Shooting Times & Country Magazine
Warnings over rodenticides
Reduce the use of rodenticides or face the risk of losing them all together: that is the stark caution from pesticide experts.
The warning follows the publication of data from the Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme (WIIS). The scheme records instances of non-target wild animals being killed by poisons intended to affect rats and mice, and the most recent data shows a steep rise in poisonings by the widely used compound brodifacoum.
Dr Alan Buckle, chairman of the Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use UK, cautioned of the potential effects for some users if the problem is not brought under control. He explained: “This could mean some user groups no longer have access to these products or that some use scenarios are no longer allowed — or possibly both.
“The recent high-profile death of a rare bird of prey, for example, was the result of one such incident, and WIIS has evidence of many more involving other raptor species.”