The impregnated blocks are far too expensive for large scale rodent control. I think they work out at about 40 cents a bait even when buying in 20 litre drums. Likewise the spreading of poisoned grain around paddocks is too expensive to be economical. Further after the harvest sheep and cattle are usually put into the paddock to eat the stubble and the fallen grain. Unless it has been recently changed, the poison is in a tin and mixed with rubbish grain in a bucket and put where stock, especially sheep, the domestic pets and poultry don’t access it, such as in sheds. The problem is that the poisoned mice usually head for the open to die. The was a suggestion that some poisons make the rodents seek water. This is where the secondary poisoning occurs with raptors feeding on dead mice. It also begs the question of with so many live mice moving to attract raptors, would they ignore these to seek dead rodents, and if so, to what extent?
The deliberate poisoning of birds by mixing certain stock drenches with grain and feeding parrots and cockatoos around open grain dumps is a different matter. It is not a wide spread practice but there are occasionally whispers that it has happened.
Warren Thompson
Levenstrath
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Comments
One response to “Mice and poisons”
Hi Warren
I expect birds will still be being poisoned in the way you describe. The anti-corella and galah feeling around Wilmington in SA where I live is high. People don’t seem to like any other living thing which disturbs them in some way. Only a few years ago(not sure what is happening now) corellas and galahs were being poisoned around silos in SA.
in terms of mice poison killing birds and your question about why are they going for dead mice when there are plenty of live mice to get, maybe they are eating the mice while they are still moving. I have seen mice running and haemorrhaging at the same time back when I use to use the poison. Around our house i see grey backed butcherbird and magpies eating mice. Gary
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