Valley starling numbers up in spite of control measures
Feathered pests may be flying in from other parts of B.C. Interior
Starling populations in the Okanagan are rising despite a long-running control program that has resulted in the trapping and gassing of 750,000 of the invasive, crop-damaging birds.
Starling counts have climbed in three of the past four years, according to information to be presented today to West Kelowna city council.
The upward spike in numbers is contrary to an overall decline in starling populations across the province, according to the BC Grape Growers’ Association, which runs the starling control program.
“We don’t know exactly why the local numbers have gone up slightly,” association administrator Tyrion Miskell said Monday.
However, one theory is starlings from other areas of the province are coming to the Okanagan in ever-increasing numbers during the summer to take advantage of the plentiful food supply in orchards and vineyards.
The birds then breed here, which over time increases the local starling population despite the control program.
“Part of what makes the Okanagan inviting to people — all the fruit in the summer — also draws the starlings,” Miskell said.
Researchers from UBC Okanagan are able to determine, based on an analysis of the mineral content in the bones of starlings, where they originated, Miskell said.
That work on “chemical signatures” shows many of the starlings trapped in the Okanagan originally came from the Grand Forks and Quesnel areas, Miskell said. Further research along these lines is currently underway and should be completed this summer.
The starling control program, established in 2003, has an annual budget of $160,000, with funding coming mainly from the three Okanagan regional districts, and from industry groups such as the BC Cherry Association and BC Fruit Growers’ Association.
Starlings are not native to North America, but were introduced in 1890 by New Yorkers who wanted to bring to this continent every species of bird mentioned in Shakespeare’s works.
There are estimated to be more than 200 million starlings in North America, causing tens of millions of dollars in damage to agricultural crops, out-competing local songbirds for food sources, and damaging roofs in homes and businesses.