Comparison of d-pulegone and mangone as cowbird feeding repellents

We compared the effectiveness of d-pulegone and mangone as feeding repellents to captive adultmale brown-headed cowbirds ( Molothrus ater Boddaert) during October- November 1995. For each repellent, we conducted 4-day, one- and two-choice cage tests using concentrations (w/w) of 0.1%, 0.10%, and 0.001% with millet. During one- and two-choice tests, 0.1% d -pulegone reduced ( P < 0.01) cowbird feeding but lower concentrations did not. In contrast, concentrations of mangone as low as 0.001% reduced (P < 0.05) food consumption during two-choice tests. Consumption of mangone-treated millet, however, was similar ( P > 0.05) among one-choice tests and similar to total food consumption observed during two-choice tests. We conclude that mangone is less effective than d -pulegone and would be likely to be ineffective as a repellent for seed treatment. We recommend field tests to further assess the effectiveness of d-pulegone or comparable isomers as avian feeding repellents.

Keywords:

• Brown-headed Cowbird
• Chemical Control
• Mangone
• Molothrus Ater
• Pulegone
• Repellent