The project is a conservation effort aimed at restoring the island's ecosystem, which has suffered for years due to the introduction of house mice, Dr. Anton Wolfaardt, Mouse-Free Marion Project Manager, tells Sputnik Africa.
He confirms that the invasive species has significantly disrupted the natural balance, prompting the need for this intervention.
“While they are certainly a threat to the island seabirds, they actually are also a threat to the ecological integrity of the entire island. The seabirds are the flagship for our project, but the mice are having an impact on almost all aspects of the ecosystem,” Wolfaardt explains.
Sharing his thoughts on the nature of the project, he emphasizes that it requires extensive assessments, with risk management being essential. While the bait may affect other vertebrates, most of the island's birds, being seabirds, are unlikely to consume it as they feed at sea.
He further assures that a lot of research has been done on previous projects to determine its safety.
“An independent expert panel undertook a very rigorous assessment, looked at each of the species that could potentially be impacted and looked at the pathways of the toxin during the baiting operation, looked at the […] life of the toxin in the environment, given the weather conditions, and concluded confidently that the net ecological benefits of the operation certainly justified continuing and that the short-term impacts are transitory and are justified in terms of the overall net benefits,” he remarks.
To find out what else our guest had to say, tune in to the Global South Pole podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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