International Owl Awareness Day: Nature’s Original Pest Control Team

sealemout
Aug 4
3 min read

Southwest Florida’s Secret Pest Control Experts Are Dying—And We’re the Culprits

Look up. Those wings slicing through the Southwest Florida twilight? They’re not just beautiful. They’re your neighborhood’s best defense against rodents. Burrowing owls, barn owls, and screech owls have been keeping pests in check for over a million years—long before we built our homes here. These pint-sized predators are nature’s pest control pros, and they work for free. So why are we poisoning them?

Nature’s Perfect Partnership

In Southwest Florida, burrowing owls share underground homes with gopher tortoises, a buddy system that’s been thriving for 1.3 million years. Picture it: a soda-can-sized owl teaming up with a tortoise to keep our yards pest-free. A single pair of burrowing owls can devour over 1,500 insects and rodents in a breeding season. Barn owls? Even hungrier. A family can take out 3,000–5,000 rodents in just four months (Barn Owl Trust). That’s round-the-clock pest control, no appointment needed.

Cape Coral hosts Florida’s largest burrowing owl population—over 1,000 nesting pairs. These tiny raptors are patrolling our neighborhoods, keeping rats and mice at bay. But every time we set out rat poison, we’re killing the very allies we need.

The Hidden Cost of Rat Poison

Here’s the grim reality: rat bait doesn’t just kill rodents. Poisoned rats become sluggish, easy prey for owls. When an owl eats one, the poison moves up the food chain. Studies show 79–94% of tested owls carry rodenticides (EPA, Audubon California). That’s not a fluke—it’s a crisis. When we lose an owl family to secondary poisoning, we lose thousands of free pest-control hours. And for what? A quick fix that doesn’t even solve the root problem.

The irony stings: we’re paying to sabotage our most effective pest control.

Southwest Florida’s Wild Advantage

We’re lucky here. Burrowing owls, screech owls, barn owls, and great horned owls call our region home. Over 500 volunteers with Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife maintain owl habitats. The Conservancy of Southwest Florida protects 70,000 acres of wild spaces. Our communities care about living alongside wildlife. So why are we still using poison bait boxes that undo all this good?

There’s a better way. For 25 years, I’ve worked in pest control without touching rat poison. Why? Because sealing entry points—exclusion—works better. It stops infestations at the source, not just for a month, but for good. Clear out the cluttered attics and crawlspaces where rodents hide, and you make it easier for owls to do their job. Homeowners often tell me they see more owls and hawks after an exclusion job. That’s nature reclaiming its role.

Your Choice Shapes Our Future

This International Owl Awareness Day, let’s rethink pest control. Choosing exclusion over poison means:

• Lasting solutions, not temporary fixes.

• Safer yards for kids, pets, and wildlife.

• Thriving ecosystems powered by nature’s predators.

• A Southwest Florida that stays wild and wonderful.

Those burrowing owls in Cape Coral aren’t just adorable—they’re proof that nature’s had this pest control thing figured out for millennia. Let’s stop fighting it.

Work With Nature, Not Against It

At Seal Em Out, every home we seal creates safer hunting grounds for owls and cleaner spaces for families. It’s pest control that respects Southwest Florida’s unique wildlife and strengthens our community.

Want to protect your home and our owls? Reach out to learn how exclusion can keep pests out and peace in.

Seal Em Out LLC