Get The Best Of Birds

摘要

It's only a matter of time before their return flight. Get prepared now. FOR many blueberry growers, this past season was for the birds — literally. What was shaping up to be a highly profitable year turned out tempered, thanks in large part to the unprecedented swarms of birds that took to the fields. When Bill Braswell, president of the Florida Blueberry Growers Association, was asked to describe the gravity of the situation, he gave a memorable response: "It was Old Testament bad." It was suspected that the warmer than usual winter made the berries ripen sooner, which resulted in bad timing when the birds passed by on their migration. The dinner bell had been rung, and the birds weren't leaving until the food source was gone. Those that were hitthe hardest reported losing a quarter of their crop. Getting rid of the birds was easier said than done, especially given that the main culprit was the protected cedar waxwing.