A review of the Department of Conservation’s (DoC’s) consultation with Māori on the aerial use of 1080 poison. Most Māori participants felt uncomfortable with the use of poisons in the environment, protecting the forest biodiversity, while the poison was contradictory to fundamental Māori beliefs.
Kea have been in the news again, with TV1 viewers on Wednesday night (9/2/22) treated to the story that tradespeople are sought to help in kea habitat, replacing lead in rooves. This follows last October’s worrying Stuff News headline: “This Is How It Ends: As old as the Southern Alps, kea are on the edge of extinction” (Vance, 2021).
1 August 2019
Mr Mike Slater
Deputy Director-General (Operations)
Department of Conservation
Conservation House
P.O. Box 10420
Wellington 6143
Dear Mr Slater
Re: Poisoning of Arthurs Pass National Park
You have given consent for the business “Vector Control Services” to aerially poison Arthurs Pass National Park, including places that have not been poisoned before, primarily to control rats in order to protect kakariki.
Your department’s most recent monitoring indicates that according to its own target, no poisoning is necessary.
Furthermore the consent application (supplied by OIA request 20/06/19) gave you no substance upon which to base your decision. It failed to reference any of its claims of benefit. It also failed to discuss relevant risks and unknowns (e.g. 1080 persistence in cold water) and known adverse effects such as sub-lethal damage (e.g. birth defects, reproductive damage). It ignores many relevant details regarding the ecology of the area and responses to aerial poisoning.
Because of these deficiencies, your consent breaches the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1986 (in at least Sections 5, 6, 7 and 95A (Part 3)).
Details:
Please will you confirm that you have received this letter and have considered the topics raised? I trust that given the demonstrable lack of reason, thought or legality that underlie the poisoning operation it will be cancelled and the deadly bait will be disposed of as safely as possible.
Yours sincerely
Dr Jo Pollard (BSc (Hons), PhD)
References:
Arcese, P., Smith, J.M., 1988. Effects of population density and supplemental food on reproduction in song sparrows. Journal of Animal Ecology 57: 119-136.
Beausoliel, N., Fisher, P., Warburton, B., Mellor, D., 2010. How humane are our pest control tools? (09-11326). MAF Biosecurity New Zealand Technical Paper no: 2011/01. 149 pp.
Bond, A., Diamond, J., 1992. Population estimates of Kea in Arthur’s Pass National Park. Notornis 39: 151-160.
Brown, K., Elliott, G., Innes, J. & Kemp, J., 2015. Ship rat, stoat and possum control on mainland New Zealand. An overview of techniques, successes and challenges. Department of Conservation report. 40 pp.
DoC, 2002a. Rare Bits 44, April 2002
DoC, 2002b. Rare Bits 45, June 2002
DoC, 2003. Rare Bits 49, June 2003
Eason, C., Miller, A., Ogilvie, S., Fairweather, A., 2011. An updated review of the toxicology and ecotoxicology of sodium fluoroacetate (1080) in relation to its use as a pest control tool in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 35(1): 1-20.
Elliott, G., Kemp, J., 1999. Conservation ecology of kea (Nestor notabilis). WWF-NZ Final Report 1 August 1999, 64 pp.
Elliott, G., Suggate, R. 2007. Operation Ark. Three year progress report. Department of Conservation.
ERMA, 2007. Environmental Risk Management Authority’s Reassessment of 1080, Application HRE05002.
Fairweather, A., Broome, K., Fisher, P., 2015. Sodium fluoroacetate pesticide information review. Department of Conservation Report Docdm-25427. 103 pp.
Fisher, P. & Airey, A.T., 2009. Factors affecting 1080 pellet bait acceptance by house mice
(Mus musculus). Department of Conservation DOC Research & Dev Series 305-308 Feb-March.
Griffiths, J.W., Barron, M.C., 2016. Spatiotemporal changes in relative rat (Rattus rattus) abundance following large-scale pest control. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 40(3): 371-380.
Harper, P., 2012. DOC shocked five Kea shot dead. Nestor Notabilis 6: 24.
Jackson, J.R., 1960. Keas at Arthurs Pass. Notornis IX: 39-58 .
Jackson, J.R., 1969. What do keas die of? Notornis 16: 33-44.
Kemp, J., Cunninghame, F., Barrett, B., Makan, T., Fraser, J., Mosen, C., 2015, unpublished. Effect of an aerial 1080 operation on the productivity of the kea (Nestor notabilis) in a West Coast rimu forest. Department of Conservation report. 15 pp.
Kemp, J.R., Mosen, C.C., Elliott, G.P., Hunter, C.M., 2018. Effects of the aerial application of 1080 to control pest mammals on kea reproductive success. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 42: 158-168.
King, C. & Murphy, E., 2005. Stoat. Pp. 204-221. In. C.M. King (Ed). The Handbook of New Zealand Mammals (2nd Edition). Oxford University Press, Melbourne.
Kisner, J., 2016. Man V. Rat: Could the long war soon be over?
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/sep/20/man-v-rat-war-could-the-long-war-soon-be-over
Nilsson, S.G., 1984. The evolution of nest-site selection among hole-nesting birds: The importance of nest predation and competition. Ornis Scandinavica 15: 167-175.
Northcott, G., Jensen, D., Ying, L., & Fisher, P., 2014. Degradation rate of sodium fluoroacetate in three New Zealand soils. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 33: 1048-1058.
O’Donnell, C.F.J. & Hoare, J.M., 2012. Quantifying the benefits of long-term integrated pest control for forest bird populations in a New Zealand temperate rainforest. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 36: 131-140.
Pollard. J.C., 2016. Aerial 1080 poisoning in New Zealand: Reasons for concern.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/308712508_Aerial_1080_poisoning_in_New_Ze aland_Reasons_for_concern 17 pp.
Pollard, J.C., 2017. Response to the Department of Conservation’s reply to “Aerial 1080 poisoning in New Zealand: reasons for concern”. 17 pp.
Pollard, J.C. 2019. https://1080science.co.nz/science-against-1080/
Ruscoe, W., Murphy, E., 2005. Pp 204-221. In King, C.M. (Ed.). The Handbook of New Zealand Mammals (2nd Edition). Oxford University Press, Melbourne. 610 pp.
Ruscoe, W.A., Ramsey, D.S.L., Pech, R.P., Sweetapple, P.J., Yockney, I., Barron, M.C., Perry, M., Nugent, G., Carran, R., Warne, R., Brausch, C. & Duncan, R.P., 2011. Unexpected consequences of control: Competitive vs. predator release in a four-species assemblage of invasive mammals. Ecology Letters 14: 1035-1042.
Roy, E.A., 2016. New Zealand kea, the world’s only alpine parrot, faces extinction
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/21/new-zealand-kea-the-worlds-only-alpine-parrot-faces-extinction
Ruscoe, W.A., Ramsey, D.S.L., Pech, R.P., Sweetapple, P.J., Yockney, I., Barron, M.C., Perry, M., Nugent, G., Carran, R., Warne, R., Brausch, C., Duncan, R.P. 2011. Unexpected consequences of control: Competitive vs. predator release in a four-species assemblage of invasive mammals. Ecology Letters 14: 1035-1042.
Smith, D., Jamieson, I.G., 2003. Movement, diet, and relative abundance of stoats in an alpine habitat. New Zealand Department of Conservation Science Internal Series 107, 16 pp.
Veltman, C.M., Westbrooke, I.M., Powlesland, R.G. & Greene, T.C., 2014. A principles-based decision tree for future investigations of native New Zealand birds during aerial 1080 operations. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 38: 103-109.
Whiting-O’Keefe, Q.E., Whiting O’Keefe, P.M., 2007. Aerial Monofluoroacetate in New Zealand’s Forests. An appraisal of the scientific evidence. http://1080science.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Whiting-Okeefe-2.pdf 88 pp.
You have given consent for the business “Vector Control Services” to aerially poison Arthurs Pass National Park, including places that have not been poisoned before, primarily to control rats in order to protect kakariki.
Back in the 1990s, in at least one institution, rigorous government science was alive and well.
At Invermay Agricultural Research Centre, “Lab” meetings were being held where the scientist (or trembling student) presented his or her proposed experiment: the background, hypotheses to be tested and methods. From these proposals were hammered out, with the critical input of all to be involved (particularly sharp, insightful comments were usual from some of the technical staff). Biometric approval was required to ensure the results from the research would be meaningful.
In those days any hint of a prejudicial bias seriously undermined a scientist’s credibility. His or her worth was measured by the number of publications in high quality, peer-reviewed journals.
Twenty-five years on, it seems a scientist’s selling ability matters most. Gaining funding and successfully delivering results that generate more funding is vital to career development. And since the NZ government controls the money (grants to universities, NGOs and its own departments) the government gets and selects what it wants.
Sadly, one of the things the NZ government wants and has been getting since the 1960s is widespread aerial poisoning with the broad spectrum poison 1080. The government has argued it needs to kill introduced mammals claimed to spread bovine tuberculosis (Tb) and threaten native wildlife, and widespread poisoning is the best way …
Read the full article on Scoop Sci Tech | Independent News
Reasons to be concerned about the widespread use of aerially distributed food baits containing 1080 poison (sodium monofluoroacetate) for pest control in New Zealand are evident in scientific publications and government reviews and reports.
Many hazardous properties and a lack of scientific knowledge of the effects of 1080 were described in a comprehensive report by the Environmental Risk Management Authority in 2007.
These findings are presented followed by examination of evidence of problems with aerial 1080 use:
1) Increased pest impacts following poisoning due to competitive release of rats and mice, and prey-switching by predators;
2) Reduced efficacy with repeated poisoning of rats;
3) Deaths of native birds;
4) Lack of scientific justification and monitoring of aerial 1080 use.
It is concluded that there is an urgent need to bring scientific methodology into pest management.
“Despite having a very low human health risk now, bovine TB is still regarded as an unwanted disease in New Zealand because of the negative consumer perceptions and adverse market reactions it could generate. High levels of TB would also cause significant production losses for New Zealand farmers….
“Controlling possums helps to minimise the risk of the disease spreading within the possum population and to livestock. We know if we can keep the numbers low enough for long enough over large areas, we can eventually eradicate TB…
“Currently biodegradeable 1080 is the only control method that can be applied aerially. This means it can be used for quick and effective control in hard to access areas, or large tracts of land, where ground control is impractical” – Tb free website 2014
The Animal Health Board, now called TBFree, has no rational basis for using aerial 1080 poison to kill possums.
This was highlighted when the AHB applied in 2007 to continue aerial 1080 poisoning operations, to the Environmental Risk Management Authority:
“No research is cited in the Application that studies the dollar losses occurring from the loss of one or more export markets..Clough & Nixon (2000) conclude…a trade ban would be difficult to sustain under current international trade rules, the risk is very small and the expected value of an avoided trade ban is modest…
“The Application…fails to demonstrate evidence or understanding of economic research on use of 1080, pest control or Tb…this section of the application is unsophisticated, uses crude approaches to estimate even the largest benefits and costs associated with the use of 1080, lacks awareness of many pertinent economic research techniques, seems unaware of almost all relevant economic research.” – Professor Ross Cullen, Economic Expert advising the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA), 2007
“around 3% of all human Tb cases are M. bovis…The Ministry of Health attributes these low rates to herd testing and the widespread pasteurisation of milk…
“even if bovine Tb were prevalent in cattle it would not present a real risk to human health…
”We recommend that in making its decisions, ERMA de-emphasise the importance of bovine Tb”. – NZ Health experts advising ERMA, 2007
“the applicants have provided little factual support to demonstrate efficacy of aerial compared with ground application of 1080 as it relates to possums and Tb control…
“the relative contributions of possums and other wildlife (particularly ferrets) to Tb infection of cattle and deer herds are not clearly defined at this time.” – ERMA Agency, 2007
“there is no evidence to support the suggestion that trade is significantly reduced by not having bovine Tb-free status.” – ERMA Committee, 2007
“Tuberculosis possums were clustered in “hotspots” and identification and targeting of these high prevalence areas would make control of tuberculosis in wildlife more effective” – S. Norton et al., NZ Veterinary Journal, 2005
“The disease shows remarkable spatial clustering…that can persist over extended periods of time…despite intensive possum control efforts…methods for the future may include…identification of spatial determinants of “hotspots” to allow more targeted population control” – R. Jackson, NZ Veterinary Journal, 2002
“operations to reduce possum numbers in Tb-problem areas would need to encompass at least 1 km of forest adjacent to pasture….
“Where the problem is long-standing and the incidence of Tb in possums is high at the forest/pasture margin (>10%), infection may already be present in the deep forest (Cook & Coleman, 1975), and control may be required further (1-2km) into forest.” – W. Green & J. Coleman, NZ J. Ecology, 1986
“…some deer species and ferrets may act as vectors of the disease, but their role in transmitting TB to livestock is unclear…
“Hedgehogs, pigs, cats, sheep and goats are now considered to be amplifier hosts, and spread the disease to other species only when inspected or their carcass scavenged.
“Tuberculosis has been recorded in a small number of stoats …Disease prevalences are unknown, and estimates of them are difficult, due to the rapid turnover of stoat populations and difficulty in trapping them…
“Tuberculosis has been identified in a limited number of feral goat populations, but none of them have been studied in detail.” – J. Coleman & M. Cooke, Tuberculosis, 2001
“In endemic areas, rats have ample opportunity to inhale or ingest M. Bovis bacilli during their scavenging of infected carrion, and of transmitting Tb to other species when scavenged themselves.” – J. Coleman & M. Cooke, Tuberculosis, 2001
Feral ferrets (Mustela furo) and stoats (M. Erminea) are abundant in many regions of the country and are highly susceptible to infection with M. Bovis…the disease appears to be maintained by consumption of tuberculous carrion” – R. Jackson, NZ Veterinary Journal, 2002
“The interaction between pest species is poorly understood. For example, rodent numbers sometimes increase following possum control operations, which may lead to an increase in stoat populations” – G. Nugent et al., Kararehe Kino Vertebrate Pest Research, 2008
“our analysis which showed no decrease in ferret abundance at sites that have been subject to possum control” – S. Norton et al., NZ Veterinary Journal, 2005
“pathology indicates most pigs are infected by feeding on tuberculosis carrion…
“Pigs are wide ranging and often forage in large family groups so whole-group feeding on a single carcass may often amplify the number of infected animals.” – T. Ryan et al., Veterinary Microbiology, 2006
“Twelve percent of dairy herds have 500 or more animals…High prevalence breakdowns in such herds have occurred…Movements of animals in-and-out of such herds is a plausible cause, but “stress” leading to immune dysfunction probably also contributes.”
“In terms of TB in Northland, there are currently seven herds…which have tested positive. A high level of TB infection has been found in young stock and there has been movement of infected calves traced to a farm south of Kaitaia…response by TBfree NZ has included…wildlife surveys to assess infection in wild animals such as possums and wild pigs. To date, 47 pigs and 340 possums have been sampled from the Awanui area and no TB infection has been found in wild animals…TBfree NZ are still investigating…findings so far show that dairy cattle sales and stock movements are very complex”
“Dispose of dead stock properly…don’t allow wild animals such as pigs to access open offal pits – this could result in TB transfer to wildlife”
“Infected herds by type at July 2013:..These figures represent a significant increase in infected herds in the North Island but also a small increase in the South Island.”
“Compliance: at the time of this report there are 16 cattle herds 180+ days overdue for testing. This equates to 15 per cent of the national total for overdue tests. A number of these herd owners have been in discussions with the North Island Compliance Manager as they are unable to muster their stock or they have become feral…Unregistered herds are also of concern in the Northland Region.” – N. MacMillian, Northland Regional Council Environmental Management Committee Meeting Tabled Item 30/07/2014
“Tb Free New Zealand says recent cases of the disease in two herds in the Rangitata/Orari area of South Canterbury were a West Coast strain…
This confirms that the herds have become infected from bought-in TB infected cattle…
A wildlife “survey” in the area caught 996 possums, all of which tested free of the disease.” – A. Swallow, Rural News 2013
“With animal movement, in a study of cattle and deer in the Waikato district, it was found that only 10% of cattle herds were “closed”…
“Models of this “population” suggested that the “intensity of disease surveillance” has profound effects on the ability to reduce the number of infected herds (Barlow et al., 1998). As a result, surveillance intensity was increased, and there was a rapid reduction in herd prevalence…
“Accurately identifying all infected and non-infected animals is challenging…
“With M. Bovis infection, particular problems are an extended pre-clinical period, some animals being unable to mount a normal immune response, and waning of cellular immunity after prolonged infection” – T. Ryan et al., Veterinary Microbiology, 2006
“The mode of transmission between possums and livestock is poorly understood and difficult to study. However, dominant cattle and deer have been observed to approach semi-sedated (“sick”) possums, and sniff and mouth them. – J. Coleman & M. Cooke, Tuberculosis, 2001
“Possum-to-cattle transmission is thought to occur when cattle investigate disorientated, diseased possums wandering in pastures close to their bush habitats (R.S. Morris, pers. Commun.) – N. Barlow, Trends in Microbiology, 1985
“This Council recognises the seriousness of outbreaks of tuberculosis in cattle, but urges that the enormous injection of funds into eradication programmes and the large expenditure on control programmes be matched by the provision of adequate resources for further research…
“the cumulative evidence of bird deaths is sufficiently reliable to indicate that there are significant effects on non-target organisms…
“the Council recommends that methods be developed for the disposal of unused baits and poisoned carcasses and that the Crown be bound…
“The Council recommends that the use of 1080 should not be permitted in any significant wildlife area or reserve and especially in takahe/kakapo areas, forest sanctuaries, biological reserves and national parks…
“this Council recommends that appropriate preliminary justification and thorough monitoring processes be a pre-requisite for further 1080 operations…
“control operations utilising 1080 may induce bait shyness, are only temporarily effective, and often create favourable conditions for noxious animals by reducing competition, and releasing nesting sites and feeding areas” – NZ Nature Conservation Council, 1977
Playing with these big parrots, in car parks and at ski fields, is one of the best experiences NZ has to offer animal lovers. But the kea’s home, the alpine herb fields and rainforests of southern NZ, will be poisoned by the Government very soon:
“In the South Island, 23 pest control operations, covering approximately 700,000 ha of beech forest, are planned for the coming late winter and spring” – National Pest Control Agencies 2014
Cinnamon-flavoured, cereal food pellets will be spread from the air, twice. The first time they will be just flavoured cereal. The second time, they will contain deadly 1080 poison. Kea will eat the cereal baits and die. They will also be poisoned if they drink from ponds and alpine tarns where the baits lie, or scavenge poisoned carcasses or eat the dying insects surrounding the poisonous baits. It was first recognised that the government’s poisonings were killing kea in 1963.
In 2008, government monitoring of the kea began. The monitoring showed that large numbers of kea were dying.
“A total of 150 kea were monitored and 20 keas deaths resulted from consuming 1080…It is also possible that kea deaths were not detected at the other sites due to small sample size.” – DOC Code of Practice for Aerial 1080 in Kea Habitat, 2014
At one site (North Okarito) 77% of the monitored kea died. 1080 poisoning is very cruel. It causes extreme spasms and vomiting, with suffering for many hours or days.
In 2014, the poisoned baits are to be spread
“The ‘performance standards to reduce kea deaths’ no longer include a standard to avoid sowing open areas above the tree line…
we are planning to sow 0.15% 1080 Pellets in some open alpine areas to protect rock wren” – DOC Code of Practice for Aerial 1080 in Kea Habitat, 2014
No bird repellent will be used. No repellent has been successful so far.
Each year, New Zealand aerially distributes massive quantities of acutely lethal, poison-laced foodstuffs into its wilderness ecosystems. The toxin most commonly used is sodium monofluoroacetate (compound 1080), an acutely toxic, oxygen metabolism-disrupting agent with very high toxicity to most air-breathing organisms. New Zealand ecological conservation officials claim that aerial poison operations are an essential strategy to protect vulnerable indigenous flora
and fauna from exotic mammalian pests, and that the benefits of aerial poison operations outweigh their risks.
This manuscript presents a critical review of the existing scientific literature on the non-target effects of aerial poison operations in New Zealand.
This review reveals that in this complex, multifactorial situation, the relevant science has been selectively interpreted, selectively studied, and moreover, left grossly incomplete in its scope, possibly in favour of non-environmental, short-term economic interests. Using the existing scientific information on non-target effects of aerial poison operations, a basic cost-benefit analysis employing a numerical scoring system was performed.
This cost-benefit analysis, which compared the potential costs and benefits to native species of aerial poison operations versus unchecked possum populations at their peak density, indicated that aerial poison operations have twice as many potential costs to native species as potential benefits, and that aerial poison operations were potentially twice as costly to native species as unmanaged possum populations at their peak density.
The potential for widespread poisoning of New Zealand’s large number of endemic and threatened/endangered omnivorous, insectivorous, and carnivorous bird species by the uncontrolled distribution of poison-laced food throughout an entire ecosystem is a serious issue worthy of international concern and immediate action.
For many decades New Zealand has been racked by arguments over the widespread use of aerial 1080 poison. Both sides of the argument are supported by intelligent and committed conservationists so why can’t consensus be found when both sides care deeply about the birds and the forests.
The answer lies in what the opposing parties expect the outcomes from the aerial poisoning operations to be. From the pro-poisoning side we have numerous examples put forward of the results of successful operations.
An example of this is the widespread media coverage of the results from the Tongariro Forest Sanctuary where a 45% improvement in fantail nesting success was hailed as an example of the successful use of aerial poisoning operations.
This result was honest and truthful and the pro-poisoning group, and the general public at large, had every reason to be impressed and to support continuing poisoning operations in the belief that further ecological gains could be made from more such operations.
2000 – 20.2% nesting success baseline estimated from reported results.
2001 – Widespread aerial 1080 drop.
2002 – 45% nesting success from 32 nests.
2003 – 11.76% nesting success from 62 nests.
2004 – 12.2% nesting success from 47 nests.
2005 – 16% nesting success from 32 nests.
This is a perfect example of why we have two different opinions of aerial 1080 poisoning operations.
One group, the aerial poison supporters, see the results after one year and rejoice. Those who oppose aerial poisoning operations look at the results after three years in dismay and this is why we have so much conflict.
Does it matter? – It sure does.
This operation showed clearly that although the aerial poisoning operation helped individual fantails with their nesting success in the year after the poisoning operation it did not extend to a benefit to the fantail population as a whole and this is where it matters. Any pest control operation for ecological benefit is pointless unless it translates into more birds in the population three and four and more years later.
These fantail results are not one off events, I do not have the baseline values but other examples are:-
Kiwi call frequency after an aerial 1080 operation[ii]
2001: 2.08 calls/hr.
2004: 1.4 calls/hr.
2005: 0.9 calls/hr.
2006: 0.6 calls/hr.
And again:-
Blue Duck pairs after a 2001 aerial 1080 operation [iii]
2003: 44
2004: 30
2005: 22
And more:-
Following a large aerial 1080 operation in 2001 the five-minute bird counts in 2005 showed a dramatic decline in:-
tomtit (down 77%)
fantail (down 77%)
warbler
robin
There is a large list of operations where widespread aerial 1080 poisoning operations produced marked increases in bird populations in the short term but the benefits were not carried on to the population level. In ecological benefit terms, they were ineffective.
Why don’t the short term results translate into more birds in the population?
To find this out we need to go to the science.
A hint of the problem was given to me by John Innes of Landcare Research many years ago during a lecture on tui habitat enhancement.
John used a whiteboard to list the three most important predators of our native bird species and he wrote them up on the board in the following order of importance:-
RATS
RATS
RATS
What he was explaining, in a very effective way, was that although cats take some birds, as do possums, stoats, myna and a variety of other species, they don’t come close to rats as the major predator of our native birds.
Rats have been around for about 700 years and in that time have been the sole or a contributing factor in the extinction of 34 of our native species.[iv]
With such a notorious record we need to have a closer look at how it is, that even today, rats are able to unleash such an onslaught on our indigenous species.
A pointer is given in websites such as the ‘Northland Regional Council’ where they state “The impacts on these species have been monitored on only a few occasions. Ship rat populations were reduced by 87 – 100% following six aerial 1080 operations for possum control but the population recovered within four to six months.”
Another concerning point is raised in the website ‘Enuf is enuf’.
Despite initially reducing rat populations with aerial 1080 the rat’s prodigious ability to breed quickly overcomes the loss so that by 18 months after a drop the rat population is twice the pre-1080 population. By 25 months the rats are up by nearly 300%.”
These comments are startling but do not identify the science to back up the claims. Without references to good science they might merely be opinion.
Most recent research in this country has been undertaken in an effort to support the use of widespread aerial poisoning. As such the aim of the science has largely been to identify the BENEFITS of the poisoning campaigns not the IMPACTS of them.
It has been widely identified that our science is contaminated by what is known as ‘paymaster bias’ whereby the researchers unconsciously tend to produce the answers the employing agency wants to find. There are large numbers of examples of this unconscious bias internationally (the impact of cigarette smoking on health is a good example) and it is not the purpose of this document to expand on that but merely to point out that, because of it, good science into the impacts of aerial poisoning operations is hard to find.
Unfortunately, in general, the only facts we can draw on are the small snippets and aside comments which appear from time to time in the mainstream science.
These small gems form the basis of the discussions which follow.
The comments in the websites are supported by a science paper which states [v]:
“even when rat densities were reduced by 90%, they recovered within 2-5 months (Innis et al 1995).”
Other science supports this observation[vi]
“Ship rat numbers can be reduced by 90% but this effect is short lived (Warburton, 1989; Innis and Williams, 1991)”
And in the same paper the comment after a widespread aerial 1080 poisoning operation on the 10th September 1990
“In the following January rat abundance was still only 11% of the pre-poison average, but by April there was no significant difference between pre- and post-poison rat indices (Innis and Williams, 1991)”
In other words the rat population had completely recovered after seven months.
A Landcare Research paper[vii] notes
“The 1080 poison killed most of the possums and ship rats in the operation area but not the mice. However it took less than a year for the ship rat numbers to bounce back to densities they were previously (5 per ha). In the next six months rat numbers doubled on the 1080 sites and remained at this level for the duration of the study.”
And this comment[viii]
“This study presents evidence that there was a substantial and sustained increase in ship rat abundance over several years in the podocarp-hardwood forests of Waihaha following the initiation of [aerial 1080] possum control.”
And more warnings[ix]
“in the 1080 block no rats were tracked 2 months after possum control then tracking rates steadily increased to very high levels (85%-88%) over the next two years . As a result, rat tracking was significantly lower in the 1080 block than in the non-treatment block in November 2002 and March 2003 but significantly higher in November 2004 and March 2005 peaking at 3.2-fold higher.”
And another one although the evidence is now getting to be overwhelming[x]:
“At Waihaha, possum numbers were first reduced to low levels in 1994. This resulted in a sustained 4-5 fold increase in rat abundance. Possum control was repeated in August 2000 using aerially sown 1080 baits and provided effective rat control for about a year before their numbers rose to the high levels seen prior to August 2000.”
These burgeoning rat populations generated by aerial poisoning operations have a worrying impact further downstream of the event as highlighted by Landcare Research[xi]
“These results suggest that the huge sustained increase in rat abundance following initial possum control in 1994 was reversed by further control in 2000. Since then rat populations have increased rapidly. This increase may have serious consequences not only for native species preyed on by rats but also for native species threatened by stoats or cats as both these predators may increase when rats (a major element in their diet) are very abundant.”
Remember that stoats have been recognised as the major predator of kaka.
It should be remembered that not all the stoats are killed by secondary poisoning and the ones left behind have just lost their main food source of rats so what do they eat now? Native birds and invertebrates that’s what, as shown in this paper:[xii]
| Diet | Before Poisoning | After Poisoning |
| Rats | 71% | 17% |
| Birds | 6% | 56% |
| Invertebrates | 6% | 17% |
The harm to invertebrate populations is further identified in other papers such as:[xiii]
“In the poisoned block, the number of large invertebrates known to be eaten by rats soared after rat numbers were reduced to near zero, and then plummeted as rat numbers exploded to very high levels. In contrast, in the un-poisoned area, the numbers of rats and of the common large invertebrates remained more or less stable.”
And a sobering, or perhaps terrifying, comment[xiv]
“Intermittent control of possums and ship rats may have the net effect of increasing ship rats most of the time (Sweetapple and Nugent 2007)”
What these researchers are saying is that an untreated area of forest will have a lower average number of rats than an area which receives regular 1080 drops.
This is exactly the opposite of what is intended by aerial poisoning pest control for ecological benefits.
The science points noted above all indicate very bad things happening in our forests after aerial 1080 operations have artificially boosted rat populations to levels which no indigenous species can possibly hope to cope with in the medium to long term.
I have personal experience of these vast plagues of rats after aerial 1080 operations in Pureora Forest Park.
One evening I set a trap because we had rats everywhere, before I had a chance to get into my sleeping bag the trap went off, I thought it had sprung itself so went to reset it only to find it had already caught a rat, I reset it and before I could get to my sleeping bag a second time the trap went off again but this time I had caught three rats at once. At that point I gave up.
On another occasion I set a rat trap on the roof of my bivvy, as I stepped back a rat ran out from under the roof and immediately got caught, as it was kicking its last it flipped the trap upside down and was still twitching when a second rat ran out and crawled under the trap to eat the cheese bait. I was less than two metres from all this activity.
This gives an indication of how desperate rats get when large populations face starvation.
Imagine a wee short tailed bat fossicking on the forest floor amongst that teeming horde of assassins.
It spells doom for many native birds, plants, animals, and invertebrates.
Why do rats repopulate a poisoned area so quickly?
The reason is that during the poisoning operations we remove some of their predators (secondary poisoning kills cats and stoats) and competition for food and shelter.
In other words we artificially create a perfect storm for rat breeding.
When we add the enormous breeding potential of rats to this perfect storm we have provided a disaster in the making as noted here:[xv]
“Should a large percentage of rats face extermination, those that survive will multiply their reproductive rate and restore the old population level to such an extent that just two rats have the ability to create a lineage of a million descendants in 18 months tops!”
“Rats are capable of reproducing at about 3 months of age. After mating pregnancy lasts for 21-24 days and averaging 6-11 young rats in a litter”
“Female rats can breed again 1 to 2 days after giving birth.”
In the same time it takes a native bird species to produce four young a pair of rats can produce 4000.
Another huge advantage provided to the rat population recovery efforts is the unusual breeding cycle of its major predator the stoat. We know that stoats eat rats, lots of rats, but their population recovery after a poison operation is delayed by a process called delayed implantation (sometimes called embryonic diapause). It is a fascinating subject for researchers but sufficient for us to note that:[xvi]
“Mating occurs in early summer, but births do not occur until the spring of the following year, as development of the fertilised egg is delayed for eight to nine months.”
This extremely long lag phase in the stoat population growth curve gives the rats a huge head start in developing a population with minimal predation.
How can we have ignored the severe negative impacts on our indigenous species from aerial 1080 operations for so long?
Perhaps our New Zealand science is unsound, biased, or just plain wrong!
To check this hypothesis we need to look at 1080 poisoning projects targeting rats in another country to see if their results confirm or oppose our conclusions.
Researchers in England undertook a rat poisoning campaign using hand placed 1080 baits in an effort to identify what happens to a rat population after poisoning.
Some important points noted in this science[xvii] are:-
“thus after 6 months the rat population was about the same size whether the starting point was over 3000 g or less than 1000 g.”
This science uses the weight of bait uptake to estimate changes in rat population density, the reference to 3000 g indicates a high population (because of the high bait uptake) and the 1000 g infers a lower population because only a small amount of bait was taken.
The point is it didn’t matter how severely the populations had been reduced they all recovered to pre-poisoning levels within six months.
And:
The most important censuses in district B were those of Period 5, made after the very successful double treatment. These censuses show an exceedingly rapid rate of increase in the number of rats, which within three months brought the population to a point near the curve for period 4.”
This comment refers to a double poison trial which reduced the rat population by 97.1% but that population subsequently increased to a level equal to the trial where only 87% of the rats were removed. This supports other conclusions in this science which highlights that rat populations return to pre-poison levels very very rapidly.
This trend is noted again:
The apparent total obliteration of the rat population was followed 6 weeks later by a census indicating that the population was now restored to the level to be expected had only 90% of the rats been killed.”
The summary to this science paper notes:
Poison treatments after pre-baiting, at intervals of 6 months, reduced the rat population of each district to less than 10% of the maximum. A rapid restoration of the population followed, and the level reached in 6 months was near the maximum.”
It is clear that the result of science overseas is unambiguous in its support of our own.
So why don’t we do aerial 1080 poison drops every year to keep the rats under control?
The answer to that is easy.
Aerial 1080 poison drops kill native birds too, lots of birds, and lots of other native species as well. This fact is freely acknowledged by the pro-poisoning groups.
After an aerial poisoning operation it takes several breeding cycles for the poisoned bird populations to struggle back to pre-poison levels. If the poisoning cycles are too frequent then some native species will quickly be eliminated. It is possible that some already have.
Remember also that these poisoned bird populations have to try and regain their pre-poison population levels in the face of an artificially induced rat onslaught.
Other overseas science disagrees with the way we regularly utilise aerial 1080 for rat, and other, pest control operations.
One such paper concludes:[xviii]
“Poisoning campaigns with 1080 should be used only when they are the best choice from a suite of alternative methods, rather than as a frequently repeated panacea for pest control.”
Why don’t we know more about the negative impacts of aerial 1080 poisoning operations?
The main reason is because we are NOT LOOKING!!!
Poison operations are expensive and the point frequently raised is that if we spend money on monitoring then that is less area we can afford to poison.
Very few, if any, resource consents for poisoning operations require the applicants to monitor the operation for unforeseen negative impacts.
We have scientists who warn against this blasé attitude such as Clare Veltman when she raised a red flag with this important comment: [xix]
“Randomized blind replicated experiments may permit strong inference about the risks to non-target forest animals from aerial application of baits containing 1080, but no such experiment has ever been done in New Zealand.”
And again in this comment:[xx]:
“First, indirect effects of control operations do have the potential to reduce the planned-for benefit. Second, thresholds in the strength of control employed can potentially occur, across which indirect effects switch from being of conservation benefit to being of conservation concern.”
And a final comment from overseas science:[xxi]
“Without at least some post-eradication monitoring, managers cannot possibly catch totally unanticipated side effects or know whether and when to implement contingency plans for dealing with undesired outcomes.”
The main reason we are not looking for unintended consequences is that the Department of Conservation has an institutionalised infatuation with aerial 1080 poisoning operations and uses its position to produce public information which can almost be classed as dishonest.
An excellent example of this is when I received two kokako research science papers from the Department under the Official Information Act.
The cover letter states that:
“The first two papers show long term improvements in kokako populations after aerial 1080 operations.”
Studying the science shows no such thing.
Aerial 1080 was used annually from 1990 to 1993 but the graph of the number of territorial adults on page 209 shows a gradual loss of population over this time.
It is only after 1993 when targeted pest control using brodifacoum in bait stations was instigated that the kokako population increased markedly. 1080 poison was used in 1995- 1996 but it was placed in bait stations in place of brodifacoum that season not aerially broadcast.
It can be seen from this that although the Department was strictly correct in stating that the population did increase after aerial 1080 operations the inference should not have been that aerial 1080 operation was the cause of it as it is simply not true.
It is like saying that the sea got rough after the petrol in my car ran out. It is true but totally irrelevant and mischievous.
In another example a high DOC official stated on national television that without aerial 1080 the Mapara kokako population would not exist. This is in the face of the science produced by the project which shows that the kokako population continued to decline while aerial 1080 was being used.
These sorts of statements are designed to be misleading so the general public remains supportive of unscientific and ineffective pest control campaigns and their funding streams.
Why is the Department of Conservation continuing to support aerial 1080 operations in the face of overwhelming evidence showing it is harmful to our native species?
The Department of Conservation has a large staff of outdoors oriented ecological experts with a passion for our native critters.
Why are they turning a blind eye to the destruction of native species which the artificially induced rat populations are causing?
Is it simply that they don’t know what else to do?
Is it because they have been aerially poisoning for so long that it is now entrenched and “just the way we do things”?
Is it because they have supported aerial 1080 poisoning operations for so long that they are now afraid of losing face if they admit that they have been wrong for so long?
Is it just because aerial 1080 is the easiest and they don’t know what to do next but have to be seen to be doing something?
Ponder this simple question.
This year is a mast year and the Department has received around 12 million dollars in extra funding for aerial poison operations to limit rat populations (remember aerial 1080 does NOT kill mice).
We know from the science that the operations are going to generate very large rat populations in the years following the poison drops.
What is the difference between high rat numbers created by a mast year and high rat numbers created by the control operations themselves?
The only difference is the 12 million dollars.
No doubt if any New Zealand ecological scientists read this document they will say that everything I have identified here is old knowledge which has been around for ages, and it has.
The question to ask then is “What are they doing about it?”
An even more important question is “What are we doing about it?”
We have been misinformed by a whole series of organisations including Animal Health Board, Department of Conservation, Regional Councils, Forest and Bird, even the Commissioner for the Environment and Central Government.
All have played a part in what can only be classed as propaganda in their push for aerial 1080 operations alleging benefits to indigenous wildlife when the science shows that it cannot be true at the population level which is where it matters.
Yes we definitely have ‘Silent Forests’ in New Zealand, no question, and both the pro-aerial poison and anti-aerial poison groups agree on this.
Until we fully understand WHY we have silent forests we don’t stand a chance of developing successful strategies to ‘bring back the birds’.
It is a given that rats kill large numbers of native species.
It is also a given that aerial 1080 operations breed large numbers of rats.
Go figure.
Research is the search for the truth.
Management is the application of the truth.
There shouldn’t be any argument.
Murray Dench
13/05/14
[i] The Annual 2005/2006
[ii] Tongariro Forest Kiwi Sanctuary Annual Report 2005/2006
[iii] Rare Bits. 2001
[iv] Extinct Birds of New Zealand. Alan Tennyson and Paul Martinson
[v] New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 2001. Vol 28 57-78
[vi] Change of diet of stoats following poisoning of rats in a New Zealand forest. Elaine Murphy and Philip Bradfield
[vii] Species interactions and consequences of pest control in forest ecosystems. Protect. Autumn 2010
[viii] Ship rat demography and diet following possum control in a mixed podocarp-hardwood forest. Sweetapple et al Available from http://www.newzealandecology.org/nzje/
[ix] Effect of reduced possum density on rodent and stoat abundance in podocarp-hardwood forests. Sweetapple et al DOC Research and Development Series 231
[x] Kararehe Kino Vertebrate Past Research. Dec 2007
[xi] He Korero Paihama. Issue 17 June 2002
[xii] Change in diet of stoats following poisoning of rats in a New Zealand forest. Short communication. Elaine Murphy and Philip Bradfield.
[xiii] Vertebrate Pest Research. Dec 2007
[xiv] Feathers to Fur. The ecological transformation of Aotearoa/New Zealand Innes et al.: What limits NZ forest birds? Available at http://www.newzealandecology.org/nzje/
[xvi] http://www.arkive.org/stoat/mustela-erminea/factsheet
[xvii] Population Dynamics of Sewer Rats. S.A Barnett Dept of Zoology, University of Glasgow and A.H Bathard Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Tolworth, Surrey.
[xviii] Proceedings of the Fifteenth Vertebrate Pest Control Conference 1992. University of Nebraska. The Effect on Australian Animals of 1080 Poisoning Campaigns. John C McIlroy. Division of Wildlife and Ecology.
[xix]Uncertainties remaining about non-target effects of aerial 1080 operations and experimental designs for exploring them. Veltman and Westbrooke.
[xx] Unexpected Consequences Of Vertebrate Pest Control: Predictions From A Four-Species Community Model. Tompkins and Veltman
[xxi] It’s often better to eradicate, but can we eradicate better? E S Zavaleta. Dept of Integrative Biology, University of California.