Manx hen harrier 'Mary' poisoned by laced bait and found dead in Eire

Friday, 7 February 2020 - Environment


Hen Harrier Mary as a nestling (RSPB and Manx BirdLife)

A hen harrier born in the Isle of Man in the summer of 2019, has been found dead beside baits laced with poison in the Republic of Ireland.

Mary was part of the satellite-tagging project led by RSPB’s Hen Harrier LIFE+ Project team which is coordinated in the island by Manx Birdlife and the Manx Ringing Group (MRG).

Tags attached to the birds enable their whereabouts to be tracked, providing insights to the behaviour and population dynamics of the persecuted birds of prey.

After fledging last year, Mary spent a few weeks exploring the island, flying to and from the Calf of Man where she was pictured by warden Aron Sapsford, at the end of August.

By the end of October, satellite data revealed she had flown from the Isle of Man across the Irish Sea to Eire.

Sadly, soon afterwards on November 2, Mary’s satellite tag indicated that she had died.

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Over 500 Rare Vultures Die After Eating Poisoned Elephants In Botswana

A total of 537 vultures, along with two tawny eagles, were found dead at the site in the north of the African country.

World | Agence France-Presse | Updated: June 21, 2019 08:25 IST

GABORONE, BOTSWANA: 

More than 500 endangered vultures died of poisoning after eating the carcasses of three elephants killed by poachers in Botswana, the government said in a statement.

A total of 537 vultures, along with two tawny eagles, were found dead at the site in the north of the African country.

The Botswanan wildlife and national parks department did not say when the dead vultures had been found or why the three elephants were laced with poison after being killed.

But poachers are known to poison carcasses to target vultures as the birds circle in the sky and help rangers to track poaching activity.

Most of the birds, 468 of them, were white-backed vultures, which are classified as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list of threatened species.

Also among the dead were 17 white-headed vultures and 28 hooded vultures -- also critically endangered.

"The poisoning was believed to have been caused by lacing of three poached elephant carcasses with a poisonous chemical," the wildlife department said.

Teams decontaminated the area and samples were taken for laboratory analysis.

Conservationists last week warned of surging elephant poaching in parts of Botswana and estimated nearly 400 were killed for their ivory tusks in 2017 and 2018.

The country recently sparked controversy by lifting its ban on hunting, saying it would help control a booming elephant population that was damaging farmers' livelihoods.

In 2016, two lions and over 100 vultures in South Africa's Kruger National Park died after eating a poisoned elephant carcass.

Source

Bird of prey 'killed by poisoned bait'

2nd May

Simon Walton

A RED kite found in the North Yorkshire countryside was killed by poison bait, it has been confirmed.

The bird of prey was found just outside Ferrensby between Knaresborough and Boroughbridge in December. Tests have now confirmed high levels of chloralose, a pesticide, in its kidney - meaning it is likely the bird ate bait laced with the poison.

Sergeant Kevin Kelly, of North Yorkshire Police’s Rural Taskforce, said: "North Yorkshire’s wonderful countryside is host to many specially-protected birds of prey, including red kites. It is completely unacceptable that people think they can ignore the law and subject these birds to poisonings and other forms of persecution without consequence."

“Like other forms of rural crime, raptor persecution is not a problem that the police can tackle alone. If everyone keeps their eyes open for illegal traps and poisoned bait, it will be a massive boost to our surveillance operation."

The bird would have succumbed within a few minutes of eating the poison, but could have carried the bait some distance before eating it so the location it found the carcase is unknown.

Read on  

11 vultures of rare species found dead in Nawalparasi

Could have fed on poisonous carcass

Added At: 2014-02-01 10:29 PM

Last Updated At: 2014-02-01 10:29 PM

HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE

NAWALPARASI: Eleven vultures of critically endangered species were found dead near a ‘vulture restaurant’ in Nawalparasi yesterday, stoking suspicion if the carcass of a jackal they fed on was poisonous. 

Dead birds were found at Surya Basti in Ram Nagar near Jatayu (vulture) Restaurant established about seven years ago as places where birds could feed on safe carcasses. According to Dipesh Sigdel, a local, the dun-coloured birds were strewn dead all over the fields on both sides of the east-west highway in Ram Nagar. Locals also found a jackal carcass nearby. 

“It seems the jackal had died after it ate poison that is used to kill dogs, and the vultures died after feeding on the poisonous carcass,” said Dilli Chaudhary, chairperson of Happy Flights Group of Tilakpur. “This is the first time birds in such a great number have died at once since nine deaths last year about this time at Makar VDC.”

Bishwojyoti Nepal in Panch Nagar, Jatayu Restaurant in Pithauli and Happy Flights Group in Tilakpur have been working for the last few years to save rare birds in Nawalparasi. 

According to an association working in the field of protecting rare birds, there are around 300 vultures of eight different species in the district. 

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