THÈSE - Université de Franche-Comté

cannot thus be considered as an alternative for sustainable agriculture and farmers need to
alternate their agricultural practices to decrease the use of these chemicals. Our study shows
that these options should include (i) the control of T. europaea populations during A. terrestris
low density phases; (ii) a moderate use of intensive farming practices such as fertilisation; (iii)
the use of grazing and soil work. An early control of A. terrestris populations at low density is
also an additional target and our study indicates that the effect of mowing should be
considered in light of parcel productivity.
These recommandations can aid farmers and pest-control professionals in making
management decisions for a long-term cost-effective control of rodents. However, this raises
the question of how to make land use management practices evolve this way without
prejudicing traditional agricultural systems which guarantee high quality products (e.g. local
raw milk cheese, etc..). More technical research is thus needed to ensure economically
acceptable compatibility between renewed practices, quality control on the whole chain of
cheese production and the ecological framework provided with the results of this study.
Acknowledgements
We appreciate valuable comments from Pierre Delattre, Jean-Paul Garel, Dominique Orth and
Jean-Christophe Foltête on the sampling design and the data analysis. We thank the Service
Régional de la Protection des Végétaux (SRPV) and the Fédération Régionale de Défense
contre les Organismes Nuisibles (FREDON) of Franche-Comté for giving data and for helpful
instructions in the field. We are grateful to the farmers who allowed access to their parcels and
gave information on their land-use practices. Financial support was provided by the Région of
Franche-Comté (« Plan d’Action Régional 2000-2006 »).
References
Brakes, C.R. & Smith, R.H. (2005) Exposure of non-target small mammals to rodenticides:
short-term effects, recovery and implications for secondary poisoning. Journal Of
Applied Ecology, 42, 118-128.
Thèse C. Morilhat 2005 110