Group of Ducks Helps Control Pests for South African Wine Maker
2023-01-23
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1That is the sound of ducks.
2Are you picturing these birds fishing or floating on a nice lake somewhere?
3A normal reaction to be sure -- but these ducks are different.
4They live on a grape grower's land in South Africa.
5The Vergenoegd Löw Wine Estate is in Stellenbosch.
6And the ducks are employees of the winemaker.
7About 500 white, black and brown Indian runner ducks make their home on the grounds.
8They hunt and eat insects and other animals that can damage grape vines.
9The birds help protect the plants naturally.
10This saves the winemaker from having to use poisonous chemicals against such pests in his vineyard.
11Corius Visser runs the land.
12"We call them the soldiers of the vineyards. They eat all the small insects so we don't have to spray for any pests in the vineyards. They keep them pest-free. They are the caretakers."
13The ducks are tall, which means they can reach up and eat insects on the vines above the ground.
14In addition, the people who run the vineyard use the waste from the ducks to make fertilizer, which helps the grapes grow.
15Merle Holdsworth was visiting the vineyard and saw the ducks.
16She praised their orderliness.
17"It's amazing how they behave themselves, walk in a row, and it's like they're in the army," she said.
18The ducks get up in the morning and go to the vines to eat the insects.
19At the end of the day, they go back to their home and eat some bird food provided by the winemaker.
20Yodell Scholtz works in the vineyard and takes care of the ducks.
21"It's almost like raising your own children, so I enjoy it a lot," he said.
22I'm Dan Friedell.
1That is the sound of ducks. 2Are you picturing these birds fishing or floating on a nice lake somewhere? A normal reaction to be sure -- but these ducks are different. 3They live on a grape grower's land in South Africa. 4The Vergenoegd Löw Wine Estate is in Stellenbosch. And the ducks are employees of the winemaker. 5About 500 white, black and brown Indian runner ducks make their home on the grounds. They hunt and eat insects and other animals that can damage grape vines. 6The birds help protect the plants naturally. This saves the winemaker from having to use poisonous chemicals against such pests in his vineyard. 7Corius Visser runs the land. 8"We call them the soldiers of the vineyards. They eat all the small insects so we don't have to spray for any pests in the vineyards. They keep them pest-free. They are the caretakers." 9The ducks are tall, which means they can reach up and eat insects on the vines above the ground. 10In addition, the people who run the vineyard use the waste from the ducks to make fertilizer, which helps the grapes grow. 11Merle Holdsworth was visiting the vineyard and saw the ducks. She praised their orderliness. 12"It's amazing how they behave themselves, walk in a row, and it's like they're in the army," she said. 13The ducks get up in the morning and go to the vines to eat the insects. At the end of the day, they go back to their home and eat some bird food provided by the winemaker. 14Yodell Scholtz works in the vineyard and takes care of the ducks. 15"It's almost like raising your own children, so I enjoy it a lot," he said. 16I'm Dan Friedell. 17Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by Reuters. 18____________________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20pest -n. an unwanted animal or insect 21spray -v. to send water or another liquid from a tube, tank or hose onto something else such as a plant 22winemaker-n. a person who grows grapes to turn into wine and sell 23___________________________________________________________________ 24We want to hear from you. Would you like to see the ducks work on a farm close to where you live? 25We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 26Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.