Cranes and Farmers to Benefit from Newly Approved Bird Repellant
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Cranes and Farmers to Benefit from Newly Approved Bird Repellant
Originally published 2006-03-15

March 15, 2006

Contact: Ann Burke, International Crane Foundation – 608-356-9462 ext. 147
Jeb Barzen, International Crane Foundation - 608-356-9462 ext. 125


The International Crane Foundation (ICF) has been notified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that temporary approval has been given for the use of the non-lethal bird repellant, Avitec™. In 2006, this repellant can be used as a seed treatment by farmers in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota in areas where Sandhill Cranes have been damaging corn fields by eating corn seeds shortly after planting. This approval significantly advances ICF's goal to reduce conflicts arising between farmers and the increasing population of Sandhill Cranes in the Midwest.

AvitecTM has an active ingredient of 9,10 Anthraquinone, a naturally occurring substance used by plants to repel birds. The use of AvitecTM represents a decade of effort by ICF and collaborators to prevent damage that cranes cause. Cranes eat newly planted corn seeds that occur in straight rows at predictable intervals. Planted kernels are most vulnerable for about two weeks after the corn seedlings emerge. Cranes detect AvitecTM at very low levels and avoid it. Though treated, planted kernels are not consumed by cranes, the birds continue to forage on waste grains and other foods in those same fields. This benefits the farmer because waste corn and many types of beetle larvae can later cause problems as the crop matures. AvitecTM is a pragmatic and ecologically sound solution to crane crop damage. Importantly, the deterrent does not preclude cranes from foraging in cultivated areas where they obtain significant caloric and nutritional supplements. By discovering, testing, and deploying an effective non-lethal seed treatment, agriculture and conservation have developed a win-win situation where people and wildlife co-exist more harmoniously.

This first agricultural application of 9,10 Anthraquinone, approved within the United States as a bird repellent, is the result of collaboration among myriad organizations and agencies. ICF has worked with the U.S. EPA; the University of Wisconsin-Madison; the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection; Michigan and Minnesota agriculture departments; Departments of Natural Resources for Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin; four farming organizations in three states; the Department of Wildlife Services (USDA); many individual farmers; U.S. Senator Herb Kohl's Office; the IR-4 Project of Rutgers University; three local chapters of the Audubon Society; and Arkion, the manufacturer of AvitecTM. Applications for longer term use of AvitecTM are being pursued for the 2007 planting season.

For more information on the availability of Avitec™, please call Arkion at 1-800-468-6324 or 302-252-0341 for Sam Walker or This E-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Growers in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota can reach Dr. Eileen Cullen (UW-Extension) for more information on the use of Avitec™ during the 2006 season at 608-261-1507.

The restoration of Wisconsin's Sandhill Crane population is a conservation success story. From the 1930's, the state's crane population was estimated at 26 nesting pairs. Over the last 23 years, the ICF-sponsored Annual Midwest Crane Count has documented a three-fold increase in the Wisconsin's crane population.
 
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