For information please visit
www.canberraroos.com
Photos by Stella
Reid
PLEASE
DO NOT KILL MY MUM (or me)!
This IS REALLY URGENT. Please help us to stop the wholesale
slaughter of the kangaroos on the
former Belconnen Naval Transmission Station in the ACT (Australia).
If you have not yet written letters PLEASE do it now (a list of
people to write to is below).
Time is running out! Apparently
the contractors are gearing up to commence the kill on
Tuesday, 25 March (tomorrow!!).
Please sign petition and forward on to as many people as
possible.
www.gopetition.com.au/petitions/save-the-belconnen-kangaroos.html
For information
please visit
www.canberraroos.com
and
sign petition
www.gopetition.com.au/petitions/save-the-belconnen-kangaroos.html
Please also contact the following people and let them know that
killing these healthy kangaroos IS NOT AN OPTION in a humane
society.
Jon
Stanhope ACT Chief Minister ph 6205 0104 or email
stanhope@act.gov.au
Prime
Minister Kevin Rudd ph (02) 6277 7700
or www.pm.gov.au/contact/index.cfm
Peter
Garrett, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts
ph 02) 6277 7640 or email
www.aph.gov.au/house/members/memfeedback.asp?id=HV4
The
Canberra Times Letters to the Editor:
canberra.yourguide.com.au/feedback.asp?data_id=124
Please let them
know that:Killing these kangaroos is short sighted and is not a
long term solution
- Killing healthy kangaroos is not acceptable in a humane society
- The ACT Government is being bloody minded by blocking all attempts at non lethal control
- Wildcare has the experience to relocate the kangaroos and a network of people willing to accept the kangaroos onto private land holdings
- The Belconnen site would make an excellent tourist destination for our visitors to see kangaroos in suburbia
If you would like to be involved in any protest action, please contact Bernie on 0427 777 044 or by email stinkyranee@yahoo.com.au
* . * . *
READ
THIS PLEASE :
2.
Development of delivery methods
2.1 Catching
Kangaroos on the hop: Development of a remotely delivered
contraceptive for marsupials
Authors:
1Herbert, C.A.
& 1Vogelnest,
L.
Institution:
1University of New South
Wales, Australia
Contact:
Cathy Herbert, cathherbert@unsw.edu.au
Over the last decade
there has been increasing interest in the use of fertility control
to manage overabundant marsupial populations, such as urban
kangaroo populations. This approach has been driven by strong
public opposition to the use of lethal control techniques to manage
these populations. To date there have been successful trials on the
use of two long-acting contraceptive implants in kangaroos, but
there have been very few field applications of this technology so
far. This is primarily because of the difficulties of capturing
large numbers of kangaroos in a humane and efficient manner so that
the animals can be treated with contraceptive implants. The
successful development of a remote delivery system for
administering contraceptive implants to kangaroos may make this
technology more applicable to field situations. We are developing a
dart system, in conjunction with Pneu-dart® (Williamsport, PA,
U.S.A), that will allow remote delivery of a contraceptive implant
(Suprelorin®, Peptech Animal Health, Macquarie Park, NSW,
Australia), while simultaneously marking the animal with a
long-lasting marker paint. This research has involved trials to
determine if intramuscular delivery of the implant, as opposed to
subcutaneous administration, affects the contraceptive duration;
ballistics trials to determine the depth of penetration and fate of
the implants; and testing of marker paints to determine the best
type/colour of paint so that treated animals can be identified for
several weeks post-treatment. In this paper we will discuss the
degree of successful implant delivery, defined as successful
penetration of muscle without significant implant break-up or
significant trauma to the animal, the relative cost efficiency and
the practicality of using this system in field
situations.
6.7
Assessment
of fertility control agents for the management of kangaroos and
wallabies in Australia
Author: 1Hinds,
L.A
Institution:
1CSIRO Entomology, GPO
Box 1700, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia, and Invasive Animals CRC,
University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia
Contact:
Lyn Hinds, Lyn.Hinds@csiro.au
In Australia native
herbivores, particularly kangaroos and wallabies, have become pest
species in pastoral, agricultural and forestry production areas.
Efforts to manage their impact include shooting, trapping,
exclusion and poisoning. However, culling is not permitted in all
areas, for example in urban-rural interfaces where kangaroo impacts
are increasing. Their impact on the environment and on production
has been estimated to be as high as $200M per year. Culling by
shooting is used in rangeland areas of mainland Australia with meat
and skins being used to the value of approximately $200M. More
humane alternatives for management are required and so we are
exploring options for oral delivery of agents which will affect
reproductive success. Currently, we are undertaking proof of
concept studies in the tammar wallaby, Macropus
eugenii, a small macropodid
species. The reproductive biology of this species is well
understood and the results of these studies should be applicable to
other macropodid species, such as grey kangaroos and Bennett’s
wallabies, which are considered pest species in parts of Australia.
In collaboration with colleagues at Senestech, Flagstaff, Arizona,
we are assessing the effects of a chemical sterilant which, in
eutherian species, induces depletion of the primordial follicles
leading to ovarian failure and infertility. Tammar wallabies have
been treated with this chemical sterilant but analyses of the
effects on ovarian function have not been completed. In
collaboration with colleagues at National Wildlife Research Centre,
Fort Collins, Colorado we have commenced studies using
GonaConTM, a single-shot GnRH
vaccine. Adult females and juvenile males have been vaccinated
intramuscularly with either a single shot or two shots of
GonaConTM. Eight weeks after the
first injection, the testes of treated juvenile males have
decreased in size, in contrast to control animals in which testis
volume has increased. Further results will be presented at the
meeting. If the results from these trials are positive, further
collaborative work will be undertaken to develop oral delivery of
these agents for their use in Australia.
6.9
Long-term
efficacy of levonorgestrel implants for fertility control of
Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus
giganteus)
Authors: 1Coulson, G.;
1Nave, C.D.;
1Shaw, S. &
1Renfree,
M.B.
Institution: 1The University of
Melbourne, Australia
Contact:
Graeme Coulson, gcoulson@unimelb.edu.au
Overabundant
populations of kangaroos pose substantial management problems in
small parks on the fringe of urban areas in Australia. Culling is
usually not publicly acceptable in these settings, and other
translocation is impractical. Fertility control offers an
acceptable alternative, but must operate for a substantial part of
the reproductive life of a kangaroo to be a viable management
strategy. One potential contraceptive is levonorgestrel, a
synthetic gestagen, which provides effective long-term
contraception in women, and prevents births in tammar
wallabies (Macropus
eugenii) and koalas
(Phascolarctos
cinereus) for at least 5 years.
We evaluated the long-terms efficacy of levonorgestrel in
free-ranging eastern grey kangaroos, M.
giganteus, at two sites in
Victoria, Australia. Between February and April 1999, we captured
25 adult female kangaroos in draw-string traps on farmland at
Portland Aluminium. Of these, we treated 18 with two subcutaneous
70-mg levonorgestrel implants and seven with control (inert)
implants, removing any pouch young present in both groups. We
identified treatment groups with brightly-coloured collars, and
identified individuals with paired colour combinations of
reflective ear-tags. Between August 1999 and April 2000 we captured
25 adult female kangaroos in a fenced reserve at Woodlands Historic
Park, using tranquiliser darts. At this site we treated all 25
adult females with two 70-mg levonorgestrel implants and removed
any pouch young. We identified individuals with ear-tags similar
to, although smaller than, those used before. We monitored the
reproductive status of kangaroos at each site by observation from a
vehicle. When we located tagged individuals, we used binoculars or
a telescope to determine their identity and reproductive status, as
indicated by the obvious presence of a pouch young or young at
foot. We monitored kangaroos each spring for 7 years after
treatment at Portland and for 5 years at Woodlands. The number of
tagged females at each site declined by approximately 10% per year.
In the first three years of the study at Portland, 81 – 86% of
levenorgestrel-treated females were infertile, compared with 12 –
29% in the control group. Infertility was somewhat higher at
Woodlands, where no treated females bred in the second year.
However, the effectiveness of fertility control declined over time.
At Portland, 36% of treated females had young in the fourth year of
the trail, 50% bred in the fifth year, and 67% bred in the sixth
year, compared with 100% of control females at these times. By the
seventh year, all surviving females were breeding. Fecundity at
Woodlands was similar: 47% of females had resumed breeding by the
fifth year of the trial. These findings demonstrate that
levonorgestrel provides effective fertility control for a number of
years in female eastern grey kangaroos. Given that approximately
half of the treated individuals had resumed breeding after 5 years,
which represents perhaps half of the average reproductive life of a
female of this species, it is evident that more than one treatment
would be necessary. A 4-yearly program of treatment with
levonorgestrel should achieve long-term fertility control in
overabundant populations of eastern grey kangaroos.
6.10
Behavioural
and welfare effects of the population management plan of Eastern
Grey Kangaroos (Macropus
giganteus) at
the 'Pines' Golf Course, Sanctuary Cove
Authors: 1McDonald, I.;
1Tribe, A.;
2Hanger, J.;
2Nottidge, B.;
3Phillips, C.
& 1Murray,
P.
Institution: 1School of Animal
Studies, University of Queensland, Australia
2Australian Wildlife
Hospital, Beerwah, Queensland, Australia
3Centre for Animal
Welfare & Ethics, University of Queensland,
Australia.
Contact: Ian McDonald,
s4076846@student.uq.edu.au
Sanctuary Cove Resort is a large development on Hope Island in
Queensland, Australia. In the past, the area has sustained a large
number of eastern grey kangaroos (Macropus
giganteus), but this population
has declined significantly over the past 15 years as a result of
habitat destruction and associated urbanisation. It is now
virtually completely developed, with only small fragments of
modified native habitat remaining. As a consequence, a population
of kangaroos has become established on the Pines Golf Course and is
now, in effect, a captive population. Furthermore, the constant
availability of food and water combined with a very low level of
predation has facilitated a rapid increase in their numbers.
Consequently, a Population Management Plan (PMP) has been
implemented to manage the population living in and around the Pines
Golf Course at numbers consistent with ecological sustainability
and low risk of human-animal conflict. This situation is now
becoming common in urban and peri-urban areas along the east coast
of Australia as residential and industrial development lock
remaining kangaroo populations into diminishing and isolated areas
of remnant native habitat. This paper will discuss the results of a
research project which has evaluated this PMP at Sanctuary Cove. In
particular, it has examined the behavioural and welfare impacts on
the kangaroo population (particularly the males). The PMP itself
involved the chemical immobilisation of the kangaroos followed by a
combination of pharmacological and surgical methods to limit their
reproduction. These included: 1. Hormonal implantation
(Suprelorin®) of female kangaroos (sub-adults and adults). 2.
Surgical vasectomisation of adult male kangaroos (>50kg) and 6
sub adult males (<50kg). 3. Surgical castration of sub-adult
(<50kg) males and 6 adult males (>50kg). Pouch young were
left untreated. It was intended that this combination would give a
high level of reproductive control extending for some time beyond
the lifetime of the Suprelorin implants. However, it was unclear
what effect the castration and vasectomisation procedures would
have on the behaviour of the males and on the social interactions
and structure of the whole population. Consequently, for six weeks
prior to, during and for six weeks after the PMP was implemented,
observations of the kangaroos were made to assess their behaviour
and the dominance relationships amongst the males. In particular,
comparisons were made between the castrated and vasectomised males.
In addition, the welfare of the kangaroos was evaluated to assess
their immediate reactions to the chemical immobilisation and
surgical procedures. In the short term, the results of this project
have provided valuable information about the effects of surgical
sterilisation on the welfare and behaviour of male kangaroos, while
in the longer term it will help to develop management plans for
kangaroo populations which may require similar strategies to manage
them in other urban areas of Australia.
8.3
Field
applications of deslorelin implants in eastern grey
kangaroos
Authors: 1Wilson, M.;
1Coulson, G.;
1Fletcher, T.;
1Shaw, G. &
1Renfree,
M.B.
Institution:
1Zoology Department,
University of Melbourne, Australia
Contact: Michelle Wilson,
m.wilson7@pgrad.unimelb.edu.au
Overabundant eastern grey kangaroos (Macropus
giganteus) can reduce the
biological integrity of peri-urban parks in Australia. Kangaroo
management at these sites is limited by the close proximity in
which humans and kangaroos coexist. Public safety concerns and the
socio-political issues associated with lethal control have led to
the development of fertility control using hormonal contraceptives.
The sustained release of deslorelin (a GnRH agonist) from a
deslorelin implant is an effective contraceptive. In captivity, one
deslorelin (9.4 mg) implant causes infertility in female eastern
grey kangaroos for up to two years with no negative impacts on
female body condition or time budget. However, before this hormonal
contraceptive is considered a viable management technique,
potential impacts on health and behaviour of kangaroos in field
conditions must be investigated. The efficacy of fertility control
at a population level also needs to be examined to ensure
compensatory responses such as reduced adult and juvenile mortality
do not counteract the effects of fertility control on population
growth. This study is the first field application of deslorelin
implants in free-ranging eastern grey kangaroos. We will use these
implants to cause infertility in females kangaroos at three
peri-urban parks in Victoria, Australia (Serendip Sanctuary, Plenty
Gorge Parklands and Woodlands Historic Park). Adult female
kangaroos captured using a draw-string trap or dart gun will be
implanted with one deslorelin (9.4 mg) or one placebo implant. The
resulting effects on reproduction will be monitored. Each park has
unique characteristics that lend itself to particular aspects of
this study. Serendip Sanctuary supports a particularly high density
of kangaroos (2.6 kangaroos/ hectare) that are in poor condition.
The effects of deslorelin on health (body condition, haematology
and blood biochemistry) of the kangaroos will be investigated and
compared with effects assessed in healthy individuals at Plenty
Gorge Parklands. Plenty Gorge Parklands is a large peri-urban park
(1400 ha) with a dissected landscape and diverse vegetation.
Ranging behaviour of infertile and control females will be compared
at this park. Population growth in the absence of control and under
regular culling has been documented at Woodlands Historic Park
since 1991. To assess population response to fertility control, 80%
of the female population at this park will be implanted with
deslorelin. Population density and structure will be compared with
growth projections from the historical data. Findings from this
study will aid in the application of fertility control in
management of overabundant kangaroos in peri-urban parks.
Acknowledgments. This work is funded by the Australian Research
Council through a grant supporting the Koala and Kangaroo
Contraception Program. We thank Parks Victoria and the Department
of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria, and Peptech Pty. Ltd.
for their cooperation and support.