Save Massachusetts Wildlife

08/24/2026

Pest cos try to say birds of prey are booming as though that's proof anticoagulants are harmless. But here's the truth.

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD THIS BS LINE BEFORE?:

"There are more raptors than there have ever been"?

I sure have--almost always from pest cos and their lobbyists and allies. So rat poisons, or SGARs--can't really be hurting them, right?

First, let's start with a simple truth: NO. There are not more birds of prey "than ever before."

The actual basis of comparison is last century--WHEN WE NEARLY WIPED OUT THEM ALL OUT.

Of course, compared to then, we're doing better. That's a pretty low bar to compare raptors to, is it not?

Do we all know how many/most birds of prey were nearly wiped out last century and what the main culprits were? Here's the first one:

HUNTING.

That's right: birds of prey like hawks, owls, and even eagles were hunted for sport and recreation because they were not valued and were thought of as vermin. Many birds were also hunted to near-extinction for the fashion industry--to supply feathers for women's hats, FFS.

Again, this rampage on raptors even targeted our so-called beloved bald eagles, who fisher folk considered competition for fisheries and farmers viewed as agricultural pests. There were bounties put on them as well as hawks--they were killed in horrible ways by THE THOUSANDS.

Even the National Audubon Society--known back then as the National Association of Audubon Societies--referred to hawks and other birds of prey "as vermin." Get this: they even allowed sports hunting of these species on some of their conservation lands--even games and contests. It took an outsider--A WOMAN named Rosalie Edge--to fight them hard on that in order to get that s**t to stop.

Then came the second blow in this 1:2 strike: PESTICIDES.

In fact, the same year the Bald & Golden Eagle Protection was passed, DDT was patented as an insecticide. So the eagles and hawks and herons--whose populations were already struggling to rebound from en masse hunting and poaching, then were dying off from pesticide exposures to the point of near-extirpation.

What had to happen to recover them?

WE HAD TO PASS LAWS AND BAN MANY PESTICIDES AND CERTAIN HUNTING PRACTICES.

Hunting of most kinds of birds of prey only became illegal in 1972. THAT SAME YEAR, DDT WAS FEDERALLY BANNED.

Many of the species like Bald Eagle and Peregrine Falcon were federally listed as endangered and afforded special protections and a recovery plan under the newly established ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT. Their recovery plans included incubating THOUSANDS of eggs, feeding chicks with puppets and having humans take care of fledglings. I mean, it was AN EFFORT. Not just "presto chango!" and these birds are back to baseline. It took LOTS OF MONEY AND TIME. And even with that investment, it still took a whole HALF-CENTURY for them to have healthier numbers. But let's be clear--STILL NOWHERE NEAR the historical numbers they had before all the bad s**t started happening in the late 1800s/early 1900s.

Let's also talk about the here and now re: raptor populations. Are they really doing as well as pest cos claim them to be?

Well, here in Massachusetts we have quite a few birds of prey on our state endangered species list besides just Bald Eagles (which yes, are still listed and vulnerable): Peregrine Falcons, Barn Owls, Long-eared owls, Short-eared Owls, and Northern Harriers. These last four species are on a serious decline in the region.

And while not MESA listed (for some reason I don't quite understand), Snowy Owls are IUCN Red listed as Vulnerable to extinction (the category right before endangered). Snowy owls are also a species of Greatest Conservation Need in Massachusetts, as are American Kestrels. American Kestrels are on the decline across the US and are doing particularly poorly in Massachusetts and anticoagulant rodenticides seem to be a contributing factor. Sharp-shinned hawks are also on a major decline.

Even Red-tailed hawks--our most prominent raptor in Massachusetts--are having challenges. One study from Tufts found 100% exposure rate to SGARs. A study by Keshia De Freece Lawrence—a researcher and Indigenous Education Specialist at Harvard Forest and member of the Ramapough Lenape tribe--found alarming localized losses of RTHs. When adult hawks die from SGARs toxicosis or vehicle strikes, it degrades population health over time.

Does that sound like raptors are doing "the best they ever have"? It doesn't to me.

08/21/2026

GREAT NEWS! The Town of Arlington has now formally codified a prohibition against the use of the rat poison Bromethalin on municipal property--as it already has for anticoagulants.

SUCH AWESOME NEWS!!

As of today, Arlington has officially codified a prohibition of the rat poison Bromethalin on all of its municipal properties. I believe this makes Arlington the first municipality in Massachusetts to also add Bromethalin to its municipal prohibition of select dangerous rat poisons.

This past spring Town Meeting, we filed a warrant article resolution requesting that both FGARs (first generation anticoagulants) and Bromethalin be added to municipal restrictions of rat poisons (which already included SGARs) used on town properties and buildings. In turn, Town Meeting voted to overwhelmingly support the article in a landslide. FGARs were immediately added, but Bromethalin had not been while they reviewed the issue (since the town was not as familiar with it as they were w/ARs). While the town is not currently using Bromethalin, I believe it has in the past and SAW wanted to ensure against future use.

This week, I updated the Town Manager of the recent casualties in the state possibly or definitely linked to Bromethalin, including the recent case of a Broad-winged hawk treated by Raptor Tales Rescue of Shrewsbury that seemed to have both Bromethalin and AR poisoning. He responded by immediately updating the policy to now include Bromethalin.

Thank you to every Arlington resident who signed the warrant proposal to bring this to Town Meeting, to every Town Meeting Member who voted to support this, especially to TMM Chiarito, who partnered with me on this warrant, and to both Sustainable Arlington and the Arlington Conservation Commission for endorsing this warrant, along with , Mystic River Watershed Association, and Friends of Spy Pond Park. And thank you so much to Town Manager Jim Feeney for listening to his constituents and ushering in the state's most progressive municipal policy on rat poisons!

I hope other towns and cities will begin following suit and also confront the harms inflicted on wildlife, pets, and kids by Bromethalin--which is a dangerous neurotoxin and a PFAS (forever chemical) as well as rat poison.

07/26/2026

MORE NEWS ON NATICK EAGLE & A 101 ABOUT THE MA BILL (WHICH IS STILL ALIVE) AND STATE POLITICS!

First, wildlife photographer Donna 'O Kane reached out to me with news that she thinks the Natick eagle that died might have been Harriet. She and her mate Henry were often photographed in Natick (as here by O'Kane in early March) but it seems sometime around mid-March Harriet disappeared. The following month Henry was photographed with a new/different female. They nested near Lake Cochituate, near where the Natick eagle's body was found, so it is definitely possible.

People keep asking me, why hasn't MA passed its ban bill on these terrible poisons? And why is Save Mass Wildlife also taking out ads and billboards in neighboring states?

Here's why: Despite its progressive reputation, Massachusetts is one of the most ONEROUS states in the country to pass legislation in. Power is bottlenecked to only less than a handful of legislators.

So even if a bill has otherwise massive, even bipartisan support, if those handful of legislators are not on board? It often doesn't matter. The bill won't make it to the floor for a vote. The bill won't pass.

The first key players are the Chairs of the Ways & Means Committee--where the AR ban bill is STUCK (and no, despite popular belief the bill is 100% NOT DEAD--the committee could release it out tomorrow if they wanted to). The other key player is the Senate President, Karen Spilka--who represents--that's right--NATICK--and a few of the surrounding towns. And finally, the biggest key player is the House Speaker, Rep Mariano of Quincy.

None of the towns or cities under these legislators' districts have passed Home Rule petitions (which would mean their constituents strongly support this bill and be a huge flag to the legislators that they need to get on board with this ship before it sails without them), so none of these legislators have incentive to push this bill through to law.

As a basic political rule, Reps and Senators mainly only care about what the majority of their own constituents want. So those constituents would need to step up and pass these Home Rule petitions and spend time calling their Rep/Senator offices and demanding this change. For that, more of us in other towns and cities would have to step up our efforts in these key districts to recruit the residents there to the cause.

As for the bus ads, MA transit lines have REJECTED Save Mass Wildlife ads. And New England states are passing watered down, counterproductive so-called "consumer bans"--which do actually influence MA to remain inactive on this issue. So we take out bus ads where they are actually allowing them to fight the consumer ban takeover in New England so it won't infect MA next (as the industry has made it loud and clear they are trying to do). So we're getting the word out to stop this trend in its tracks.

Meanwhile, who will help me outreach to these key districts in MA to get THIS BILL PASSED? Because I can't do this on my own.

07/21/2026

ANOTHER EAGLE DEAD IN MA IN SGARS! Please read below and if you live in Natick, take action by writing your Select Board, Town Meeting members, House Reps and most important, your Senator, Karen Spilka.

06/20/2026

Please check out our animated short that easily and quickly breaks down how rat poisons are harming our wildlife and companion animals.

06/08/2026

Rhode Islanders--TAKE ACTION!

RI is so close to a valid rodenticide bill. But the bills need some more help from RI residents to push it over the finish line.

URGENT ACTION for Rhode Islanders to take THIS WEEK!!!

THE GOOD NEWS: both the Rhode Island House and Senate voted in favor of RI's very valid bill to phase out anticoagulant rodenticides.

Now the bill just needs the governor's approval and signature!

BUT THE BAD NEWS: The New England Pest Management Association is BIG MAD this bill looks like it will become state law in RI. As such, they have launched a so-called "VoterVoice" advocacy campaign urging RI Governor McKee to veto the bill.

NEPMA wants the will of the people squashed. Are we going to let big industry/lobbying interests win over our wildlife?

HELL NO!

So here's what you need to do:

CALL THE RI GOVERNOR. Tell him you want the bills that would phase out ARs to BECOME LAW (their current numbers are HB 7222 and SB 2795).

Calling always makes more of an impression than writing.

The phone # is: (401) 222-2080. Leave a message on voicemail or with a staffer. Be concise as to why this issue matters and is personal to you.

AFTER CALLING then follow up with a more detailed message here:

https://governor.ri.gov/contact

Don't hesitate to share photos or other documents.

If this is a make or break issue for you, let the Gov know because I believe it's an election year and he needs to know if your vote hinges on this issue.

If RI passes this bill, it will have ripple effects throughout the region, making it much easier for MA to pass its bill as well. If it fails, it will the path to pass the MA bill much harder.

Come on RI!

For FB tax, another screechie. She's already lost one mate to rat poisons, let's not let her lose another.

05/15/2026

ZERO!! That's right: ZERO.

That is the number of cases of the US endemic strain of hantavirus TO DATE reported in Massachusetts.

NONE. Zip. Z-E-R-O!

Want to know how many cases of PLAGUE have been reported in Massachusetts in the past century (I believe since official record-keeping).

ALSO: NONE. Zip. ZERO. Z-E-R-O.

Do you want to know how many cases in general of the plague average there are in the entire United States per year?

There are between TWO to SEVEN cases in the entire country per year. Single digit numbers. Just like with hantavirus, it's all out West. It's virtually nonexistent in New England.

And guess what?

Those handful (or usually less) of human cases of plague reported annually aren't even often from rats. They are from wild prairie dogs. (sidenote: we don't have prairie dogs in New England, if you were wondering).


And yet, do you want to know how many times I have heard pest control companies and lobby reps bring up these two diseases to push poisons in Massachusetts and fight against restrictions on ARs?

I have lost count. But dozens and dozens of times at least.

When I wrote an op-ed in Boston Globe back in 2020 in favor of banning anticoagulants, the "other side" written by the then-president of New England Pest Mgt Association brought up plague as a reason we shouldn't ban it in MA. That's right: he brought up a disease that has had 0 cases reported here to justify not getting rid of these rodenticides.

Want to know how many cases of RABIES have been reported to be contracted from a rat or mouse in all of North America?

NONE. Zero. Zip.

Yet want to know what the disease people in MA and New England write me most concerned about when it comes to rats--even more than plague? RABIES.

Even though not a single case of transmission from these rodents have ever been reported in the entire continent in all of recorded history. Sidenote: outdoor cats with outdated or non-existent vaccinations are an actual valid rabies risk.

But you know how many people get exposed to rat poisons every year in the US? THOUSANDS!

Modest estimate is around 5,000, but often record keepers think that is under-reported by about a third. You do the math on the risk.

Now here's the kicker: want to know what the NUMBER ONE reason people use rat poisons are?

Hatred and fear of rats (and to a lesser extent, mice).

Want to know the primary reasoning for that fear and loathing?

Concerns over disease.

What diseases usually listed by people polled? Plague and rabies! And increasingly, hantavirus, esp now due to the recent spike in news this past year vis-a-vis the case of Hackman's wife and this cruise ship outbreak (even though again that is a completely different strain and everyone but patient 0 isn't getting it from a rodent but another person).

And you know what else?

Survey after survey shows if someone really hates rats and has trumped up fears of disease, they will use poisons REGARDLESS of if they care wildlife. They will justify it as a necessary evil.

So you're just not going to reach everyone that way. Not everyone is going to be moved by the plight of owls and hawks and foxes enough if their fear overrides their concern.

This is why it's critical to arm people with knowledge and put these disease risks into perspective to quell their fears and often ease the hate that arises out of fear. Facts are our friends.

Because the pest cos sure don't embrace these facts. And to be honest, I worry advocates (even sometimes myself) are quick to push other poisons or lethal tactics, even though this still plays into hysteria over rats and reinforces myths about disease risks that actively undermine our own efforts to rein in anticoagulants.

That doesn't mean we don't address rodent issues or that there are no health concerns whatsoever. But the answers are already here.

They don't sound sexy or as "easy" as a quick fix/silver bulleted bait where the rats "get happily high and then peacefully die" as one municipal rep admonished me for not having to recommend.

It requires of rethinking our behavior. It means revamping our trash management and removing attractants, even those we're attached to (including yes, those bird feeders we're all so fond of but have honestly been a major contributor to the problem) and doing a better job fixing up our infrastructure to be less porous.

More on that in another post.

Photo by Diane Özdamar

05/06/2026

If folks are around tomorrow night 7pm EST, I will be presenting on rodenticides and what you can do to make a difference in your state/community.

LET ME KNOW:

Are you worried about the effects of rodenticides on the environment and public health, but want to know more data and facts?

Do you want to bring about change on rodenticides, and get them prohibited in your community or state?

GOOD NEWS!!

I have a presentation TOMORROW evening (Thursday, May 7th) on Zoom. It's hosted by the Harris Center for Conservation Education in New Hampshire, but it open to out of staters too. Starts @ 7pm EST.

Link to register in comments.

04/24/2026

Mass residents!: Call your House Rep ASAP and strongly urge them to support amendment 322 in the proposed budget bill as this amendment will phase out anticoagulant rodenticides in the state. More details below!!

URGENT STATE ACTION IN MA ON RAT POISONS!! CALL YOUR HOUSE REPS ASAP!!

This week the House is voting on the budget bill. Hawkins has filed an amendment ( #322) to the budget that would BAN anticoagulant rodenticides in the state. This is a FULL STATE BAN.

This is the prize we need to keep our eyes on.

Please CALL your House Rep and implore them to co-sponsor 322.

I say CALL because it makes a much bigger impression than just emailing even if it's a voicemail or leaving a msg with a staffer. Then afterwards, feel free to follow up with an email.

I do not believe Arlington's reps, Sean Garballey and Dave Rogers have signed on to co-sponsor yet. They are big time allies on this issue (Sean especially has been on it since day 1 and helped me sponsor the first ever state bill on the issue back in 2018). So I think they just need to be reminded! Considering Arlington just lost its third bald eagle in 5 years to these poisons, I am sure they have a vested interest in this amendment!

ETA: Sean just signed!!

You can find your Rep's office numbers and emails here:

https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator

04/10/2026

The BUS ADS in Manchester, NH are now live.