Stop The Poison Chain

MOST reported incidents of poisoned wildlife involve birds of prey such as vultures and scavenging eagles.

They are the non-targeted victims of poison used to kill predatory mammals on farmlands. Poisoned birds are often found close to water, presumably because the victim of poison feels ill, feverish and therefore thirsty.When birds of prey are found they create a newsworthy item because of their size, their endangered or rare status and the outrage that many people feel at such waste of life.The farmers that use poisons in a way that affects non-targeted wildlife are labelled as irresponsible.There are, however, other wildlife poisoning events that mostly go unreported and the perpetrators of these events are possibly quite unaware of the illness and death that they cause.These poisoning events affect the garden creatures that annually fall victim to the sprays, pellets and powders used by many gardeners in urban areas.Urban wildlife poisoning events are usually linked to summer rainfall, when an increase in enthusiasm and interest in gardening coupled with increases in insect populations spells doom for pests and non-pests alike.The non-targeted birds, frogs, lizards, chameleons, bats and others are small creatures that become ill or die from a garden pesticide will seldom make a newsworthy story, most will never be found.As urban areas expand, most wildlife flees to safe distances.But in some urban developments there is both potential and pride in attracting some large wildlife to visit the garden.The eastern suburbs of Windhoek are one such area where many households take pride in the flocks of guinea fowl and families of francolin that visit their gardens.There are presumably some households in those areas that do not appreciate chicken-like birds pecking and scratching in the flowerbeds.There must also be gardeners who have neither idea nor a care that a pesticide used for a tiny aphid, fly or ant might cause illness or death to something as large as a guinea fowl.Just this month a number of poisoned guinea fowl managed to get to the water-edge at Avis Dam.Without predators and with the availability of water these birds may have survived.However, Avis Dam hosts a range of dogs every day, some of which chase birds as part of their fun-filled outing.A bird ill from poison intake will not have the ability or speed to flee and so a number of poisoned guinea fowl at the dam were caught and killed by dogs.At least one of the killed birds was given to the unsuspecting security guards at the dam.Other dead birds were taken to the toxicology department at the State Veterinary Laboratories, Directorate of Veterinary Services.These carcasses tested positive for organophosphate, the active ingredient in a number of pesticides commonly implicated in wildlife poisoning.If the security guards had become ill the response to the guinea fowl event might have been different.Luckily, the guards were probably at least the third down the chain (insect – guinea fowl – human) of poison intake and they suffered no obvious effects.For the guinea fowl and other wildlife action would best be taken by the manufacturers and retailers of toxic products.But, that is not how the commercial world operates.So the responsibility lands with the end-users, you and me, to take greater care if we want nature as we know it to survive.Liz Komen WindhoekPoisoned birds are often found close to water, presumably because the victim of poison feels ill, feverish and therefore thirsty.When birds of prey are found they create a newsworthy item because of their size, their endangered or rare status and the outrage that many people feel at such waste of life.The farmers that use poisons in a way that affects non-targeted wildlife are labelled as irresponsible.There are, however, other wildlife poisoning events that mostly go unreported and the perpetrators of these events are possibly quite unaware of the illness and death that they cause.These poisoning events affect the garden creatures that annually fall victim to the sprays, pellets and powders used by many gardeners in urban areas.Urban wildlife poisoning events are usually linked to summer rainfall, when an increase in enthusiasm and interest in gardening coupled with increases in insect populations spells doom for pests and non-pests alike.The non-targeted birds, frogs, lizards, chameleons, bats and others are small creatures that become ill or die from a garden pesticide will seldom make a newsworthy story, most will never be found.As urban areas expand, most wildlife flees to safe distances.But in some urban developments there is both potential and pride in attracting some large wildlife to visit the garden.The eastern suburbs of Windhoek are one such area where many households take pride in the flocks of guinea fowl and families of francolin that visit their gardens.There are presumably some households in those areas that do not appreciate chicken-like birds pecking and scratching in the flowerbeds.There must also be gardeners who have neither idea nor a care that a pesticide used for a tiny aphid, fly or ant might cause illness or death to something as large as a guinea fowl. Just this month a number of poisoned guinea fowl managed to get to the water-edge at Avis Dam.Without predators and with the availability of water these birds may have survived.However, Avis Dam hosts a range of dogs every day, some of which chase birds as part of their fun-filled outing.A bird ill from poison intake will not have the ability or speed to flee and so a number of poisoned guinea fowl at the dam were caught and killed by dogs.At least one of the killed birds was given to the unsuspecting security guards at the dam.Other dead birds were taken to the toxicology department at the State Veterinary Laboratories, Directorate of Veterinary Services.These carcasses tested positive for organophosphate, the active ingredient in a number of pesticides commonly implicated in wildlife poisoning.If the security guards had become ill the response to the guinea fowl event might have been different.Luckily, the guards were probably at least the third down the chain (insect – guinea fowl – human) of poison intake and they suffered no obvious effects.For the guinea fowl and other wildlife action would best be taken by the manufacturers and retailers of toxic products.But, that is not how the commercial world operates.So the responsibility lands with the end-users, you and me, to take greater care if we want nature as we know it to survive.Liz Komen Windhoek