Rare birds ‘at risk of poisoning from eating lead shot’

Warning by expert panel says up to 400,000 wildfowl a year may suffer lead poisoning

James Tapper

Sun 27 May 2018 08.00 BST

Several rare bird species, including a breed of red-headed duck listed as “vulnerable”, are under threat from lead poisoning linked to shooting, a new report says.

Numbers of common pochard, a duck species at risk of global extinction, have fallen substantially over the past 30 years, a decline partly attributed to the fact that they eat some of the 5,000 tonnes of lead pellets discarded in the countryside by people shooting game, according to the Lead Ammunition Group (LAG).

Other species affected by lead poisoning include the grey partridge, which is also on the RSPB’s “red list” of threatened species, as well as the golden eagle, common buzzard and red kite, the LAG says.

The warning comes in a major new report by the LAG, an expert panel set up by the government in 2010, which says up to 400,000 wildfowl a year may suffer from lead poisoning, causing up to 100,000 deaths. Recent research cited in the report shows that lead can be toxic at lower levels than previously thought.

More than 600,000 people go shooting in the UK each year, part of an industry worth about £2bn. They typically use lead shot to hunt birds, a practice known as wildfowling. The shot scatters when it leaves the gun barrel, and a large proportion falls to the ground. Birds eat the lead shot, mistaking it for the gravel their gizzards need to digest food.

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Buzzards found in Herefordshire with lead shot in their bodies

A WILDLIFE rescue worker has raised concerns about the number of birds of prey which have been shot with lead pellets.

Sasha Norris, of Herefordshire Wildlife Rescue, has seen three buzzards within the past four months which have had lead pellets in their bodies.

As it is against the law to shoot any bird of prey, Herefordshire Wildlife Rescue is now working with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), the police and Herefordshire Wildlife Trust to investigate the illegal shooting of birds of prey in Herefordshire.

The three birds were all found in different parts of the county- Mordiford, Honeymoor Common, and near Leominster.

Dr Norris said: "My view is that those who feel birds of prey threaten their livelihood need to take a look at the figures.

"There are around 40,000 pairs of buzzard in the UK. There are 70million people.

"The truth is that people are winning the game of life and it's the intelligent and compassionate thing to do obey the law and take care of wild animals."

The last buzzard she collected was sat in a strange posture, so she asked for an x-ray to be carried out, which revealed the bird had been shot and had a broken back. Sadly the buzzard had to be euthanised.

Dr Norris said: "We have seen numerous suspect and some proven incidents with wild birds of prey which have been shot or possibly poisoned."

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Waterfowl Poisoning Halved by Lead Shot Prohibition in Spain

Jan. 16, 2014 — The pollution of waterfowl meat and their poisoning by lead shot has dropped by 50% since this type of munitions was prohibited in wetlands in 2001. This is one of the data in a report from the Hunting Resources Research Institute, which also states that the hunters' compliance with this mandate has been very high.

The pollution of waterfowl meat and their poisoning by lead shot has dropped by 50% since this type of munitions was prohibited in wetlands in 2001. This is one of the data in a report from the Hunting Resources Research Institute, which also states that the hunters' compliance with this mandate has been very high.

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Lead gunshot still killing many British birds despite restrictions

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.

Continued:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/lead-poison-uk.html