Cape Town's caracals expose a hidden rat poison problem for the city's wildlife
Rat poisons used in homes, businesses and on farms are moving into South Africa's wildlife, according to new research from the Urban Caracal Project, a key research and education initiative based in the Institute for Communities and Wildlife in Africa (iCWild) at the University of Cape Town, together with international collaborators from the Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC) and the…
Cape Town's caracals are revealing a hidden rat poison problem affecting the city's wildlife, according to new research from the Urban Caracal Project. The study analyzed liver samples from 102 caracal mortalities collected over a decade and found anticoagulant rodenticides (ARs) in 78% of the samples. Most animals were exposed to multiple compounds, with older caracals showing the highest burden levels.
The research suggests repeated, long-term cumulative exposure to ARs in the study area. Second-generation compounds, which are more potent and remain in animal tissues longer, dominated the population's exposure profile. Caracals, as apex predators in the urban food web, serve as valuable indicator species, warning of wider environmental contamination.
While caracals are resilient to AR exposure, sublethal effects on their health remain unknown. Subadult caracals in poorer condition carried higher loads of the toxins. The study highlights several hotspots of poison risk, with higher numbers and concentrations of rodenticides found in caracals using vineyards, wetlands, greener urban areas, and areas with more restaurants and cafes.
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