Rat poison kills birds, partial ban

This video is about a kestrel nest on a balcony in Poland.

Translated from Vroege Vogels radio in the Netherlands today:

Vermin fighters may no longer use mouse and rat poison anymore in the open air from early this year on. That was decided by the board for the authorization of plant protection products and biocides (Ctgb). The main reason for the partial ban of these rodenticides is that many mice and rats have become immune to the poison. It is also to reduce the risk of other animals being exposed to the substances.

Research by ecotoxicologist Nico van den Brink of Alterra research institute in Wageningen shows that a large part of our raptors get rat poison in their food. The chance of barn owls and kestrels dying from this is plausible.

Rodenticides are not completely prohibited. Inside buildings they may still be used. Also, the Ctgb offers the possibility to obtain an authorization under strict conditions for outdoor use.

Conservationists are working to find treatments for six avian plagues that can cause mass casualties: here.