The Bureau of Land Management last month quietly lifted its total ban on the use of so-called cyanide bombs on public land and said deployment of the spring-loaded devices used to kill coyotes and other predators will now be considered on a “case-by-case” basis.
The Substack publication Public Domain first reported the change Thursday, when it published an April memorandum of understanding signed by BLM and the Agriculture Department’s Wildlife Services. The latter agency is charged with killing animals that are deemed a threat to crops and livestock.
BLM confirmed the memorandum, which identifies both M-44 devices that eject sodium cyanide and DRC-1339, a poison used on “pest bird species” including blackbirds, pigeons, ravens, magpies and gulls, among others.
BLM spokesperson Richard Packer said the memo identifies restricted-use pesticides “as tools that may be considered under existing law and environmental review.”
