Italy's Risotto Crops Face Long-Legged Marauders

An unusual pest is ravaging crops and irking farmers in northeastern Italy: the flamingo. Flocks of these relatively recent immigrants have set their hungry sights on the flooded fields that produce rice for risotto in Ferrara province, between Venice and Ravenna. The long-legged birds aren't interested in the seedlings; rather, flamingos use their webbed feet to stir up the soil and snatch mollusks, algae, or insects from the shallow water. Rice is collateral damage, reports the AP.

Farmers have started patrolling day and night in a bid to scare the birds away. They honk their trucks' horns, bang barrels, and even fire small gas cannons that make thunderous booms. Mostly, the noise just sends them flying to another nearby rice paddy to be trampled. Enrico Fabbri, a local grower, said he is discouraged after seeing production losses of as much as 90%. "These are new things that have never happened before. You invest so much time and care into preparing everything," Fabbri, 63, said beside one of his paddies on the outskirts of Jolanda di Savoia. "Then, just as the crop begins to grow, it's like having a newborn child taken away."

The birds have been there since 2000, after drought in southern Spain sent them searching for nesting grounds further east, according to ornithologist Roberto Tinarelli, who suggests alternative solutions to fend off flamingos: surrounding paddies with tall trees or hedges and, even better, reducing water levels of freshly planted paddies to between 2 and 4 inches, instead of 12 inches. "This is sufficient for the rice to grow, but decidedly less attractive to flamingos, which must splash around in the water," he said.

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There have been no studies yet to determine why these flamingos started seeking food further inland, where farmers flood their fields from late spring to early summer as a means of germinating newly planted rice seeds. Until the paddies are drained after a few weeks, the flamingos are a threat. "They are beautiful animals," says Massimo Piva, a 57-year-old rice grower. "But the problem is trying to limit their presence. ... We must keep in mind that rice cultivation is among the most expensive, extensive crops."