Re: negative impacts, if the spray kills the locusts, it also kills
other insects, and so insect eating birds would be particularly badly
affected. I believe there have been some negative effects (but sorry
can't remember the details) which is why there is interest in
perfecting a fungal based spray.
m("environment.nsw.gov.au","David.Geering");"> wrote:
what about the negative
effect of bird kill from spraying? We had locust plague here
approximately three years ago(here being Wilmington Flinders rAnges)
and many bird species have not recovered. Examples are red capped
robin, southern whiteface and brown treecreeper. These birds used to
be common here-now not so
I was wondering if someone would
bring this up. To be perfectly honest this is not an area that I'm up
to speed on. My understanding is that the pesticides used are not
detrimental to birds although I'm not sure if the precise impact has
been studied. There was some concern about the impact of spraying on
birds such as Plains Wanderer and the alternative (a fungal-based
spray) was to be used in sensitive areas. This concern was more a case
of not being absolutely sure that there was going to be no impact on
this species rather than the fact that spraying would have an impact.
I'm not sure how you separate the
impact of a locust plague three years ago from the impact of drought
which has been occurring over the same time period. My guess would be
that the drought has been the major cause in declines in the birds
mentioned above.
Anyway, as I say, the impact of
these sprays is not something that I'm fully across. I'd suggest that
if there were serious problems then the state conservation agencies
would have been more active in determining where spraying could occur.
They have certainly been involved in the process.
Cheers
David Geering
Regent Honeyeater Recovery Coordinator
Department of Environment & Conservation
P.O. Box 2111
Dubbo NSW 2830
Ph: 02 6883 5335 or Freecall 1800 621 056
Fax: 02 6884 9382
This message is intended for the addressee named and may contain
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If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender and
then delete the message. Views expressed in this message may be those
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Department of Environment and Conservation.
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