THE Riverina Livestock Health and Protection Agency (LHPA) is hoping the area’s
increasing fox population will take the bait when its autumn fox control program
begins next month.
Fox baits containing the poison 1080 will be laid on
select travelling stock reserve areas along on the Swan Hill-Balranald Road, the
Moulamein-Balranald Road, Moulamein-Kyalite Road and the Moulamein-Barham Road
by the local LHPA ranger between Monday, May 13 and Friday, June 7.
1080 is
the name given to the poison sodium fluoroacetate, which is used to control
populations of wild dogs, foxes, feral pigs and rabbits in New South
Wales.
The poison is commonly injected into the middle of a chicken wing and
buried in an attempt to ensure carnivorous native animals can’t access the
poison.
About 100 baits will initially be laid in the selected areas, with
bait stations to be checked once a week and replaced with new baits for a four
week period.
LHPA’s Riverina ranger Gemma Davis said that while there was a
risk of poisoning dogs with the baits, native animals had a very high tolerance
to the poison as it was a naturally occurring substance in the wild.
“A
native eagle has to eat 90 chicken wings laced with 1080 before they die… and
humans would need to eat 40 — they would die from salmonella before they died
from 1080 so the risk to humans is very low,” Ms Davis said.
“It it risky
[for dogs] but we do put methods in place to reduce the risk.”
More on this story in Monday’s edition of The Guardian (29/4/13).
