By Greg Forester, Staff Writer
FRANKLIN — Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, D-Princeton, is calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to revise its protocol when conducting bird-culling campaigns like the one in Franklin Township that resulted in the carcasses of hundreds of dead starlings blanketing the area a few weeks ago.
Mr. Gusciora sent a letter to Tom Vilsack, secretary of the Department of Agriculture, expressing concern over the lack of communication with local residents and officials about the program, which targeted thousands of birds that were interfering with agriculture work and livestock at a farm in Franklin Township.
”Homeowners have a legitimate concern,” Mr. Gusciora said.
Outcry followed the start of the program, which saw department personnel lay out trays carrying thousands of pellets containing a chemical known as DRC-1339 on the weekend of Jan. 23 at the Franklin farm.
The substance causes birds that ingest the pellets to die in one to three days after initial exposure, according to Carol Bannerman, a spokeswoman for the department’s Wildlife Services section.
The substance specifically targets starlings, which have become a nuisance in the United States, and are considered an invasive species by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
DRC-1339 is completely excreted from the body at the time of death, according to Ms. Bannerman, who said there are no recorded reports of secondary poisoning from the substance.
Andrea Kepic, a Franklin resident who contacted Mr. Gusciora and expressed concern over the program, said she removed nearly 200 dead carcasses from her property at the time of the bird-culling operation.
”When you have to pick them up, you count them,” said Ms. Kepic. “I am still finding body parts.”
Windy conditions that followed an ice storm earlier in the time following the bird-culling operation caused a truly morbid scene on Ms. Kepic’s front lawn. She said frozen starling carcasses began falling out of two large pine trees on her property frequented by the birds, Ms. Kepic said.
Ms. Kepic said she became more concerned when a feral cat she feeds and cares for became sick around the time of the bird-culling operation.
However, Ms. Bannerman said a cat or small mammal would have to consume nothing but poisoned birds for 100 days before facing serious health consequences.
During an interview Thursday Ms. Bannerman said the U.S. Department of Agriculture recognized there had been a “communication lapse” when it came to the Franklin bird-culling program.
She said a hotline for concerns was not monitored properly.
”We’re looking at the process, and we will be changing it,” Ms. Bannerman said.
Communication efforts the U.S. Department of Agriculture did undertake consisted of contact with local police and health departments, among other entities, although officials from many of those entities have since said they were not warned about the prevalence of bird carcasses.
Jerry Redding, a spokesman with the Department of Agriculture, said the bird-culling programs remain important despite the outcry generated from the one carried out in New Jersey.
”After what happened with the plane on the Hudson River, (Mr. Gusciora) is probably walking against the current as far as the birds are concerned,” said Mr. Redding, referring to the recent emergency landing of a passenger jet that was brought down because of bird strikes.

