A common agricultural pesticide caused the mass deaths of 200 little corellas across Newcastle in March, the New South Wales environment watchdog has confirmed.
The Environment Protection Authority said toxicology tests had detected the presence of barley grain and the pesticide fenitrothion in all the deceased birds.
Fenitrothion is a pesticide commonly used in agriculture to control insect pests.
An EPA spokesperson said the regulator was continuing its investigation and urged “anyone with information about the deaths or possible pesticide misuse” to come forward.
“The EPA has been conducting a thorough investigation and will continue looking into all lines of enquiry,” they said.
In March, volunteers described “extremely confronting” scenes in suburbs including Hamilton, Carrington, Waratah, Broadmeadow, Lambton and near the University of Newcastle, where dead and sick birds were found.
Vets and volunteer wildlife carers said they did everything they could to rescue surviving, severely sick birds.
Most of the birds were little corellas but several sulphur crested cockatoos were also affected.
Jason Gordon, the EPA’s executive director of regulatory operations, said at the time it was a distressing situation, with affected birds exhibiting symptoms such as bleeding, staggering, paralysis and an inability to fly.
The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) is currently reviewing the regulation and use of fenitrothion, which is legal and, as noted by the EPA, “readily available for purchase”.
In a government notice last year, the APVMA said it was “not satisfied” that current use instructions for fenitrothion products would protect non-target species.
The notice said fenitrothion was toxic to birds and use of it on a range of crops and some fruit and vegetables “in accordance with currently approved instructions posed an unacceptable risk to birds.”
In NSW, the negligent use of pesticides that harms non-target animals or plants can attract penalties of up to $500,000 for individuals and $2m for corporations.
The EPA spokesperson said anyone with information about the deaths or possible pesticide misuse should contact the EPA on 131 555.
