Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre manager Robert Webb is angry that somebody is poisoning protected red-billed seagulls around Whangārei Harbour.
Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre manager Robert Webb is angry that somebody is poisoning protected red-billed seagulls around Whangārei Harbour.
It takes a lot to get Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre manager Robert Webb angry.
But crawling around on a wharf at 3am on a windy, wet morning, with wife Robin trying to save seagulls that had been poisoned, is enough to get his hackles raised.
It's not so much the foul weather but the fact that 'some bloody idiot' had thought it a good idea to poison dozens of protected red-billed seagulls.
Webb said he has had several cases of red bill seagulls being poisoned around Whangārei Harbour in the past month or so, with most on the Onerahi foreshore area near Pah Rd.
Then in the early hours of Sunday morning a tug boat skipper at Port Nikau rang Webb to say there were numerous seagulls flopping about on the wharf in distress.
So Robert and Robin went down to the port in atrocious weather at around 3am to do what they could.
Webb said it was clear that poison-laced wheat had been used and the seagulls, about 40 in total, were in a poor state when they got to them.
He said they managed to save nine of the 10 birds that were still alive, and the tug boat skipper had also managed to help save a few more. Webb is going to take the dead birds that he couldn't save to the Department of Conservation (DoC) in the hope that they can investigate and catch whoever is responsible.
''It really pisses me off that somebody can do this - and for what? Do the seagulls poop on their flash boats? There's no excuse for this. These birds suffer a slow, agonising death with this poison and it's just the height of cruelty.''
Webb said there were stiff penalties for people who poisoned birds and he urged anybody who knew who was responsible to call DoC on 0800 DOC HOT or the bird recovery centre on 09 4381457.
Some of the poisoned seagulls Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre manager Robert Webb found at Port Nikau.
''I'd love to find out who was responsible for this so that they can be held to account. It really makes me angry. What it looks like they are doing is poisoning them then throwing the limp bodies into the tide and hope they get washed away with the tide. It's disgusting.''
There are a range of possible penalties for misuse of poisons, such as treated wheat, under the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines Act, including imprisonment up to two years and fines up to $30,000 for an individual.
The lack of responsibility and accountability around the usage of treated wheat is an ongoing frustration for Webb.
Treated wheat is made with a narcotic called alphachloralose, and can be bought over the counter without a controlled substance licence.
Alphachloralose causes the birds to act drunkenly and fall from the sky, and may persist in poisoned birds' tissue, making it a risk to pets.
What can you do if you find a poisoned bird?
Alphachlorose works to anaesthetise birds and induce hypothermia. However, if not correctly administered or if the birds are not collected, they can succumb to hypothermia, predation or other injury.
Putting the bird in a soft, warm box and keeping it warm can help it recover within two or three hours, and it can be set free again.
