Product Review: Vineyard Bird Management
Bird Management Methods
effort to apply*
netting
Type sub-type
3/4”
netting
neighbor
friendliness
1=not friendly,
5=very friendly
Cost examples**
extruded
3
3 to 5 years
none
5
Full: 14’ x 5,000’ = $639/roll
Cut: 14’ x 500’ = $115/roll
Fruit zone: 3.5’ x 5,000’ = $175/roll
knotted
4
5 to 10 years
none
5
bundle: 17’ x 2,500’ = $515
extruded
3
1 to 5 years
none
5
48’ x 100’ = $1,200
knotted
3
5 to 10 years
none
5
14’ x 200’ = $1,125
Mylar flash tape
3
generally not
none
5
$4 to $8 per roll of 1” wide
500’ tape
bird kites
2
yes
none
5
$10 to $200 per bird depending
on quality and design
large “eye spot”
balloons
2
yes
none
5
$6 to $8 per balloon
1
yes
none
4
$650/day for large vineyards
propane
bird cannons
2
yes
consult
local
regulations
1
$275 to $545 per cannon
simulated bird
call devices
2
yes
none
3
$220 to $3,000 depending
on acreage
3
yes
none
2
Pocket pistols: $60
3
yes
yes, consult
local
regulations
2
$80 for launcher and 100 rounds of
blanks; $120 for cracker shells
(premium grade)
(medium grade)
1/2”
netting
1=minimal,
5=significant
can use more
than one
restrictions
season?
on usage?
visual scare tactics
visual
scare
tactics
live birds of prey
(falcons)
auditory scare tactics
auditory
scare
tactics
pocket pistol
(fires blanks)
bird bombs and
whistlers, cracker
shells (fire blanks)
* N o t e : Application effort will vary depending on
how netting is packaged and how you will apply it
(by machine vs. human hands).
50 March 2012 WBM
Costs quoted are actual retail prices from companies that
sell netting to vineyards; however, netting costs are highly variable from
company to company and depend on the quality, mesh size, material
and amount purchased.
** Note:
netting
auditory scare tactics
visual scare tactics
Vineyard considerations
Bird considerations
Cost considerations
In summary…
Netting is used most often in vineyards that grow high-priced grapes
and/or have very heavy bird pressure. It can be used by small and
large vineyards alike but may be
cost prohibitive for large vineyards
as it can be expensive.
If netting is not sufficiently closed
at the seams, birds may become
trapped and entangled. Some
birds will still peck through the
netting, but a smaller mesh size
helps this. In addition to birds,
another benefit of netting is that
it can reduce early season deer
damage.
Netting can be one of the most
costly approaches to bird management for both material and labor,
especially for larger vineyards that
need more hands to apply it; however, high-quality netting can be
stored and reused for many years,
making it more cost-effective over
time. However, labor to set-up and
break down is recurring. Depending on a host of variables—where
it is purchased, quality, mesh size,
material and amount purchased–
cost can vary widely.
Consider netting if you want the
best possible protection from
birds, especially if your bird
problem is heavy, persistent and/
or predictable. Netting may be for
you if you can afford it and employ
people to install and remove it,
and if you have nearby neighbors
that may othewise be bothered by
auditory tactics.
Multiple visual tactics may be required to fend off birds (especially
with certain bird species, such as
starlings); otherwise, they learn
that these tactics are no real threat
to them and continue their stay in
the vineyard.
The cost of visual scare products
is less expensive than netting and
auditory devices, and they take
very little time to set up. However,
they should be rotated regularly
and used with other tactics for
best results. Hiring a bird handler/
falcons is more expensive than
other visual tactics but requires
less labor for the grower; for larger
vineyards, this route can be less
expensive than netting.
Consider visual scare tactics if
your bird pressure is light and/or
intermittent, if you want to spend
less money than you would with
netting or auditory tactics, if you
don’t want to bother your neighbors with loud noise, and/or if you
want to add effectiveness to your
existing bird control tactics.
Like visual scare tactics, the cost
of auditory scare products are
cheaper than netting and take
much less time to install, making it
easy to quickly take action against
unexpected birds. They are more
expensive than most visual tactics,
however.
Consider auditory scare tactics
if your bird pressure is light to
medium and/or intermittent, if
you have a very large vineyard, if
you want to spend less money and
time than with netting, if you are
not close to neighbors who would
be bothered by loud noises and/
or if you want to use them along
with other bird control tactics to
increase effectiveness.
netting
visual scare tactics
Visual scare tactics can be used
in all sizes of vineyards although
flash tape, balloons and kites are
more commonly used in smaller
vineyards, in vineyards where bird
pressure is light and intermittent
and in conjunction with other
types of tactics. Birds of prey are
especially useful in very large vineyards since they can easily cover a
lot of ground.
auditory scare tactics
Can be used in all sizes of vineyards but best used when neighbors are not too close as to be
bothered by regularly occurring
loud noises. Useful in vineyards
with light to medium bird pressure.
Auditory scare tactics work especially well if employed before birds
start eating your grapes since
it’s harder to get them out once
they’ve decided they like being
there. Distress and predator calls
can be tailored to different birds,
depending on which are more
problematic.
WBM March 2012 51