nothing but suburbs can be seen today. The once untouched foliate roof of the tranquil Pohorje forests now shows, no matter where you look, numerous gaps, and the descen­dants of plant form are no longer beech and chestnut but spruce." Today, at the end of this century, the devastation of forests still effects the bird species, the numbers of which are declining, to the amount of 20% and building up of bird habitats to the amount of 10%. By far greatest impact (more than 40%) can be attributed to intensive farming. 
So far we have mentioned some faunistic observa­tions and stated some environmentally significant facts. The third component of a clear-sighted judgement con­cerning the birds' threat status is, however, the evalu­ation of birds. The renowned above mentioned orni­thologistfrom the first quarter of this century depicted the so-called biodiversity, informally diversity of species, as follows: "How could a bird lover have not been pleased if by feeding birds in severe winter, by generously leaving untouched the birds' natural breeding possi­bilities (hollow trees, hedges, etc.) and by obligatory shooting of the Goshawk and Sparrowhawk he preserves, in many places, the richness of the birds' world." At biodiversity he looks, from today's perception, in a ro­mantic way. "Under the jutting roof of a residental house at Zgornje Pekre there are two House Martin's nests, on the edge of a gutter a bunch of four just fledged Barn 
— 

•bwBMMM w 
• v-.-.:­

SI. 1: Čuk (Athene noctua), globalno aH lokalno ogrožena vrsta? (Foto: I. Geister). 
Fig. 1: The Little Owl (Athene noctua), globally or locally endangered species? (Photo: I. Geister). 

61 


ANNALES 11/'97 
Iztok GEISTLR : SLOVENSK A ORNITOLOG« A N A PRAG U TRETJEG A TISOČLETJA . 59-64 
na pragu tretjega tisočletja ga zanima le globalna rešitev naravovarstvenega problema ptic, čeravno se tudi ta doktrina sklicuje na pestrost ptičjih vrst. Pekrsko dvo­rišče je za Tuckerja domača Anglija, Reiserjev balkanski izziv kontinentalna Evropa in njegova eksotična Bra­zilija cei svet. 
Medtem ko je Reiser pestrost ptičjega sveta na svojem dvorišču Se doživljal pristno, četudi je pri tem nemara z nabasano puško oprezal za skobcem, Tucker biodiverziteto doživlja umišljeno, prek statističnih po­datkov, četudi pri tem morda gleda na televizijskem zaslonu prizore nemočnih morskih ptic, ki so zabredle v oljni madež nekje daleč proč. Tuckerjeva iznajdba so "prioritetne vrste ptic". V vsakem od izbranih najbolj tipičnih evropskih habitatov je s pomočjo kar se da pre­proste računske operacije "odkril" vrste ptic, ki jih ogroženost njihovega habitata po statističnih zakoni­tostih najbolj prizadeva. Merili sta le dve: več kot 75% populacije mora prebivati v matičnem habitatu in vrsta mora v Evropi imeti neurejen naravovarstveni status. Od Štirih prednostnih skupin je najpomembnejša prva, imenovana prioritetna skupina A. 
3. SLOVENIJA V PRIMEŽU EVROPSKIH VELEMERIL 

Slovenija bi glede na svoje zoogeografske zmožnosti lahko bila v tej, v prihodnje tisočletje segajoči obravnavi udeležena z dvema po obsegu omembe vrednima sku­pinama habitatov: gozdnimi ter kmetijskimi in travna­timi habitati. O d gozdnih habitatov prihajajo v poštev najmanj trije: nižinski gozd zmernega pasu, poplavni gozd in seveda prevladujoči gorski gozd. O d kmetijsko travnatih habitatov je treba omeniti obdelovalne in me­liorirane travnate površine, pašnike in sadovnjake. Naj­bolj prednostne vrste (prioritetna kategorija A) v nižin­skem gozdu zmernega pasu so veliki klinkač, kraljevi orel, zelena žolna, hribski škrjanec in pogorelček, v poplavnem gozdu veliki klinkač, medtem ko v gorskem gozdu ni nobene prioritetne vrste najvišje kategorije. 
Najbolj prednostne vrste obdelovalnih in izboljšanih travnatih površin so rdečevratna gos, kraljevi orel, koto­ma, kosec, velika droplja in vrtni strnacl, pašnikov iberski orel in rjavogiavi srakoper, medtem ko v sadov­njakih ni nobene prioritetne vrste najvišje kategorije. Veliki klinkač, kraljevi orel, iberski orel in rdečevratna gos v Sloveniji verjetno niso nikdar živeli, velika droplja je z našega ozemlja izginila sredi dvajsetega stoletja, rjavogiavi srakoper v osemdesetih letih. S preostalimi vrstami pa je takole: kotoma je svojčas, ko je bila še pogosta, živela pretežno na pašnikih in ne na košenih travnikih, hribski škrjanec pri nas nt gozdna ptica, živi pretežno na obdelanih in izboljšanih travnatih povr­šinah, vrtni strnad gnezdi predvsem na opuščenih koše­ninah in zastalih pašnikih, medtem ko sta zelena žolna in pogorelček pri nas do nedavnega bila najbolj pogosta v sadovnjakih, danes pa sta tako v sadovnjakih kot v 
Swallows keep opening their insatiable gullets, behind the ridge purlin a Pied Wagtail has hidden its nest, on a creeper growing along the house veranda a Serin's nest can be seen, in a narrow opening behind a plank on the neighbour's shed a Treecreeper cares for its brood, in a trimmed robinia in front of the house a Spotted Fly­catcher is building its nest, and at every step a Blackcap is cheering us up with its attractive rippling melody." 
Reiser termed this survey of farmyard birds a "still life". Today we could add that he did so absolutely right­eously, for according to similar perceptions a bird com­munity without predators, let us say a Sparrowhawk, is not an association fully worthy to live. 
Tucker, of course, speaks an entirely different lan­guage, although the rules regarding population dynam­ics have in the meanwhile not changed at alt. As one of the leading ornithologists on the threshold of the third millennium he is interested merely in a global solution of the bird conservationist problem, even though this doctrine, too, refers to diversity of birds. The Pekre courtyard is, to Tucker, his native England, Reiser's Bal­kan challenge the continental Europe, and Reiser's ex­otic Brazil the whole world. 
While Reiser was experiencing diversity of the birds' world in his courtyard still genuinely, even though he was indeed pursuing a Sparrowhawk with a loaded gun in his hands, Tucker is experiencing it in an imaginary way through statistical data, although he might be watching, on the television set, the scenes of helpless seabirds caught in oil slick far far away. Tucker's inven­tion are "priority bird species", in each of the selected most typical European habitats he "discovered", with the aid of the simplest possible arithmetic operation, those bird species which are according to the statistical prin­ciples most affected due to the threat status of their habitat There are two criteria: more than 75% of the population must live in parental habitat, and the species must have, in Europe, still unsettled conservation status. The most important of the four priority groups is the first one, the so-cailed Priority group A. 
3. SLOVENIA I N THE VICE OF EUROPEAN "SUPREME" CRITERIA 
Considering its zoogeographical possibilities, Slove­nia could participate in these into the following millen­nium extended proceedings with two groups of habitats worth mentioning on the account of their extent: forest and agriculture/grassland habitats. 
As far as forest habitats are concerned, at least the following three can be taken into consideration: lowland temperate forest, riverine forest and, of course, the prevailing montane forest. Among the agricultural/grass­land habitats let us mention arable and improved grass­land, pastoral and operennial crops. The major species (priority group A) in lowland temperate forest are the 

62 

ANNALES 11/'97 
Iztok GEISIEK: SLOVENSKA ORNITOLOGI i A NA PRAGU TRETJEGA TISOČLETJA , 53-64 
SI. 2: Pogorelček (Phoenicurus phoenicurus} -naravo­varstvena vez med začetkom m koncem stoletja; ptica iz Reiserjevega tihožitja in Tuckerjevega seznama prednostnih vrst (Foto: F. Bračko). Fig. 2: Common Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) -a conservation link between the begining and the end of the century; a bird from Reiser's "still life" and Tucker's priority list (Photo: F. Bračko). 
nižinskem gozdu redka gnezdilca, ki zlepa ne dosegata predpisanih 75% udeležbe populacije v obravnavanem habitatu. Preostane nam edinole kosec, ptica, ki živi pri nas pretežno na mokrih, vendar košenih travnikih. Eden najbolj razgledanih slovenskih ornitologov, Peter Iron­tel j, je kosca, to v očeh Evrope najbolj perspektivno ptico, skupaj s sodelavci v Sloveniji preštel že v začetku devetdesetih let {Trontelj, 1995). Skratka v Sloveniji živi po merilih v tretje tisočletje uzrle Evrope ena sama naravovarstvena prioritetna vrsta. 
4. NARAVOVARSTVENA ALTERNATIVA POPULACIJSKEGA OBROBJA 

Najnovejša evropska naravovarstvena strategija, ki jo pooseblja Tuckerjeva statistična ornitologija, hoče prek habitatov varovati predvsem najbolj pogoste vrste izbranega prebivališča.V takšni izbiri vidi najbolj zane­sljivo jamstvo za uspešnost naravovarstvene naložbe, kajti tudi varstvo narave je danes žai predvsem posel. Naravovarstvena strategija prihodnosti bo potemtakem investirala v najmočnejši člen ptičje skupnosti, najšib­kejšega pa bo pustila na cedilu. Varstvo narave naj bi potemtakem ne bilo več nekakšna naravovarstvena so­ciala, ki bi ščitila predvsem šibke in nemočne, v kr­ščanskem duhu najbolj potrebne pomoči, in tudi ne nikakršna naravovarstvena demokratična politika, ki bi manjšino varovala pred večino. Obrobne populacije, ki živijo v prebivališčih, ki niso sklenjeno povezan z matičnim habitatom ali prebivajo v atipičnih habitatih, blagodati naravovarstvene strategije v prihodnje ne bodo deležne. Zato pa je tembolj nujno izdelati stra­tegijo varovanja obrobnih populacij, to je izoliranih, Spotted Eagle, Imperial Eagle, Green Woodpecker, Wood Lark and Common Redstart, in riverine forest the Spotted Eagle, while in montane forest there are no priority species of the highest category. The major species in arable and improved grassland are the Red-breasted Goose, Imperial Eagle, Rock Partridge, Corn Crake, Great Bustard and Corn Bunting, in pastoral woodland the Iberian Eagle and Woodchat Shrike, while orchards are not inhabited by any of the priority species of the highest category, it is very possible that the imperial Eagle, Iberian Eagle and Red-breasted Goose have never lived in Slovenia, that the Great Bustard disappeared from our territory in the mid-twentieth century and Woodchat Shrike in the 80's. The situation as far as the remaining species are concerned is as follows: the Rock Partridge used to live, when still common, mainly in pastures and not in mown mead­ows, the Wood Lark is in our country not a forest spe­cies, for it inhabits mainly arable and improved grassland, the Ortolan Bunting breeds predominantly in abandoned hay meadows and pastures, while the Green Woodpecker and Common Blackstart have been until lately most common in orchards but are today rare breeders in orchards and lowland forests, for they can hardly reach 75% share of the population in the dealt with habitat. There remains only the Corn Crake, the bird which in our country fives in wet although mown meadows. Peter Trontelj, with his associates, one of the most knowledgeable Slovene ornithologists, counted this in the eyes of Europe most perspective bird already in the beginning of the 90's (Trontelj, 1995). In short, Slovenia is according to the criteria of Europe, which seems to be already in the 3rcl millennium with its mind, inhabited by a single priority species. 
4. CONSERVATIONIS T ALTERNATIVE T O POPULATIO N MARGINS 

The latest European conservationist strategy, embod­ied by Tucker's statistical ornithology, attempts to pro­tect, through habitats, mainly the most common species of the selected habitat. 
In such selection they see a firm guarantee for the success of conservationist investment, for nature conser­vation, too, is today unfortunately mainly business. The conservationist strategy of the future will therefore invest in the strongest segment of the bird community, leaving the weakest one in the lurch. Nature conservation should therefore no longer be a sort of conservationist social institution protecting mainly the weak and the powerless, in Christian sense those most in need of help, the same as it should not be a conservationist demo­cratic policy protecting the minority from the majority. Marginal populations living in habitats which are not closely associated with parent habitat or live in atypical habitats, will in future not be able to share the benefits 
63 


ANNALES 11/'97 
Iztok GEISTER: SLOVENSK A ORNITOLOGIJ A N A PRAG U TRETJEGA TISOČLETJA , 59-64 
redkih, občasnih tako pričakovanih kot nepričakovanih gnezdilk, ki bi jih lahko z eno samo sicer konotacijsko obremenjeno, a sicer bistvo problema v popolnosti za­obsegajočo besedo imenovali alternativne gnezdilke. Slovenija kot majhna, a rastlinsko in živalsko pestra dežela bi morala biti zainteresirana za takšno alter­nativno naravovarstveno strategijo. Čas velikobesednih programov je minil, Slovenija s strategijo lokalnih atla­sov poglablja naravovarstveno zanimanje za populacij­ska obrobja. 
Po nauk te zgodbe se za konec vrnimo k Reiserju, ponovno premislimo njegovo prioritetno tihožitje brez skobca in ga primerjajmo s Tuckerjevo prioriteto pre­vladujoče populacije brez motečega obrobja. Nobeden od teh dveh naravovarstvenih scenarijev za Slovenijo ni sprejemljiv. Prvega, ki prezira naravno ravnovesje, je povozi! čas, drugi, ki prezira populacijska obrobja v deželi naravne pestrosti, nima perspektive. Takšnega invalidnega začetka novega tisočletja pticam na ozem­lju Slovenije vsekakor ne privoščimo. Nasprotno, kakor smo se dozdaj trudili, da se skobec vrne na domače dvorišče, se bomo tudi v prihodnje, da se obrobnim populacijam prizna pravica do naravovarstvene zaščite. 
of conservation strategy. This is why a strategy for the protection of marginal populations should be urgently prepared, namely of isolated, rare, periodica! expected as well as unexpected breeders which we could call, with a single connotatively burdened but to the heart of the problem reaching term, alternative breeders. Slove­nia as a small but diverse country as far as its plants and animals are concerned, should of course be very inter­ested in such conservationist strategy. The time of haughty programmes has passed and Slovenia is en­hancing, with its strategy of local atlases, the conserva­tionist interest in population margins. 
For the moral of this story let us, in the end, return to Reiser, once again reflect on his prioritized "still life" void of Sparrowbawk, and compare it with Tucker's pri­ority of predominating population void of disturbing margin. None of these two conservationist scenarios is acceptable by us. The first, which despises natural bal­ance, has been run over by time, while the second, which despises population margins in the country of natural diversity, has no prospect at all. We certainly do not begrudge such decrepit beginning of the new mil­lennium to the birds living in the territory of Slovenia, O n the contrary, the same as we have done our best for the Sparrowhawk to return to our courtyards, we shall also do in future, in order that marginal populations are given the right to conservationist protection. 
UTERATURA / REFERENCES 

Freyer HL, (1842): Fauna der in Kram bekannten 
Saugetiere, Vögel, Reptilien und Fische. Lasbach. 
Geister i., (1995): Ornitoloski atlas Slovenije. D2S. 
Ljubljana. 
Reiser O., (1925): Die Vögel von Marburg an der Drau. 
Graz. 

Sovine A., (1994): Zimski omitološki atlas Slovenije. 
Tehniška založba Slovenije. Ljubljana. 
Trontefj P,, (1995): Popis kosca Crex crex v Sloveniji v 
letih 1992-93. Acrocephalus 73: 174-180. 
Tucker G,M„ M.F. Heath, (1994): Birds in Europe. Their 
Conservation Status. Birdi.ife international. Cambridge. 
Tucker G.M., M.S. Evans (1997): Habitats for Birds in 
Europe. A Conservation Strategy for the Wider Environ­ment. BirdLife International. Cambridge. 


64