Drones Helping to Fight Mites in Strawberry, Almond Fields

Story courtesy of ABC News 10.

Researchers are going after spider mites using two types of drones.

The mites are a major problem for California strawberry growers, and a UC Davis team received a three-year, $250,000 grant to study the problem.

They are using drones with cameras to detect the outbreaks, then sending in “bombing” drones to drop spider-mite eating bugs.

To figure out the best day and time to fly the drones, the researchers also attach smoke bombs to drones to visualize how the wind will affect the way the predator mites fall.

The research is a collaboration between engineers, ecologists and agronomists, and led by Davis agriculture professor Christian Nansen and mechanical aerospace engineering professor Zhaodan Kong.

Read the News 10 story in its entirety.