Cause of mysterious peacock deaths revealed in environmental Cluedo

It’s a real-life version of Cluedo where Mrs Peacock was in the garden with the poison – except she was the victim, not the murderer.

The environmental watchdog has found six peacocks from a wild population on the Central Coast died last month from eating pesticide pellets, in what may have been a deliberate poisoning.

Wild peacocks in suburban Ourimbah on the Central Coast.Credit: David Mehan

Ourimbah, north of Gosford, has a longstanding population of several dozen peacocks that roam around the semi-rural township, attracting love or loathing from various residents.

The NSW Environment Protection Authority said on Monday it had completed toxicology testing and found two chemicals, one of which is commonly used in rat and mouse baits.

A peachick that hatched with deformities after its mother was poisoned.Credit: Feathers & Fur Small Animal Rescue - Bird Sanctuary

The results suggested they had eaten bait-like seeds, as well as the chemicals brodifacoum and sulfotep, which can be found in insecticides.

EPA executive director (operations) Jason Gordon said misusing pesticides was an offence with significant penalties.

“Many chemicals in pesticides are deadly to wildlife and can also have impacts on the surrounding environment, so it is crucial that everyone understands how to use pesticides correctly,” Gordon said.

“It appears that multiple pesticides may have been used recklessly in Ourimbah. This is a serious offence, and individuals could face serious fines and potentially stronger legal consequences.”

In January, the EPA said it suspected a poisoning. This has not been ruled out. A spokesperson said on Monday that the EPA took both accidental and deliberate misuse seriously and called for anyone with information to contact them on 131 555.

Jacob Bullock, who runs Feathers & Fur Small Animal Rescue and Bird Sanctuary in Cessnock, was called in to care for some abandoned peacock eggs after the mother peahen was poisoned because many closer wildlife rescue groups only took native animals.

He found one of the eggs was empty, another was already deceased, and the third hatched with deformities and later died, which Bullock said was a common outcome when incubation was disrupted.

Peacocks and peahens in suburban Ourimbah on the Central Coast.Credit: Debby Mason

Whether the poisoning was intentional or accidental, Bullock said it affected more than just the peacocks.

“It is also doing damage to our local wildlife – the local brushtail [possum] population would be affected by it as well, which is probably going under the radar,” Bullock said.

He said people should use bait stations, available from any hardware store, to avoid poisoning wildlife or pets, and also read the labels to avoid products that could cause secondary poisoning of birds of prey, such as owls.

Kerri Taylor, a member of the Ourimbah/Lisarow Peacocks Facebook group for supporters of the birds, said she put feed out for the peacocks and especially enjoyed seeing the mothers and babies. “They’re lovely to have around,” she said.

An Ourimbah resident of seven years, Taylor has heard several different versions of the peacocks’ origins, including that they had been there since the area was subdivided in the 1970s.

State MP David Mehan, who’s lived in Ourimbah since the 1990s, said most people were “fairly fond” of the peacocks, but he also heard from their detractors, and it was possible it could have been deliberate.

“Ourimbah is busier than it used to be, and I think the peacocks have gotten used to vehicles slowing down for them, which annoys certain people,” Mehan said. “Sometimes people complain the peacocks stand on their cars and make a lot of noise in the morning.”