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Scientists want national action on kangaroo plagueScientists want national action on kangaroo plague

Scientists want national action on kangaroo plague
Chris McLennan
Chris McLennan@McLennanCm
8 Nov 2021, 5 a.m.
News
The nation's leading wildlife scientists say a national approach is need to curb "overabundant" kangaroo populations in this country.

The nation's leading wildlife scientists say a national approach is need to curb "overabundant" kangaroo populations in this country.
Aa

Australia's best wildlife scientists have called for a national approach to combat the kangaroo plague.

What many people have seen as a complete reversal of recent scientific opinion has emboldened the commercial kangaroo industry to emulate the giant strides being made by the domestic goat industry.

There are an estimated 40 million kangaroos in Australia.

The scientists, wildlife experts from most universities around Australia, agree current strategies on curbing their numbers are not working.

They have embraced the need for more culling, and also want to see prices paid for kangaroo meat trebled to encourage more harvesting.

They have even suggested as kangaroos are low methane emitters, they could replace sheep and cattle and attract carbon credits for farmers if higher prices were paid for their meat.

Culling quotas are set by governments at about 10 to 20 per cent of total populations and most cull targets are never reached.

Twenty-five ecological, conservation, animal welfare and Aboriginal organisations have also supported the call.

The Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia has welcomed the the return of "common sense" to the national debate.

KIAA executive officer Dennis King said it "was nice to finally hear them all singing from the same hymn book".

"We absolutely need a national approach, for instance kangaroo meat is still seen as a lower value meat, we could educate people about that," Mr King said.

"Look at the rise of the goat industry in this country, that's the path we need to follow."
There are international efforts to stop Australia's kangaroo trade.

There are international efforts to stop Australia's kangaroo trade.

The united scientific front came in a special November edition of the scientific journal Ecological Management and Restoration.

The scientists, along with landholders and public land managers, describe the animal and human welfare legacies of millions of kangaroos dying in dry times because their populations had not been managed sustainably or ethically.

It is estimated about six million kangaroos and wallabies died of starvation during the last drought.

The wildlife scientists want "scientifically-informed reforms" to the nation's current approach to kangaroo control to to limit "the waste, degradation and suffering that results from ineffective, and sometimes counterproductive policies".

The scientists continualy refer to the "overabundance" of kangaroos and wallabies in Australia which result in environmental damage and their starvation.

Ecologist Dr John Read from the University of Adelaide said: "We were bombarded with case studies where overabundant kangaroos represented the main threat to revegetation and conservation programs, including examples where unchecked increases threatened the survival of wildlife species, including the macropods themselves."

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NSW grazier Leon Zanker said: "The widely accepted boom/bust cycle that has seen millions of kangaroos starve to death or smashed on our roads has in my view, totally unacceptable animal welfare, social and environmental outcomes and shows absolute disrespect for our national icon."

The scientists also describe new ways to manage kangaroo numbers.

Associate Professor Graeme Coulson from the University of Melbourne said fertility treatment can work in localised cases "but in many cases lethal control is required".

Dr Jim Radford from La Trobe University said harvesting kangaroos as a resource "is preferable to either treating them as pests or ignoring their plight altogether".

Australian National University's Professor George Wilson said a stronger kangaroo industry could also bolster the national economy and provide jobs for regional and rural communities.

Professor Wilson and the other wildlife experts have called for a national approach to the problem.
Low methane emitters, there is a suggestion kangaroos could win carbon credits by replacing traditional livestock on farms.

Low methane emitters, there is a suggestion kangaroos could win carbon credits by replacing traditional livestock on farms.

The scientists want a National Kangaroo Taskforce established to tackle the problem.

"Currently, hundreds of thousands of kangaroos are culled on private land as a form of pest control in order to protect environmental and agricultural production, but an increasing number of carcasses are left in the paddock to rot, which is a huge waste," Professor Wilson said.

He wants to increasing the value of kangaroo meat to match sheep and cattle prices.

"If the price of kangaroo rises from about $20 a carcass to around $70-$80 or more, then a portion of the money can be fed back to the landowner," Professor Wilson said.

"Currently landowners don't benefit from the culling of these roos on their properties. The shooters come to the property and take the kangaroos and the graziers just view this as pest removal.

"Not only is kangaroo a quality product and a high-protein meat, with low fat and cholesterol, the animals also produce fewer methane emissions compared to sheep and cattle," he said.

"Because the animals don't produce as much methane, instead of the graziers seeking to bolster their sheep and cattle numbers after periods of drought, which they are doing, it would make sense for them to be involved in low-emission meat from the kangaroos on their properties and potentially earn carbon credits which can be traded as part of meeting Australia's climate change objectives."

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Questions have also arisen over whether Scott Morrison consulted with state and territory leaders, or even members of his own government, before making the commitment.

https://www.theland.com.au/story/7500119/scientists-want-national-action-on-kangaroo-plague/?cs=4951

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