Author Archives: AWPC

Kakadu bushfire sparked by ‘controlled burn’

Kakadu is a timeless place – beautiful and diverse beyond belief. It’s home to more than 2,000 plant species and some of the most charismatic animals around. Within the vast landscapes, there are six main landforms. These landforms are home to a range of plants and animals, endemic to Kakadu. Kakadu National Park supports an astonishing array of animals, and a number of which have adapted to particular habitats.

A bushfire on 1 October destroyed more than 200 square kilometres of bushland in this world heritage national park. The federal environment minister, Greg Hunt, has ordered an investigation into a week-long bushfire in Kakadu national park sparked after a mining company lost control of a “controlled burn” – a contradiction in terms!

“Minister Hunt has asked the Department and Parks Australia to conduct a full and thorough investigation into the cause of the fire,” a statement said.

The fire threatened a number of culturally and historically significant sites. There was a change in wind after the burn had ended reignited embers and carried them across containment lines.

If the fire reached the rugged and waterless escarpment country, and it would be far more difficult to extinguish, Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation (GAC) CEO Justin O’Brien said

“There’s no water in there, you can’t get suppression in there from the air, you can’t get boots on the ground in that country, it’s too rugged” he said.

Traditional owners blamed the operators of the Ranger uranium mine, ERA, for lighting a fire too late in the top end’s dry season and losing control of it.

early-burn
(image: early burn at Kakadu)

The late dry season fire burned with more heat and torched trees used for habitat by endangered species,

ERA, majority owned by Rio Tinto, faces fines of up to $8.5m if it is found to have breached the environment protection and biodiversity conservation act. ERA has issued a statement saying it did not need approval to burn-off in its Ranger Project Area.

Fire management is undertaken both by traditional owners and park staff, mostly in the early to mid-dry season period (typically May-July) when fires tend to be small, patchy, of low intensity and typically go out at night under cool, dewy conditions.

Small mammal are in decline, due to fire regimes, characterised by frequent, extensive, late-season wildfires. Fire extent – an index incorporating fire size and fire frequency – was the best predictor of mammal declines, and was superior to the proportion of the surrounding area burnt and fire patchiness.

Work in Kakadu National Park has shown that between 1996 and 2009 mammal populations crashed, with species richness and total abundance decreasing by 65% and 75% respectively.

Prominent conservationist Tim Flannery asserts that “the main driver appears to be changes in fire regime, compounded by the presence of feral cats”. The breakdown of traditional Aboriginal fire management – and possible increase in the size and intensity of fires – is often suggested as a trigger.

The Northern Land Council says the devastating fires in Kakadu over the past week, caused by poor fire management by Energy Resources of Australia. “The fires have also highlighted the pressing need for the Australian Government to reinstate traditional fire management practices delivered by Aboriginal people across the Park. Kakadu is listed for its environmental and cultural values and it’s time to deliver outcomes that deliver on its cultural values in addition to its environmental values” says NLC CEO, Joe Morrison.
“Large parts of the park have burnt over 10 times in the past 14 years. We say there is a significant opportunity to reduce this fire frequency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions coming from the park,” Mr Morrison said.

 

Petition: Save the Northern Quoll and 74 Other Endangered Species in Kakadu!

(featured image: Mount Borradail, Kakadu. Copyright of NT Tourism )

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Kangaroo cull approved for next to the Carlisle River Wildlife Shelter

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Carlisle River Wildlife Shelter’s Ron and Carola Anstis are heartbroken to learn animals they had spent years caring for were being shot dead thanks to approval from the State Government.

Embedded conflicts of interests exist within the State government because they have responsibilities for both administering the Wildlife Act, to protect native species, AND for administering permits to kill them! (Authority to Control Wildlife permits).

They are the only wildlife shelter in the area that cared for Eastern Grey Kangaroos, between Geelong and Warrnambool, and that’s a big area. However, the area is too small to share with wildlife, and some narrow-minded people still want to access firearms, and kill them. The Anstises take in pouch young we care for them for about two years and spend more than $1000 on each.

Ron Anstis said “we just told the department we can’t put that much into it only for them to allow someone else to kill it. This is the same department that issue us our wildlife licence.” So the same Government Department, (Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning- DELWP), that issues wildlife licences, is the same department that issues killing permits.

Ron and Carola have no ability to fight that permit what so ever, and there is no appeals process to allow residents to dispute cull permits where required.

babyjoey2

The Department admits they have no data or records on how many native animals in Victoria, of most species, except for anecdotal evidence.

The government officer was satisfied that the landholder had explored available nonlethal management measures, such as maintenance and improvement to boundary fencing, prior to applying for the ATCW. “The officer also confirmed that the kangaroos were causing damage to pasture from overgrazing….” Wonder if they’ve assessed if it’s been “overgrazed” from overstocking of livestock and/or feral animals?

“Two rabbits eat the same amount as a kangaroo and a cow with a calf at foot will eat as much as 30 kangaroos; DELWP should be required to explain to the applicant the dietary differences between kangaroos and cattle so that the applicant can be properly informed about the amount of competition for pasture that actually exists,” Mr Anstis said.

The couple left a rescued joey at government office in protest over a kangaroo cull permit at their neighbour’s property.

The Anstises were forced to leave eight-month-old Angel at the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning offices in Colac on Tuesday. Anstises had decided to stop rescuing and rehabilitating joeys and injured eastern grey kangaroos because of the contradictory action by DELWP of giving their neighbour permission to legally cull 60 roos! The neighbours want to improve their pastures, the cheap way.

The couple, with 23 years of experience in wildlife care, is calling for state government change that would see exclusion zones around wildlife shelters to prevent the allocation of culling permits.

Victoria, the most cleared and damaged State, has lost it’s balance, and has no place for EGK! Livestock, infrastructure, land clearing, roads, urbanisation and liberal distribution of ATCW means these iconic native kangaroos are doomed to be left to die, if found as joeys, in the large area of Victoria that the Anstises served.

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Kangaroo culling trial: call for extension

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Member for Lowan Emma Kealy has called on the state government to extend a kangaroo culling trial to West Wimmera Shire.

The government introduced a two-year trial to cull kangaroos for pet food in 2014.

A State Government trial involving Ararat, Horsham, Northern Grampians, Yarriambiack, Southern Grampians and Pyrenees local government areas is due to conclude in June.

Ms Kealy wants to see the program introduced permanently or the trial extended to include West Wimmera Shire. “It’s created 12 jobs at the Hamilton abattoirs, where they are processing the meat for pet food,” she said.

Ms Kealy wants to make it permanently open season.  “Culling” should be for old, or sick, animals.  This would not be a “cull”, but be a slaughter.  It would be all out war against our Australian animal icon.

The trial had only occurred in areas where kangaroos were in plague proportions.   Since the start of these trials the number of permits has increased dramatically, from 30,000 per year, to 70,000 and now 100,000, probably in an effort to justify the slaughter.
Ms Kealy said while there were environmental concerns about the issue, the trial had only occurred in areas where kangaroos were in “plague proportions”.

To soften her killing plans, Ms Kealy said shooters were trained to kill kangaroos with a single shot to the head to make the process as humane as possible.  That’s almost impossible, due to the size of the head, and the accuracy needed!

Eastern_grey_kangaroo_dec07_02

(image: Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Macropus giganteus, in the wild. Taken in Swifts Creek, Victoria in December 2007)

AWPC member, Šime Validžić, says that:

…kangaroos are not in plague proportions but their populations are self-regulating. They are not “the environment” to be “managed” but native, sentient beings who have the right to live in their native homeland. It is humans who are spreading into the habitats of native species.  Australia has the worst record in the world when it comes to species extinctions and it is the result of genocide against indigenous peoples. Since I did not wish to be part of such a country, having emigrated to Victoria, Australia with my parents in 1970, I returned to my country of origin, Croatia, in 1992 and encourage others to do the same. I never saw a kangaroo in the wild even though I travelled a lot and did some farm work, picking potatoes and peas.

POLL: Should kangaroos be culled in the Wimmera for pet food?

 

 

 

 

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kangaroo fur in their new loafers line is not chic!

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Gucci just launched their new loafers line with real kangaroo fur – endorsing the cruel treatment of iconic and highly social kangaroos.

Petition-Canberra

The annual kangaroo hunt is opposed by many in Australia and around the world. It is the largest land-based wildlife slaughter in the world. Shooting mother kangaroos and then ripping joeys out of their pouches to be clubbed or beheaded is proof of the cull’s cruelty. Additionally, if the goal is simply population control, humane alternatives exist to keep kangaroo populations in check.

Gucci’s fur-lined loafers first took centre stage in July when they made their debut appearance in the fashion brand’s menswear runway show. Soon after, Gucci launched the female equivalent as part of their 2015 Fall/Winter new season look.

Quartz reports that the fur lining on those Gucci slippers, clogs, and heels comes from wild kangaroos in Australia, and Gucci asserts that this is environmentally friendly.

Surely they are not suggesting that kangaroos are environmentally un-friendly?

Please urge Gucci to seek faux alternatives, stop using real fur and be leader in a humane chic line.

We are not our prehistoric ancestors. In this age of the 21st century, technology is so amazing that you can imitate/manufacture anything. There is really no need to exploit animals for their fur or hide.

Sign the Petition

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Kangaroo Industry NSW Deliberately Sabotaged the UNIQUE WEST NYANGAY GRAZING PROPERTY

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POOR kangaroos cited as being vicious killers waiting to attack people and knock them off their bikes!

Kangaroo habitat has been stolen from them, and wherever they go they are considered brutal pests

It’s not fair to be so labelled instead of being necessary to our environment as regenerators of native grasses.

Will we ever turn this around where it belongs?

Below written by former President of AWPC, Peter Preuss!

In 1996 NSW NPWS CAVED INTO PRESSURE FROM THE KANGAROO INDUSTRY AND DELIBERATELY SABOTAGED THE UNIQUE WEST NYANGAY NSW GRAZING PROPERTY KANGAROOS HAD NOT BEEN KILLED FOR 10 YEARS

(Peter Preuss BSc Botony Zoology and Ecology)

 

The manager had the radical idea that the rest of the world had it wrong when it came to kangaroo management. In his view, the property had actually improved in terms of overall vegetation cover and therefore potential grazing capacity over the time he had managed the property.

Pointing to the ground, he compared the round hoof print of a cow with the long tapered footprint of a kangaroo…

“When a salt-bush seed falls into the hoof-print of a cow, it might germinate after rain. The seedling however, dies as the evenly distributed moisture on the compacted soil dries up…Any seeding that falls into the footprint of a kangaroo on the other hand, will be washed to the lowest point of the long tapering foot-print of the kangaroo and possibly even be buried in the into hole left by the toe nail. Covered, and with moisture concentrated at one point, the germinating seedling has a far greater chance of survival.”

One day we may look back to this simple observation and ask…how did we not see this when we were killing kangaroos?

HOW COULD WE HAVE GOT IT SO WRONG?

In hind-sight, we may well ask how anyone could have got it so wrong. And yet, be it the consequences of erosion from excessive land clearing or the impact of introducing toads to control cane beetles, Australia’s short history of European settlement is dotted with examples of us ‘getting it wrong’.

Logically, more kangaroos means more kangaroo footprints; more kangaroo footprints means more germination sites for salt-bush seedlings and, more salt bush means more food for kangaroos. Salt-bush and kangaroos, having evolved together on this dry continent may in fact mutually benefit from each other’s existence. As cattle are even more fond of salt-bush than kangaroos, it seems we may need to review the extent to which kangaroos compete …

saltbush

(image: salt-bush that kangaroos help germinate)

NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE SERVICE TAKE AN INTEREST

Given the unique situation at West Nyangay, the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service took an interest in the property. But unfortunately, with a change in management came a request by the Romani Pastoral Co. to dramatically reduce kangaroo numbers on the property in line with the zone killing average.

-Prior to issue of tags and subsequent shooting, NPWS would conduct a comprehensive survey of kangaroo on West Nyangay

· For comparison, NPWS to survey a similar sized adjoining property (Nth Bundy) subject to the ‘normal’ commercial shooting

· Based on the survey, kangaroos on West Nyangay would then be reduced by killing a negotiated number (not in line with zone average)

· Rather than the normal commercial practice of killing the larger kangaroos, the cull would take a cross section of the population

· Kangaroo dynamics on West Nyangay would be assessed during the cull and comparisons made with known regional populations.

· The short and medium term response of the population to the cull would be determined before further allocation of commercial tags

RESULTS

During April 1996, NPWS conducted comprehensive aerial counts of kangaroos on both West Nyangay and North Bundy (103)

· West Nyangay had a total of 1,428 kangaroos – more than ten times that of North Bundy. This was not surprising given that kangaroos had not been killed for ten years

· The density of kangaroos on North Bundy, however, was way below the zone average. From these figures alone it was clear that kangaroos were not ‘spilling out’ of West Nyangay and that there should have been no pressure from neighboring properties to kill kangaroos on West Nyangay

· Of considerable concern was the fact that while over 36% of kangaroos on West Nyangay were red kangaroos (515), only one red was counted on North Bundy. Commercial shooting had clearly displaced red kangaroos with greys by preferential harvesting.

· Based on the aerial survey, tags were allocated to kill almost half of the West Nyangay kangaroos. These tags included non commercial tags so that a cross section of the population could be taken. The species, sex and weight of every animal killed was recorded and the kill was well monitored to ensure a cross-sectional approach.

· The results showed that commercial killing distorts the age and sex ratio of kangaroo populations causing them to have the capacity to quickly increase again after every shoot. This together with the displacement of red kangaroos and the movement of kangaroos found to be caused by shooting were damming findings for the kangaroo industry.

· The study also revealed that 30% of the carcasses of commercially killed kangaroos, together with their dead and dying joeys are left in the field by commercial shooters. This promotes feral animals such as pigs and foxes which have other ‘deleterious effects’ on other land management practices.

NSW NPWS SABOTAGE RESEARCH

Finally, the National Parks and Wildlife Service had real data that questioned the value of the commercial shooting kill. Rather than use this data to justify further research, however, the National Parks Service simply issued a further 350 tags for West Nyangay in August 1996. This all but wiped out the kangaroos on West Nyangay. Neighbouring properties were also allowed to commercially take the larger than State average kangaroos as they fled, even though their total densities remained well below the zone average.

The initial program that was negotiated between Australian Wildlife Protection Council (AWPC), the National Parks Service (NPWS) and the Romani Pastoral Company in the interest of ‘real research’ was thus aborted.

Obviously the NPWS realised that the data from West Nyangay showed that commercial shooting threatened the red kangaroo and actually caused grey kangaroos to increase in numbers rapidly after a shoot. Giving in to pressure from the kangaroo industry, NPWS deliberately sabotaged the program.

Kindest regards

Maryland

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Kangaroo Island to “cull” kangaroos?

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Environmentalists have raised concerns over the potential culling of kangaroos to accommodate a proposed $14 million golf course and resort on Kangaroo Island.  Contrary to their name, Kangaroo Island plans to have a “cull” of the animals that give the island it’s name!

Programmed Turnpoint, the developer, wants the 18-hole links-style course on Kangaroo Island’s Dudley Peninsula.

Australia’s most famous golfer Greg Norman has been approached regarding the design the 18-hole championship length, Par 72 links-style golf course.

Development plans for a 220ha site on southern side of the island has support from the council and the island’s business lobby.

This developer has listed culling as an option to reduce the high number of western grey kangaroos and Tammar wallabies in the area. This will be done in terms of “management of kangaroos” to restore the balance of native vegetation, despite the fact that the golf course will be manicured grass!

Eco Action Kangaroo Island management group said culling kangaroos would have widespread ramifications for the island’s international reputation and tourist numbers.  International visitors come to Kangaroo Island and expect to see kangaroos, not another golf course.

 “Kangaroo Island without kangaroos is just not Kangaroo Island,” wildlife carer Sue Holman said.

kangaroo-Island-kangaroo

(image: Kangaroo Island kangaroo – South Australia)

In 1997, culling of koalas was proposed as a component of an integrated strategy to manage high density populations on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. So, to “manage” wildlife, they are “culled” and this fixes the problem and removes the animals as well!  It’s a bit like fixing problems in a hospital by removing the patients, or euthanising an animal to “cure” a disease.   It sparked an outrage and ultimately led to a decision at the Commonwealth level that culling will not be considered for management of koalas.

Kangaroo Island residents are opposing the plan but with the usual partnership between councils and developers they will be struggling.  Developers, with deep pockets and economic power to sway councils, don’t like to be told “no” to their plans.  They will enclose and encapsulate their “cull” in environmental terms, and even convince the Council and public that it’s “good” for the environment and “good” for the animals!

Money, sport, development and tourism all are usually disastrous for wildlife, and their habitat.

Provide Feedback to Kangaroo Island Council on your opinion of this oxymoron – a “cull” of kangaroos on Kangaroo Island.

 

(featured image: Kangaroo Island kangaroos (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus), Karatta, Kangaroo Island, South Australia)

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