Stop Wildlife Poisoning

Category: carbofuran | Date: Aug 13 2008 | By: Martin Odino

As I took a random look at one of our local dailies today, the Standard newspaper, I was struck by the headline Tourists troop to Mara for ‘The Seventh Wonder’. With the memories of my two weeks in the Mara during my last visit there just two weeks ago still fresh, I could not help read the write up to see what people will decipher of it.

What I think is that to just a reader, it will look an interesting, tourist inviting piece;  a tourist who has never seen this Serengeti-Mara migration,so called 7th wonder may be tempted to check to see if there is still chance to make it to the Mara given the migration happens in intermittent waves for much of July into August year in year out; still, the Kenyan government’s adrenaline levels must be at utmost peak levels with its pulse of excitement driving it to hysterical frenzy since econoomic recovery seems imminent especially after the many misfortunes that have befallen our country dealing it repeated blows to our economic success. I feel the urge in the government, ‘as a father’, to  give a pat on the back to its child organ, the ministry of tourism and utter sell!sell!sell! Indeed the close to 550,000 tourists that have visited the area in the last 3 years is a good deal but it can be better given the harsh economic times we are trudging through.

Fine, we are the gifted custodians of the 7th wonder of the world. Conservationists must feel it is time to take time out when wildlife abundance is hailed for the moment in the Mara; while those of us locked in the unending nightmare of wildlife poisoning could also do the same. But can we? the memories of the lion (and hippo) poisoning linger fresh as these only happened months ago in the area. Kipchumba Kemei, the publisher of the article must happily and rightly proclaim (in normal circunstances) ” Their presence has increased the concentration  of crocodiles, lions and hyenas along the river bank….” , may be as an animal concentration watch point  to the tourists?or that the animals are bountiful?

Looking at the list of the animals that congregate on the Sand and Mara rivers during the Gnu/Zebra migration,-crocodiles, lions, hyens (and the migrating animals themselves)- all are known and reported to have been killed by Carbofuran (Furadan) in Kenya. So what the tourists are enjoying seeing to the stop wildlife team is the sample of animals that carbofuran will effectively take down. Well, this is what I also wish the importers, distributos and licencers of carbofuran in Kenya are reading between the lines. Seventh wonder of the world my foot! just brings memories of a congregation of animals amassed for carbofuran to bring down!

Tags: carbofuran, Crocodile, Gnu, hyena, Kenya, Lion, Mara, Serenget-Mara migration, the Standard newspaper, Zebra

3 responses so far

Category: Uncategorized | Date: Aug 04 2008 | By: Martin Odino

Hi, I will base this write up on actual observations in poisoning scenes that I have witnessed.
A lot of people who kill and/or eat poisoned wildlife/birds have a number of justifications that sometimes leave one in a difficult position in trying to understand and deal with the problem of wildlife poisoning. Some will tell you that the land in their localities does not yield sufficient crop any more and that only birds can complement their staple carbohydrate uptake. Wildlife/bird poisoning therefore turns out an occupation and source of income for some and a cheap food source for the others. Still, others go on to state that wildlife and birds are created for man’s utility. In other words, man is the master.
It is however a painful realization when you come to learn about the forms of humiliation, trauma and cruelty that is triggered by poisoning. I saw my relative poison puppies using a rodenticide because they were just too many. She did this repeatedly every time the dog gave birth. It was absurd. It would be better if she told me that she was doing so because the pups were too many for her to feed, or because there was nobody to give the pups out to. Even before the puppies died and were still wreathing in pain, she took them and dumped them in a pit toilet. I watched in awe not knowing what to do. What a master this one is even if we are the masters over animals.
Two years ago, I also witnessed 2 dead Zebras on the shores of Lk. Bogoria, one of Kenya’s Rift Valley lakes. The game ranger who was accompanying us said there was possibility of the Zebras having died from thrusts of poisoned spears. The full grown Zebra had two deep slits on its hind quarters where apparently the killer had thrust his spear. The young Zebra had a deep slit on its abdomen side. There was a noxious foul smell from the two corpses. The ranger had been there about twelve hours earlier and the killings had not taken place. Likely, these were the acts of poachers. But why kill if you will not consume?
The most disturbing poisoning memories I have however are those of birds. I have witnessed birds baited by poisoned food materials, captured and enslaved to be used for the success of man’s desires, in this case maximize on the bounty of baited birds. These birds are always kept under conditions of depression, always tethered to a peg either inside or outside the house, ferried to and fro inside and outside the house as it pleases the captor. The manner of bird handling itself elicits a chill to an observer where the bird is held dangling, by the wings. Still, the bird’s primaries (longer, outermost flight feathers) will never grow to full size since the captors will always pluck them out so that the birds may not at any one time be able to fly away and rescue themselves from slavery. The captors then use them as Judas for other birds where the birds call out to others to lure them to a poisoned meal. Sooner or later the birds flock the foraging ground which is actually a set up and the food is laced in poison. The poison used in this case was carbofuran (Furadan 5G) and In a matter of time the birds started wobbling in gait, falling down and panting while others collapsed to their death in a short time. Not moved by the miserable sight of disorientation and death, the poachers then stepped in the death arena armed with sticks, sacks and basins. Small birds that had not died had their wings broken while the bigger birds had their legs battered by the sticks, leaving a site of hopping birds with broken legs and some lying mute on the ground only imaginably shedding tears of pain. Some of the big birds whose aggression did not succumb to this pain had their necks twisted around. In brief poisoning in this case facilitates treachery and gross cruelty.
But what is the orthodox reason behind poisoning? Crudely necessary, though sensible, poisoning should be directed to an organism that has caused nuisance to a point of extremity that there is need for it to be killed and be done away with, NOT EATEN. Thus, poisoning can be deemed ethical. I have been to three bird poisoning sites and none of the poachers in these sites poison birds since they are a nuisance. They do it so that the birds can be sold as food to humans and those who buy the birds do so to eat them, knowing full well that the birds have poisoned. Many people have forgotten about the ethics of poisoning. Please help remind them.

Tags: carbofuran, poisoning, Wildlife, Zebra

2 responses so far