They are wild animals and pests that are accountable for the damage to most strawberry plants.
Most people tend to ask this question: what animals eat strawberries? Well you may or may not be surprised by the names of these animals.
In this article, your question about what animals eat strawberries will be answered, and you will get to know how to identify the pest, in particular, that are responsible alongside other important things.
Animals That Eat Strawberries
Here, your question on what animals eat strawberries will be answered.
We will discuss 5 animals that eat strawberries.
It’s been observed that the taste of strawberries appealing to some animals and they are:
- Birds
- Insects
- Deer
- Rodents
- Numerous Pests
Birds
There are some categories of birds that are referred to as fruit-eating birds, and they love the good taste of strawberries examples are the blue jays.
Birds have proven to be annoying and difficult ones to deal with because of their ability to fly.
These creatures can bypass almost all barriers created that would prevent them from damaging the strawberries.
Except for the mesh netting, this is the only method that holders them from causing damage to the fruit.
Insects
Insects can harshly harm your plant and crop, to the extent of deforming it.
Insects responsible are a slug, strawberry bud weevil, and aphids.
The most effective way of preventing insects from causing harm or eating your strawberries is by spraying the strawberry plant with a natural insecticidal soap.
This does the trick of chasing the insect away or it kills them completely.
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Deer
Deer go for the leaves instead of the fruit, but then if all the leaves are gone it would greatly affect the growth of the berry.
The fact that deer are bigger than other pests causes harm to strawberries, there is a tendency for them to crush or smash the plant during or after the process of getting the leaves.
The effects caused by deer are not short-term damage but long-term, because if a plant is crushed you may have to plant another one.
The most preferable way to deal with them is to build a fence around your garden or where you have your strawberries.
The height of the fence matters because deer aren’t small, so it’s advised you build about at least 7 feet (2 meters) tall.
Rodents
Gophers and squirrels are common rodents that eat strawberries.
Many rodents do this because of the high level of sugar they need, they always want more.
These rodents can be prevented by getting tight mesh fencing.
Numerous Pests
There are additionally known pests as well, though the aforementioned four species are the most prevalent.
These are less likely, but depending on where you live, they might be important to know.
This can include cats, turtles, tortoises, some lizards, raccoons, rabbits, and even turtles.
Strawberries can be eaten by rabbits, raccoons, turtles, tortoises, some reptiles, and even cats.
These pests can be kept out of a property by fencing that deters birds and rats.
The pests most likely to consume your strawberries are rabbits.
When their favourite meal cannot be found, the other types of critters are more likely to consume strawberries on the spot.
However, it’s still beneficial to be aware of this list of animals in case a less frequent pest targets you.
How To Tell What Is Eating Your Strawberries
The question of what animals eat strawberries has been answered, now with this, you will be able to identify the animal.
This can be achieved by monitoring the signs or impact left on the fruit or plant.
And each pest of strawberry will leave a mark or sign that is particular to a specific kind of animal.
With bullet points, it has been categorized into the animals that eat strawberries and their signs.
- Birds: There would be the presence of birds dropping around and also there would be missing berries only.
- Insects: There will be the presence of visible small holes around the berries and leaves.
- Deer: The mark left would be missing leaves and berries, crushed leaves and footprints would be visible.
- Rodents: there would be rodents dropping around and also missing berries.
In your garden, you typically only notice signs of one kind of bug.
Regardless, it would be challenging to detect the damage if you are attracting numerous bugs.
In this situation, inquire at your neighbourhood garden centre about the most prevalent pests in the area.
Check to see if the problem is resolved by acting as though the most typical pest is trying to attack you.
Up until you successfully stop bugs from eating your strawberries, go down the list.
How To Protect Strawberries From Animals
The method to use should be based on if the animal is land-based or not because this determines what measure to take.
For land-based pests, the best way would be a chicken wire as a solution for protecting your strawberries.
For protecting your strawberries from birds, you should get mesh netting as that’s well approved.
Another common pest, the insecticidal soap and repellent spray is effective and also highly used.
A more effective result is best if you use all the methods together as a combination.
This has proven to be the most effective because of the different types of pests you may come around and you are yet to identify them.
The pest may be able to evade one protection method but may not be able to pass through the next one.
By doing this you stand a greater chance of completely securing your strawberries or any other fruit in your garden.
Conclusion
Now you know what animals eat strawberries and how to avoid them and protect your garden.
Other animals that eat strawberries include Turtles, foxes, monkeys, raccoons, and rabbits, most of these animals eat them because of their high level of sugar.
With this, it’s highly recommended to use the combination method to protect your strawberries.
