The Occupancy of Barn Owl in The Articial Nest Box to Control Rice Field Rat in Yogyakarta
Sudarmaji, Arlyna Budi Pustika, Kiki Yolanda, and Evi Pujiastuti
Yogyakarta Assessment Institute for Agricultural Technology, Indonesia
Abstract
One of the component of integrated rat management was a biological control using barn owl and constructing barn owl nest box in rice crop. The goal of the study was to evaluate occupancy of barn owl in an artificial nest box, rat population and rat damage. The research was conducted in three locations by allocating and controlling 10 nest boxes randomly in Yogyakarta. Assessment of their occupancy was monitored by the presence of the barn owl in their nest box (egg, chick and adult) and also number of natural owl nests in villages near nest box. The rat population was observed by the active burrow method and the installation of trap barrier system. Rat damage area and intensity was estimated by sampling 150 tillers randomly. The result indicated that only 1-4 nest boxes were occupied in each location. The Owls also nest naturally in villages near nest box installed. Active burrows were identified less than 50%. Rat damage area was accounted for 33.33% - 48.57% with 6,33% - 14,86% for their intensity and not significantly different from the control site, except in Kalibawang location. Artificial nest box installation for owls in rice fields was only occupied for breeding.
Keywords: Barn owl, Rice field rat, Rice field, Biological control
Topic: International Conference on Sustainable Agriculture