Campylobacter is a common cause of food poisoning and is on the rise in Michigan and around the world. It is spread to humans through contact with or consumption of food products made from infected animals, primarily chickens and other birds. So far, only one outbreak of campylobacteriosis has been definitively linked to the feces of wild birds. Nevertheless, because it causes milder symptoms than some other types of bacteria, the Centers for Disease Control considers Campylobacter to be a significantly underreported cause of food-borne illness that may be more common than current data suggests.
“Trying to introduce more birds of prey would be beneficial to farmers,” Smith said. “If you have one predator, versus a group of prey, you have fewer birds overall. If you have fewer birds, even if they have the bacteria, you can reduce transmission risk.”
The study findings show that kestrels significantly reduce physical damage and food safety risks on Michigan cherry farms, indicating that managing crops and meeting conservation goals – by increasing local kestrel populations and eliminating the need to clear wildlife habitat around agricultural fields – can go hand in hand, the study authors say. They suggest that farmers facing pest-management problems should consider building kestrel boxes, which cost about $100 per box and require minimal maintenance.
Whether kestrels will successfully inhabit nest boxes in a given area depends on whether there is an abundance of birds there. In the cherry-growing region of Michigan, kestrels are so abundant that 80 percent to 100 percent of the boxes become home to kestrels rather than other nesting birds, said Katherine Lindell, an avian ecologist at Michigan State University and senior author of the study.
“It looks like it’s a great tool for farmers,” Lindell said. He suggested interested farmers “plant some boxes and see what happens.”
KR Callaway is a reporter and editor specializing in science, health, history and policy stories. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in journalism at New York University, where she is part of the Science, Health, and Environment Reporting Program (SHERP). His writing has appeared in Scientific American, Sky & Telescope, Fast Company, and Audubon Magazine, among others.
This story was originally published on Inside Climate News.
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