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A Method Of Evaluating Blackbird Depredation Using Food Habits, Robert E. Williams

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

An accurate economic analysis of pest species, such as birds depredating agricultural systems, would entail a thorough understanding of the species1 ecological relationships with all components of their environment. Understanding behavioral patterns (e.g., seasonal territorialism and gregariousness, reproductive characteristics, and annual food habits), population dynamics (e.g., natality, mortality, and sex ratios), and environmental pressures (e.g., carrying capacity and interspecific competition) would only begin to provide a base for a valid evaluation. No single parameter could integrate the complex interactions which affect agricultural production. However, evaluation of one such parameter, food habits analysis, could provide enough useful information for estimating one …

Redwinged Blackbird Flock Feeding Behavior In Response To Repellent Stress, M. I. Dyer

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The use of 4-Aminopyridine (Avitrol, a Phillips Petroleum trade-name, or AFCC 99, a name designated by Environmental Protection Agency) as an avian repellent when placed on agricultural crops has been reported upon (DeGrazio, et al., 1971, 1972; Stickley, et al., 1972, 1976); and its status in the United States and elsewhere has been recently reviewed (Bessek, 1976). Much more information has been collected; but unfortunately, it has not been made accessible in published form (see Besser, 1976). Thus, much of the information and opinions about this repellent material is anecdotal, and the scientific community must rely upon relatively sparse information …

Mesurol 50% Hbt For Protecting Sprouting Corn From Pheasants In Iowa And South Dakota, Jerome F. Besser, C. Edward Knittle

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The problem of pheasants (phasianus colchicus) pulling sprouting corn in the U.S. is not well understood, because objective surveys have not been conducted. However, a subjective survey by Stone and Mott (1973) indicated the problem is substantial. They estimated losses of corn in five states (IA, ID, IN, KS, and NE), where pheasants were reported as the only bird causing losses, at 7 million bushels ($17.5 million at $2.50/bu). Their survey data are reinforced by estimates that a cock pheasant is capable of consuming an amount of sprouting corn that would yield 15 bushels when mature (West 1968) and by …

Methiocarb As A Bird Repellent For Mature Sweet Corn, Allan R. Stickley Jr., Charles R. Ingram

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Sweet corn in Ohio is an important high-value truck crop (74,000 acres in 1974--Ohio Crop Rep. Serv., 1975) that is especially vulnerable to blackbird damage. For this reason, a chemical treatment that would repel birds from sweet corn would be advantageous. A candidate chemical for this use is methiocarb [3,5-dimethyl-4-(Methylthio)-phenyl methylcarbamate = Mesurol (product of Chemagro, Division of Mobay Chemical Corporation)]. In addition to insecticidal, acaricidal, and molluscieidal properties (Hermann and Kolbe, 1971:286), Schafer and Brunton (1971) established in cage tests that methiocarb was a promising bird repellent because low concentrations (<0.16%) would repel birds from treated rice seed. The chemical apparently reinforces a bad taste by producing a conditioned aver- sion to its intoxicating effects (Rogers, 1974). When applied to corn seed prior to planting, methiocarb treatments reduced blackbird damage to sprouts (Hermann and Kolbe, 1971; Stickley and Guarino, 1972; Ingram, et al., 1974; Linehan, et al., 1975; Stickley and Ingram, 1975). However, Mitchell, et al. (1975) did not show significant protection, and Linehan, et al, (1975) showed some phytotoxicity in cold, wet growing conditions. Methiocarb treatments also have shown indications of efficacy when applied to mature grain crops [rice at 10.0 and 3.2 lb (active material) per acre (DeHaven, et al., 1971), sorghum at 2.0 lb (active material) per acre (Mott, et al., 1974), and sorghum at 1.6 lb (active material) per acre (Mott and Lewis, 1975)]. Because of these results, we conducted a screening experiment in 1975 to determine the feasibility of methiocarb treatments for repelling blackbirds from ripening sweet corn.

Behavioral Response Of Quelea To Methiocarb (Mcsurol)*, Stephen A. Shumake, Stanley E. Gaddis, Edward W. Schafer Jr.

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The small African weaver finch commonly known as Quelea (Quelea quelea) has been reported (Crook and Ward, 1968) to be one of the most numerous and destructive birds in the world and is found extensively throughout Africa (DeGrazio, 1974). Quelea have been associated with damage to many agricultural crops including millet, grain sorghum, rice, and wheat. Because current population control programs in Africa have not reduced damage except in a few local areas (Crook and Ward, 1968), more effective damage control methods need to be Inves- tigated. One promising method, protection of the agricultural crop with a chemical repellent, methiocarb, …

Preliminary Laboratory And Field Trials Of Curb, A Possible Avian Repellent, Ken Ewing, A. Charles Crabb, Lee R. Martin, Roger Moitoso

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Grape growers in California lose between three and four million dollars annually from damage caused principally by two bird species: Linnets (carpodacus mexicanus) and Starlings (sturnus vulgaris) (DeHaven, 1974; Crase, et al., 1975),. Few effective tools exist for the growers to use in reducing crop losses from bird damage; and current bio-political trends may preclude the use of toxicants to control local depredating bird populations, especially Linnets. The use of chemical repellents is a possible alternative. Testing of the chemical repellent methiocarb [3,5-dimethyl-4-(methylthio) phenol methylcarbamate] to protect California wine grapes has been conducted by Denver Wildlife Research Center personnel (Guarino, …

Aircraft And Birds, Victor E. F. Solman

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

At the third seminar I reported that our work on ecological changes at airports was a useful method of controlling bird hazards to aircraft. At the fifth seminar I talked about our studies of bird migration by radar and the use of that knowledge to keep flying aircraft away from bird concentrations. Those techniques are still effective. Since then we have: sought ground cover less attractive to birds than grass; developed methods of controlling earthworms to reduce bird attraction; improved radar data handling; improved bird hazard forecasts; studied light effects on birds; quantified bird spacing in flocks; studied the relation …

Protecting Uruguayan Crops From Bird Damage With Methiocarb And 4-Aminopyridine1, Carlos Calvi, Jerome F. Besser, John W. De Grazio, Donald F. Mott

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Bird damage to ripening and sprouting agricultural crops is a serious problem in many Departamentos (States) in Uruguay and a limiting factor in the production of some crops. A total of about one million hectares of wheat, corn, sunflowers, grain sorghum, rice, soybeans, barley, oats, and peanuts are grown (De Grazio and Besser, 1975). Grain sorghum and sunflower crops are damaged most seriously by birds; corn and rice, soybeans, peanuts, and fruits (such as apples and pears), to a lesser extent. Three families of birds are responsible for most of the damage: doves and pigeons, parakeets, and blackbirds. Waterfowl and …

Bird Strikes And The Air Force, Portia R. Mccracken

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The first recorded bird strike accident was in 1912, when a gull got caught in an air- craft control cable. The pilot was killed in the crash. Since that first squaring-off, man and bird have been engaged in an accelerating contest in which there can be no winner. At first, birdstrikes were not really much of a problem. Aircraft were slow, and birds were able to learn to move out of their paths in time to avoid a collision. But, with the coming of the jet age, the problem began to take on more sinister proportions. At this point, birds …

Winter Bird Roosts In Kentucky: An Introduction Of The Problem, Richard N. Smith

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

When the first Bowling Green Bird Control seminar was held in the early sixties, emphasis on the blackbird problem was centered in Ohio. I believe John Beck, who is here, was one of the first peoples in the State to become involved with this situation. The problem (and it was a problem related to crop damage, primarily corn) had been building for a number of years, but it wasn't until September of 1965 that it really received national recognition. During that month, at the demand of local farmers at a meeting in Vickery, Ohio, Federal, State and local officials were …

Strychnine, Paul Ochs

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

I was to come here and talk to you today about the status of strychnine. Strychnine, of course, is one of the older poisons in use today; and, according to information from Fitzwater, Strychnine was known for its toxic properties as early as 1640. It was used to destroy crows, pests, stray dogs, etc. Strychnine was also used by natives of South America and Africa to dispose of neighboring tribes. This material is derived from an extract of the seeds from strychnos nux vomica and other species of the strychnos genus. The alkaloid form is only slightly soluble in boiling …

Examination Of Redwinged Blackbird Nestling Growth Rates Using The Logistic Model: A Case For R And K Selection?, M. I. Dyer, Z. Abramsky

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

One of the few processes of an avian population that presents the opportunity to collect sensitive information about the performance of that population is growth rates of young throughout the brooding period. Growth rate data are sensitive to many conditions of the breeding cycle: proximate influences, such as food availability and weather (Francis, et al., in prep.), and ultimate factors, such as species-specific characteristics, (Ricklefs, 1968). Additionally, the measurements themselves can be obtained with precision. The ability to make such detailed observations is extremely useful and is not always possible for other population parameters, such as determining life table data. …

Studies On Diet Overlap Among Icterids, Crows, And Starlings, M. I. Dyer, N. J. Kakalec

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Some of the problems that have been publicized for the past two to three years about blackbirds and Starlings in the southeastern United States are concerned with what these birds eat and the degree to which these granivores compete on their wintering grounds. The assumption by agriculturists has been that these birds cause severe depredations. Futhermore it is presumed by some that food supplies are unlimited and that these birds are simply living off the “fat of the land”; others consider that food is limited and that the birds are “pressured” into direct competition with man's food or food destined …

Selection Of Toxic Poultry Pellets From Cattle Rations By Starlings, Richard R. West, Jerome F. Besser

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Populations of wintering Starlings(sturnus vulgaris) causing problems at cattle feedlots have been effectively reduced by broadcasting pellet baits treated with 1 % DRC-1339 (3- chloro-p-toluidine hydrochloride) in their feeding areas (Besser, et al., 1967; West, et al., 1967; West, 1968). Each 1% DRC-1339 pellet (averaging 70 mg in weight) contains an amount of toxicant sufficient to be lethal to a starling (DeCino, et al., 1966). Besser, et al. (1968) estimated that starlings at cattle feedlots take about half their diet from the troughs. However, during severe winter weather, many Starlings take most of their food from troughs, and some appear …

The Need For Practical And Objective Test Protocols For Bird Damage Control Chemicals, E. W. Schafer Jr.

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The registration and reregistration process for vertebrate pesticides is difficult at best and is becoming more complicated and time consuming each year, particularly for bird-damage control chemicals. Although much of the information that is required for U.S. registrations (such as toxicology, general chemistry, and analytical methodology) is beyond our purview at this seminar, there are some areas where research and management personnel can have a favorable impact on present and future requirements of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). I am speaking in particular of the methodology used to determine the laboratory and field efficacy of bird damage control chemicals. Because …

Starling Damage To Sprouting Wheat In Tennessee, Allen R. Stickley, Richard A. Dolbeer, Stephen B. White

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

An estimated half-billion blackbirds and Starlings have been roosting in the United States each winter for many years (Meanley and Webb, 1965). Three-fourths of these birds, primarily Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus), Common Grackles (Quiscalus quiscula). Brown-headed Cowbirds (Molothrus ater), and Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) winter in the east (lower Mississippi Valley and eastward to the Atlantic Ocean) where food and climate are apparently more attractive than in the more arid west.

In recent years, these birds have come increasingly to public notice because of appar- ent agricultural, health, aesthetic, and nuisance problems (Graham 1976). Considerable effort has been spent developing lethal …

Experimental Tree Trimming To Control An Urban Winter Blackbird Roost, Heidi B. Good, Dan M. Johnson

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Every fall millions of blackbirds come down the Mississippi Flyway to return to their winter roosts in Arkansas, Louisiana, and East Texas. When these roosts are located in urban areas, public pressure makes the more common chemical means of control impractical. A less destructive and more permanent method of control was sought. At Rice University, in Houston, Texas, there has been a blackbird roost of various sizes and durations since 1956. For the past two years we have had the opportunity both to study roosting blackbird biology and experiment with habitat alteration as a control method. This particular report concentrates …

The Good - The Bad - The Ugly - That’S Bird Control, William D. Fitzwater

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

The good that most people see in birds is sometimes offset by the bad that birds do under certain situations. The ugly part comes in when misdirected emotionalism and unscientifically-based regulations interfere with effective control measures.

Bird Problems In South Central United States: Still Unsolved, Robert A. Pierce

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Some of the problems that I am aware of are:

I. Grain producers

A. Rice - sprout pulling – blackbirds- damage to standing grain - blackbirds

B. Grain sorghum - sprout pulling - blackbirds and crows-damage to grain - blackbirds

C. Corn - sprout pulling - blackbirds and crows- damage to ears - blackbirds

D. Fall-seeded wheat and oats - sprout pulling - blackbirds

II. Other producers

A. Pecans - crows and blackbirds

B. Watermelons - crows

C. Livestock operations - blackbirds, Starlings, crows

III. Homeowners - woodpeckers

IV. Winter bird roosts - concentrations of blackbirds, starlings and robins with …

An Overview Of Depredating Bird Damage Control In California, Dell O. Clark

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

To many people, California is synonomous with Disneyland, freeways, Los Angeles smog, Yosemite, the California missions, or for you bird aficionados, the California Condor. But do you think about California when you eat strawberry shortcake? You should -- California leads the nation in strawberry production. How about artichokes? California produces over 98% of the artichokes raised in the United States. Dates? California produces over 99% of the dates in the United States.

Yes, California is all of these, and it is much more. California may well be the most diverse state in the United States. Within its 100.2 million acres, …

Nationwide Estimates Of Blackbirds And Starlings, Brooke Meanley, Willis C. Royall Jr.

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

An estimated 538 million blackbirds and Starlings are found in the United States, based on the national cooperative blackbird/Starling winter roost survey conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service during the 1974-75 winter period of December 20-February 15. Ap- proximately 74% or 398 million of these blackbirds and Starlings occurred in the Eastern States, including the tier from Minnesota to Louisiana; 26% or 139 million birds were in the West. The national roosting population in 1974-75 was composed of 11 species (Table 1) in the following approximate proportions: 38% Red-winged Blackbirds; 22% Common Grackles; 20% Starlings; 18% Brown-headed Cowbirds; …

Reducing A Local Population Of Starlings With Nest-Box Traps, C. E. Knittle, J. L. Guarino

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

Many fruit-growing areas in the United States and Canada suffer considerable economic losses to local breeding and postbreeding Starling (sturnus vulgaris) populations. Wine grapes in California (DeHaven, 1974), cherries in Michigan (Stone, 1973), and blueberries in several states (Mott and Stone, 1973) are seriously damaged by Starlings. Since more than one method is often useful in protecting fruit crops, we conducted a study in 1974 to deter- mine the number of breeding Starlings that could be captured with a given number of nest-box traps to evaluate the potential of using this control method to minimize damage in small fruit-growing areas. …

Enteric Virus Survival In Package Plants And The Upgrading Of The Small Treatment Plants Using Ozone, Lois S. Cronholm, James R. Mccammon, Marvin Fleischman, Jerry R. Perrich, Valerie Reisser, William Harris, Ronald R. Vanstockum, Khosrow Jaberizadeh, Michael J. Wahl

KWRRI Research Reports

Post-chlorinated effluent collected with a portable viral concentrator from four treatment plants in Jefferson County, Kentucky, yielded infective viral particles from three plants from spring through late fall. The pH, ,chlorine, turbidity, and coliform levels of these effluents indicated that viral persistence was correlated with inefficient processing which produced effluent environments that inhibited disinfection by chlorine. The disinfection potential of ozone was tested on secondary effluent and finished water seeded with poliovirus and Esaheriahia coli. Low doses of ozone inactivated viruses and bacteria in treated water, but not in effluent. The inactivation of bacteria by ozone does not appear …

Water Current, Volume 8, No. 6, November/December 1976

Water Current Newsletter

From the Desk of the Director
Deadline for Submitting Annual Allotment Proposals
Matching Grants Submitted to OWRT
FAO Fellow from India
Staff Appointee from Poland
Rural Water Conference
Water Research in Nebraska
Ogallala Study Approved
Interior Signs Water Marketing Agreement with Montana
Discount Rate Set at 6 3/8%
Research Review: A Mechanism for Saving Energy and Water

Water Law Amendments For Virginia?

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

New Uses For Wastewater

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

A Review Of The Limnology Of And Water Quality Standards For Lake Mead, Charles R. Goldman

Publications (WR)

1. The waters of Las Vegas Bay, a heavily utilized recreational resource, receive discharges from a variety of municipal and industrial waste sources. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has determined, on the basis of numerous studies, that the present water quality violates state and federal standards and constitutes a public nuisance. Consultants have advised the Sewage and Wastewater Advisory Committee that rapid abatement of the alleged pollution conditions can be achieved by an advanced wastewater treatment (AWT) plant.

2. The major problems in Las Vegas Bay are an objectionable water color, excessive turbidity, noxious odors, and oxygen depletion in certain …

Report On Wastewater Disposal To Board Of County Commissioners, Clark County Nevada, Clair N. Sawyer

Publications (WR)

This report is concerned with the management of waste-waters and subsurface drainage from the City of Las Vegas and its environs and the BMI complex, all in Clark County, Nevada. The prime objective is to recommend a plan of action which will utilize the natural resources of the area in the least costly manner and still protect Lake Mead for recreational purposes and use as a public water supply, At this writing, conditions in the upper Las Vegas arm of Boulder Basin are quite unsatisfactory for some recreational purposes due to the extensive blooms of algae which develop. Experience at …

Water Quality 1975 Hillsborough County, Florida, A. J. Shaw, C. Dunn, T. Cardinale, R. Powell, R. Wilkins

Reports

No abstract provided.

Current Status Report: Pigeon Control, C. Doug Mampe

Bird Control Seminars Proceedings

My topic is Pigeon control; and because most of you have had some bird control experience, I'm not going to review all the basic concepts that are associated with bird control today. Rather I will skim over them lightly and then tell you how we organize most of our Pigeon control programs, recognizing that that's one approach and that some situations require much different approaches. Some of the things that apply to Pigeon control may apply to other types of bird control, but some are unique. When we get called on a Pigeon control job, the first thing we attempt …