Arab, Israeli experts join to save barn owl

AP ATHENS

Experts from 12 countries gathered in Greece last week to discuss an effort to help the barn owl. Efforts to save   this remarkable predator that began decades ago as an unlikely Israeli-Jordanian collaboration. The moon-faced, shoebox-sized owl is a ruthless pest controller, protecting crops from rodents and other nuisances.

"A pair of barn owls eats between 2,000 and 6,000 rodents every year, allowing farmers to stop using pesticides," says Yossi Leshem, professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University's School of Zoology. Conservation initiatives aim to protect the barn owl by creating networks of artificial nests and reducing  use of pesticides and rodenticides that can poison predatory birds.