LEAD POISONING, AVIAN - CANADA (02): (NOVA SCOTIA), EAGLES, COMMENT
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Date: Mon 9 Jan 2012
Source: Patrick Redig <redig001@umn.edu> [edited]
I'm writing to provide a broader perspective to the issue of lead poisoning in eagles.
Our organization, The Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota, has been documenting and treating clinical cases of lead poisoning in eagles since the mid-1970's. Of the 120 or so eagles admitted every year for a wide variety of causes from 1974 to the present, some 25-30 were presented annually for acute lead poisoning; most of these eagles are beyond treatment and were euthanized.
In addition, every eagle admitted, regardless of cause, is tested for lead, and over 90 percent have elevated lead residues in their blood during the hunting seasons. Clearly, eagles are exposed to a significant amount of lead.
Extensive epidemiological monitoring and clinical evaluation (blood lead levels, radiographs, necropsies) of this phenomenon show that the source of lead is spent ammunition, especially fragments from high velocity rifle bullets and, to a lesser degree, shotgun slug fragments, buried in white-tailed deer residues, gutpiles, and un-recovered carcasses.
As the annual poisoning event occurs from mid-November through March, a time when most waterfowl have left the shallow ponds where accumulated lead shot is available in the sediments, it is also quite certain that poisoning of eagles is not related to accumulated lead residues in waterfowl carcasses.
Deer hair is frequently found in the stomachs of poisoned eagles.
Beyond the relationship with deer, lead poisoning of eagles is also associated with consumption of upland game shot with lead shotgun pellets -- pheasants, rabbits, squirrels and so on -- that are not retrieved.
The writer is correct that this problem could be eliminated or mitigated if the hunting community, along with arms and ammunition manufacturers, would collectively choose to use non-toxic ammunition for all forms of hunting, as has been done for waterfowl since 1991, or otherwise bury or remove residues, especially gutpiles, from the field. Alternative munitions are available, and though more expensive, the additional cost pales by comparison to what hunters spend on all other sorts of gear and gadgetry that is taken afield.
It really comes down to a question of our values and attitudes toward wildlife and how we humans conduct our affairs with regard to their well-being.
--
Patrick T. Redig DVM, PhD
Professor
Emeritus Director and Founder
The Raptor Center
University of Minnesota
[We thank Dr. Redig for his valuable comments.
Pigeons are other upland species that are heavily hunted using lead ammo in other parts of the world. - Mod.PMB
A HealthMap/ProMED-mail map can be accessed at:
<http://healthmap.org/r/1AMf>]
[see also:
Lead poisoning, avian - Canada: (NS) eagles 20120106.1001689
2011
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Lead poisoning, avian - USA: (WA) trumpeter swan 20110204.0405] .................................................pmb/msp/dk/ll
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