Officials are investigating an Eastland County man for possibly misusing a pesticide that killed game animals. Corn seed was treated with the pesticide Temik and placed around some peanut fields near the intersection of U.S. Highway 183 and County Road 173, about 9 miles south of Cisco.
Several feral hogs, at least one deer and two birds were found dead after the contaminated corn was placed in the field in early October.
Hunters within a five-mile radius of the intersection are being cautioned not to harvest game animals.
“Hopefully, we will be able to make some sort of determination in the next week or so,” said Bryan Black, spokesman for the Texas Department of Agriculture.
The case is under investigation by the Texas Department of Agriculture, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas Department of State Health Services, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serve and the Eastland County Sheriff’s Office.
Eastland County Judge Rex Fields said an individual could face administrative and civil penalties and possible criminal prosecution if the investigation finds that the law was broken.
Black said the TDA’s investigation is looking into whether the individual has a license to purchase Temik, whether the pesticide was used consistent with the label’s directions and what days the tainted corn was in the field.
“Each day we find this tainted material out there is another violation,” Black said. “One violation can be as much as $5,000.”
Maj. James Guthrie, regional commander with TPWD, said hunters in the area should be wary of animals that appear sick or are dead.
“If an animal is sick, don’t harvest it,” Guthrie said. “If it is already dead before you get (to the field), don’t deal with it.”
However, Guthrie and other officials said the pesticide is rapidly removed from an animal’s body within 24 hours of ingestion.
According to TDA, toxicologists said it is unlikely that eating game from the affected area will harm people and that 90 percent of Temik is naturally eliminated from a live animal’s body within 24 hours if it is not a lethal dose. Lethal doses of the pesticide kill an animal soon and close to the affected area.
Tom Harvey, spokesman for TPWD, said he understands the problems people have with feral hogs, but this case is an example of what not to do.
“It could hurt somebody or hurt non-target wildlife species,” Harvey said. “Public awareness of this incident would have the effect of discouraging people of this in the future.”
Kevin Scroggins, owner of Rust Deer Plant in Cisco, said hunters in the area were concerned about the incident at first, but fears have subsided.
Scroggins said he didn’t expect business or hunting to be affected much by the case.
“Everybody was worried until they finally pinpointed where it was,” Scroggins said. “There were a lot of rumors going around. Now that they know where it is, only those people are worried.”
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