Tuesday, March 17, 2009

The birds are dead in Pirongia


We were filming the last bits for the doco at Pirongia (west Hamilton), yesterday.

Incidently, the DoC has dropped 1080 there three times over the last 10 years. There has been research done on Pirongia poisoning, and it says that each time they have dropped, they have recorded lower bird numbers.

Well, it was the first time I have been in the bush there - and it was revealing. There are birds on the fringes, as is the case in all areas - the birds like the fringes, and there is less poison on the edges.

But head into the bush, and apart from seeing one pigeon, we saw no other birds. We did hear a couple of grey warblers, and one fantail, in the distance. It was a beautiful day, and we were in there for six hours. What a disaster! Their bloody toxins!

The Department of Conservation and Forest and Bird say that there are initial losses of birds after poisoning but the numbers increase rapidly once the predators have been killed off.

But doesn't ten years of poisoning in Pirongia prove them wrong?

1 comment:

  1. For every bird killed by poisong, vastly more die painful, and by your definitions, cruel and inhumain deaths by exotic predators. You idiots never seems to grasp that simple concept.

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