The Future of Blackbird Management Research

Abstract

Human society values birds for their intrinsic and aesthetic value as well as the ecosystem services they provide as pollinators, consumers of pests, and distributors of nutrients and seeds (Wenny et al. 2011). At the same time, conflict between birds and humans is an age-old phenomenon that has persisted as society has transformed and the scale of agriculture has expanded (Conover 2002). Managing conflict between birds and agriculture is challenging for many reasons. Foremost, the need to consider both human welfare and conservation of protected bird species is paramount, with nonlethal management methods preferred to lethal measures from societal, economical, and ecological standpoints (Miller 2007; Linz et al. 2015). Second, methods must be effective, practical, and economical for agricultural implementation. Finally, management methods must overcome characteristics that make birds difficult to manage including uncertainty in population estimates, fecundity, mobility, and adaptive behaviors. All challenges are compounded when attempting to establish management methods that fit within modern agricultural practices, while simultaneously supporting conservation efforts to protect wildlife. Labor-saving devices and methodologies resulting from agricultural advances in mechanical, chemical, genetic, and information technologies have facilitated a shift to larger crop fields, a broader range of suitable habitat for a variety of crops, and consolidated farms in North America (MacDonald et al. 20(3). This shift to large. less labor-intensive farms has supported the ability to feed an ever-increasing human population but has complicated the relationship between humans and wildlife. Modern agriculture directly impacts wildlife by altering natural habitat. resulting in the increase of species able to thrive in agricultural landscapes and the decline of species unable to adapt. Thus. agriculture often provides increased carrying capacity for species responsible for 217

Typha (Cattail) Invasion in North American Wetlands: Biology, Regional Problems, Impacts, Ecosystem Services, and Management

“…Harvested row crops, in combination with greater areal coverage of Typha within roost sites, could provide superior stopover habitats for blackbirds during both fall and spring migration in the US and Canada (Homan et al 2006;Hagy et al 2008;Galle et al 2009). The relationships between climate change, hydrology, evolving wetland habitat, cold-tolerant crop varieties, blackbird migration, and Typha could well change crop damage distribution and intensity across agricultural areas of North America (Melillo et al 2014;Forcey and Thogmartin 2017;Klug 2017).…”

Migration routes and wintering areas of male Red‐winged Blackbirds as determined using geolocators

“…Although speculative in nature because we did not collect weather data during our study, a large body of research has been dedicated to documenting the relationship between weather and migratory movements of birds (Richardson 1978, 1990), and inclement weather during spring migration has been shown to impact arrival times in breeding areas (Gordo 2007). Wider scale assessments of how the migratory movements of Red‐winged Blackbirds align with regional and local weather conditions are needed to understand patterns for this species (Klug 2017). Of particular interest in our study was one bird (03075) that took a circuitous spring migratory route, with substantial north–south backtracking early in the migratory period.…”

Testing a key assumption of using drones as frightening devices: Do birds perceive drones as risky?

“…Recently, unmanned aircraft systems, or drones, have been suggested as a nonlethal method to deter birds from areas of human-wildlife conflict (e.g., airports, vineyards, and crop fields; Grimm et al 2012, Ampatzidis et al 2015, Klug 2017. If effective, drones could be incorporated into integrated pest management plans to reduce economic loss and safety hazards caused by birds and decrease bird mortality.…”

“…A drone is unique in that it can overcome mobility limitations faced by other deterrent strategies (e.g., propane cannons and scarecrows; Linz 2011, Avery and Werner 2017), and future technology may include on-board birddetection systems, extended battery longevity, and fully autonomous flight capabilities (Ampatzidis et al 2015). Still, limitations to the efficacy and implementation of a drone as a deterrence mechanism exist (Klug 2017).…”