Poisoned Food Left at Caroni Bird Sanctuary Endangers Multiple Species

Yesterday (21-08-19) we were alerted to an alarming incident at the Caroni Bird Sanctuary where someone had placed poisoned food for the stray and feral cats in the area.

While we understand the cats are damaging to the ecosystem and have very detrimental effects to the environment we condemn this despicable act. At no time should any animal be subjected to such a terrible and painful death.

Not only have the cats been affected but also many of the other animals in this protected sanctuary, including some animals that are protected by our conservation laws. Aside from directly ingesting the poison, some of the animals may feed (scavenge) on the carcasses of those animals killed by the poison and can also die from secondary exposure. This can and will likely continue to flow through the food chain and continue to damaging an already sensitive ecosystem.

Many scavengers such as crabs, insects and even some of the fish and caimans may be subjected to secondary exposure, continuing this nonsensical act. We advise anyone who usually fish or catch crabs in the area to be vigilant and cautious.

There are many more humane ways to deal with this situation that does not adversely affect other animals and the ecosystem as a whole. We plead that no one decides to do this again and we hope that preventive measures are taken.

We removed 6 cats, 1 golden tegu (matte) and 1 yellow headed caracara from the site in an effort to stop the transmission of poison to other species. The carcasses have been taken for post mortem and toxicology tests will be conducted.

We will continue to urge anyone that can assist, governmental or otherwise, to address the situation regarding the cats in the area. We also urge people to not feed the cats in the area as this encourages others to abandon more animals as they have the impression they will be taken care of.

We thank the Animal Welfare Network for the awesome teamwork and Trinidad and Tobago Police Service for their assistance.