Marijuana Growers Bringing Rat Poison to Remote Areas Are Likely Responsible for 70% of Endangered Northern Spotted Owls Being Exposed, Says Study Published Today

Northern spotted owl

Northern spotted owl [Images provided courtesy of UC Davis]

Illegal marijuana grows are likely the source of rat poison found in a high percentage of wild owls in areas of the Emerald Triangle, according to a study released today in the journal Avian Conservation and Ecology.

According to the study, “70% of Northern Spotted Owls and 40% of Barred Owls were exposed to one or more anticoagulant rodenticides.” (The Northern Spotted Owl is listed as endangered.)

The owls, and other wildlife, are believed to be exposed to the poison when they capture rats and other creatures which have eaten the rodenticides at the marijuana gardens. The rats are likely ill from the poison and thus slowed making them easier for the predators to capture and eat.

Anticoagulant rodenticides, rat poisons, make it difficult for wildlife to use vitamin K which can cause internal bleeding and lead to the death of the animal.

“Spotted owls are inclined to feed along forest edges. Because [marijuana] grow sites break apart these forest landscapes, they are likely source points for exposure,” said lead author

Jack Dumbacher and owl collection

Mourad Gabriel led research connecting rat poison from unpermitted, private marijuana to the deaths of northern spotted owls and barred owls in northwest California.

Mourad Gabriel has been involved in looking at the intersection of wildlife and poison from illegal marijuana gardens since he was studying fishers, a weasel-like local mammal that is rarely seen. Gabriel is a research faculty member with the UC Davis Karen C. Drayer Wildlife Health Center within the School of Veterinary Medicine’s One Health Institute. He’s also executive director of nonprofit Integral Ecology Research Center.

Gabriel and others are concerned that the number of illegal grows will continue to increase inside critical habitat for Northern Spotted Owls and that those unregulated growers will continue to bring rodenticides and other problematic chemicals into these remote areas further endangering this species and others.

“When you have thousands of unpermitted grows and only a handful of biologists that regulate that for multiple counties, we’re deeply concerned that there aren’t sufficient conservation protective measures in place,” Gabriel explained. “If no one is investigating the level at which private marijuana cultivators are placing chemicals out there, the fragmented forest landscapes created by these sites can serve as source points of exposure for owls and other wildlife.”

While owls were not killed for this study, according to a UC Davis press release, “Northern spotted owls were opportunistically collected when found dead in the field, while barred owl tissue samples were provided by outside investigators conducting an unrelated barred-owl project.

Jack Dumbacher and owl collection. 

“Access to these owl specimens allows us to explore the health of the entire regional forest system,” says Jack Dumbacher, curator of Ornithology and Mammalogy at the California Academy of Sciences. “We’re using our collections to build a concrete scientific case for increased forest monitoring and species protection before it’s too late to intervene.”

According to the UC Davis Press release,

The necropsies for this study were conducted at the California Academy of Sciences and the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System, which is part of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

Additional co-authoring institutions include Green Diamond Resource Company, Hoopa Valley Tribe and Humboldt State University.

The study was funded by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Arcata and Yreka California Field Offices.

 

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HOGRANCH
Guest
HOGRANCH
6 years ago

KISS ALL THEM OWLS GOODBYE AN MAYBE BUZZARDS IF THEY DINE ON THE OWLS AFTER THEY ARE DECEASED, THIS IS JUST A GUESS THAT THE POISON COULD REACH THAT FAR DOWN THE FOOD CHAIN, CYANIDE DOES.

Steve
Guest
6 years ago
Reply to  HOGRANCH

Say goodbye to the Condors then…

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago
Reply to  HOGRANCH

I never get farther that two words when [edit] write in all caps.

unbridled phillistine
Guest
unbridled phillistine
6 years ago

This is unsettling to sat the least. Wondering about the 92 yr old hitch hiker? She found safe? I hope…

unbridled phillistine
Guest
unbridled phillistine
6 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Oh nice! Thank you. I hate worrying about people I do not know. lol

farce
Guest
farce
6 years ago

Cannabis is a peaceful herb. All growers are wonderful healers. They resist a fascist and unjust government to bring healing light to suffering people! We never need any eradication programs! The Sheriff’s Department was right to basically stop all eradication these past 10 years so more and more wonderful growers could spring up all over our county- like beautiful flowers feeding our economy and our spiritual well-being!!!!

Dragonfly
Guest
Dragonfly
6 years ago
Reply to  farce

[edit] Your drug logic is noxious. This is why we have scum as our next door neighbors. I grow Cannabis so therefore I do no harm. Any positive advancement in medicinal Cannabis is negated by the migration of these greedy SOBs who don”t give a fuck. Thanks to our BOS!!!! for embracing Eco Terrorism!!! They knew this was going to happen and they did not give a fuck. Next election you bunch of lying traitors.

John
Guest
John
6 years ago
Reply to  Dragonfly

Ah, Dragonfly, I think the person who left the above comment was offering, like, humor in the form of sarcasm. But, yeah, I really don’t care much for marijuana growers for the exact reasons which this article articulates. People who indulge in this habit are contributing to the ravaging of the environment.

😂
Guest
😂
6 years ago
Reply to  John

one sarcastic bias exposing another bias! 😂

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago
Reply to  John

People who use electronic devices are contributing to the ravaging of the environment.

Teresa
Guest
Teresa
6 years ago
Reply to  John

Like you driving your car and all the other things you use daily that are made from petrochemicals doesn’t do any harm to the environment Give me a break you all are so quick to jump on the train. Why is it that everyone loves to point fingers…..”They did it, they are doing it, it’s all their fault” Try being part of the solution
And yes people who use cell phones are contributing to the ravaging of the environment and radiating themselves in the mean time.
Think people WTF?

Rebel Luther King
Guest
Rebel Luther King
6 years ago
Reply to  Dragonfly

Deport the illegal Bulgarian and Mexican aliens. Jail the documented Bulgarian and Mexican cartel members. Ironic how the same needless owl that brought down the logging industry is the new weapon against weed. How progressive is it to halt evolution? Eco-warrior conservationalism is fundamentaly nostalgic. Vaccines, abortions, and nuclear suppression, slows and deters our natural evolution.

BettyLou
Guest
6 years ago

Don’t forget the chem trails. And Sasquatch.

farce
Guest
farce
6 years ago
Reply to  Dragonfly

Yeah I was just repeating the same bs that many people posted here a decade ago. Or in LOCO when Kym was there. I would suggest that we needed some selective eradication to take out the big and the ugly grows- save our environment and our mom n pops- people would respond with what I just posted. I am quite sarcastic…but they were serious. Gallegos supporters too. And there were many of them!…And now here we are today…good going, guys!

Will Smith
Guest
Will Smith
6 years ago
Reply to  farce

Really? Wow.

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago
Reply to  farce

A hyperbolic strawman version of sentiments from a decade ago. Cute.

Bob
Guest
Bob
6 years ago
Reply to  farce

Are you for real? Open your eyes step out of your bubble.

Sickofem
Guest
Sickofem
6 years ago

Yep. Standard issue dope grower behaviour.

Mike
Guest
Mike
6 years ago

First it was the logging now it’s pot growing. . I wonder who they will blame it on next. Just saying. .

Anon Forrest
Guest
Anon Forrest
6 years ago
Reply to  Mike

We have only ourselves to blame.

local observer
Guest
local observer
6 years ago

do they have any pre-green rush data to use as a baseline? I don’t buy their shit anymore with the manipulation of data while being in conflict of interest. for the halibut quote, every fish they count is 100lbs regardless of actual weight and then they ask you how many times you have fished for halibut this year, which is the factor to multiply the 100lbs. its garbage. I use snap traps in my garage and I have found stashed green pellets in a variety of locations which must be from neighbors and the closest grow is about 2 miles. I live in an old growth redwood forest as defined by GD with 2nd growth trees exceeding 60 inches in diameter.

Critter
Guest
Critter
6 years ago
Reply to  local observer

I’ll give you baseline data. I live in a northern mendo community, on a hill that had the same low-key residents since the 70″s. I had two spotted owl sightings in the early 2000’s preceded by years of hearing them ALL THE TIME. One night during mating season I could hear 7 distinct birds calling within earshot of my cabin. Now? Nada. In the interim? Several old-timers replaced by persons of questionable sensibility regards nature, growing weed, toxins etc. I’m pissed. Thanks greedy a**hats for stripping some of the magic and nobility of this special region.

Anon Forrest
Guest
Anon Forrest
6 years ago
Reply to  Critter

Yep. And here’s how that happened: In my time on this Mountain, land prices have gone from $125 an acre to $2500 an acre. Old timers are old and tired…really tired. The money is offered and only the most stubborn, high-minded folks or plain old crazies can resist the lure of a place by the fire. And even then, Old Timers better have a Last Will and Testament, assuming they can trust their heirs (or the State) to protect that land…
Money is transitory, Land is forever.

Brian
Guest
Brian
6 years ago

Don’t they sell rat poison at every store?

I buy traps for rodents because I love my cats and dogs, I don’t want them to be a second victim of rat poison.

I also am a steward of my property and take my role seriously, poisoning wildlife doesn’t fit into the equation.

It seems that there are many products like rat-poison that locals and foreigners use with no discretion or education or care.

Stop selling that shit, stop buying that shit.

Does the owners of any store reading this wonder, “so this is where it’s all going when the russians who can’t speak English buy me out.”

Truth
Guest
6 years ago
Reply to  Brian

Not every merchant sells poison. Some garden supply businesses haven’t sold that shit, ever. Other local garden suppliers have sold it, because they just want to make a buck. Y’all put your money where your hearts are. Look around. Who sells the poison? Don’t give them your money. Who sells the poison?

Bob
Guest
Bob
6 years ago
Reply to  Brian

Russians but legalization took all the gangs and cartels out of the equation right?

BonnieBlueSky
Guest
BonnieBlueSky
6 years ago

I remember when that wonderful environmental researcher Mourad Gabriel published his study in 2012 linking rat poison from bad marijuana grows to killing off the Fishers. His beautiful black Lab was poisoned to death. Yet he persists!

local observer
Guest
local observer
6 years ago
Reply to  BonnieBlueSky

have they even caught tweaked out Frodo yet?

Liberal hypocrisy
Guest
Liberal hypocrisy
6 years ago
Reply to  BonnieBlueSky

Aren’t you afraid to be over here? You’re a long way from Loco Earth.

Truth
Guest
6 years ago

What do you mean?

Anon Forrest
Guest
Anon Forrest
6 years ago
Reply to  BonnieBlueSky

I remember that, too.

HumBiologist
Guest
HumBiologist
6 years ago

If you actually read the study there is no conclusive evidence to support that the cause is illegal and/or legal marijuana grows. Just a best guess. I would be curious to see sampling of owls and rodents in other montane rural places without illegal/legal cannabis cultivation. It’s funny how they’re reasoning for a good part of this paper is AR use is illegal thus unlikely to be found on agricultural sites and residential areas. Because legality dictates people’s actions in Humboldt/Del Norte/Trinity Counties…

pinkasso
Guest
pinkasso
6 years ago

70%? I don’t buy it. Maybe if the pellets killed deer also would that be the case. Rat poison and such are used in domestic dwellings more vs anything. So I would say it’s just the humans and not the pot.

Ice
Guest
Ice
6 years ago
Reply to  pinkasso

Exposing that percent to the poison, not killing that percent..

just a guy
Guest
just a guy
6 years ago

I have begun to question whether this science is being manipulated for his intended results. He makes no other links i.e., how much rat poison is bought, how much is used by domestic and rural ranches in homes and barns, other agriculture, etc. He has one stated goal and all science conveniently leads to that conclusion. I have talked with him about working towards education and solutions and he was very uninterested, this surprised me. I wonder how the control study would hold up to peer review and the same conclusions become fact.

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago
Reply to  just a guy

Yes, that’s what I’m saying too. He is a very biased person that seems to always find the same conclusions, and comes out every year or two with some bs headline. Several years back, it was about his dog getting poisoned by nefarious growers sneaking into his backyard to seek revenge on his fearless reporting (give me a break!) , then the fishers, now the owls… he really thinks he knows how to get people whipped up.. I could tell he was full of it when I talked to him too. I’ve got a nose for bullshitters.

Brian
Guest
Brian
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Emily, I think your in a bubble.

You seem to think every grower out there is a wonderful.

I don’t think you have really seen too much based on your comments.

And regarding voting in our passed discussions: My principles don’t break. I have a right to not vote for chumps like Trump and Hillary. I’ll wait for my Perots, Naders, Kucinichs, and Pauls.

If your so easily bendable, I’m not surprised that you so easily disregard what’s happening in the emerald triangle.

Brian
Guest
Brian
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Are you saying there are no growers in the triangle?

Are you saying there are no growers using bad shit?

Are you saying owls dont get secondary poisoning from grow sites because they know better?

Are you saying his dog was poisoned and then he formed his position on poisons? Or was his dog poisoned because of his position?

Emily, look around, there are tens of thousands of shit-grow-scenes that did not exist 15 years ago.

Stop defending each one of them with your opinions.

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago
Reply to  Brian

You aren’t reading what I’m saying. I am not defending shitty growers and I know there are lots of them. Don’t make me repeat myself please. In regards to voting, I am stating my opinion and I respect your p.o.v., BUT: changes happen incrementally. You (one) shouldn’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Because of people who take your position (ie unexcited voters who stayed home) we now have a hot mess for president, who is taking our country back who knows how far, and it will take years to rebound from this ‘shithole’. I personally do blame people like yourself in part… too righteous to vote for the better candidate.
Mostly I agree with and appreciate your comments Brian. Non voters annoy me though. Ok back on topic….

Brian
Guest
Brian
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Fair enough.

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago

Problems with this story:
-This guy has a major axe to grind with growers and has always had it out for them. I’ve heard him speak. Typical empty headed, biased hsu type. His ‘poisoned dog’ story was ludicrous (google it)
-last sentence before the press release states that they are doing this study to ensure they have job security. Pretty easy to read between lines.
-they tested already dead owls? Well that’s pretty skewed data I would say.
-funded by anti-mj donors

Look, here’s a solution: Ban these products all together. I have not nor have a ever known a grower to use rat poison. And I’ve been around plenty of grows. I’m sure there are sloppy illegal farms out there, including the big Mexican cartel grows on public land, that use that stuff. I totally support putting them out of business. My issue is these guys are just trying to ensure their jobs with bullshit science, hoping to scare easily frightened and uneducated ‘textbook’ environmentalists. That is opposed to real environmentalists who live on the land and don’t need pencil pushers telling them what to do.

Dave
Guest
Dave
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

The dog died unexpectedly with “rat poison” in its system.

I think we should ask the question “what kind of person dismisses behavior this?”

I think both stories are disturbing and you should too.

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Exactly who are the “anti-mj” study donors?

Conservative Stupidity
Guest
Conservative Stupidity
6 years ago
Reply to  Guest

Monsanto; Dupont; RJ Reynolds; Johnson & Johnson; Pfizxer; Merck & Co. You want more names get them yourself [edit]

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago

Kym?

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago
Reply to  Guest

It says in the article at the bottom; green diamond, hsu, fish and wildlife. You always have to look at who funds studies.
Just to clarify: I think rat poison is terrible stuff. It should be banned. Nobody should use this stuff; I’ve heard of people having rats die behind the walls of their home, requiring them to pull off Sheetrock to remove dead rats. And it’s obviously bad for wildlife. Ban it, problem solved. Why isn’t he calling for that? Oh right, that wouldn’t keep him employed.
Obviously I’m not claiming no growers use it. And I’m not defending those people who do. But this guy is exactly the kind of whiny shill for dfw that I can’t stand.. just looking for more grant funding and job security by making big misleading claims. Ugh

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Pot was banned. Did that eliminate pot? Why would people already violating the law for greed suddenly respect the law that inconveniences them?

You are free to apply the question to just about every aspect of pot grows. If enough resources are levied against them, the culture of illegality may slowly change in general. Until that happens, people with contempt for the law will continue to decide to do what works for them without worrying about it effecting others.

Lost Croat Outburst
Guest
Lost Croat Outburst
6 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Very good point, Kym. Rodenticides and other poisons have been sold in quantity in garden stores all of my life. People get the idea that it is only cannabis growers.

Please people, fishers, martens, snakes and all predators are your friends in rodent control. Every plant just needs one or two treadle-style rat traps placed sideways in one-gallon pots which shield from birds. Use whole peanuts banded to the treadle. P-nut butter smells too good and draws critters in from afar. With a healthy predator population, you may need zero rodent control. Greenhouses are nice, but disease and insect pressure is higher than outdoor gardens, if fences are strong and high.

John
Guest
John
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Oh, yeah, but how much evidence do you need? I’m more for the spotted owl than for the drug manufacturer.

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago
Reply to  John

Me too

hmm
Guest
hmm
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

This is more or less bad science but, rodenticide is not at all uncommon on grows. It is common on rural property of growers and non-growers alike.

Matthew Meyer
Guest
Matthew Meyer
6 years ago
Reply to  hmm

This may be good science, or it may have flaws.

Either way, it’s plain to me that pushing this kind of research tends to discredit outdoor growing of all kinds, which is a boon for warehouse grow investors.

I don’t doubt that there are those who promote this research out of a desire to get cannabis farms out of the hills. Reasons to support this may range from “true believer” environmentalism to pure mercenary competition.

In any case, the message to the uninformed is clear: outdoor growing is perpetrated by bad people who value profit above all else.

Good science without proper context is, ipso facto, bad science.

Perspective
Guest
Perspective
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Wow. By far the shittiest comment you have ever made.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

We all love you and your perspective Emily… ban the chemicals and the problem is solved.

BettyLou
Guest
6 years ago
Reply to  Emily

Emily, You’re part of the problem. As long as you dismiss scientific research, because you don’t agree with the conclusions, you’re part of the problem. As long as you see it as good growers ( you and your locally raised growers) vs. bad growers (Mexicans, outsiders), you’re part of the problem. [edit]

Veterans Friend
Guest
Veterans Friend
6 years ago

HUMANS put out the poison. Let’s ban humans😁
Or we could ban the poison. Why is this so difficult to understand and act upon?
If you mix plaster of paris with cornmeal and put it out where it will stay dry, with water availible nearby, it is a simple, nontoxic rat killer😁.
Hardens to a rock in rat tummy

Liberal hypocrisy
Guest
Liberal hypocrisy
6 years ago

Chupacabra

Anon Forrest
Guest
Anon Forrest
6 years ago

Wow, thanks! I couldn’t remember the recipe.

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago

Partly the reason for the attribution seems that the greatest concentrations of positives are in lines that are not in populated areas and not following major roads. At first, I thought it followed 299 but it sort of parallels 299 but south of it with a few along 299 itself. They are mostly in privately owned timberlands. That does seem to indicate that it is other than people’s residences.

I wondered why rodenticides would be an issue in pot grows. The only thing I can find is they keep rodents from eating seedlings.

All the studies that I could find are under the auspices of the same scientist. It would be good to see non connected confirmation.

What is really funny is that the same people will berate opposing statements as ignorant if some study supports their view and berates those who believe a study as government pawns if a study contradicts their view. All without looking into it at all.

Conservative Stupidity
Guest
Conservative Stupidity
6 years ago
Reply to  Guest

“I wondered why rodenticides would be an issue in pot grows. The only thing I can find is they keep rodents from eating seedlings.”

You don’t know jack shit about growing yet you come on here like Mrs. Know it All. Two words!

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago

I never said I know about growing pot. I only know what the people using and growing have done around me. It was unclear to me why rodenticides were even involved so I googled it.
That is what it said.

You are an educational example of what you advocate.

Loco non observer
Guest
Loco non observer
6 years ago

Really every gorilla grower knows rats will eat 6-10fters and strip the bark on stalk to get water which in turn stops the plants from producing to there fullest.

Anon Forrest
Guest
Anon Forrest
6 years ago

EZ fix: put out water for the rats. It works.

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago
Reply to  Anon Forrest

Yes. That actually works. But a lot of these bigger grows leave small day to day decisions to low wage workers, who may not have the deductive reasoning skills required to come up with such a solution.
My neighbor rolls up once a week and looks at everything, scolds his workers for whatever didn’t get done, then roars off to his next property. I can’t see his browbeaten workers really giving a shit about leaving a bowl of water out for the mice!

DELUSIONAL LIBERAL
Guest
DELUSIONAL LIBERAL
6 years ago

Stop the hate! AND not everyone in this community is involved with pot!

BettyLou
Guest
6 years ago

How many thousands of pot plants do I have to grow, before I’m allowed to post on this site? Just curious. Get back to me.

Always listening to bs
Guest
Always listening to bs
6 years ago

You all that are calling bs on this article are probably the people who use these poisonous chemicals, why blame yourselves,huh

?
Guest
?
6 years ago

The USDA and their Federal Trappers are poisoning the Forests.
Google It.

DEAD DOG
Guest
DEAD DOG
6 years ago
Reply to  ?

USDA wildlife services dosenot use poison or rodentcides in california .? your infornation is false

Someone
Guest
Someone
6 years ago

Ive been seeing alot of dead birds lately, especially owls on the roadside. Ive also seen quite a few dead robins around my yard that the scavengers wont eat. Made me wonder if they died from poison or disease. Ive never put out poison i only do traps. Poor birds.

Veterans Friend
Guest
Veterans Friend
6 years ago
Reply to  Someone

Not just birds. Martins, otters & mink are all scavengers who get poisoned too. Bobcats & foxes…any creature on nature’s cleanup crew.

local observer
Guest
local observer
6 years ago

I know someone with a dead pet anaconda because he fed it rodents from his property in downtown Glendale.

Hahahaha
Guest
Hahahaha
6 years ago

I love the argument that there are other people in the forests around here other than growers, Id put an estimate of 8% of folks living here on hwy 36 beyond mile marker 25 are not huge growers.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
6 years ago

I would bet its only 8% of those using the horrible roedenticides. These chemicals should be banned and the companies selling them should be fined and cited for environmental harm.

Blaming the idiot doper is like pissing down your neck and telling you it’s raining outside

David McDowell
Guest
David McDowell
6 years ago

There is a big problem with wildlife death due to rodenticides in and around Lake Tahoe. Has been for decades. Not due to large”grows” just ignorant homeowners. Some estates use cases of it every winter. Also I think some vineyards use massive amounts also. The stuff sucks, moves right up the food chain. Ban it!

DELUSIONAL LIBERAL
Guest
DELUSIONAL LIBERAL
6 years ago

Them good ol’ boys been in the hills before the gold rush and them city folk from NY and Mass arrived, been hunting and fishing to survive. 44 MAG DO YOU FEEL LUCKY PUNK?? (Quote from Clint Eastwood Classic)

Pest-control professional
Guest
Pest-control professional
6 years ago

Education is the solution here… The only way to control rodent infestation is by limiting food, water, and harborage. Rodenticides, and trapping are merely the art of doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.
The bottom line, if you’re grow site looks like a pig stye, With garbage and crap all over the place… You are going to have rats. At four months of age, a rodent can reproduce every three months. No amount of store-bought or man-made control and possibly be more efficient then controlling the environment by picking up after oneself

Pablo picabosanova
Guest
Pablo picabosanova
6 years ago

I often wonder, not if, but how the people in star chambers talk of the human population issue, as a world security issue. Pro wildlife, anti human.
A zoo is not a proper habitat, but it shows you that even the people who love animals, still get it wrong.

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago

Except there are many rodents living off the wild quite successfully. The new generations go looking for a home. They are looking for shelter in addition to food and man provides plenty of that with his heated construction and materials. You can be neat as a pin and still have lots of rodents invading.

One terrier is the only option to send them elsewhere that I know. Otherwise it’s a battle, especially every fall.

Trucker Don
Guest
Trucker Don
6 years ago

If they think it’s the rat poison, just outlaw it, that’s a terrible way to die for any animal!

usicksoul
Guest
usicksoul
6 years ago

So I guess the TONS of poisons used by PALCO and others were fine then? Its just pot growers whose poison harms?

Emily
Guest
Emily
6 years ago
Reply to  usicksoul

Yes look who funded Mr Gabriel’s study and you will have the answer

Ms.T.Plasmosis
Guest
Ms.T.Plasmosis
6 years ago

Got rats? Get a cat.

Antichrist
Guest
Antichrist
6 years ago

Bah just get cats, there are plenty of them needing good homes. A couple feral cats and rat problems go away, but so do the birds….. yes studies have proven that cats are the main reason song birds have been disapearing. As for owls and larger birds , lets talk about wind farms and the 10 s of millions of birds that are killed each year from these gaint ugly harmful structures that supply power to folks that think it is some how better than oil. While leading researchers have over the last decade come to and started talking about nuclar engery as being the safetist and cleanest form of generating power known to man. The comicial thing about this is that several of the people endorcing nuclar engery are thw very same who so dispised it back in the 70s .

Bozo
Guest
Bozo
6 years ago

>”So I guess the TONS of poisons used by PALCO and others were fine then? Its just pot growers whose poison harms?”

Funny, I worked in the timber industry.
I can’t recall ever using poisons on timberlands???

>”If they think it’s the rat poison, just outlaw it, that’s a terrible way to die for any animal!”

2014 – Those poisons were outlawed in California. (excerpt from a 2014 web story).
They either have to have a license… or are bringing them in from out of state.

>”Earlier this year, California enacted a statewide ban on those products starting on July 1. Licensed commercial and agricultural pest control operators still have access to them; the general public does not.

As you stated, these poisons, often referred to as second-generation rodenticides, are effective at killing rodents, but it’s a cruel death, and too often, raptors, dogs, cats and other animals are killed by eating the dead or dying rodents.

Poisonings have been documented in at least 25 wild species in California, including mountain lions, hawks and endangered San Joaquin kit foxes and Northern spotted owls.”

local observer
Guest
local observer
6 years ago
Reply to  Bozo

the timber industry uses Silvex to kill off the hardwoods and still does. Even Barnum did it. areas that have been sprayed are easy to find on Google earth, they are the big brown areas on timber tracks. they use to use Mexicans but now they use a truck with a big tank and high powered sprayer. one application is around a 1,000 gallons. some of the tracts sprayed are in watersheds where there are homes with domestic wells downgradient.
some garages still have DDT and the hand pump sprayer on their storage shelves. that was banned in 1982. I have a full gallons of 25% doom on my shelve, now you can only get 10% in CA. it was there when I moved it along with all the old paint and other chemicals.
This study is more of a political hit piece. it made it coast to coast in every major news outlet in 6 hours of its release.

Anon Forrest
Guest
Anon Forrest
6 years ago
Reply to  local observer

HazMat will take it.

Matthew Meyer
Guest
Matthew Meyer
6 years ago
Reply to  local observer

It would be very interesting indeed to know more about the routes by which such work is distributed; there are clearly people pushing these stories.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
6 years ago

Legal compliant folks likely use this stuff at the same rate as the trespass ops. Big brother can’t watch all those “compliant” mega-grows or decon. Do people really believe there is a difference? Ban the chems…

Bozo
Guest
Bozo
6 years ago

>”the timber industry uses Silvex to kill off the hardwoods”

Aha… I pretty much worked in the ‘redwood’ belt. Silvex is used mostly inland.
I was also thinking about rat poison. Timber companies don’t use that at all.

>”This study is more of a political hit piece”

Yup. This has been known about for a number of years.

Gypsy Rose
Guest
Gypsy Rose
6 years ago

Kym, I don’t know if you’ll see this but I just wanted to tell you that you got a day jump on the Capital Newspaper on this story. It didn’t appear until today. You go Kym.

R -DOG
Guest
R -DOG
6 years ago

The spotted ale is a dieing breed anyway

gunther
Guest
gunther
6 years ago

While I have no sympathy for illegal growers, I’m very skeptical of any “scientific” environmental study. I believe too often environmental activist organizations come to a conclusion and then cherry pick data to support their conclusion instead of gathering all data and then coming to a conclusion.

Where can a person go to incidentally find 10 dead Spotted Owls lying on the forest floor?

local observer
Guest
local observer
6 years ago
Reply to  gunther

all 10 were found dead on the sides of roads after being hit by a vehicle the study says. the “field” to a scientist is everything outside the office.

Anonymous
Guest
Anonymous
6 years ago

Dude has a drawer full of dead owls.

Mendocino Mamma
Guest
Mendocino Mamma
6 years ago

Home made non toxic rodent killer.

1small jar peanut butter. One full container of salt. Mix well.

Sodium snack causes death.
Works great.

Or 5 gallon bucket of water half full. 2×4 across top. Thumb tack a t.p tube with a smear of peanut butter on end over bucket. Rodent goes down tube falls in. Bye bye. Had 20 in a bucket one morning!

Facts.
Guest
Facts.
6 years ago

Jesus this type of study is so biased. Would a legal cannabis farm not be allowed to use a regulated and legal product? surely he has looked at the rest of agriculture and poison use ? research shows it’s cheaper to house barn owls!

http://www.goodfruit.com/hidden-costs-of-rodent-control/

“He believes growers spend more on annual rodent control than they think they do. Oregon State University Extension estimated that growers spend an average of $95 per acre for rodent control, according to the 2012 Enterprise Budget for high-density, sweet cherry production. The budget is based on actual orchard management costs of a cross-section of ­commercial growers.

Once occupied, barn owl boxes (two costing $500 total) will pay for themselves in saved rodenticide costs in three to five years,” he said. “And even less time if you figure your equipment and labor costs.”

https://sonomawinegrape.org/grower-resources/vineyard-practices/

“Birds – If you want to control migratory birds feeding on your grapes, contact the Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner’s office at (707) 565-2371. Wildlife services are also available to control damage to vines by feral pigs, coyotes, foxes, raccoons, etc. Rodent control bait is also available through this office.”

Emerald Stud
Guest
Emerald Stud
6 years ago

Walmart Ukiah today

Helllbilly
Guest
Helllbilly
6 years ago

I’ve been heavy in the grow scene for almost 20 years. Never used or worked with anyone using rodenticides. But the ranches I’ve been on use them heavily.

David
Guest
David
6 years ago

https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2014/rodenticides-03-20-2014.html How does Walmart and all the other stores get away with it ?

David
Guest
David
6 years ago

After doing some research, it looks like the poisons in the picture at Walmart shown above are legal in CA. D Con has changed the active ingredient in their products. This can now be sold on the shelves in CA.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-CON They and Tom Cat and others are using what is called 1st generation rodenticides and are not supposed to move up the food chain. So they say.

GoGetUmBoy
Guest
GoGetUmBoy
6 years ago

Leave out water for the animals. It works. Ban the poison and fine the manufacturers. Stop the hate on the farmers. If you have a rouge grow happening in your zone, report them and their destructive behavior. Dont tread on me with your generalized opinions of farmers. Go vote for your opinions. Cannabis cultivation is legal in the state. The voters have spoken. As our current President likes to say all the time… Stop being a sore loser! I hear Utah is nice this time of year for those who would like to have neighbors who don’t grow cannabis and really care about your eternal well being. ; )

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