Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm

Abstract In the Netherlands, free-range layer farms as opposed to indoor layer farms, are at greater risk with regard to the introduction of avian influenza viruses (AIVs). Wild waterfowl are the natural reservoir hosts of AIVs, and play a major role in their transmission to poultry by contaminating...

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Autores principales:	Armin R. W. Elbers, José L. Gonzales
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/fcc5abe1a3af4b32a931c862fe7e26b0
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:fcc5abe1a3af4b32a931c862fe7e26b02021-12-02T16:04:26ZEfficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm10.1038/s41598-021-92267-z2045-2322https://doaj.org/article/fcc5abe1a3af4b32a931c862fe7e26b02021-06-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-92267-zhttps://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract In the Netherlands, free-range layer farms as opposed to indoor layer farms, are at greater risk with regard to the introduction of avian influenza viruses (AIVs). Wild waterfowl are the natural reservoir hosts of AIVs, and play a major role in their transmission to poultry by contaminating free-range layer areas. The laser as a wild bird repellent has been in use since the 1970s, in particular around airfields to reduce bird-strike. The efficacy of laser for reducing wild bird numbers in and around free-range poultry areas has however not been investigated. During the autumn–winter, wild bird visits to the free-range area of a layer farm was surveilled by video-camera for a month without laser, followed by a month with laser. The automated laser (Class-III B qualification) was operated in two separate areas (i) within the poultry free-range area that directly bordered the poultry barn between 5:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. when poultry were absent (free-range study area, size 1.5 ha), and (ii) in surrounding grass pastures between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. The overall (all bird species combined) efficacy of the laser for reducing the rate of wild birds visiting the free-range study area was 98.2%, and for the Orders Anseriformes and Passeriformes, respectively, was 99.7% and 96.1%. With the laser in operation, the overall exposure time of the free-range area to wild bird visits, but specifically to the Order Anseriformes, was massively reduced. It can be concluded that the Class-III B laser is highly proficient at keeping wild birds, in particular waterfowl, away from the free-range area of layer farms situated along a winter migration flyway.Armin R. W. ElbersJosé L. GonzalesNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-11 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Armin R. W. Elbers José L. Gonzales Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
description	Abstract In the Netherlands, free-range layer farms as opposed to indoor layer farms, are at greater risk with regard to the introduction of avian influenza viruses (AIVs). Wild waterfowl are the natural reservoir hosts of AIVs, and play a major role in their transmission to poultry by contaminating free-range layer areas. The laser as a wild bird repellent has been in use since the 1970s, in particular around airfields to reduce bird-strike. The efficacy of laser for reducing wild bird numbers in and around free-range poultry areas has however not been investigated. During the autumn–winter, wild bird visits to the free-range area of a layer farm was surveilled by video-camera for a month without laser, followed by a month with laser. The automated laser (Class-III B qualification) was operated in two separate areas (i) within the poultry free-range area that directly bordered the poultry barn between 5:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. when poultry were absent (free-range study area, size 1.5 ha), and (ii) in surrounding grass pastures between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. The overall (all bird species combined) efficacy of the laser for reducing the rate of wild birds visiting the free-range study area was 98.2%, and for the Orders Anseriformes and Passeriformes, respectively, was 99.7% and 96.1%. With the laser in operation, the overall exposure time of the free-range area to wild bird visits, but specifically to the Order Anseriformes, was massively reduced. It can be concluded that the Class-III B laser is highly proficient at keeping wild birds, in particular waterfowl, away from the free-range area of layer farms situated along a winter migration flyway.
format	article
author	Armin R. W. Elbers José L. Gonzales
author_facet	Armin R. W. Elbers José L. Gonzales
author_sort	Armin R. W. Elbers
title	Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
title_short	Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
title_full	Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
title_fullStr	Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
title_full_unstemmed	Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
title_sort	efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/fcc5abe1a3af4b32a931c862fe7e26b0
work_keys_str_mv	AT arminrwelbers efficacyofanautomatedlaserforreducingwildbirdvisitstothefreerangeareaofapoultryfarm AT joselgonzales efficacyofanautomatedlaserforreducingwildbirdvisitstothefreerangeareaofapoultryfarm
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Efficacy of an automated laser for reducing wild bird visits to the free range area of a poultry farm

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