{"id":33449,"date":"2022-04-27T12:32:22","date_gmt":"2022-04-27T15:32:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/?p=33449"},"modified":"2022-04-27T12:32:22","modified_gmt":"2022-04-27T15:32:22","slug":"winegrowers-are-recruiting-birds-to-their-vineyards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/winegrowers-are-recruiting-birds-to-their-vineyards\/","title":{"rendered":"Winegrowers Are Recruiting Birds to Their Vineyards"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00abAt\u00a0Domaine Bousquet<\/a>\u00a0in Mendoza, Argentina, peregrine falcons have been brought in to scare away doves that nest in the roof of the winery, as well as grape-eating sparrows, says the winery\u2019s agronomist, Franco Bastias\u00bb.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n

A symbiotic relationship between birds and grape growers is emerging, and its implications are vast.<\/em><\/p>\n

By Kathleen Willcox\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Since 1970, bird populations in North America alone have declined by almost 3 billion, according to a study conducted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. One of the culprits of this die-off, scientists say, is pesticide. About 1 billion pounds of pesticide<\/a> is sprayed in the United States each year. Beyond their intended effects, these poisons can contaminate the water and soil and be toxic to a host of organisms, including birds, fish and even humans, according to the EPA<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many grape growers are finding that they can drastically reduce pesticide use \u2014 something many regions are working toward<\/a>, in a broad push toward more sustainable growing practices \u2014 by recruiting wild winged workers.<\/p>\n

\u201cBirds and farmers can help each other,\u201d says Matt Johnson, professor of wildlife habitat ecology at Cal Poly Humboldt in Arcata, Calif., who has led several studies on the symbiotic relationship between birds and vineyards. \u201cOur research has focused on owls, primarily, but it has also touched on songbirds like swallows and bluebirds.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause so much natural nesting habitat has been destroyed by modern agriculture (including planting vineyards), growers are finding that, by inviting owls and songbirds into their vineyards, it not only helps the birds, but it significantly reduces populations of rodents and insects.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of Johnson\u2019s former students, Xer\u00f3nimo Casta\u00f1eda, currently the conservation project manager at Audubon California, notes he\u2019s been contending with an influx in requests for information on birds from vineyard managers in recent months.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe costs of inputs like fuel, and the cost of labor for managing pesticide programs has increased considerably recently,\u201d Casta\u00f1eda says. \u201cPeople are starting to realize that, by bringing in birds, they can essentially get free labor \u2014 and the hands-off, chemical-free approach benefits everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Owls + Hawks Terminate Rodents\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Rodents have been wreaking havoc on farm fields since the dawn of agriculture. Grape growers are now finding that owls act as more efficient and eco-friendly rodent terminators than pesticides in traps. One family of owls can eat 3,466 rodents per year on average, according to Johnson\u2019s research.<\/p>\n

In 2007, Ames Morison, co-founder of Healdsburg\u2019s Medlock Ames<\/a>, learned what effective allies owls can be when growing grapes organically.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe set up owl boxes, and the poles where the nest boxes are mounted have a crossbar that attracts red-tailed hawks,\u201d Morison explains. \u201cBoth of these birds feed on gophers and voles, which can damage or kill our vines.\u201d<\/p>\n

The program has been so successful, the team plans to double its number of owl boxes over the next two years, for a final tally of around 60.<\/p>\n

Inviting owls and songbirds into the vineyards significantly reduces populations of rodents and insects. (Ron Rubin Vineyards)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

William Thiersch, assistant winemaker and head of sustainability at Ron Rubin<\/a>, says the team at its 10-acre estate vineyard in Sebastopol, Calif.,\u00a0 installed owl boxes in partnership with the Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue program and SIP Certified<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe four owl boxes we installed in 2016 have been a game changer for our vineyard manager,\u201d Theirsch says. \u201cHe used to spend a lot of time, money and effort setting up traps, but the owls take care of our rodents completely. Now he can focus those efforts on farming the grapes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Falcons + Eagles Make Great Grape Guards<\/b><\/p>\n

Some birds are also brought in to act as heavies against smaller birds that feast on grapes.<\/p>\n

At Domaine Bousquet<\/a> in Mendoza, Argentina, peregrine falcons have been brought in to scare away doves that nest in the roof of the winery, as well as grape-eating sparrows, says the winery\u2019s agronomist, Franco Bastias.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have perches for day birds of prey, such as eagles, kites and kestrels, to target starlings and other flying vertebrates that wreak havoc on grapes,\u201d says oenologist Luis Duarte of Alentejo, Portugal\u2019s Herdade dos Grous<\/a>. \u201cBy reducing the damage caused by starlings to the grapes, the potential for cryptogamous diseases, such as gray rot, is reduced.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recruiting winged laborers can be part of a winery\u2019s push toward balance and sustainability. (Herdade de Coelheiros)
\nAt Herdade de Coelheiros<\/a> in Alentejo, agricultural manager Jo\u00e3o Raposeira, says recruiting winged laborers is a part of the winery\u2019s overall push toward balance and sustainability.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving eagles and falcons in the vineyard creates a deterrent to smaller birds that can cause significant damage to crops,\u201d Raposeira says. \u201cFrom our point of view, any significant damage to fruit and crops caused by birds or insects is indicative of an imbalance. Birds are part of the ecosystem. Our goal is to interpret these systems and enhance their balance and resilience through natural means.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spray Reduction<\/b><\/p>\n

Encouraging natural resilience, and reducing the need to spray pesticides, is at the root of many vineyard bird programs.<\/p>\n

In Italy, Trentodoc\u2019s Endrizzi<\/a> vineyards are farmed organically and \u201cinsect-eating birds are asked for help,\u201d says CEO Christine Endrici. \u201cOur 20 nest boxes per hectare make the vineyards a sought-after habitat for chickadees, redstarts, sparrows, robins, hoopoes and bats, who say \u2018thanks\u2019 for the hospitality by dependably combating pests like grapevine moths and the leafhopper.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other producers, including Ken Forrester Wines<\/a> in Raithyby, South Africa, also find that having a range of birds helping out in the vines lets them seriously curtail spray programs.<\/p>\n

\"Chickens
Chickens eat fly maggots (Pexels)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe use ducks to control snails and insects, and we have raptor poles and owl boxes for rodents,\u201d says winemaker Ken Forrester. \u201cWe also use chickens to combat fly maggots.\u201d In addition to\u00a0 the \u201cworking birds,\u201d the property is also homes to native wildlife, including\u201cdogs, geese, jackals, otters, porcupine, grysbokke, duikers, owls and other assorted birds.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201cmore is better\u201d philosophy rules the day at Domaine Bousquet<\/a> as well. \u201cWe encourage all fauna by saving rainwater and dispersing it in the vineyard as watering stations for foxes, wild rabbits and birds,\u201d Bastias says. \u201cWe now have a healthy population of all kinds of flora and fauna, including endangered [species] that can bring unexpected benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several ducks, Bastias explains, have made the winery pond their home, and \u201cTheir presence balances the vegetative growth in the pond, and keeps it in balance.\u201d<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen the unintended, largely negative, consequences of industrial farming and monoculture in vineyards. It\u2019s refreshing to see more and more growers enjoying the flip side.<\/p>\n

Source: https:\/\/wineindustryadvisor.com\/2022\/04\/21\/winegrowers-are-recruiting-birds-to-their-vineyards<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00abAt\u00a0Domaine Bousquet\u00a0in Mendoza, Argentina, peregrine falcons have been brought in to scare away doves that nest in the roof of the winery, as well as grape-eating sparrows, says the winery\u2019s agronomist, Franco Bastias\u00bb.\u00a0 A symbiotic relationship between birds and grape growers is emerging, and its implications are vast. By Kathleen Willcox\u00a0 Since 1970, bird populations […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33450,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33449"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33449\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}