Invisible threat – how the fight against mice kills wild cats

A study in Cape Town found that 78% of deceased caracals had rat poison in their livers. Scientists link this to the availability of second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides, which enter predators' bodies through poisoned rodents, causing chronic inflammation and weakened immunity.

Scientists from Stellenbosch University examined liver tissue from 102 deceased wild cats (mostly caracals, victims of road accidents) in Cape Town. The results, published in the journal Environmental Pollution, showed that 78% of the animals had traces of rat poison, with the majority containing at least three different toxic compounds, and some samples up to six types simultaneously. Poison concentrations increased with the animal's age. Researcher Gabriella Leighton emphasized that caracals, as apex predators, serve as indicators of environmental contamination. The poisoning mechanism is a chain reaction: a rodent eats a bait with a second-generation anticoagulant but does not die immediately, accumulating a critical dose over up to two weeks, after which it becomes easy prey for nocturnal predators. Although the poison rarely kills instantly, scientists fear long-term consequences: chronic inflammation and weakened immunity, making animals vulnerable to diseases. Experts recommend restricting the free sale of such rodenticides, leaving them only to certified pest controllers, and suggest alternatives: sealing homes, proper waste disposal, and mechanical traps.