Bird poison: Angry local suspected

Whangarei Native Bird Recovery Centre

A resident in the Kensington area upset over neighbours feeding birds could be responsible for the deliberate poisoning of birds that are dropping dead in the suburb, a bird expert says.

Robert Webb, from the Whangarei Native Bird Recovery Centre, said Kensington residents had reported finding a number of birds - including blackbirds, sparrows and thrushes - which were either dead, dying or having seizures in their yards in the past two weeks.

He suspected the birds had eaten poison wheat - also known as Alphachloralose. Mr Webb said the suburb's elderly residents enjoyed feeding the birds and he believed somebody annoyed at this was intentionally feeding the birds poison.

"Somebody is poisoning the birds. I suspect there's some old bugger who hates birds and is killing them," he said.

Mr Webb said he had collected about eight birds from the same area in the last week and managed to save five. At least six more birds are believed to have been found dead in the area last week. Mr Webb said the poison, usually used to protect crops and gardens, caused birds to convulse and die unless they are kept warm.

The poison works by lowering the birds' body temperature and causing them to lose consciousness so, in ideal situations, they can be moved and killed humanely later. But in uncontrolled circumstances they usually die where they fall.

"You can tell because they flap on their back, convulsing a lot and thrashing around - you can only imagine what it's like for the elderly people seeing that because they can't bend down and pick them up."

Kensington resident Barbara Faithfull said she found one bird dead in her driveway and her neighbour had found seven or eight.

She said it was horrible watching the birds convulse.

"Well, it was not pleasant. We were in a dilemma, we were thinking about getting water and putting it out of its misery," she said.

Mr Webb acknowledged Alphachloralose had a purpose but said there needed to be tighter controls around its sale.

"The thing that annoys me is that anyone can buy it. There is a time and a place for it, I know that, but you should have to list your contact details upon purchase."

Mr Webb said if another animal ate one of the poisoned birds it was possible it might be poisoned too. He said it was not the first time several birds had been killed by the poison.

"About three years ago there was a chap who was laying new grass and he put this poison down to stop the birds eating the seeds and hundreds of birds were dying."