Meeting Abstract
Some studies of raptors across the United States have revealed lead poisoning in these birds, linked to human activities. Lead has negative neurological and hematological impacts on birds. Although several steps have been taken toward solving this issue, ingestion of lead from the food raptors consume is potentially a much greater conservation issue than previously indicated. We collected blood samples from raptors admitted to the Illinois Raptor Center in Decatur, Illinois for rehabilitation from March 2014 to December 2016 and determined lead content with an ESA LeadCare II lead analyzer. We tested if lead toxicity appears at a frequency in any species at a rate that differs from random. We also used spatial autocorrelation analyses to determine if birds that were positive for lead were associated with specific hunting regions and matched the results of the spatial autocorrelation analyses with public hunting data found through the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. After finding that non-scavenging species, such as Cooper’s Hawks, frequently showed high levels of lead, we also tested common prey species in the area. Lead toxicity does appear among species at a rate that differs from random, with scavengers representing the highest proportion of high lead individuals. We also found that there was no significant association between Hunting Region 3 and 4, despite substantial differences in hunting activity. Further, we found evidence that lead is prevalent in the living prey base of many of these species, particularly in urban pigeons. Overall, our work will help better understand the sources of lead in multiple species of raptors, including these non-scavenger species.
