At present, 1080 is the only suitable pesticide for the control
of feral pigs, wild dogs and foxes in Australia and is also an
important control tool for rabbits. Its ongoing use is
critical to the success of regional conservation efforts. For
example, in Western Australia, the 'Western Shield' fox-baiting
program has allowed the recovery of various species including
wallabies, bettongs, possums and numbats. In western
New South Wales, threatened populations of rock wallabies and
mallee fowl are increasing following successful fox control, as are
shore bird colonies in coastal regions previously devastated by fox
predation. Victorian predator baiting programs have noted
positive effects on populations of bush-stone curlews, possums,
dunnarts, phascogales, potoroos and bandicoots. The
control of other invasive pests such as rabbits and feral pigs
through 1080 baiting also results in successful biodiversity
outcomes.
No less important than the conservation benefits, the use of
1080 is also widely used to protect lambs and other livestock from
being mauled and killed by invasive predators, and to reduce
pasture competition, habitat destruction and crop damage by rabbits
and feral pigs.
The IA CRC supports and promotes best practice invasive animal
management. Through our partners, we are currently investing
millions of dollars to develop more target specific baits and new
toxins to complement the long term use of 1080. These
promising technologies are set to broaden the range of control
options currently available to Australian farms and public land
managers. However, we must caution that they will not be
available for some years, and in the interim 1080 needs to continue
to play its critical role in reducing the impacts of pest animals
on the environment and agricultural production. Best
practise management currently includes the careful and responsible
use of 1080 baits together with physical control options where
practicable such as trapping, fencing, warren fumigation or burrow
ripping.
What is 1080?
Compound 1080 or sodium monofluoroacetate, is a naturally
occurring compound produced by about 40 species of native
Australian plant, primarily of the genera Gastralobium,
which grow in Western Australia, across northern Australia and in
central Queensland. No fluoroacetate bearing plants are known
to occur in Tasmania or the other southern States.
Compound 1080 is a white fluffy powder that is odourless and
tasteless. 1080 was first synthesised in Europe in 1896 and
developed in the USA as a rodenticide during the 1940s. It was
first used as a rabbit poison in Tasmania in 1952. It is now
widely used in Australia and New Zealand to control pest
animals.
Conditions and manner of use
1080 is
traditionally applied to food materials such as carrot pieces,
oats, meat or offal. The toxin is available in aqueous
solution, short-life baits and shelf-stable baits (lasting up to 12
months after preparation). Semi-dried meat baits or dry oat
baits are examples of shelf-stable baits. Short-life baits in
meat or offal must be used within one day of preparation.
The supply and use of 1080 is strictly controlled by a
combination of Australian Government and State/Territory
regulations. The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary
Medicines Authority (APVMA) regulates 1080 up to and including the
point of retail sale. Once sold or supplied, it comes under
the regulation of the individual State or Territory.
Special regulations restricting the availability, storage and
use of 1080 apply. Under State poisons legislation 1080 is a
Schedule 7 poison. This means that 1080 is only available to
specialised or authorised users who have the skills necessary to
handle it safely. Under the Agricultural and Veterinary
Chemicals Code Regulations (1995), products containing 1080 are
also declared to be ‘Restricted Chemical
Products’. As such, the products can only be supplied
to or used by ‘authorised person(s)’. Individual
States set the authorisation criteria, taking the APVMA’s and
State regulatory requirements into account.
The powder is dissolved in water to make a 1.5 per cent
solution. This is coloured blue to give it a distinctive
appearance to avoid accidental misuse and to reduce its
acceptability to birds. In the field it is then mixed with
the bait material.
The relative toxicity of 1080
differs according to the species of animal. Dogs and cats are
highly susceptible. Next are all herbivores (rabbits, cattle,
sheep, deer, possums). Rats, wombats and man are less susceptible,
while quolls, Tasmanian devils, mice and nearly all birds have a
high tolerance to 1080 poison.
To reduce the likelihood that non-target animals may
accidentally pick up a bait, careful attention is paid to bait
density, placement, timing, and the substrate used. Baits are
usually buried when the target is foxes. Neighbours
must be notified to allow muzzling or restraint of working or pet
dogs.
The APVMA has also stipulated mandatory distances from
dwellings, watercourses, fences and roads. Signs must be
posted indicating the date baits have been laid, the toxin name,
the target species, a contact number and a warning about potential
for uptake by, for example, dogs.
Symptoms of poisoning
1080 works by blocking an enzyme involved in the
organism’s energy production, and is closely related to
acetate, a normal part of the breakdown of sugars for energy
production. Its mode of action does not damage tissues or
cells. The cause of death after ingesting 1080 is typically
ventricular fibrillation (heart irregularity). Herbivores
(usually the target species) typically show no obvious sign of
poisoning until their sudden collapse, when they lie still,
breathing slowly until death occurs. In some cases
convulsions are seen.
Symptoms of nervous distress are seen in dogs, cats and man -
but from reports of men who have recovered, no pain is
felt.
1080 is considered far superior to the main other legal
alternative, Strychnine, because death occurs faster, it is water
soluble, it is less toxic to man, and it is more specific.
Strychnine is known to cause a violent death with convulsions and
pain, and affects all species of animals and birds. In
Australia, other poisons such as organo-phosphates may not legally
be used for vertebrate pest control - they are totally
non-selective and could threaten many native species.
Pindone is a legal alternative for rabbit control in areas where
there is a secondary risk to dogs, and there is an antidote
available, but native carnivores and birds of prey may be at
greater risk from eating poisoned carcasses.
Effect on the environment
One of the reasons 1080 is a preferred toxin is because it does
not accumulate in the environment. It is applied locally at
relatively small rates and is readily degraded in soils, surface
waters and by micro-organisms.
Most of the 1080 ingested by animals is rapidly metabolised
and/or excreted, with only low levels retained in the
carcass. The usual scavengers on carrion - birds - have
a high tolerance and would need to eat impossibly large quantities
of meat to take a lethal dose.
Humaneness and safety
The APVMA has recently reviewed the use of 1080 for vertebrate
pest baiting in Australia, and has approved its continued use with
stricter labelling provisions. The AMPVA review was satisfied
that with the new introduced changes to labelling and registration
conditions, the continued use of 1080 was unlikely to cause
significant harm to the environment or other species.
1080 is considered the most humane of the currently available
legal toxins for vertebrate pests. The RSPCA has expressed
concern over perceived suffering in animals poisoned with this
toxin. The APVMA review findings state that
“although the measurement of pain in animals must always be a
subjective exercise, some insight into the degree of suffering
experienced by 1080 poisoned animals can be obtained from humans
that have been poisoned in this way. Symptoms in humans
involve central nervous system stimulation with clinical signs of
anxiety, agitation, nausea and generalised tonic-clonic
convulsions, but pain is usually not reported. In one
example, a man poisoned during mixing of 1080 powder reported
tingling sensations around the mouth and nasal passages, extending
to the arms and legs. However, there was no recollection of
pain during the spasmodic contractions of voluntary muscles that
occurred in the 2.5 hours before unconsciousness
intervened.”
The Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F)
has endorsed the findings of the APMVA into environmental
impacts of sodium fluoroacetate (1080) used in feral animal
control. Biosecurity Queensland's Land Protection
manager issued a statement, saying "DPI&F, Biosecurity
Queensland, accepts the APVMA’s new regulations and already
has in place a clear set of requirements and guidelines.
Mandatory labelling changes are being introduced into our feral
animal control programs’. They will continue to use
1080 as it is the most effective, humane and environmentally-low
impact poison currently available.
For more information, see the APVMA
factsheet or visit their website: www.apvma.gov.au.
Summary
Compound 1080 is the most effective vertebrate pest poison
currently available. It is relatively species-specific, it is
relatively humane in terms of its effects on herbivores and it is
biodegradable.
