Journal article
Heads in the sand: public health and ecological risks of lead-based bullets for wildlife shooting in Australia
Wildlife Research, Vol.45(4)
2018
Abstract
Lead (Pb) is a toxic element banned from fuel, paint and many other products in most developed countries. Nonetheless, it is still widely used in ammunition, including rifle bullets, and Pb-based bullets are almost universally used in Australia. For decades, poisoning from Pb shot (shotguns) has been recognised as a cause of disease in waterfowl and Pb shot has been subsequently banned for waterfowl hunting in many jurisdictions. However, the risks posed by Pb-based bullets (rifles) have not been similarly recognised in Australia. Pb-based rifle bullets frequently fragment, contaminating the tissue of shot animals. Consuming this Pb-contaminated tissue risks harmful Pb exposure and, thus, the health of wildlife scavengers (carrion eaters) and humans and their companion animals who consume harvested meat (game eaters). In Europe, North America and elsewhere, the environmental and human health risks of Pb-based bullets are widely recognised, and non-toxic alternatives (e.g. copper-based bullets) are increasingly being used. However, Australia has no comparable research despite widespread use of shooting, common scavenging by potentially susceptible wildlife species, and people regularly consuming shot meat. We conclude that Australia has its collective ‘head in the sand’ on this pressing worldwide One Health issue. We present the need for urgent research into this field in Australia.
Details
- Title
- Heads in the sand: public health and ecological risks of lead-based bullets for wildlife shooting in Australia
- Authors/Creators
- J.O. Hampton (Author/Creator) - Murdoch UniversityM. Laidlaw (Author/Creator)E. Buenz (Author/Creator) - Nelson Marlborough Institute of TechnologyJ.M. Arnemo (Author/Creator) - Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- Publication Details
- Wildlife Research, Vol.45(4)
- Publisher
- CSIRO Publishing
- Identifiers
- 991005540956907891
- Copyright
- © 2018 CSIRO
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Veterinary and Life Sciences
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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InCites Highlights
These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output
- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Citation topics
- 3 Agriculture, Environment & Ecology
- 3.91 Contamination & Phytoremediation
- 3.91.644 Mercury Dynamics
- Web Of Science research areas
- Ecology
- Zoology
- ESI research areas
- Plant & Animal Science