18 of 31 radio-tagged owls found dead day before 1080 poison drop

On October the 3rd, 2010, 25,000 hectares of the Waitutu Forest, in the Fiordland National Park, was aerially poisoned with 1080.
The following comment was posted by a Department of Conservation employee on June 28, 2011, which was far more revealing than the official DoC declaration delivered last year (see below)...

The following information is from a study undertaken during the 2010 Waitutu 1080 operation. The report is in the process of peer review and publishing. Note that bad weather killed 18 ruru (Owl) before the operation and the one that died after the operation was found cached underground by a predator and it tested clear of 1080.

Of the 31 radio-tagged ruru known to be alive at the beginning of August, transmitters belonging to 18 of these birds were discovered in mortality mode during an aerial status check immediately prior (3 Oct 2010) to the distribution of toxic baits (4 Oct 2010). Ground-based checks of these birds commencing 4 October confirmed that all of these birds were dead and had been for some days (≥10 days). Of the remaining 13 radio-tagged ruru, two transmitters appeared to have failed (intermittent or no detectable signal) leaving 11 radio-tagged ruru known to be alive or detectable within the operational area when 1080 baits were distributed. One of these 11 birds died within three days of toxic bait application. This bird was found cached underground but recovered intact (8 Oct 2010) and subsequently autopsied (Massey School of Veterinary Science) and tested for 1080 residues (CENTOX). No traces of 1080 were found.

For 18 of 31 radio tagged, native owls (Ruru - Maori) to die just prior to an aerial 1080 poison operation, in terrain that is easily traversable, is very disturbing.

Today I talked to Ross Campbell, owl expert, and owner of the famed OWLCATRAZ  tourist park.

I asked him about the Ruru. Ross stated that Ruru are very resilient in winter weather, and when I mentioned that 18 tagged birds reportedly died recently, in bad weather, he said he'd be surprised if even one had.

Ross went on to say that the Ruru lives up to 80 years, that they're bad breeders, and poor parents.

He pointed out that if Ruru are dying in large numbers, it could take a thousand years for the population to recover. He went on to say that when aerial operations were conducted in the Tararua Forest Park, he observed the native owl population slump by two thirds.

If the Department of Conservation managed to find 31 Ruru to tag, prior to this operation, the population was probably in good order, despite weather conditions over the last 1000 years!

However, in their summary of the poison drop, lats year, DoC stated ... "Local birdlife was monitored both before and after the operation including, tomtits, grey warblers, rifleman, mohua, kaka and ruru. No birds were found to have been killed by the poison, including 15 kaka and 11 ruru/morepork which were monitored. There was no detectable reduction in bird numbers as a result of the operation, and it is clearly evident that bird numbers are now on the increase due to the reduction in predators." 

The Department of Conservation stated they had only monitored 11 morepork in the statement above. However, at least 31 birds were radio tagged, and recovery of the dead - missing birds, didn't begin until after the drop had begun. Although weather is blamed for the deaths, a more likely cause is the radio tags interfering with the birds ability to move and hunt. 

It is common for radio tagged birds to die around 1080 poison drops. Often 50% mortality is observed.
These birds are rarely tested for poison residues - instead, their deaths are attributed to predation, and so testing is excluded.

1080 poison has no antidote, and causes secondary poisoning. Ruru have been found dead with 1080 residues in their carcasses before. The birds don't eat the baits directly, but target poisoned mice, small rats, insects, and even joey possums that leave the pouch after their mother eats the bait. The joeys receive the poison through their mother's milk, and can then poison the birds. Ruru are at high risk of poisoning in aerial operations, as are many other native species. To eliminate poisoning as a cause of death, even in scavenged birds, testing should be mandatory.

Due to the unusual nature of this event, I have submitted an Official Information Act request to the district office that managed this operation. I will post the result of that request when it is returned.

With increasing budgets, and the power that comes with those budgets, it's important that transparency is maintained within the public service, and that bureaucrats remain accountable to the public that fund them.  The Act requires a response within 20 days.

So what is the Official Information Act, and why is it important?

The Official Information Act was established in 1982. 

The purpose of the law is to: increase the availability of official information to promote more effective public participation in the making and administration of laws and policies.
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