Animals are on nearly everyone's mind when they head out the road to Orfila Vineyards and the famed San Diego Wild Animal Park. Falcons and owls and bats...oh my! Unless you are a starling, a rodent, or an insect, these winged-critters may not seem as scary as lions and tigers and bears. To starlings, rodents and insects, however, this scary trio of winged-critters represents natural and deadly "tools" of Integrated Pest Management (IPM). At Orfila, these are just part of our efforts to support sustainable watershed management and be both good neighbors and good caretakers of the land.

At Orfila, we just happen to grow an agricultural crop that is loved not only by humans, but also birds and rodents. Let's face it, a vine-ripened bunch of sweet grapes is one of summer's finest treats. Scarecrows may look cool, but they just don't work, and it's not very practical to pull out a shotgun and blast away. Alternative methods of keeping destructive birds out of vineyards when grapes are close to being harvested include: silver streamers, netting, shooting, and devices that produce loud noises. Aside from the use of netting and the loud noise of "scare devices" (which can be very disturbing to neighbors), starlings quickly become accustomed to their surroundings and resume feeding on the fruit of the vine.

The hunting ability and voracious appetites of owls are used as an important IPM "tool." Environmentalists have promoted the distribution of barn owl boxes in vineyards for the past few years. The idea of utilizing owls to manage pests appears to be widely accepted now throughout wine country, where owl boxes can be seen in almost every vineyard.

Barn owls have been around for the last 26 million years. Because they do not have to see their prey to be successful, they are one of the most skillful rodent hunters in North America. Their dish shaped face in conjunction with their asymmetrical ears gives them the ability to triangulate on their prey like radar.

On average, a barn owl will eat 155 gophers per year. If there were 48 barn owls in an area, they would consume 7,440 gophers. A 1997-98 study in California showed that a barn owls diet consists of 42% pocket gophers, 30% voles, 17% deer mice, 6% house mice, and 5% other prey.

At Orfila, we are happy to report that all six of our owl boxes have been inhabited. Each barn owl box provides a place for the barn owls to roost in the fall and a safe place to nest and raise a family of owlets (5-7 per box) in the spring. Annual cleaning of the box is the only maintenance involved. It is important to wear a dust mask while cleaning the box and to wash hands afterwards, but otherwise, the benefits of creating a friendly environment for these "super-hunters" far outweigh the effort required. It's all part of our commitment to being respectful of the land and the planet. Cheers!

Leon Santoro - August 2005