Sure could kill eagles and the South Africans got onto this about 15 years
ago.
As far as I know (corrections welcome!) Talon, based on brodifacoum together
with similar "second generation anti-coagulant" rodenticides, works by being
persistent. So it builds up in the bodies of the target (and other!)
animals.
The mechanism applies to all mammals and probably reptiles too (it is known
to be very toxic for a range of acquatic life including fish). So corpses
of animals killed by the stuff will result in the scavenger accumulating the
poison too.
There are warnings against using it in schools but vitamin K1 is generally a
remedy for humans.
John Young's brilliant work in the sugarcane fields resulted in using other
methods other than Klerat, also based on brodifacoum (including bringing the
owls back!) to control cane rats (along with Racumin, a non-persistent
rodenticide). One reference is Young & De Lai in the Australian Bird
Watcher (1997 17(3) 160-166).
Last time I checked a Talon packet I could see no reference to the harm it
could do to native wildlife. But of course it can be good for wildlife too,
eg. in rat eradication on islands.
Michael Norris
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