Poisoning Rats, and People

Children are an unintended casuality in NYC's apparently unsuccessful attempts to destroy rodents.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=2026&ncid=2026&e=7&u=/latimests/20041114/ts_latimes/collateraldamageinthewaronrats

 

You can buy poisoned wheat (it is coloured blue) or some waxy blocks that don't look edible. I hate rats and mice anyway.I don't get many as I have a load of cats around my house.They think they own the place.

 

But there are more problems involved with using toxic pesticides against rodents, even if the child-poisoning issue were to be completely resolved (and I doubt it will be anytime soon).
NYC prides itself in being home to urban-adaptable birds of prey such as peregrine falcons and red-tailed hawks. We've seen what happens before in the DDT disaster when poisons work their way up the food chain.
Urban areas have also seen predator-poisoning occur before in this way. After much head-scratching, researchers discovered that the root of a falcon die- off was the poison people spread out to destroy pigeons...a main food source.

 

I am pleasently surprised to find a woman who has any interest in birds.The quickest way of boring a woman in Australia is to talk about birds.Ornithology down under is a 100% male preoccupation.When I grew up in England the only bird of prey that I would ever see on a regular basis was the kestral. You would see them along motorways.When I was on holidays on a scottish island I did get to see a golden eagle, but that was a rare siteing for me.
You can see Wedge tailed eagles in the surrounding area of Hay.They are becomming quite adaptable.Contrary to popular belief eagle don't go for young lambs.Although they sometimes go for the odd free range chook as do some other birds of prey, they have been seen taking feral cats, rabbits and feral piglets. They are a farmers friend not a foe! To shoot them as they were (maybe still doing) in Western Australia is just stupid.They are a great asset to the envirionment.I have seen kestrals nesting in a large old shed in town, so they too are adapting.Unfortunatly not all spieces adapt.