Coating seeds with cotton fibers for controlling bird predation of newly-planted corn.

Authors: ACCINELLI, CESARCE - University Of Bologna; Abbas, Hamed; Paulk, Ryan; SHIER, THOMAS - University Of Minnesota

Submitted to: Journal of Crop Improvement
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/10/2026
Publication Date: 2/28/2026
Citation: Accinelli, C., Abbas, H.K., Paulk, R.T., Shier, T.W. 2026. Coating seeds with cotton fibers for controlling bird predation of newly-planted corn.. Journal of Crop Improvement. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427528.2026.2637737.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15427528.2026.2637737

Interpretive Summary: Seed and seedling predation by birds can be a major cause of reduced crop yield. Current prevention methods include seed coating with synthetic pesticides, which are expensive and environmentally problematic. Birds have a natural fear of feather- and filament-coated objects, which may be the reason some plants have evolved filament-coated seeds. Coating corn seed with cotton filaments reduced predation by wild birds up to 92% under conventional and no-till conditions. With caged birds there was observed a similar refusal to eat filament-coated seeds. Filament-coating of seeds may be a cost-effective, environmentally friendly method to reduce bird predation of corn seed.

Technical Abstract: The early stages of direct seed planted crops are crucial for optimizing yield and returning investments. Among biotic factors, seed and seedling predation by birds is frequently a serious issue, especially for nutrient-rich seeds, such as corn, sunflower, and many other crops. Nowadays, seed predation by birds is commonly controlled by treating seeds with synthetic pesticides, which frequently were not specifically designed as bird repellents. Because of their unfavorable environmental profile, most of these effective pesticides have been recently banned and novel solutions are consequently needed. By observing nature’s strategies adopted by some plant species to protect seeds from bird predation, seeds of a corn hybrid were fully coated with cotton fibers and planted in two fields managed with conventional and no-till. Results from the first experimental year showed that this seed treatment was effective in reducing bird predation by up to 92 and 90%, under conventional and no-till, respectively. Comparable results were obtained when the experiment was repeated in the subsequent year, with reductions up to 88 and 85%, in conventional and no-till, respectively. When seeds were only single-side covered with cotton fibers, bird predation was less effectively controlled, with reductions that did not exceed 68%. These findings were confirmed when the seeds were offered to birds in captivity. Although some technical improvements are needed, the concept of covering corn seeds with cotton fibers merits further consideration as an additional solution to controlling seed predation by birds.