 |
|
|
|
|
|
BIRDS OF PREY - OUR ALLIES IN CAPTURING RODENTS. During the first days of spring the birds of prey begin to come back to the European fields after spending their winter on African lands, where the climate is more propitious and there is lots of food. Faithful to their annual meeting, they will find their mate in our fields and mountains, where they will also build their nests and have youngs.
The predatory birds' main food consists of rabbits, voles, rats and mice. At first, the places where the birds of prey used to build their nests were the great extensions of pastures, scrub and mountains where plenty of food could be found, especially small preys attracted by the food in the grain plantations, or insects like locusts, small rodents, rabbits and small birds such as sparrows. Feeding themselves on this they were also producing a regulating effect in these populations. One can say that the places where the birds of prey lived underwent and go on undergoing great benefits to what agriculture is concerned, helping to the insects and rodents plague elimination, beings that decreased crops and destroyed the soil. Among these birds of prey we can mention the diurnal ones such as eagles, kites, rat bird, sparrowhawks, eaglets, falcons and also the nocturnal ones, like owls, little owl and barn owls. The birds of prey usually feed on small birds, insects, rabbits, rats, mice and voles. Many studies done on these birds' diet consider that the Rabbit, Field Mouse and Voles are their main victims, being approximately 50% of the diet during their early years. As far as their interest in capturing moles this is a well known fact, especially these birds' skills for mole-holes constant watch and for hunting these animals - the moment the ground moves, they catch the careless animal.
The use of chemical products to control the vole plagues helps eliminate these birds. The majestic flight of these birds might end if we do not take care of our environment and nature, because of the poisons used in the baits to kill the rodents, as well as the poaching and even the new technologies, airports, high voltage cables, wind farms, urban development, traffic increase, a.s.o. all these brought about during the last years a considerable decrease in every species of birds of prey. Some public organization even declared some species in danger of extinction. Around the middle of the fifties, the farmers were eliminating these species of predatory birds, considering that they were endangering the flocks, though the assaults were occasional and against domestic birds. The government authorized the use of poison for the extinction of harmful animals. Nevertheless, these practices were declared illegal in 1983, which allowed a certain recovery of the great scavenging animals. Nevertheless, the use of poisons continues being a habitual practice, which have been causing, since the middle of the nineties, almost half of the known rapaces deaths by non natural causes in Spain. Also, the extension of the mixomatosis disease and other rabbits epidemics, when rabbit is one of their main dishes, produced this alarming situation. Many of these birds are in danger of extinction.
click below.
|
