Impact of greater sandhill cranes foraging on corn and barley crops

doi:10.1016/0167-8809(94)90052-3

Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Volume 49, Issue 3, July 1994, Pages 233-237

https://doi.org/10.1016/0167-8809(94)90052-3 Get rights and content

Abstract

The impact of greater sandhill cranes grazing on corn and barley crops was measured during 1991–1992 in northern Utah and southwestern Wyoming. Fields were selected based on complaints of chronic crane depredation problems received from farmers. Though evidence of depredation was qualitatively documented, it was difficult to document quantitatively. Open field sites in barley fields had a lower density of barley shoots, and significantly longer gaps between plants than areas inside exclosures during the spring. By fall, these differences were no longer detectable. Estimates based on direct measurements in depredated barley fields suggested losses of <3% of grain biomass. Sites open to crane use in corn fields had significantly longer gaps between plants and lower shoot densities than areas in exclosures, but the relationship to corn yield was equivocal. In the face of increasing crane populations, proactive management may ameliorate future crane-crop conflicts.

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Cited by (13)

Contemporary challenges and opportunities for the management of bird damage at field crop establishment
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Bird damage, from sowing to crop establishment, is an important issue for farmers in many parts of the world. However, reliable and cost-effective solutions remain elusive because management tools and research on the subject are limited. The spatial variability of damage across landscapes and the adaptative behaviour of birds create further challenges. Additionally, the issue must be tackled at the landscape scale and involve a variety of stakeholders with conflicting interests and objectives. We summarize some of the challenges and opportunities identified to face these difficulties and address four major research directions for operational solutions including 1) crop damage assessment, 2) methods and tools development at the landscape scale, 3) coordination of stakeholders, and 4) pest bird ecology in agroecosystems. More fundamentally, we address the question of large-scale ecological dynamics that can explain changing damage patterns such as the recent observations of increased damage in Europe. Despite the impact to the agricultural sector, research effort to understand vertebrate pest damage is still modest. We advocate for the creation of networks to share knowledge and feedback and engages multiple stakeholders, including ecological and agricultural researchers, farmers, and policy makers.
Drifting space use of common cranes—Is there a mismatch between daytime behaviour and management?
2018, Ecological Indicators
Citation Excerpt :
During migration, large grazing birds exhibit site fidelity at several spatial scales: from staging sites along the flyways to specific agricultural fields within staging sites (Fox et al., 2002; Johnson, 1980; Phillips et al., 2003). At staging sites, large grazing birds are gregarious and forage mainly on crop fields during daytime and repeatedly return to wetland roost sites at night (Bautista et al., 1995; McIvor and Conover, 1994). Staging and roost sites often coincide with internationally important and protected wetlands (Kleijn et al., 2014; Vegvari and Tar, 2002).
Many populations of large grazing birds (cranes, geese, swans) have recovered following protection. During migration, these birds often aggregate in large numbers at staging sites and feed on agricultural crops. Because staging sites often coincide with protected wetlands, extensive crop damages may avert both bird and wetland conservation. There is a need to integrate damage mitigation and conservation of large grazing birds staging in agricultural landscapes, based on knowledge of large grazing birds’ spacing behavior. Their space use forms the basis for assessment of damage risk and for the scale at which measures should be implemented. We used high-resolution GPS location data to assess space use of common cranes (Grus grus) at an important staging site in south-central Sweden. We focus on daytime behaviour because this is the time when foraging cranes may cause crop damage and when preventive measures such as scaring and culling are conducted. We found that the daily activity area (mean 4.4 km²) did not vary within staging periods. Cranes exhibited high site fidelity during staging, as their activity area over the staging period (mean 15.6 km²) was considerably smaller than the entire staging site (>200 km²). However, on a daily scale cranes gradually shifted activity areas, forming a space use pattern analogous to overlapping rings. This pattern is presumably explained by heterogeneous and unpredictable food availability caused by continuous changes in agricultural practices, weather conditions and competition. Considering the size of crane activity areas over the staging period and the scale of current damage preventive measures (e.g., hunting permissions given for a few fields [mean size 0.049 km²] at a time), we suggest that current preventive measures might be implemented on a too small scale compared to that of crane space use. Our findings highlight the necessity of adapting crop damage preventive measures to the scale of bird space use to facilitate both bird conservation and agricultural practices at wetlands staging sites along the flyways.
Large grazing birds and agriculture-predicting field use of common cranes and implications for crop damage prevention
2016, Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment
Citation Excerpt :
In this study, we investigated the predictability of finding common cranes G. grus on arable fields at a staging site connected to an important wetland reserve. Common cranes are a suitable model species as, like other large grazing species they cause significant damage to crops, incurring considerable costs to society through loss of agricultural production and increasing compensation payments (Borad et al., 2001; Bouffard et al., 2005; McIvor and Conover, 1994). Moreover, this is not a local challenge as cranes are known to cause crop damage along their European flyways (Le Roy, 2010; Nowald, 2010).
Increasing numbers of previously threatened large grazing birds (cranes, geese and swans) are causing crop damage along their flyways worldwide. For example, the number of reported incidents of crop damage caused by common cranes Grus grus, followed by regulated inspections and governmental compensation in Sweden, has increased over the last few decades and was valued at ∼200,000 Euros in 2012. Consequently, their impact on agriculture is escalating which raises the need for evidence-informed preventative strategies. We surveyed arable fields for autumn staging common cranes in an area surrounding a wetland reserve in Sweden. We assessed the following factors in relation to the probability of cranes being present on fields: crop stage, crop type, distance to roost site, time of day, field size and time since harvest. Stubble fields had the highest probability of crane presence, progressively decreasing through grassland and grazing grounds, bare soil to growing crop. A stubble field at 5 km from a roost site had a predicted probability (95% CI) of hosting cranes of 0.25 (0.19–0.32). The probability of cranes visiting a field was linearly and negatively related to distance to the roost site. For example, the probability of crane presence increased from 0.05 (0.03–0.07) to 0.09 (0.06–0.15) when distance decreased from 5 to 1 km. At stubble fields, the probability of crane presence decreased with time since harvest and was highest for barley with progressively lower probability on wheat and oat. Illustrative scenario predictions developed from the models demonstrated that probability of crane presence could be high, 0.60 (0.42–0.77), if all favorable factors were combined (e.g. barley stubble, 1 day after harvest, 1 km from roost site). Given the existing framework of international conventions and prohibition of culling, there is a need for preventative strategies to reduce crop damage. Based on our results, such strategies should focus on providing cereal stubbles as diversionary fields, especially close to wetland roosting sites. Stubble field availability can be achieved by careful crop rotation planning. We suggest that crop rotation and time of harvest should be added to flyway management plans recently developed for some large grazing bird species to facilitate stable co-existence between conservation practices and agricultural interests.
Damage potential of Indian sarus crane in paddy crop agroecosystem in Kheda district Gujarat, India
2001, Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment
The Indian sarus crane (Grus antigone antigone Linn.) is a globally threatened species. Recently, its conflict with the farmer is increasing, which has led to a crane population decline in Gujarat, India. The damage potential of the sarus crane was estimated in paddy crop agroecosystem in Kheda district of Gujarat to evaluate the seriousness of complaints regarding crop damage. Maximum rice (Oryza sativa L.) grain loss from standing crop due to direct feeding was <1%. Weight loss due to low trampling ranged from 0.4 to 15.2 kg, while for heavy trampling weight loss ranged from 3.4 to 16.2 kg per field. Nesting activity resulted in uprooting and cutting of 41 m² crop. Total yield loss per field ranged from 0.2 to 13.6% and may be considered negligible in contrast to farmers estimate of damage. Farmers should be educated and compensated for damage, where needed, to develop a viable formula for sarus crane conservation.
Repelling sandhill cranes from corn: Whole-kernel experiments with captive birds
2001, Crop Protection
Sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) are opportunistic omnivores that incorporate both waste and unharvested cereal grains (Gramineae) in their diets. Limited hunting of cranes to reduce crop damage has had questionable results, and lethal control of depredating species is increasingly contentious. Our objectives were to evaluate anthraquinone-based Flight Control^TM and methyl anthranilate-based ReJeX-iT^TM AG-36 as nontoxic avian foraging repellents in separate 2-choice pen tests with captive greater sandhill cranes (G. c. tabida) fed with whole-kernel corn (Zea mays). In both tests, crane pairs consumed, respectively, 8.6 and 9.8 times more untreated than treated corn. Total corn consumption did not differ among the treatment and control groups during the 8-day experiment. Though both repellents were effective at deterring cranes from treated corn, neither has been tested on corn under field conditions.
Influence of farming activities in the Iberian Peninsula on the winter habitat use of common crane (Grus grus) in areas of its traditional migratory routes
1999, Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment
Farming activities can influence bird habitat and wintering patterns. Changes in the wintering habitat use of common crane (Grus grus) were related to changes in land use on this species' traditional migration route in the Western Palaearctics. The study was conducted in the Orellana area (Extremadura, SW Spain), the most important wintering area on this route, where the continued availability of natural food resources (acorns, bulbs, invertebrates) represents a more balanced diet than agricultural resources alone. The presence of crops such as corn (Zea mays L.) is, however, not a critical factor in the area, since the two types of resources, natural and agricultural, are available in the same period of time. The increase in area dedicated to irrigated crops, especially rice (Oriza sp.), affected the growth in the numbers of wintering cranes in the Orellana area. In the past the peak wintering period was in December and was positively correlated to acorn production, whereas the peak period is now in January–February, coinciding with the use of rice-field stubble as feeding places. Dehesas (Mediteranean scrub), cultivated or not, may replace rice-field stubble as feeding places. The existence of intensive farming activity in combination with traditional land-uses is suggested to be the cause of these changes.

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Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Abstract

References (18)

Resident sandhill crane populations in Cache County, Utah: Numbers and Distribution

Effect of grazing by Canada geese on the winter growth of rye

J. Wildlife Manage.

Starling, Sturnus vulgaris, damage to sprouting wheat in Tennessee and Kentucky

U.S.A. Protection Ecol.

Status and distribution of greater sandhill cranes in the Rocky Mountains

J. Wildlife Manage.

The greater sandhill crane in Yellowstone National Park: A preliminary survey

Habitat use by mid-continent sandhill cranes during spring migration

J. Wildlife Manage.

Conditioning of sandhill cranes during fall migration

J. Wildlife Manage.

An experimental greater sandhill crane and Canada goose hunt in Wyoming

Incidence and perceptions of sandhill crane crop depredations

Cited by (13)

Contemporary challenges and opportunities for the management of bird damage at field crop establishment

Drifting space use of common cranes—Is there a mismatch between daytime behaviour and management?

Large grazing birds and agriculture-predicting field use of common cranes and implications for crop damage prevention

Damage potential of Indian sarus crane in paddy crop agroecosystem in Kheda district Gujarat, India

Repelling sandhill cranes from corn: Whole-kernel experiments with captive birds

Influence of farming activities in the Iberian Peninsula on the winter habitat use of common crane (Grus grus) in areas of its traditional migratory routes