Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Prevent birds from destroying fruit bearing crops using proven bird deterrents!

Reduce Crop Loss to Problem Birds with Modern Agricultural Bird Deterrents

Robins damaging apple farms

Pest birds are a big problem for farmers of apples, cherries, blueberries, etc. The loss of crops not only affects the farmers’ yield, it also leads to lost jobs. This bird problem continues to grow, as farmers are reluctant to try new bird control methods after years of failure. The main cause of damage to crops is from birds like starlings, robins, blackbirds, crows and finches.

Out-dated bird control methods
Farmers have experienced limited success using bird control methods in the past because the birds became accustomed to the sounds and/or visual products that were available. Common audio deterrents just repeat bird distress calls over and over and use generic bird/predator calls that are not specific to the geographic location. The predictable play pattern and the unfamiliar predator sounds tend to fail after a few days as they stop being a perceived threat of a real predator in the area to the problem birds.

Solution: Use a combination of modern agricultural bird deterrents.
To successfully increase your crop yield, a combination of bird deterrent products should be deployed about 6 weeks before fruit starts to show color.



The first line of defense should be a Wireless Bird Wailer -Vineyards. The Wireless Bird Wailer Vineyard is a custom programmed audio bird deterrent system that uses the species-specific alarm & distress calls of the native bird in the area. All Bird Wailer systems are custom built to match the needs of the customer and include their precise problem bird distress calls and corresponding predators. The Bird Wailer also emits a random pattern of sounds so that the birds cannot get used to any exact pattern or warning.







The combination of the bird distress and alarm calls with the large variety of what I call “bomb blasts,” has the birds totally out of the vineyard. Your Bird Wailer has saved me a small fortune.”
OwnerTomasello Winery

Small vineyards or farms can use The Bird Squawker. It is from the same family of products as the Bird Wailer with the same kinds of bird distress and predator calls, but it’s designed for use on smaller plots of land. The Zon Gun Mark IV Propane Cannon is another effective bird deterrent when used with the Bird Wailer to create additional confusion in the flocks. The Zon Gun propane cannon is a lightweight portable propane-fired cannon emits automatic thunderclaps that deter pest birds and other nuisance wildlife. When using a Zon Gun Mark IV Propane Cannon to repel problem birds, make sure you purchase the additional tripod, which allows the gun to change directions after every blast. The randomized sound moving in different directions creates a more realistic ‘threat’ from the bird or nuisance animal’s perspective. Also make sure you purchase a Zon Gun Timer which can be programmed to go off when the birds typically migrate to the area and highly active times of day. Also available is the Zon Gun Electra Scare Cannon which has a built-in timer. When possible, move the Zon Gun Mark IV Propane Cannon every few days to lessen the chance of birds getting used to the booming sounds coming from the same location.

Flying Falcon protecting fruit crops
Visual Bird Deterrents
While the Bird Wailer is designed to be a stand-alone product, when you combine it with visual bird deterrents you will increase the chances of a successful bird scare campaign. The small amount spent on the visual deterrents will be more than made up by the increase in your crop value.

Visual bird deterrents work because of a bird’s predatory fear of sudden movement and the bird decoy effigies convince birds that a 'fresh kill' has just occurred. It's good to use a variety of visual deterrents in combination like the Holographic Owl, Holographic Repel Strips, Scare Eye Balloons, ScareEye Octopus, Mylar Flash Tape, the Dead Crow Bird Scare Decoy (for repelling crows) and the Bird Free Optical Bird Repellent Gel which appears as flames to birds. It can be placed strategically around the area and even hung from branches to help keep birds away as they believe there is fire in the area. 

Another visual bird scare device called the Flying Falcon Bird Diverter flies on wire up to 100' in the air. The Flying Falcon creates the fear that a predator is flying over the vineyard. Want to move flocks of crows out of trees or off power lines? The ground-breaking Bird Chaser Bird Deterrent is a visual bird scare device that deters problem crows & starlings from unwanted areas by reflecting irregular light beams from the sun.

Position the various visual deterrents so that they can move freely in the wind and thereby catch the bird’s attention. This, combined with the predator calls and bird distress calls, creates an "area of terror" that constitutes a realistic threat to the birds’ safety, causing them to search elsewhere for their meal or roosting location.

Reduce crop loss to birds
By installing modern and effective bird control products like those mentioned above, you can dramatically increase crop yield and value.  The small upfront investment will be rewarded at the end of the season.  Devices like the Bird Wailer and the Zon Gun Mark IV Propane Cannon, Dead Crow bird deterrent can be deployed year-after-year, making for a very cost-effective investment in crop protection.

NOTE: When there is food in the area, pest birds are typically very committed to remaining at a site. Accordingly, we strongly recommend a combination of audio / visual products to create a realistic threat to the birds. Also, you will want to move the visual scare products regularly, especially in the beginning to enforce the idea a predator is near and fresh kills are occurring regularly.

For specific advice email mark@birdsgottago.com with a brief description of the pest bird problems.

BirdsGottaGo.com
1-855-741-3222