Photo: Bald Eagle consuming a gut pile @r/birdsofprey 2020 Wildlife primarily get lead poisoning when they consume food items with fragments of lead ammunition in them. When lead is consumed, the stomach acid breaks down the soft metal, and it is absorbed into the bloodstream, causing neurologic problems and organ failure. In our area, lead poisoning cases coincide with deer hunting season, when more animals are shot with lead-containing ammunition. While people often think eagles actively hunt and catch prey, these birds, like many other wild species, are opportunistic scavengers. A fresh carcass is an easy meal they won't pass up. It only takes a fragment of lead the size of a grain of rice to kill an eagle. |
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Photo: Comparison of lead bullet (top) vs. nonlead bullet (bottom) when fired into gelatin. @The Peregrine Fund
Due to lead's soft, malleable properties, lead bullets fragment into much smaller pieces after hitting an animal. Studies show that these fragments can travel up to 18" away from the wound channel. While most hunters trim some distance from the entry wound, many don't realize just how much meat has been contaminated, both for themselves when they consume this meat later, but also for the wildlife they leave to scavenge the gut piles (remains of the hunted animal). |
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