A recent review of pesticide poisoning of wildlife in Britain concluded that, 'although there has been some concern about the impact of the more toxic second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides on species such as the Barn Owl, Tyto alba, …where label instructions are followed, the actual risk seems very small' (Johnson 1996). The present article uses information gathered as a part of the ongoing Red Kite Milvus milvus Reintroduction Programme to suggest that the risks from secondary rodenticide poisoning may be greater than has been thought previously.