Buzzard chicks poisoned in Ireland

KILLED: The two poisoned buzzards

September 2011: BirdWatch Ireland volunteers working near Roscrea were horrified to discover last month that a pair of buzzard chicks, one of Ireland's most majestic birds of prey, had been poisoned at a nest site close to the Offaly and Tipperary border.

The illegal poisoning of birds of prey has become an all-too-frequent feature of the Irish countryside, and this was a particularly abhorrent incident, as live pigeons were tethered to the ground as bait, their bodies coated with poison and their wings clipped to prevent any chance of escape.

Disturbingly common practice
Despite recent attempts to tackle such cruel and pointless poisonings, they still remain disturbingly common throughout the Irish countryside. Birds of prey are particularly susceptible, and the efforts being made by BirdWatch Ireland and other groups to protect them are being compromised by those who continue to use illegal poison baits. These incidents have also attracted much international media attention, and are not only damaging our environment but also Ireland's reputation as a ‘green and wildlife-friendly nation'.

In recent years, poison baits have been responsible for the excruciating deaths of numerous buzzards, peregrines, red kites, golden and white-tailed eagles, as well as a range of other wild bird and mammal species.

In October 2010, after much campaigning by BirdWatch Ireland and the Golden Eagle Trust, new laws were introduced making it illegal to use any poison to kill birds or animals, with the exception of rats and mice. More recently, a poisoning surveillance scheme was launched through the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to monitor the threat of poisons to birds of prey and also to increase efforts to bring the offenders to justice.

Pigeon bait was smothered in poison
In early spring this year, two young local volunteers with BirdWatch Ireland's Raptor Conservation Project located the buzzard nest near Roscrea. They visited frequently to check on the birds' progress throughout the summer, and by July were delighted to note that the chicks were well developed and had started taking their first flights from the nest.

The farmer who owns the land had been aware of buzzards in the area for the past three years and was very much looking forward to seeing the chicks take flight. However, early one Sunday morning, he noticed the adults calling repeatedly in distress and rang the local volunteers.

CRUEL: The buzzards were lured in by the live pigeons

When they arrived, they found three live pigeons beside the nest which were tethered to the ground and had their wings clipped so they couldn't escape; the pigeons were also covered with a black substance. Beside the partially consumed carcass of a third pigeon lay two of the juvenile buzzards, which had died instantly after feeding on it.

It was sickening to see them killed like that
One of the volunteers said: ‘We couldn't believe someone had poisoned the chicks. We had been watching them all summer and it was sickening to see them killed like that for no reason.'

The farmer was equally enraged: ‘These birds have been around for at least the last three years and have done nobody any harm, and they have not caused me or any of the other farmers in the area any problems whatsoever. I gave nobody permission to come on my land and lay down poison, and whoever did so was trespassing.'

The volunteers informed BirdWatch Ireland staff, and the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the Gardaí were then notified and visited the site to record evidence. All carcasses and potential poisonous substances were collected by the National Parks and Wildlife Service and sent for testing under the new poisoning surveillance scheme. The tests subsequently revealed the substance to be carbofuran, a lethal and fast acting poison that is illegal under Irish law.

Buzzards were deliberately targetted
John Lusby, raptor conservation officer with BirdWatch Ireland, commented: ‘This is incredibly frustrating and disheartening.

‘We have witnessed many poisonings of birds of prey, but this incident is particularly gruesome and was obviously meticulously planned to do as much damage to the nesting buzzards as possible. Carbofuran is a lethal substance, and in addition to the intended targets, the buzzards, it would have also killed anything else that came into contact with it, including pets and even children.'

Alan Lauder, BirdWatch Ireland's chief executive, noted: ‘This was a very deliberate targeting of a locally well-known buzzard nest and a particularly cruel way of using hand-reared pigeons as live bait in order to poison the birds. Apart from being illegal, the laying of poison in the countryside to target any type of wildlife should no longer be tolerated in Ireland today.'

But the buzzards were not to be the poisoner's only victims. The following morning, both volunteers went back to the site to check on the sole surviving buzzard chick and were horrified to discover that another bird of prey had been poisoned. This time the casualty was a sparrowhawk, a bird of prey which feeds predominantly on small birds.

This case is currently being investigated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service in conjunction with the Gardaí. Anyone with information should contact the National Parks and Wildlife Service or Birr Garda station.