KEY POINTS:
A poisoner left 80 ducks, swans, geese and other birds dead or dying after placing grain laced with a pest control toxin at Western Springs Reserve.
More than 30 birds have died after eating the contaminated grain near the Auckland Zoo. Four more overnight - two pigeons and
two ducks - but 46 survivors have responded well to treatment and will be returned to the park today.
Last night, a nanny told of her horror on finding more than 30 there struggling for life.
A 4kg box of grain, laced with what appeared to be alpha-chloralose, was found at the reserve, said the Auckland Regional Council.
The grain appeared to have been scattered from the picturesque lake to Great North Rd, which borders the popular reserve. Police and the ARC are investigating.
Sick birds are being treated by bird rescuer Lyn MacDonald in Henderson.
The ARC said the poisoning was survivable depending on the dose. The toxin was not harmful to humans, other large mammals or fish.
Sophia Shine, who stumbled across the scene, said there were "seagulls, geese, pukeko and little sparrows all falling over and dying. It was weird and just shocking."
The 18-year-old nanny said she first noticed a dead pigeon lying in the grass at the park as she was feeding the ducks.
"Then I turned around and saw three dead geese and thought, 'That's strange'."
Ms Shine said what followed was like something out of a horror movie.
"It looked like their legs were broken and all of these birds were sitting there going around in circles before flipping over and dying.
"Their eyes were totally white and the noises they were making were horrible."
The experience also gave 3-year-old Summer Fox, who was in Ms Shine's care, a huge fright.
"She jumped into my arms and stayed there for about two hours. She knew what was going on but couldn't understand it."
Auckland City Council parks officer Graham Marchant said a pile of grain laced with alpha-chloralose was found in the reserve not far from Great North Rd and staff found a 4kg carton of the poison in a nearby rubbish tin.
The Fire Service and police were called to the scene.
Auckland Zoo vet John Potter said the poison worked by lowering the birds' body temperature.
"The treatment really is to put them in a warm place and ... keep them warm until the poison eliminates itself, which takes a few hours," he said.
About 50 birds were taken to Ms MacDonald's house in Henderson.
"We've got birds all through the house," she said. "We are trying to keep them warm and stabilise them."
Some were sitting, some were moving and some were just lying down.
Ms MacDonald, who works as a volunteer for the SPCA's Bird Wing, said: "It's a children's park. It's just not good enough. It's a really awful poison. It's available over the counter in New Zealand but is banned in England."
She rated the birds' chance of survival as "fairly good", but said a lot would depend on how they coped through the night.
"We are trying to get some activated charcoal tablets, which will help carry the poison out of the body."
Dr Potter said humans and other animals were unlikely to get sick if they came into contact with the toxin.
"Mammals would have to consume a lot of wheat directly to get the poison," he said, "or even eat several birds to be affected."
- Additional reporting Elizabeth Binning
