Californian wineries turn to owls as answer for growing pest problem

Oct 26, 2021

So far, the graduate students have found that the barn owls in vineyards are reducing the number of gophers, but not mice.

Four-fifths of the study's wineries now use the owl nest boxes and notice a difference in rodent control. Image: Unsplash/Andy Chilton

Paige Bennett

Writer, EcoWatch

Our Impact

The Big Picture

Explore and monitor how Agriculture, Food and Beverage is affecting economies, industries and global issues

A hand holding a looking glass by a lake

Crowdsource Innovation

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Agriculture, Food and Beverage

Graduate students at Humboldt State University are using owls to protect vineyards from rodents. Image: Barn Owl Research HSU

Of 75 wineries in Napa Valley surveyed four-fifths now use the owl nest boxes and notice a difference in rodent control. Image: Wine Folly

Have you read?

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

More on Agriculture, Food and Beverage
See all

1:39

Sugar prices soar to record highs

Can COP28 move us towards a new food production model?

Jack Hurd

November 24, 2023

Sugar prices are at their highest level since 2011. Here's what's causing the surge

Aniruddha Ghosal and Chinedu Asadu

November 22, 2023

Our food and agriculture is responsible for trillions of dollars of hidden costs, says the UN. Here’s why – and what can be done

Victoria Masterson

November 17, 2023

6 projects helping to tackle food insecurity

Victoria Masterson

November 16, 2023

India's farmers are on the cusp of an Agritech revolution: AgriStack

Ashish Dobhal and Devansh Pathak

November 14, 2023

Californian wineries turn to owls as answer for growing pest problem

Paige Bennett

Share:

Explore and monitor how Agriculture, Food and Beverage is affecting economies, industries and global issues

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Agriculture, Food and Beverage

Have you read?

Here's why Australia's powerful owls are moving to urban areas - and how we can help them

Bees are at risk from pesticides, according to a European watchdog

Don't miss any update on this topic

Related topics:

Share:

The Agenda Weekly

More on Agriculture, Food and Beverage
See all

Paige Bennett

Share:

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}}Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Agriculture, Food and Beverage

Have you read?

Bees are at risk from pesticides, according to a European watchdog

Don't miss any update on this topic

Related topics:

Share:

The Agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;}Weekly

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

The Agenda Weekly