Stop Wildlife Poisoning

Category: carbofuran | Date: May 09 2009 | By: Martin Odino

Just yesterday, I submitted samples brought back from the field for furadan testing at the recommended lab-KEPHIS- by our local Pest Control Products Board (PCPB), Crop Life Kenya. (Agrochemical Association of Kenya hence AAK) and FMC. It was disturbing listening to the expert who received them wondering loudly why I had not taken them to Government Chemist, the laboratory whose methodology was doubted by the above concerned bodies.

Frankly I could not help but wonder if this was not part of frustrating our efforts to provide evidence of furadan poisoning by the above titan bodies as far as the poison furadan is concerned. Surely, the effects of this pesticide have reached emergency levels and these guys should give proper directives for common good.

Are we just wasting time and money only to be later told that KEPHIS again is not a qualified lab? the expert at KEPHIS acknowledged that they were equiped with equipment to use HPLC, a methodology whose results are precise, as told by the FMC person at our meeting. he however said they did not have a proper pathology lab to handle animal tissues and only Government Chemist had this facility and were ‘fit’ to handle the guts of the poisoned birds. Well, I will be getting the final word from KEPHIS this week and I will ensure the samples get tested.

Getting these samples from the field has been one of the toughest challenges I have faced in this survey:

The geographical location of Bunyala in Kenya is in proximity of Lake Victoria about 10 kilometres away from the nearest lakeside port, Sio Port. Also, the equator is located not so far from here. Given these geographical conditions, humidity and temperature are almost at uncomfortable, high levels, not so favourable if dead bird samples are to be kept fresh.

Bunyala is also remote. Electricity is found in a few ldistant ocalities, while others, including where we camp still remain in the almost total natural darkness but for a few tin lamps that attempt to reduce the depth of darkness. A necessary commodity, ICE which requires electricity for it to be made and that should help preserve the tissue samples from dead birds remain fresh is therefore unavailable in the nearest shopping center.

Well, I had to beat this challenge of high temperatures exceeding 30 degrees celcius on the average. The previous day, I had someone take the cool box and ice substitute to have them readied at the next nearest shopping center where I paid a soda vendor about USD 5 to prepare some ice for me and have the ice substitute frozen . I would get the cool box and ice once we had the samples.

We got to the field as early as always but there was no sign of poisoning. My assistants however located a poacher laying out bait in the farthest western end of the rice scheme. We sped to get on our usual job of identifying and counting the living and dead birds. In one and a quarter hours, the poacher was done. Since the poisoned birds were his property, I could not lay a hand on the poisoned at will. I therefore purchased 9 birds for USD 1.25. He had poisoned 64 doves and pigeons, in total.

Brutality in life and in death! The above birds were tied by their necks to make it easy for us to carry them. That is my assistant carrying them. I would have wanted to carry them in the comfortable ringer’s grip, but I bet my two hands would not have managed to carry all of them.

We sped back to camp for a quick evisceration process, since the gut contents were my interest. I took notes on the dead birds and we got down to opening them up.Thanks to my efficient assistants who did the job quickly. Meanwhile, I had hired somebody to get the cool box and ice and he arrived just in time for us to start opening up the first bird. By 1300 hrs, we were finished and my samples ready for transportation.

A sample of the poison concortion showing dull purple furadan granules (the solute that remains after trying to dissolve furadan) and rice in husks in a bottle; dissecting kit and the cool box with the samples.

It took four hours to get to the bus station where I would get a bus to travel back to Nairobi where I would get proper freezing facilities and also the samples would be analysed. The night was cool and therefore the ice survived through the 10 hour journey.

2 days since, the samples are now in the the testing lab. Soon enough, we will have the results.

The frozen samples just before I submitted them to the testing lab.

Will keep updating you. Please keep reading.

Tags: AAK, Bunyala, FMC, furadan, Government Chemist, Kenya, KEPHIS, PCPB, Poacher, poisoning