PROBLEMS IN DEVELOPING NEW CHEMICALS FOR BIRD CONTROL

In the last decade, we have all seen the increasing concern about environmental pollution and have become aware of the long-term hazards of chemicals to man and other animals. Recently this concern and awareness have intensified and have resulted in much more stringent regulations governing the application of chemicals for bird control as well as for other purposes. Although most regulations have come from the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of the Interior and Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife have also scrutinized and tightened their policies, and as information concerning chemical effects on man and his environment accumulates, stricter regulations must be exercised. For the past 10 years, the Denver and Patuxent Wildlife Research Centers of the Bureau have been developing chemicals to control bird damage to agricultural crops and to solve other nonagricultural problems in urban and suburban areas. Initially, research was limited to a few available chemicals and was restricted to small-scale tests in the laboratory and field. When modern pesticides were just becoming available, there were few regulations. Today, with the strict controls placed on chemicals, there are many factors that have to be considered when the usefulness of a compound is being determined