Songbirds being killed by pesticides found in pet fur flea treatments

Fipronil is banned for agricultural use in the UK, but is still widely used to stop pets getting fleas, ending up in the nests of songbirds such as blue tits. Photograph: Geoffrey Swaine/Rex/Shutterstock

Songbird chicks are being killed by high levels of pesticides in the pet fur used by their parents to line their nests, a study has found.

Researchers surveying nests for the harmful chemical found in pet flea treatments found that it was present in every single nest. The scientists from the University of Sussex are now calling for the government to urgently reassess the environmental risk of pesticides used in flea and tick treatments and consider restricting their use.