Over 400 nest boxes for rodent-chomping barn owls have been installed all across Cyprus so far with authorities considering this as the best method to keep down the rodent population. By natural rather chemical means as well, Philenews reports citing Agriculture Ministry insiders.
In Cyprus, barn-owls are known as ‘anthropopoulia’ which translates into ‘man birds’ and this because with their long legs and round face they are sometimes mistaken for human beings in the dark.
The Municipality of Peyia in Paphos was the first to install 10 nests for ‘anthropopoulia’ back in June 2020, in cooperation with the Game and Fauna Service.
And even since, this method seems to have become a popular procedure in many of Paphos’ municipalities – including Yeroskipou, Chlorakas and most recently Steni.
In fact, the method is strongly promoted now in all districts of Cyprus with some 100 nest boxes planned to be installed island-wide in the near future.
There are areas which have suffered from rodents and today no more pesticide is used to treat them, an insider said.
