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Location
Corpus Christi, TX
Start Date
9-4-2007 12:00 AM
Description
Rodenticide use poses significant exposure risks for children and poisoning risks for native wild birds and mammals in the United States. Poison Control Center reports document 15,000 calls annually identifying household rat poison ingestion, with 88% of cases for children under age six. Wildlife poisonings from ingestion of baits or treated grain may occur whenever birds or mammals have access to the products. This is especially true for broadcast baits and treated grain used above ground in agricultural settings, or when baits are distributed around structures or outside waste containers. Secondary poisoning of predators and scavengers occurs when target rodents are moribund or die above ground in locations accessible to predatory birds or mammals. Secondary poisoning risks appear to be highest for the "second generation" anticoagulant rodenticides, because rodents consume them in super-lethal doses in multiple feedings during the 4-6 days required for these poisons to kill the target rodents. These anticoagulants persist for long periods in tissues of scavengers and predators, increasing the risk of adverse effects from subsequent feedings on poisoned rodents. The risk of both human and wildlife poisonings can be greatly reduced by packaging rodenticides in bait stations and restricting the use of second generation products to licensed pest control operators.
Recommended Citation
Fry, M. (2007). Reducing rodenticide hazards to humans and wildlife: The need for use regulations. In Nolte, D.L., Arjo, W.M., & Stalman, D. (Eds.), The Twelfth Wildlife Damage Management Conference (119-126). Corpus Christi, TX: National Wildlife Research Center.
Included in
Reducing Rodenticide Hazards to Humans and Wildlife: The Need For Use Regulations
Corpus Christi, TX
Rodenticide use poses significant exposure risks for children and poisoning risks for native wild birds and mammals in the United States. Poison Control Center reports document 15,000 calls annually identifying household rat poison ingestion, with 88% of cases for children under age six. Wildlife poisonings from ingestion of baits or treated grain may occur whenever birds or mammals have access to the products. This is especially true for broadcast baits and treated grain used above ground in agricultural settings, or when baits are distributed around structures or outside waste containers. Secondary poisoning of predators and scavengers occurs when target rodents are moribund or die above ground in locations accessible to predatory birds or mammals. Secondary poisoning risks appear to be highest for the "second generation" anticoagulant rodenticides, because rodents consume them in super-lethal doses in multiple feedings during the 4-6 days required for these poisons to kill the target rodents. These anticoagulants persist for long periods in tissues of scavengers and predators, increasing the risk of adverse effects from subsequent feedings on poisoned rodents. The risk of both human and wildlife poisonings can be greatly reduced by packaging rodenticides in bait stations and restricting the use of second generation products to licensed pest control operators.