Chemicals as Bird Repellents: Two Promising Agents

Chlorpyrifos: Ecotoxicological Risk Assessment for Birds and Mammals in Corn Agroecosystems

“…A number of compounds have been tested to determine their utility as bird repellents (Schafer et al 1971). It was found that chlorpyrifos has an R50 (repellent to 50% of birds tested) value of 810 mg/kg for red-winged blackbird, 560 mg/kg for house sparrow, and approximately 10,000 mg/kg for grackles and pheasants.…”

Birds in Human Modified Environments and Bird Damage Control: Social, Economic, and Health Implications

“…This alone may keep blackbirds and starlings out of treated fields, since these species feed very heavily on grain field Insects (Woronecki et al 1981). Most researchers do not accept the insecticide hypothesis as being important (e.g.. Schafer and Brunton 1971, Rogers 1974, Rooke 1984. The relative importance of reduced Insect populations has not been adequately addressed.…”

“…Methiocarb or Mesurol* (3,5-dimethyl-4-[methylthioJ phenyl methylcarbamate) (Mobay Chemical Corporation), an insecticide, is a very effective avian repellent that produces a conditioned aversion In birds by reinforcing a "bad taste" to Its intoxicating effects (Rogers 1974, Conover 1984a. Schafer and Brunton (1971) demonstrated that rice treated with low concentrations (< 0.16%) repelled birds, and that it was effective with a wide variety of species, including blackbirds, starlings, and sparrows. Guarino (1972) reported methiocarb to be highly effective at protecting agricultural crops.…”

Ecological Risk Assessment for Chlorpyrifos in Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems in the United States

“…The LD 50 , based on oral gavage, for the red-winged blackbird ( A. phoeniceus ) was 13.1 mg ai kg −1 bwt (Schafer and Brunton 1971 ), however, no probit slope was reported. To generate a dose-response curve for red-winged blackbird in this assessment, a geometric mean probit slope of 3.45 was calculated from the studies listed in Table 4 .…”