Mass intentional (?) lead poisoning of swans - any thoughts?

[philocalist]

Not being at all flippant here, but it occasionally occurs to me that active members on this forum frequently seem to have a more in-depth, balanced view of things, I suspect largely brought about experiences over many years, rather than via what they are told on Google

 

Long story short, there is a major problem locally with the swan population dying off very dramatically since Christmas, the culprit being lead poisoning, apparently via lead dust, though ducks and fish are unaffected.

In the absence of an alternative explanation, the belief is that this is likely intentional poisoning, though I'm at a loss how people might be targeting the swans specifically at this location without it also harming the large duck presence there, not to mention the fish ... I'm just wondering whether someone on-site may have come across anything like this before over the years and have an explanation?

 

Linky here:

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-31709334

Edited March 3, 2015 by philocalist

[Chris Plumb]

Very strange aint it? Least anglers aren't getting the blame...(yet!)

 

C.

[Phone]

philo,

 

Let me pass the blame to anglers (17%) in the US.

 

Of all the waterfowl swans are the most sensitive to "heavy metals". It makes perfect sense the swans will go first. And since that is the case it is very easy to target just swans. I doubt if that is the case but it is quite possible in 8 - 10 day cycles with cleating agents. No doubt there is plenty of lead already in the area.

 

Phone

[philocalist]

Hmmm ... local authorites and the EA seem to be stumped as to the cause, though they have ruled out the presence of anything resembling shot etc within dead autopsied birds, and the only 'theory' they are currently bandying about is that someone may be doping bread with lead dust and feeding it to the swans.

The location in question is a very popular section of riverbank in a park, almost directly adjacent to a kiddies play area, and immediately downstream of a small weir - the place is typically mobbed with not only swans, but many types of geese and ducks too, primarliy because it is the local feeding spot for anyone wishing to throw bread at them, and it's been going on for years.

Water quality test are apparently giving up nothing (though the weir is in effect the extreme upstream end of tidal water, though the 'official' tidal marker is a couple of miles downstream). Coincidentally, a stream enters the main river at this location, after passing through a golf course, but as said before, no indications of issues with water contamination.

The problem DOES appear to be very local too - downstream just a few miles is a large wildfowl centre with it's own swan population, as yet unaffected, so localised poisoning would sem to be indicated, deliberate or otherwise.

[Ken L]

Very strange.

I blame Rolf Harris for all of those programs that pointed out how sensitive these birds are to lead at every possible opportunity.

Anyone with an axe to grind knew exactly how to kill them.

[terry t shirt]

If it is just swans and not ducks as well it would suggest that either the toxin is to high up for the ducks to reach. Or its somewhere away from the waters edge the swans have been grazing but the ducks haven't

[Steve Walker]

Some weirdo. Wonder if they're trying to get anglers blamed?

[philocalist]

If it is just swans and not ducks as well it would suggest that either the toxin is to high up for the ducks to reach. Or its somewhere away from the waters edge the swans have been grazing but the ducks haven't

 

Hmmm ... I guess that could also apply to the fact that swans in that area are grazing off underwater weed etc that the ducks cannot access, though I would have thought that environmental factors have been pretty much eliminated at this stage, hopefully?

[philocalist]

Some weirdo. Wonder if they're trying to get anglers blamed?

 

Very doubtful in this specific area as angling is banned within the locality of the weir anyway (which includes pretty much all over the main area in which the swans normally congregate), and I've literally NEVER seen this rule flouted - it would be an absolute impossiblity anyway due to the density of resident wildfowl there (though the ban has nothing to do with the birds). Any adjacent angling - which is almost non-existant - is a couple of hundred metres downstream - it's a little-fished stretch almost exclusively used by fly-fishermen, and even then that area of interest begins maybe three quarters of a mile further downstream.

[Phone]

philo,

 

The article doesn't say. You do reckon a duck or two have been harvested and autopsied don't you? The agent that activates heavy metal poisoning does not even have to be more lead - mold on bread could weaken swans and of course lead is present in the autopsy. Among other things, swans dig deeper into the bottom than other birds. Lead, this lead, could be from war time.

 

Phone