Tiny Falcons: The Secret Weapon Protecting Your Cherry Supply
Every spring, as cherry blossoms paint northern Michigan landscapes, a silent guardian takes to the skies. The American kestrel (Falco sparverius), the smallest falcon in North America, returns to nesting sites and diligently patrols the region’s cherry orchards. This seemingly simple act of predation isn’t just about the kestrel’s survival; it’s a crucial, symbiotic relationship that’s proving to be a game-changer for cherry farmers facing increasing challenges. For decades, farmers have unknowingly benefited from these tiny falcons, but recent research is now quantifying the significant impact these “Tiny Falcons” have on both crop yield and food safety.
The Symbiotic Relationship: Kestrels and Cherry Orchards
Fruit farmers have long observed the benefits of attracting kestrels to their orchards. Providing nesting boxes encourages these birds of prey to establish territories, and in return, they diligently eliminate mice, voles, songbirds, and other pests that can decimate a cherry crop before harvest. This natural pest control reduces crop damage, but the advantages extend far beyond simply protecting the fruit.
Beyond Pest Control: Reducing Food-Borne Illness Risks
New research, published in November in the Journal of Applied Ecology, reveals a surprising benefit: kestrels may also significantly lower the risk of food-borne illnesses. The study demonstrates that kestrels help keep harmful pathogens off of fruit by preying on and deterring small birds that carry these pathogens. Orchards with kestrel nesting boxes experienced a substantial reduction in the presence of cherry-eating birds.
Specifically, orchards housing kestrels saw an 81 percent reduction in crop damage – including bite marks and missing fruit – and a 66 percent decrease in branches contaminated with bird feces. This is a significant improvement over traditional pest management techniques.
The Science Behind the Success
Olivia Smith, lead study author and assistant professor of horticulture at Michigan State University, explains, “Kestrels are not very expensive to bring into orchards, but they work pretty well” at deterring unwanted bird species. “And people just like kestrels a lot, so I think it’s an attractive strategy.” The study meticulously evaluated 16 sweet cherry orchards in Michigan’s Leelanau and Grand Traverse counties, comparing those with and without kestrel nesting boxes.
Researchers randomly selected areas within each orchard to assess crop damage and fecal contamination. The results were compelling: orchards frequented by kestrels saw damaged fruit drop from 2.5 percent to just 0.47 percent. Contamination from bird droppings decreased threefold, from 6.88 percent to 2.33 percent. Analysis of the excrement revealed that over 10 percent contained Campylobacter, a bacterium commonly found in birds and a known cause of food-borne illness in humans.
Campylobacter: A Growing Concern
Campylobacter is a leading cause of food poisoning, and its incidence is on the rise globally, including in Michigan. It spreads through contaminated food products, particularly those that have come into contact with infected animals, primarily poultry. While only one outbreak of campylobacteriosis has been definitively linked to wild bird feces, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) considers it a significantly underreported cause of food-borne illness, potentially more prevalent than current data suggests due to milder symptoms.
Smith emphasizes the broader impact: “Trying to get more birds of prey would be beneficial to farmers. If you have one predator, versus a bunch of prey, you have fewer birds overall. If you have a lot fewer birds, even if the ones that are there are carrying bacteria, then you can reduce the transmission risk.”
The Challenges Facing Cherry Farmers & Why Kestrels Offer a Solution
Finding effective pest management strategies is paramount for cherry farmers. Pests inflict costly damage, exacerbating existing threats to the industry, including climate change, labor shortages, and fluctuating international trade dynamics. Traditional methods, such as netting trees, using noisemakers, scarecrows, pesticides, and removing natural habitats, are often expensive and yield inconsistent results.
Despite these efforts, birds like starlings, robins, and crows still cost farms in major cherry-growing states – including Michigan, New York, Oregon, Washington, and California – approximately $85 million annually. This is where the “Tiny Falcons” offer a sustainable and cost-effective alternative.
Why Kestrels? A Counterintuitive Solution
It may seem paradoxical to introduce more birds to solve a bird-related problem, but kestrels are highly skilled hunters. Their presence actively drives away songbirds that fear becoming prey. However, the American kestrel population is facing its own challenges. Habitat loss, food competition, and climate change are contributing to a steady decline of around 1.4 percent annually. Despite this, kestrels remain abundant enough in many areas that attracting them to farmland is as simple as installing nesting boxes.
Brad Thatcher, a Washington state farmer who has hosted kestrels on April Joy Farm, an organic fruit and vegetable farm, for over 13 years, has witnessed the benefits firsthand. “I’ve noticed a difference having the kestrels around, hovering over the spring crops,” he says. “There’s very little fecal damage from small songbirds at that time of year versus the fall.”
Implementing Kestrel Conservation: A Win-Win for Farmers and the Environment
The study’s findings demonstrate that managing crops and achieving conservation goals can go hand-in-hand. By supporting local kestrel populations and reducing the need to clear wildlife habitat around agricultural areas, farmers can create a more sustainable and resilient farming system. The researchers recommend that farmers facing pest management issues consider installing kestrel boxes, which cost around $100 per box and require minimal maintenance.
Catherine Lindell, avian ecologist at Michigan State University and senior author of the study, notes that the success of nesting box installation depends on local kestrel abundance. In Michigan’s cherry-growing region, 80 to 100 percent of boxes are typically occupied by kestrels rather than other nesting birds. “It seems like this is just a great tool for farmers,” Lindell concludes, encouraging interested farmers to “put up a couple boxes and see what happens.”
The Future of Cherry Farming: Embracing Natural Solutions
The story of the Tiny Falcons and their impact on cherry farming is a compelling example of how embracing natural solutions can benefit both agriculture and the environment. As climate change and other challenges continue to threaten food production, innovative approaches like kestrel conservation will become increasingly important. By working *with* nature, rather than against it, farmers can build more sustainable and resilient food systems for the future. This approach aligns with growing consumer demand for sustainably produced food and offers a positive narrative for the agricultural industry.
The success of this program in Michigan provides a model for other agricultural regions facing similar pest and food safety challenges. Further research is needed to understand the long-term impacts of kestrel conservation on cherry orchard ecosystems, but the initial findings are overwhelmingly positive. The Tiny Falcons are proving to be a powerful ally in the fight to protect our cherry supply and ensure a safe and abundant harvest for years to come.