Unsettling photo of man’s freezer sparks desperate plea to Coles, Woolworths and Bunnings

Australian wildlife rescuers say they are drowning in dead owls and are unable to keep up with demand when it comes to rehabilitating sick and injured animals poisoned by lethal rodenticides.

A West Australian scientist says the grisly situation has become so dire his freezer is filled to the brim with at least "50 to 100 dead owls" — merely from within "the last month".

Speaking to Yahoo News Australia in a bid to prevent Australians from buying the "unnecessarily harmful" rodent killers — currently on shelves at major retailers including Woolworths, Coles and Bunnings — Dr Rob Davis, Senior Lecturer at Edith Cowan University, said the poisons not only annihilate "our native wildlife" but probably "harm people" too.

Davis stores the animals for analysis and said much of the deceased are "beautiful barn owls", which are found throughout Australia, and predominantly feed on rodents. He said the active ingredients used in the rodenticides killing our owls include brodifacum and bromodialone, which have "a very long half-life", lasting up to an astonishing 300 days in the natural environment.

Professor's desperate plea after 'hundreds' of owls turn up dead

Davis told Yahoo that the product becomes concentrated in the livers of animals that eat those rodents and "over time, this poison builds up to lethal levels and kills animals such as owls."

"Anticoagulant rodenticides, especially those so-called "second-generation" products [SGAR’s – second generation anticoagulant rodenticides] are killing our native wildlife and probably affecting human health. Consumers do not need to be buying these products and we strongly advocate that they are banned from consumer sale.

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"These SGARs work by preventing blood clotting and lead to rats and mice bleeding out. Instead of the SGARs, a better choice or non-anti-coagulant baits such as Ratsak Naturals that use a different mechanism to kill rodents.

"The first-generation baits containing warfarin and coumatetralyl are much better choices, too, with substantially shorter environment residence times."

Ratsak Naturals are available at major retailers including Woolworths and Bunnings.

Davis said among the dead animals he's analysed, it's "obvious from pathological signs" that "poisoning has occurred".

"We are drowning in dead owls. There would be on average two to four a day brought in to wildlife carers that then make their way to us. I have probably 50 to 100 in my freezer just from the last month or two," he said, adding that figure is "sadly not at all uncommon".

"Animals take some time to die [after consuming the poison] and often require multiple feeds. That means plenty of opportunity for predators like owls to eat them. There is a risk of direct exposure from any animals eating SGAR baits and vets treat many cats and dogs for poisoning each year as well."

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Calling on Woolworths, Coles, Bunnings and others to immediately cease selling rodenticides that contain toxins including brodifacum and bromodialone, Davis said "unfortunately so far they have refused to listen."

"As a consequence, myself and other scientists recently went to Canberra to lobby the Australian Pesticides And Veterinary Medicines Authority," he said.

"We have presented all the science that is unequivocal on the environmental impacts of these poisons. Australia is one of the few countries in the world that still allows consumers to buy these products as they are banned in Europe, the USA, Malaysia, Thailand and many other countries.

"The writing is on the wall and Australia is now far behind all developed countries in allowing these nasty poisons to continue to be used with scant regard for environmental or human health impacts."

Davis explained his pioneering research found an incredible 73 per cent of all birds studied had been poisoned. "Work by other researchers has further uncovered these poisons in Australian frogs as well as possums, wedge-tailed eagles and a wide range of native animals," he added.

Major retailers weigh into debate

Yahoo News Australia contacted Coles, Woolworths and Bunnings for comment regarding criticisms of their stock. Bunnings Director of Merchandise, Cameron Rist said "we offer rodent repellers, live catch traps and regular rat traps" as alternatives.

"We know how important rodent control is to customers and we offer a wide range of products allowing customers to choose the option that’s right for them," Rist told Yahoo News Australia.

"For customers looking for alternatives to rodenticides, we offer rodent repellers, live catch traps and regular rat traps. We sell rodenticides in line with guidance from the federal regulator and we continue to follow its advice in this area."

A spokesperson for Woolworths defended the supermarket's stance and said all rodenticides adhered to local laws. "All rodenticides sold at Woolworths must comply with standards set by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority," they told Yahoo.

"We have and will continue to consult the Authority on product safety matters. As always, we advise customers to follow all instructions outlined on the product labelling and use it only as intended."

Coles did not respond to questions at the time of publishing.

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