Dead birds don't get us in a flap

'IT'S a bit smelly in here even though they're all frozen," says Dr Mike Taylor, as he carefully lifts the lid off a large white freezer.

Inside are not the typical contents of a kitchen freezer – chicken, pizza and potato wedges perhaps – but rather dozens of dead birds of prey, each one wrapped in a plastic bag with a stick-on label determining the particular species.

The freezer is packed full of frozen carcasses, the majority of which have tested positive for illegal poisoning.

The neighbouring fridge holds blood, urine and tissue samples from a range of animals, with each stored in a plastic container.

The dissection bench sits in the neighbouring room, upon which three birds of prey lie lifeless.

An impressive golden eagle, a buzzard and a red kite have already been sliced down the middle and their insides removed to be tested for poisoning by scientists at SASA, the Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture centre in Gogarbank.

"This eagle featured on the BBC's One Show to showcase that birds in Scotland are breeding, and a year later it was found poisoned in Tayside," Dr Taylor says sadly.

"Whether it's a golden eagle or an owl, it's really sad to see so many animals in their prime which are the victims of poisoning.

"Ultimately the main concern is the extinction of certain species in Scotland, nothing is excluded from being poisoned. If birds of prey continue to be poisoned, they will die out."

Protecting wildlife against deliberate or accidental poisoning is just one strand of work carried out by the centre, which is a division of the Scottish Government.

The 150 laboratory and support staff at the Roddinglaw Road premises have their work cut out for them, with the most recent figures for bird of prey poisonings in Scotland soaring from 16 in 2008 to 27 in 2009.

The statistics, published by the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW), show a total of 22 recorded poisoning incidents in 2009, which resulted in 27 dead birds of prey, including 19 buzzards, four red kites and two golden eagles.

"We operate the wildlife incident investigation scheme, which monitors the impact of pesticide use on wildlife, domestic animals, livestock and honey bees," explains Dr Taylor, who is head of chemistry at SASA. "As part of that surveillance programme we encounter deliberate poisoning of animals.

"Most specimens we get in are birds of prey, but we also get cats, dogs, foxes, badgers, crows, magpies – you name it, we've had it.

"I think we have had everything in – frogs, guinea pigs, horses, sheep and cattle."

Although it's not clear why there has been such a huge rise in the number of deliberate poisonings, Dr Taylor believes an increased awareness on the issue of illegal poisoning has led to a greater number of reports being made by the public.

He adds: "In terms of the number of deliberate abuse incidents, 2009 was pretty high. Our figures over the last 20 to 30 years do indicate an increase in deliberate poisonings. There's a feeling that birds of prey and other predators threaten game birds – pheasant, grouse, partridge – and other livestock, such as lambs.

"There is certainly some tradition involved in poisoning predators and scavengers, it has been going on for decades. Gamekeepers get most of the blame but it's rogue individuals and not necessarily gamekeepers who are doing it.

"They have all sorts of creative ways to poison animals, from lacing mince meat and bread with poison to injecting eggs."

Birds of prey suspected to have been deliberately poisoned and which have subsequently died are brought to the SASA centre, where they are first physically examined for any obvious signs of trauma, such as a crushed skull, shot wounds or broken bones.

A basic post-mortem is then carried out in which the carcass is dissected and infected tissues and organs removed, often including the liver and stomach, with scientists testing for unnatural levels of chemicals.

Dr Taylor says: "The birds don't always come to us in perfect condition, more often than not they are maggot infested."

The chemicals are extracted, as well as any food in the mouth, and tested in the laboratories using hi-tech, sophisticated equipment. Results can often be produced within just 24 hours.

"We are as well-equipped as any lab," Dr Taylor says. "The equipment is the same as used for testing for drugs in sport."

The centre's laboratories feature millions of pounds worth of equipment, with a single piece of machinery costing 300,000.

But just how big a problem is bird of prey poisoning in Edinburgh and the Lothians?

It is, in fact, more widespread than most people would suspect.

Last year, there were five confirmed poisoning incidents involving birds of prey in the Lothian and Borders area, second only to Tayside, which recorded nine.

Over a longer period, between January 2005 and October 2009, there were 20 confirmed incidents across Lothian and Borders. Northern Constabulary recorded the highest number of incidents with a total of 23.

The majority of poisonings carried out across Scotland use Carbofuran, an illegal pesticide in the UK which is also potentially dangerous to humans. It is thought that old stocks of the chemical, which was banned in Britain in 2001, are still being used.

According to SASA, there has been no evidence of an animal surviving after consuming the deadly granules, with the majority dying within just a few hours.

Senior analyst Elizabeth Sharp, 43, has examined countless victims, having dissected thousands of animals at the centre since starting out as an assistant scientific officer a quarter of a century ago.

She says: "You're never quite sure what you're going to find in the morning. Once or twice I've felt a bit ill doing the post-mortems but you have to just get on and do it.

"We deal with 150 to 200 incidents a year. One incident can involve one animal or several, depending on how many come into contact with the chemical."

Poisoned carcasses are stored in freezers at SASA for an average of five to six years until the police investigation is closed, after which they are incinerated.

SASA staff also test syringes, knives and suspicious substances recovered following police raids on homes, with many perpetrators choosing to store pesticides in jam jars, coffee jars and juice bottles.

"We also test sweepings from vehicles and people's clothing, it's more like forensic CSI stuff," jokes Dr Taylor.

"We test human specimens. It wouldn't be the first time that we've had suspected human victims of poisoning, either suicide or murder, but this is quite rare."

Assisting police to help catch perpetrators of wildlife crime is another role fulfilled by the centre's staff, who even attend court cases as prosecution witnesses.

Part of SASA's remit also involves monitoring fruit and vegetables in supermarkets for pesticide residues, and their removal from the shelves on the rare occasions they contain inappropriate levels.

Back at the centre, it's difficult to see how SASA staff manage to enjoy their sandwiches at lunchtime, but Ms Sharp says: "I've been doing it for too long now to bother about that."