My family has been in Rehoboth since the early 1980s and have had the pleasure of seeing many varieties of birds and other wildlife roaming the land. In the past few years, we have also witnessed an influx of people due to the increase of housing development on farmlands.
We no longer see large deer with beautiful racks foraging in the fields. The great flocks of white geese covering large expanses of farmland have been dwindling. Now, for the past several weeks, I have not seen a bird! No robins, cardinals, blue jays, goldfinches, nor the ubiquitous house finches.
What has Sussex County or Rehoboth done to make these everyday birds disappear? Even though it could be annoying, I miss waking up to the sound of those early birds.
Is this the trade-off for unbridled housing development covering the lovely and productive farms, the low-lying areas and wetlands like Osprey Point?
It is quite scary and not a pleasant omen for the future of the area I love – Rehoboth.