A 2022 review of sodium fluoroacetate for conservation and protecting endangered species

Abstract

Sodium fluoroacetate (1080) is a vertebrate pesticide principally used to control unwanted introduced mammals in New Zealand and Australia. There have been over 260 publications during the last ten years on 1080 which supplement a body of scientific information regarding mode of action, natural occurrence, toxicology, antidotes, metabolism and fate in the environment. Multi-year studies have explored long-term outcomes, for multiple native bird species. Numerous reviews on community attitudes stimulated, in part by the Predator Free New Zealand (PFNZ) 2050 campaign, conclude that 1080 use for conservation remains controversial. Further effort is needed to increase target specificity avoiding game species and employ approaches with the highest public acceptance, including hunting, trapping and eradication strategies that obviate the need for repeated use of toxic baits. Greater acceptance of large-scale use of any pest control is likely when long-term goals and strategies for ecosystem recovery employ toxins as one-off treatments for eradicating pests versus continued applications.