Pest control and other threats to crops can be managed without chemicals by using wildlife. Insect-eating birds, bats and small predatory birds provide a strong natural guard against rodents, mosquitoes, insects and moths. Technicians from the Southeast Natural Sciences Association ANSE have installed around 300 artificial shelters and nest boxes in the Segura basin in Murcia as part of the Fluviatilis project.
The initiative focuses on nature based solutions to improve pest management in rice fields, orchards and poplars while reducing insects that irritate or threaten public health, such as mosquitoes and other flies.
It promotes the placement of shelters to support different vertebrates and is tied to riverine environments so the community can benefit from ecosystem services like pest control, which helps reduce the need for chemical phytosanitary products.
One of the slot boxes already built in the region is highlighted in the project visuals.
To advance this work, ANSE reports that 270 boxes have been distributed so far for the following species: 27 nesting boxes for the hoopoe and ibis, 6 artificial shelters for Eurasian tree sparrows, 56 for great tits, 28 for additional tits, 5 for tawny owls, 3 for small owls and 145 different models for bats.
Some of these boxes are now in use by target birds for nesting and as roosts for multiple bat species.
A bat eats up to 3,000 mosquitoes a night
ANSE emphasizes that bats are an effective tool for suppressing moths, mosquitoes and rice pests. A single lactating female bat can consume between 1,000 and 3,000 mosquitoes each night.
Similarly, an owl during breeding season may eat 1 to 3 rodents per night. A breeding pair of barn owls on a farm could catch roughly 16 to 18 rodents every night.
Small insectivorous birds such as tits and tree creepers play a major role, feeding on caterpillars, aphids and worms. A pair of insectivorous birds can consume around 50,000 caterpillars in a single breeding season, showcasing a strong natural pest control relationship.
Cooperation of farmers and irrigation
Shelters line the banks and crops along the Segura and Mundo rivers, in the zone between Cenajo and Camarillas reservoirs and the Almadenes Canyon Protected Natural Area in Murcia. The effort involves farmers and ranchers who collaborate with local authorities, including the Calasparra Council and the Arroz de Calasparra regulatory body, the Segura Hydrographic Confederation, the Irrigation Society El Esparragal, the Temple of Hope Foundation and the City. Volunteers and schoolchildren are also key in building some shelters.
The project notes that the boxes are made by local carpenters using certified wood from Spanish farms as a green purchasing measure.
Fluviatilis began in September 2022 with the aim of increasing river resilience to climate change through river management, protection and rehabilitation of coastal ecosystems. The initiative is supported by the Biodiversity Foundation of MITECO and is part of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan funded by the European Union NextGenerationEU.
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The environmental department can be contacted through official channels for more information.