Rat Bait and Birds

["Greg" <>]

Hi Jade,

The best method of killing rats is to trap them in a small aluminium box 
trap (Elliott trap or similar).  That way you can make sure that the animal 
that you have caught is the target species and it can then be humanely 
killed.  If it is a native species it can be released back into the wild. 
Poisons are not as discriminating and often have secondary effects.  A local 
farmer, who also loves birds, was most distressed when he found a dead 
Brahminy Kite and a dead Whistling Kite shortly after poisoning for rats. 
It doesn't prove that the rat poison killed the kites but it certainly 
suggests that it did.  The farmer is no longer leaving out rat baits.


Regards

Greg Clancy