LEAD POISONING IN TRUMPETER SWANS

Lead Poisoning in Trumpeter Swans

Abstract

The past few winters were too dangerous for trumpeter swans in what come county. Here they died from lead poisoning. Because of eating shotgun pellets, they were introduced to harmful lead levels. These were enough for them to take their lives. Now, the number of deaths in USA of trumpeter swans is constantly increasing, even after the ban from the government 14 years ago (USFWS 2004a). Two persons introduced the house bill in United States in Jan 2006. Their names were Brian Sullivan and Jim Buck. Their bill included sanction of hunting in the living place of these swans. The penalty was also set of 1000 $ and two years ban on hunting. Further in this discussion, we will discuss the reasons and more complexities regarding this issue.

Lead Poisoning in Trumpeter Swans

Introduction

Traditionally, the wild birds are hunted by shotgun. This shotgun fires the clusters of pellets, known as shots. This shots load weights 1.125 ounces and contain 225 lead pallets of 0.11 inch. These are conventionally used to hunt down birds. The lead shot was banned from waterfall hunting in 1991. So the gun shooters turned their attention to non lead hunting shots. The hunt of some more birds like Quail, Coots, rails, snipe and pheasants are also prohibited. In winter, Trumpeter swans extensively forage in agricultural fields and pastures, grazing on forbs and grasses, and consuming the remaining crops as food, which include potatoes and corns. Moreover, the legal and authentic uses of leads are also the problem to focus upon in wetlands and some fields. Here, we will discuss the reasons behind the deaths of such noble marine hunter, and step that has been taken by US government on this case

Discussion

When a shot is fired from shotgun, only small quantity on shots hits the target. The rest of pallets fall to the ground. Here the pallets got mixed in the wetland's soil or with the soil in the ground or other water bodies. According to an astonishing report, 730 million pallets we deposited on the upland's base where the hunting is arranged (Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife Group 2001).

The Dangers of Lead for Birds

Because the birds lack teeth, they swallow their food. Their digestive system is affected by swallowing the pallets. The usually swallow some pebbles and soil particles with their food. They use their sensitive tissues to find particles of food and dirt. Using their senses, they separate them i.e. swallow the food and spit the dirt particles. They do the same with the food in the bottom of the lake. These aquatic birds include ducks, swans and geese. Unfortunately, their digestive system is unable to differentiate between lead shots and pebbles, results in the death of these birds.

The lead particles enter the gizzard of swan, where its converted to smaller particles. Here combines with the acids in the digestive system and becomes a liquid. This liquid comes in contact with the blood results in decreasing the ability of ...