Need For Numbers Control !

Last summers bushfires certainly dealt a death blow to our Koala population and thousands died when the fires roared through their natural habitat.  The numbers have been declining for years and now there is a real danger that they may become extinct by 2050.

Those fires only lightly touched on the borders of the Kosciuszko National park and did nothing to cull the herd of wild feral horses that are increasing in numbers at the rate of about twenty-three percent each year.  The damage they are doing to the fragile alpine ecosystem is immense and yet public sympathy is preventing any effective form of numbers depletion being put into practice.

The horse is an introduced species to Australia.  They came with the first fleet in 1788 and it was inevitable that some escaped into the bush and created a wild herd that has been growing in numbers ever since.  They are magnificent animals and they feature heavily in our historic development.  Stories like " The Man from Snowy River " retell their heroic achievements and they are legendary in the Australian psyche.

In central Australia we have similar herds of wild Camels.  They too are an introduced species, brought here because of their ability to travel long distances without water. Their ever growing numbers are competing with the sheep and cattle grazing on inland stations and they lack the protective aura that the public dispenses on horses.

In recent days the public was alerted to another less well publicized menace - wild Deer.   A couple  managed to wander into central Sydney, resulting in a chase through shops and houses before they were tranquilized and returned to the bush.  They are part of an ever growing herd that is established in the National parks to the north and south of Sydney.

The people of Wollongong, south of Sydney have long complained of feral deer trampling through their suburban gardens and left unchecked the numbers are steadily growing.   Along with Kangaroos, any of these animals appearing suddenly on a road have been the cause of car crashes that often have a fatal outcome - for both the animal and the occupants of the car.

The numbers of all three need to be substantially reduced by whatever method is most humane.  In the past, shooting from helicopters has been rejected on cruelty grounds. It is impossible to guarantee a clean shot and many horses have escaped to die in agony, and poison baits distribution means a very wide circle of unintended victims.

Deer numbers could be brought under control if they were gazetted as a game species for shooters.  Venison is a prized meat and the antlers are a decoration that many shooters proudly display on the walls of their home.  A proclaimed season and adequate safety restrictions would soon cull this herd to more reasonable numbers.

Control of horses and camels is more problematic.  Hopefully, that could interest the pet food industry.  They are big animals which provide a lot of meat and the cost of trapping and killing them would be repaid as a commercial activity that delivers profit.

It is doubtful that the control of camels would bring much public opposition, but horse control is an emotive issue and would best be done out of the glare of newspaper headlines.  It has been left in the " too hard "  basket for too long !