Farmers Should Sic The Owls On Those Pests, (But Hide Your Cats)

A bird of prey will eat eight mice a day (or night).

At least a great horned owl will. And the giant bird could be a farmer’s friend when it comes to controlling rodents in the rolling hills of Eastern Washington.

Washington State University professor and veterinarian Erik Stauber brought four birds of prey to the Spokane area this week to explain to farmers why they should encourage the raptors to patrol their fields.

A farmer should consider himself lucky to have birds of prey on his farm, since they could remove any number of pests, the veterinarian explained. The great horned owl, for example, will eat skunks, rats, mice, beetles, magpies, bugs and rabbits.

The one downside is that the large owl is versatile enough to eat anything it can catch, said Stauber, “maybe even your cat.”

Though the birds, including red-tailed and sparrow hawks, wouldn’t do well in mid-season fields with tall grain, they would be particularly successful in empty fields and during planting and harvesting, Stauber explained. At other times farmers could encourage them by providing places to perch and hunt.

“The best thing we can do is create a diverse habitat, which includes different types of vegetation like grass strips, bush and trees as well as posts for birds to perch on,” he said.

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