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This presentation will be available via Zoom. Members will receive their invitations via email.

WHOO Else are We Poisoning with Rodenticides? Why Owls and Rat Poisons Don’t Mix

Our October guest speaker will be owl expert Sofi Hindmarch who will describe the devastating consequences of modern rat poisons on owls and other birds of prey. This is a very timely issue as municipalities across the Lower Mainland are adopt, or consider adopting, a ban on the use of these types of chemicals.

Unlike older types of poison like warfarin, rats and mice that eat the ‘second

generation rodenticides’ can become easy prey for larger mammals (raccoons, bobcats, coyotes) and raptors like hawks and owls. The chemicals can accumulate in the predators’ bodies, indirectly poisoning them too. Owls seem to be particularly vulnerable .

Sofi is a wildlife biologist who has studied barn owls since 2006, first as a graduate student at SFU, then a scientist with Environment Canada working out of Delta, and most recently, with the Fraser Valley Conservancy Land Trust.