By Helen BriggsBBC News
28 November 2017
The red kite has become more common in the past 30 years in
the UK, thanks to conservation schemes.
But, while numbers of the birds of prey are on the rise,
scientists say human factors threaten to derail progress.
Post-mortem tests on wild red kites show many have been
poisoned by lead shot, rat poison or pesticides.
The study, published in the European Journal of Wildlife
Research, suggests poisoning of red kites may be slowing their rate of recovery
in England.
Dr Jenny Jaffe of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), who
worked on the study, said birds of prey, and especially scavengers, eat animals
that contain lead shot, leading to lead poisoning.
''That can be changed by changing the shot gun cartridges to
non lead, which a lot of countries do,'' she told BBC News. ''And, there is
some legislation already in the UK, but it is very limited.''
Another threat - pesticide poisoning - is ''mostly
deliberate'', she said, caused by baiting of bird or rabbit carcasses.
''You'll find red kites that are in good body condition that
have died very suddenly and where toxicology shows that they have high levels
of pesticides,'' said Dr Jaffe.
''It might not per se be focussed on red kites specifically,
but the people who put out these poisons are focussed on killing predators of
their, for example, game birds or livestock.''
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