I haven't been anywhere near Macquarie island. My recent confrontations with cats have nothing to do with this. I am completely innocent.
Posts: 12591 | Registered: Jan 2000
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Isn't a bunch of poison all over the ground not to mention poisoned rabbit corpses being scavenged going to play holy havoc on the ecosystem too? How will they keep the poison from poisoning unintended species including humans?
Posts: 6246 | Registered: Aug 2004
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quote:Originally posted by Tatiana: Isn't a bunch of poison all over the ground not to mention poisoned rabbit corpses being scavenged going to play holy havoc on the ecosystem too? How will they keep the poison from poisoning unintended species including humans?
Whaaaat? You mean actions have consequences?
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Step 1: Analysis: we need more food. Step 2: Introduce rabbits. Step 3: We have a problem, too many rabbits. Step 4: Introduce cats. Step 5: We have a problem with cats. Step 6: Remove cats. Step 7: We have a problem, too many rabbits.
I'm amazed by the (lack of) logic displayed here... You'd think logical thinking would anticipate 7 and prepare for it, wouldn't you?
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quote:Originally posted by Tatiana: Isn't a bunch of poison all over the ground not to mention poisoned rabbit corpses being scavenged going to play holy havoc on the ecosystem too? How will they keep the poison from poisoning unintended species including humans?
:: head in hands ::
How can they not have thought this through?
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quote: Stage one is a precision helicopter bombardment of the island with 260 tonnes of poison pellets. The bombing can only take place in winter when the rabbits are not breeding and most of the seabirds have left their breeding colonies. However, because of their long breeding cycle, thousands of king penguin chicks will still be huddling in creches while their parents are out at sea foraging for food. Mr Springer says testing with non-poisonous pellets found that penguins, petrels and albatross showed no interest in the baits "as a food source".
However, skuas - giant gulls - will be vulnerable to poisoning from infected carcasses.
But as Hobart-based seabird expert Barry Baker says: "There is no alternative. Even though some native species will be impacted, rabbits threaten complete ecosystem collapse."
The GPS-guided bombing program is modelled on a New Zealand project that wiped out a plague of Norway rats on Campbell Island, a sub-Antarctic island a little smaller than Macquarie.
"If the New Zealand experience is indicative, we can expect 90 per cent of rodents and rabbits will die underground," says Mr Springer. "The way the poison works (Brodifacoum, an anti-coagulant), the animal will feel lethargic and most likely go off its tucker. And as humans do when feeling sick, the instinct will be to go and rest. Poisoning any animal to death isn't a great outcome, but Brodifacoum is certainly a lot better than 1080. It won't be as painful a way to go."
quote:Originally posted by Tatiana: Isn't a bunch of poison all over the ground not to mention poisoned rabbit corpses being scavenged going to play holy havoc on the ecosystem too? How will they keep the poison from poisoning unintended species including humans?
The only human population on Macquarie Island are the 20 to 40 scientists who live so impact on the human population is unlikely. The only indigenous mammals on Macquarie island are marine mammals that are extremely unlikely to come in contact with the poison.
The article doesn't indicate what kind of poison they will be using. I suspect that they will be using a slow acting poison. Rabbits and rodent that are fed slow acting poison will return to their underground burrows when they feel sick and therefore die underground where they will not draw scavengers.
As long as they are use a form of poison that is unlikely to be eaten by birds and reptiles, this isn't that stupid of an idea.
The biggest problem I see is that unless they kill all the rabbits and rats, the problem will be back again in just a few years and this is extremely unlikely to kill them all.
As much as I care about these animals and don't want to see them poisoned, I don't see any better alternatives. Macquarie island is a sanctuary for penguins and many other bird species that are in danger of extinction because of these rabbits.
Edit: Mucus' post went up while I was writing. Some of the information he posted makes my post redundant but at least it confirms my speculations.
[ January 13, 2009, 11:03 AM: Message edited by: The Rabbit ]
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quote:Originally posted by The Rabbit: The biggest problem I see is that unless they kill all the rabbits and rats, the problem will be back again in just a few years and this is extremely unlikely to kill them all.
I was wondering about the same thing. And while it's true that they managed to eradicate cats, I assume that rabbits and rats might be a bit more difficult to finish off.
Posts: 4519 | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Corwin: Step 1: Analysis: we need more food. Step 2: Introduce rabbits. Step 3: We have a problem, too many rabbits. Step 4: Introduce cats. Step 5: We have a problem with cats. Step 6: Remove cats. Step 7: We have a problem, too many rabbits.
I'm amazed by the (lack of) logic displayed here... You'd think logical thinking would anticipate 7 and prepare for it, wouldn't you?
Its really not quite that simple. Rabbits were introduced in the 19th century (a time when understanding of ecological balance was minimal) and by sealers (not exactly people you'd expect to consider long term consequences of their actions).
Cats weren't actually introduced to control the rabbit population. It was common to keep cats as pets on ships to help control mice and rats and some of them went feral.
This isn't the first time the rabbit population has gotten out of control even with the cats present. Fifty years ago they introduced a rabbit disease which knocked down the population dramatically but the few rabbits who survived had some genetic immunity to the disease which has gotten stronger over the years. The current explosion of the rabbit population likely has as much to do with increased immunity to diseases and natural cycles as it does with eliminating the cats.
I'm not saying this represents wise planning, but it isn't quite as much of "I knew and old women who swallowed a fly" case as it appears at first glance.
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