Response of Blackbirds to Mesurol and Sevin Applications on Sweet Corn

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Abstract
Application of either Mesurol, an insecticide with bird-repellent properties, or Sevin, an insecticide with limited repellent properties, to sweet corn fields in Ohio [USA] reduced insect numbers and blackbird activity. The correlation between reduced insect populations and reduced bird damage after either chemical treatment supports the hypothesis that cornfields are made less attractive to blackbirds by the reduction of insects. This results in less bird damage to corn. One unexplained result was that corn in Mesurol-treated fields had significantly more earworms Heliothis zea than in either Sevin-treated or control fields. Considering vertebrate pest control from an ecological and integrated viewpoint may result in developing new or enhancing old bird-damage control techniques for corn.

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