Wildlife Poisoning: Intentional and Accidental Threats

Wildlife poisoning — from illegal baits, pesticides and lead ammunition — kills millions of animals annually and causes prolonged suffering. Prevention requires legal action and public engagement.

Key Facts

Lead poisoning from spent ammunition kills an estimated 1-2 million birds annually in North America
Illegal secondary poisoning of raptors and carnivores persists across Europe and Africa
Carbofuran, banned in the EU and USA, remains widely used as wildlife poison in parts of Africa
Vulture poisonings in Africa have caused population declines of over 60% in some species
Rodenticide use kills owls, kestrels and foxes through secondary poisoning of prey animals
Anticoagulant rodenticides have been found in over 90% of barn owls tested in UK surveys
Lead-free ammunition is effective and available but voluntary uptake remains slow

Welfare Considerations

Wildlife poisoning causes deaths that are rarely instantaneous — lead poisoning leads to progressive neurological failure over days, anticoagulants cause internal bleeding, and organophosphates produce convulsions. The welfare dimensions are severe and often invisible, since affected animals retreat before dying. Conservation impacts compound the welfare harms, particularly for long-lived species like vultures and eagles with slow reproduction. Addressing the problem requires multiple levers: enforcing existing bans, mandating lead-free ammunition in hunting, restricting second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides, and prosecuting illegal poisoning. Public reporting systems for suspected poisoning incidents have proven valuable in generating enforcement data.

What You Can Do

If hunting, switch to copper or bismuth non-lead ammunition
Use rodent control methods that minimise secondary poisoning risk to raptors and carnivores
Report suspected wildlife poisoning incidents to wildlife crime units
Support campaigns by RSPB, Raptor Persecution UK and similar organisations