Role of owl in biological control of pests in agricultural field
Answers
No other agriculture has utilized barn owl pest management programs more than grape growers. Vineyards attract high number of rodents. In California, Oregon, and Washington vineyards, pocket gophers damage soil structure and irrigation systems; they also weaken plants by chewing roots and girdling vines. California vineyards have been using barn owls for rodent control for decades. The low height of the vines allows growers to erect boxes as low as eight feet off the ground, and the rows between the vines give barn owls ample runways for successful hunting. As vineyards increasingly adopt sustainable, organic farming practices, the barn owl is becoming an even more important tool for natural rodent control. Other wine growing areas, such as North Carolina, where barn owls are common, would also benefit from such programs.
Quote from The California Fish and Wildlife Service website: “For the pocket gopher, Thomomys sp., barn owls, Tyto alba, can represent a substantial biological control that can be manipulated with the placement of barn owl nest boxes around and in the orchard. Research work in California examined contents of barn owl nest boxes in the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valley around prunes, vines and, pecans. Results showed pocket gophers represented over 50 percent of the barn owl diet representing an average of 215 gophers ‘taken’ during the breeding and nestling phase…”