Forestry Department Investigates Poisoning of Birds in Paddy Fields | CBCGDF Volunteers Facilitate the Investigation

On the morning of January 16, 2025, the Forestry Bureau of Beilin District, Suihua City, Heilongjiang Province, in cooperation with volunteers from the Suihua Wetland Conservation Area of the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF), revisited the paddy fields along Nan Ni River in Baoshan Town to investigate the recent incident where thousands of birds were poisoned while foraging.

 

Upon arrival at the small, unharvested paddy field, which spanned only a few acres, the team found that many birds were still coming to forage. Led by CBCGDF volunteers, they searched the field and its surroundings and discovered two more locations with toxic grains soaked in pesticides. No dead birds were found at the scene.

 

Local residents reported that the grains, deliberately scattered in the fields, were soaked in Carbofuran, a highly toxic pesticide to birds. They also confirmed that pesticides had been sprayed on the unharvested rice, causing bird poisonings. The person who applied the pesticides was not the owner of the land but someone else.

 

Carbofuran is originally an organophosphate insecticide designed to eliminate mosquitoes and flies, which is highly toxic. When birds eat seeds soaked in this pesticide, they can easily suffocate and die. Moreover, its toxicity persists for a long time, posing a risk of secondary poisoning to animals higher up in the food chain, including humans, who might consume the poisoned birds. Due to its high toxicity, Carbofuran has been banned by forestry departments in several provinces and cities in China. However, it was still being used in this paddy field.

 

During the investigation, CBCGDF volunteers and forestry officials learned that the paddy field area, geographically, falls under the jurisdiction of the Fengnong Reservoir Management District in Hongguang Township, Bayan County, Harbin City, and not within the administrative scope of Beilin District. Despite this, the investigation into the bird poisoning incident will prompt the forestry or public security departments of Bayan County to take further action.

 

Original Chinese Article: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/f6qCAx0KBKVbGkfseESDPQ

Translator: Sara

Reviewed by: Richard

Editor: Sara    

Contact: v10@cbcgdf.org; +8617319454776

Contribution

Do you know? We rely on crowd-funding and donations. You have the opportunity to help an international movement to advance biodiversity conservation. Donate TODAY to power up the movement to make it a better world for all life.

Donation(501C3)Paypal: intl@wbag.org

https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=2EYYJJZ8CGPLE