Poisoning affected one-third
of waterbirds sampled and killed one in ten of those found dead
October 2012. Post-mortem
results of thousands of UK
waterbirds reveal that poisoning from spent lead shot is still a major cause of
death more than ten years after legislation was introduced to reduce the
threat.
The analysis is published
alongside the results of blood samples taken from live waterbirds caught in Britain within
the last two years, which show that more than one in three of the birds sampled
were affected by lead poisoning.
Lead is toxic and most uses
of lead have systematically been phased out over the last three decades.
However lead remains the most common material for shot in the UK. Waterbirds
eat spent lead shot when feeding and taking in grit to help grind food in their
gizzards. As the lead is absorbed into their bodies, it affects virtually every
system. For example, it paralyses stomach muscles, causing food to become
packed into the intestine, and birds can die of starvation.
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