The City of Spokane is asking -- actually, it's sort of pleading, sort of demanding -- that people stop feeding the ducks at Manito Pond.

City Parks and Recreation has put up signs to that effect. It has issued press releases and public announcements that feeding bread to the ducks is bad for the water fowl, and fouls the water.

People feeding ducks leads to an increase of ducks on the pond, which quickly becomes more than the pond can support, and some very nasty water. And the ducks don't get much nutrition out of the bread, so they wind up fat and malnourished.

It seemed to be working for a while, but now, two years into the "Don't Feed the Ducks" effort, City Parks is seeing an increase in duck feeding, and an increase in bread in the pond. (That seems to suggest that people are bringing bags of bread to the pond, reading the signs and tossing the bread in the water. "Honest officer, I wasn't feeding the ducks. I was feeding the POND. Not my fault the ducks ate some of the bread before it sank.")

So, to review. Don't feed the ducks. Don't take bread to the pond to feed the ducks.

But if you forget, and you bring the bread and read the sign and say "D'oh!" Don't just toss the bread in the water, toss it in the trash cans conveniently located in the park. Or, better yet, take it home and toss it in your trash can.

Any questions?

---

---