Another rhino death: Possibly poison on the farm neighboring that of Dawie Groenewald



Another rhino death: Possibly poison
2010-09-28 23:08
Marietie Louw-Carstens, Beeld



Pretoria - A pregnant rhino cow has died under mysterious circumstances on the farm neighbouring that of Dawie Groenewald, the suspected mastermind of an alleged rhino poaching syndicate who was arrested last week.

Lourens Louw, owner of the farm Mafunyani, in the Messina district, confirmed on Tuesday that one of his rhino cows died on Monday.

Beeld has learned that the police are conducting tests on a poisonous substance found near a watering hole on the farm.

Mafunyani borders on the farm Prachtig, which belongs to 42-year-old Groenewald, a well-known figure in wildlife circles.

Groenewald, a former policeman, was released on R1m bail in the Messina magistrate's court last week in connection with his alleged involvement in a syndicate that kills rhinos.

Louw was not able to say on Tuesday what had caused the rhino cow's death. According to him, it doesn't look like the animal was shot.

"At the moment I don't know whether the animal might have been poisoned or shot. I'm waiting for the result of the police investigation."

Young cow

According to him the rhino cow - who was about 4 years old - was pregnant.

"It's possible that she died when she had to give birth. She had a lot of blood on her."

Louw said the animal's horns had not been sawn off. After the animal died, police cut the horn off and are holding it in safekeeping.

"We'll have to wait for the post-mortem to tell us what killed her."

Louw denied rumours that he gave any information regarding Groenewald's alleged involvement in rhino killing to the police or game wardens.

Meanwhile, Sarel van der Walt reports that farmers with rhinos have been warned to be on the look-out for poisoned cabbages which are placed in rhinos' "territorial dung heaps".

Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA) released a statement calling on game farmers to contact the police as soon as possible if they spot any of these poisoned cabbages.

Rhinos have the habit of visiting their dung heaps often, and then eat whatever food has been planted there.

The organisation also warned farmers to be very cautious, since the chances are great that poachers are still in the area.


~ Alan

Rhinos are now being poisoned


Rhinos are now being poisoned
2010-09-29 11:03

Johannesburg – A wildlife organisation warned on Wednesday that rhino poachers were now reverting to poison to kill the animals.

Wildlife Ranching SA operational manager Reinhardt Holtzhausen said 14 cabbage halves sprinkled with poison were found on a game farm in Mookgophong at the weekend.

He came across the heap by chance while driving through the game farm with his friend.

"The rhinos were literally 100m from the spot where we found the heap of cabbages. Luckily we could remove all of them before any damage was done."

He said the cabbages were placed in the vicinity of rhino middens.

Rhinos have the habit of visiting their dung piles often, and then eating whatever food has been planted there.

Clever people

"These are clever people; they obviously know the rhinos' habits," said Holtzhausen.

Seven cabbages were cut in half and sprinkled with blue crystals, smaller than the size of ground pepper corns.

Holtzhausen said he suspected the poison was either curaterr or albicarap and had been sent to the police for forensic tests.

"We are waiting for the results," he said.

Last week, a group of people, including two veterinarians and a game farmer, appeared in the Musina Magistrate's Court for allegedly being part of a rhino poaching syndicate.

More than 200 rhinos have already been killed by poachers this year, compared to 122 the whole of last year.

- SAPA


~Alan

Hmm, those blue crystals sound just like something we have here called 'Fly Bait'. I don't know if that is the same chemical being used in RSA but when an animal eats it they generally die within a few steps of the bait. It's wicked mean stuff.

We call that poison "Two Step".

The critter eats it, takes two steps, and dies.

An indiscriminate killer for sure.

Carbofuran is an insecticide sold under different brand names such as Curaterr, Diafuran, Furadan, and Yaltox. Curaterr must be the local SA brand.

Albicarap brought up only one hit on Google on a horticultural site that I could not enter as Opuntia albicarap S.

Subsequent searches for that brought up references to prickly pear cactus, but there does not appear to be a subspecies with that name.

They should feed some to the perpetrators to test its effects on poachers.

~Alan

There are a lot of different trade names but the active ingredient is

ALDICARB

Sold originally in SA as TEMIK.

Nowdays you need to be a registered farmer and have done training in order to purchase it. Each purchase is also logged. Needless to say the system is far from foolproof and the stuff occurs all over rthe place and is used in all manner of illicit or imoral ways including murder, killing of watch dogs, killing of predayors such as jackal & caracal, and now it seems also to poach!

Here is what toxipedia has to say about Aldicarb. Really nasty stuff and considering what it does as far as soil contamination, its manufacture should be totally banned. They use the phrase 'acutely toxic' several times. The newspaper reference to Albicarap must have been a typographic error.


Health and Environmental effects of Aldicarb



Health Effects

Aldicarb is one of the most acutely toxic pesticides registered in the United States (Cox, 1992). Carbamate insecticide poisoning has signs and symptoms similar to organophosphate poisoning, although the symptoms of the former are not as prolonged. These symptoms generally subside within a six hour period, unless the victim has been exposed to an extremely large amount of the chemical (Risher et al, 1987).

As noted above, this pesticide can harm humans through dermal and oral routes, and through inhalation of granules. However, the primary route of human exposure to aldicarb comes from the consumption of contaminated food and drinking water. In terms of the former, most cases stem from poor product handling, while in the latter, instances of aldicarb poisoning are due to contaminated wells (ExtoxnetPip). When aldicarb was still a commonly available insecticide, it routinely manifested itself in food crops, and in July of 1985 nearly two thousand people in Oregon and California became ill from eating contaminated watermelons. Similar fates fell upon consumers in Nebraska, British Columbia, and California in the subsequent years (Cox, 1992). And as with other pesticides, many of the health effects associated from aldicarb use also stem from improper handling of the product itself.

Cholinesterase inhibition is the primary cause of aldicarb's range of symptoms. If the production of the specific cholinesterase enzyme decreases by 30 percent, acute effects begin to present. These signs and symptoms can be organized into two groups:

Muscarinic Signs are those that result from the stimulation of muscarinic receptors found in smooth muscles, especially around the heart and glands. Symptoms include

* Tightness in chest and difficulty breathing due to bronchoconstriction
* Increased bronchial secretions, sweating, and salivation
* Nausea
* Vomiting
* Diarrhea
* Abdominal cramps
* Involuntary urination
* Miosis (pupil constriction)

In contrast, Nicotinic Signs result from the accumulation of Acetylcholine at the endings of motor nerves that communicate with skeletal muscles and ganglia. They include

* Muscular effects - fatigue, weakness, and cramps.
* High blood pressure and hyperglycemia

For a more comprehensive analysis of these signs and symptoms, see Risher et al, 1987.

The EPA notes that although these effects are real and scientifically demonstrated, forcing aldicarb to be classified as a WHO acute health hazard (PAN), they are also reversible after exposure. In contrast, aldicarb does have the potential to cause neurological effects such as sweating pupillary constriction, and leg weakness. Some additionally classify aldicarb as a potential endocrine disruptor (PAN). However, as with other pesticides, the specific kinds of health effects this chemical has are often debated and are not unified (ExtoxnetPip). On such example, supplied by the EPA, is the current inadequate and ununified body of data to label aldicarb as a carcinogen (EPA). Luckily, some health dimensions of aldicarb are clear; according to the EPA and EXTOXNET, no teratogenic, mutagenic, or reproductive effects have been associated with the chemical's use in both animals and humans.


Environmental Effects

Aldicarb has negative effects on the soil, surrounding organisms, and groundwater wherever this chemical is applied. The chemical characteristics of aldicarb advance its chances to leach into water; additionally, the chemical is highly water soluble and mobile in soils. Aldicarb does not degrade in groundwater under aerobic conditions unless a relatively high pH exists, such as at pH 7.7 (ExtoxnetPip). Therefore, when applied to farmland, aldicarb may easily be carried off into nearby bodies of water through rain and runoff. Because of these properties, aldicarb can easily contaminate human drinking water supplies, and has been detected in wells of over 12 states in concentrations far above the health standard of 10 parts per billion (ExtoxnetPip).

Aldicarb also demonstrates high degrees of bioaccumulation within the ecosystems where it is applied. While the compound is degraded by bacteria, sunlight, and eventually, water, it has been found to rapidly build up in wild flora. However, aldicarb does not appear to bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms. This does not imply, though, that the chemical does not harm aquatic life. On the contrary, aldicarb is not only acutely toxic to these organisms, but also can cause liver damage, changes in blood cells, and increases in cholesterol levels. The same is true for other aquatic organisms, such as shrimp (Cox, 1992).

In addition, aldicarb is acutely toxic to birds; one granule of Temik, in one study, was sufficient to kill over eighty percent of house sparrows and forty percent of blackbirds in sample populations (Cox, 1992). These organisms are primarily exposed to the chemical through absorbing granules of Temik or consuming earthworms contaminated with Temik ([ExtoxnetPip]). Laboratory studies have also demonstrated that the chemical has the ability to alter the biological structure of certain species of bacteria (Cox, 1992).

Lastly, aldicarb, in the process of eliminating agricultural and horticultural pests, also kills beneficial insects such as honeybees and earthworms, both of which are necessary for the well-being of gardens and crop yields. However, in terms of this specific impact, aldicarb has one other agricultural cost to take into account. As a nematicide, aldicarb targets nematodes, of which there are two main groups in agricultural settings: predatory and pest species. While this chemical aims to eliminate the latter, which harm crops and can act as vectors for plant viruses, aldicarb also limits the population of the former, which serve as forms of bio-control by preying on garden pests such as cutworms. Therefore, by using aldicarb as a nematicide, agriculturally-beneficial species of nematode may be eliminated, and their associated benefits will be lost.


Cheers,

~ Alan