Advancing a humane alternative to sodium fluoroacetate (1080) for wildlife management – welfare and wallaby control
Charles T. Eason A B F , Lee Shapiro B , Pauline Adams C , Steve Hix B , Celia Cunningham B D , Duncan MacMorran B , Mick Statham E and Helen Statham E
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Department of Ecology, Lincoln University, PO Box 84, Lincoln 7647, New Zealand.
B Connovation Limited, PO Box 58613, Botany, Manukau 2163, New Zealand.
C Department of Conservation, PO Box 1146, Rotorua 3040, New Zealand.
D The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand.
E Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research, University of Tasmania, PO Box 46, Kings Meadows, Tas. 7249, Australia.
F Corresponding author. Email: charles.eason@lincoln.ac.nz
Wildlife Research 37(6) 497-503 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR10060
Submitted: 30 March 2010 Accepted: 6 September 2010 Published: 18 October 2010
Abstract
There is controversy regarding the continued use of sodium fluoroacetate (1080) and questions regarding its humaneness. Two studies on captive animals were undertaken to assess the effectiveness and humaneness of Feratox© cyanide pellets for culling Dama and Bennett's wallabies as an alternative to 1080. Following ingestion of the toxic pellets by the wallabies the effects of cyanide were closely observed. Feratox has few undesirable signs from the welfare perspective and on the basis of humanness offers a preferred alternative to other vertebrate toxins, including 1080, for the control of wallabies.
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