Barn owls as biological control agents: potential risks to non‐target rare and endangered species

Rodent agricultural pests cause significant food loss every year. Attempts at mitigation via chemical pest control may cause secondary poisoning and harm non‐target species. Biological pest control by bolstering barn owl Tyto alba populations through the provision of artificial nest boxes is in use in several countries. The national biological pest control project of Israel began in the early 1980s in the Mediterranean zone and was subsequently...