Thursday, 20 September 2007

Minimising the huge damage caused by pest birds to Australia’s valuable horticulture crops is the focus of a new publication launched today by Minister for Conservation, Eric Abetz. 

Managing Bird Damage to Fruit and other Horticultural Crops, produced by the Bureau or Rural Sciences, encourages proactive, non-lethal approaches to the problem.

Senator Abetz said pest birds leave a $300 million trail of destruction in Australia’s orchards and vineyards every year, and that figure will increase as the value of our horticultural industries grows. "This publication provides a suite of practical solutions to help farmers control birds.

There is a particular focus on minimising damage before crops are attacked, such as combining controls like netting and scare devices," Senator Abetz said. "Traditional approaches have often involved crisis management after the damage has been done, but by then it is usually too late to save crops. "Growers need more strategic approaches and examples in the book include the use of habitat management and decoy feeding, and greater cooperation between neighbours."

The priority issues identified in the book are:

• improving predictions of patterns of bird movement and damage

• using simple techniques to estimate the extent and severity of the loss

• adopting strategic management using better damage reduction techniques; and

• greater cooperation and commitment from growers, industry and all levels of government.  

SOURCE: Rural Press National News Service, Parliament House Bureau, Canberra.