Full TGIF Record # 209414
Item 1 of 1
Web URL(s):http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1010&context=birdstrike2009
    Last checked: 08/03/2012
    Requires: PDF Reader
Publication Type:
i
Proceedings
Author(s):Whitford, Philip C.
Author Affiliation:Biology Department, Capital University, Columbus, Ohio
Title:Successful use of alarm and alert calls to reduce emerging crop damage by resident Canada geese near Horicon Marsh, Wisconsin
Section:Bird management
Other records with the "Bird management" Section
Meeting Info.:San Diego, California: March 17-20, 2008
Source:Proceedings: Twenty-Third Vertebrate Pest Conference. Vol. 23, 2008, p. 74-79.
Publishing Information:Davis, California: University of California, Davis.
# of Pages:6
Related Web URL:http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/birdstrike2009/1/
    Last checked: 08/03/2012
    Notes: Abstract only
Abstract/Contents:"Increased populations of resident Canada geese create major crop loss problems for farmers, especially in areas that become traditional sites for brood-rearing. Such sites concentrate geese and goslings in locations where food is abundant and flightless adults and young find escape safety on adjacent lakes or rivers. Emerging corn, winter wheat, and soybeans are favorite foods, and these sustain extensive crop damage when near water and brood-rearing sites. From 16 May to 28 August 2007, alarm and alert call playbacks from GooseBuster call units were used with and without other scare reinforcement to assess efficacy of different methods at reducing crop damage at multiple sites near Horicon Marsh, Wisconsin. Test sites were recommended by USDA APHIS Wildlife Services personnel as being sites with heaviest early summer crop damage reported in prior years. Criteria for success were based upon geese/hours/month or geese/hours/week of field use before and after treatment, using frequent counts of geese on properties, weekly farmer interviews, and dropping counts in fields to estimate number and number of hours geese were present. Crop damage assessment by USDA compared current year to prior years assessment, or used visible signs of damage and extent. On-demand use of call units, coupled with firing screamer and banger shells, was found to be the most effective method for inducing long-term crop avoidance. Crop damage reduction was very successful, ranging from a 94.3% reduction at one site (17 bushels lost in 2007 versus 297 bushels in 2006), to several fields declared to have "no significant goose damage in 2007" by USDA crop evaluation personnel. Goose hours/month on the largest field data collection decreased from >36,000 to <200 geese/hour/month, a 99.45% reduction. No sign of habituation to reinforced "on-demand" alarm call use was found over the course of the 100 days of the study."
Language:English
References:16
Note:Graphs
ASA/CSSA/SSSA Citation (Crop Science-Like - may be incomplete):
Whitford, P. C. 2008. Successful use of alarm and alert calls to reduce emerging crop damage by resident Canada geese near Horicon Marsh, Wisconsin. p. 74-79. In Proceedings: Twenty-Third Vertebrate Pest Conference. San Diego, California: March 17-20, 2008. Davis, California: University of California, Davis.
Fastlink to access this record outside TGIF: https://tic.msu.edu/tgif/flink?recno=209414
If there are problems with this record, send us feedback about record 209414.
Choices for finding the above item:
Web URL(s):
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1010&context=birdstrike2009
    Last checked: 08/03/2012
    Requires: PDF Reader
Find Item @ MSU
MSU catalog number: b2378164
Find from within TIC:
   Digitally in TIC by record number.
Request through your local library's inter-library loan service (bring or send a copy of this TGIF record)