Carrion Baggage

California condor still endangered by lead bullets

Posted at 3:52 PM on 12 Oct 2007

California condors came to the brink of extinction in the 1980s, largely from eating game felled by toxic lead bullets. A recovery effort has proved successful, but attempts to bring condors back into the wild have been frustrated by the birds' continuing poisoned-carrion habit. More than one-third of condors released into the wild in California over the past two decades have died; last year, 14 birds were released, and half perished. The birds' undiscerning palates -- or, rather, the continuing use of lead in ammunition -- is the most persistent threat to full recovery, say biologists, who currently use public funding to collect stillborn calves from dairy farmers and put them out as condor food. The California legislature passed a bill this summer that would ban lead bullets in condor habitat, against vehement opposition from the hunting lobby; Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has not indicated whether he'll sign it.

source: The Washington Post

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Comments: (3 comments)

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Californians, write to Arnold!

Here is the background, and a prepared e-mail message to be sent to Arnold Schwartzenegger:

http://www.hsus.org/legislation_laws/state_legislation/ca ...

I tried re-writing it, to make it suitable as coming from a non-Californian. But the Humane Society of the US did not like my zipcode, so I will have to send my message separately.

It is not hard to understand the opposition of the NRA to the proposed lead shot ban, since anything that looks at all environmentalist or progressive to them, especially any proposal to regulate guns in any way, is plainly a satanic device.

It is harder to appreciate the opposition of real hunters' organizations, who are not at all to be confused with the NRA. How much more expensive is copper shot than lead shot, really? Why is it so hard to find in stores? Whose interests, really, does that salesman represent, the one who works for that gun store in Bakersfield with the bizarre name, "Second Amendment Sporting Goods"? He sure sounds like an NRA shill to me.

Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.

by caniscandida at 10:14 PM on 13 Oct 2007

Condors

It is a great day when an animal can be kept from extinction. However I am from the midwest and for years the reason for the Condor demise has been deforestation and pesticides. This is the first time I have heard about lead. Are you saying that all the animals that a Condors scavenges have been shot? I believe in environmental friendliness but how about some intellectual honesty here.

Yrrab

Barry

by Yrrab at 1:28 PM on 15 Oct 2007

Who is being dishonest?

According to the National Geographic Society's Field Guide to the Birds of North America, the three reasons given for why the California Condor went extinct in the wild are pollution, lead poisoning and habitat destruction.

It is certainly not true that condors must consume lead shot pellets in everything they eat in order to be sickened. Given their size -- they do not weigh much at all, in spite of their huge wingspan -- and their metabolism, a small amount of lead goes a long way.

Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.

by caniscandida at 2:57 PM on 15 Oct 2007

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