Data from: Falcons using orchard nest boxes reduce fruit-eating bird abundances and provide economic benefits for a fruit-growing region

1. Suppression of pest species via a native predator is a regulating
ecosystem service that has the potential to limit crop damage and produce
economic benefits. American kestrels (Falco sparverius) are widespread,
highly-mobile, generalist predators that hunt in human-dominated habitats
and potentially provide previously undocumented ecosystem services in
agricultural landscapes. 2. We hypothesized that kestrel activity
associated with nest boxes and artificial perches acts to increase
perceived predation risk that, in combination with direct predation, can
reduce fruit-eating bird abundances in orchards. We used counts and
observations of fruit-eating birds from fixed-width transect surveys to
investigate variation in bird abundances and to estimate sweet cherry loss
in cherry orchards with and without active kestrel boxes. We also
conducted a benefit-cost analysis of nest box installation and used
regional economic modelling to estimate macroeconomic impacts of increased
sweet cherry production in Michigan, an important US fruit-production
region. 3. Fruit-eating bird counts were significantly lower at orchards
with active kestrel boxes. Although kestrels used the perches in young
orchard blocks and may benefit from them, the presence of perches did not
have a significant effect on bird counts. 4. Benefit-cost ratios for
kestrel nest boxes indicated that for every dollar spent on nest boxes,
$84 to $357 of sweet cherries are saved from fruit-eating birds. Regional
economic modelling predicted that increased sweet cherry production from
reduced bird damage would result in 46 to 50 jobs created and $2.2 million
to $2.4 million in increased income for the state of Michigan over a
five-year period. 5. Synthesis and application. Kestrel nest boxes in
sweet cherry orchards provide a highly cost-effective ecosystem service
with potential reverberating benefits for a regional economy. Box
occupancy rates will undoubtedly vary across landscapes and regions.
However, costs to install and maintain boxes are small and, even if box
occupancy rates are low, boxes can direct kestrel activity to particular
places in agricultural landscapes where they can deter pest birds. Thus,
the potential benefits in fruit crops greatly outweigh the costs of this
pest management strategy.