Unexpected exposure to rodenticide makes the wild pigs of California blue, state authorities say.
“I’m not talking about a little blue,” said Dan Burton, owner of Wild Control Company in Salinas, California, The Los Angeles Times. “I’m talking about a neon blue, blue blue.”
Burton was one of the first catchers to discover that local wild pigs had become blue inside. A A subsequent survey from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) found that the pigs consumed the anticoagulant rodenticide Diphacin, poison used by farmers to control populations of unwanted rats, mice, squirrels and other small animals. These substances often contain a dye to identify them as poison, reported the CDFW, which probably explains how the pigs ended with blue -eyed muscle and fat.
Burton’s own investigations found that the poisoned pigs seemed to visit squirrel stations that local farmers used to rule the sciatic populations aimed at their crops. However, because the poisoned bait had tiny doses of diffacinone, the pigs, despite blue, were not out of sick.
Eating animals poisoned by this rodenticide could result in a secondary exposure to the poison, the CDFW said. As such, the agency warns hunters in order not to consume any wild animals with signs of blue contamination and report any visuals of such animals to officials. Overall, the agency advised hunters to exercise extra caution around areas with rat control programs, as it is also possible that exposed animals may not necessarily be blue.
“Hunters should note that the meat of game animals, such as wild pig, deer, bear and geese, could be contaminated if that game animal was exposed to rodenticides,” said Ryan Bourbor, pesticides coordinator at CDFW, in the statement.
This is not the first time that officials have identified wild pigs poisoned by rat poison. In 2018, a Study Through the CDFW found traces of rodenticide in about 8.3% of wild pigs spotted around agricultural or residential areas with rat control programs. Other investigations of 2011 And 2023respectively, found that cooking meat poisoned by a default did not remove contamination, and humans and animals that consume the meat can exhibit signs of poisoning rodenticides, such as lethargy.
In 2024, California forbidden The use of Defacino, with exceptions for specific cases on certified websites, as part of legislation meant to protect wild animals from unintended poisoning. CDFW asks anyone who meets wild animals with blue fat or tissues to report their visuals to the agency at [email protected] or (916) 358-2790.
