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Molly the magpie carers rescue another native bird

Molly the Magpie's carers have rescued another native bird. Juliette Wells and Reece Mortensen, who went viral for the interspecies friendship between their two staffies and a magpie named Molly, shared the update on Facebook. “Meet Charlie the vulnerable little kookaburra,” the family wrote on Tuesday. The Mortensen's explained that Charlie had been in their care since the new year period, after a neighbour discovered him unable to fly following wild weather. “He was found by neighbours huddling at the bottom of a tree, they watched for a day and he was all alone and too young to face the world with many dangers around including a stray cat ready for its next feed we were called over to check out the situation,” they wrote. “Reece was in training for his wildlife licence so with the direction and support of wildlife carers specialising in kookaburras we were able to bring this little kookaburra back to our place.” Unlike Molly who developed a special bond with the family's dogs, Charlie was rehabilitated outside, with his own kin watching over him. “We kept him outside as much as possible so the kookaburras knew exactly where he was and could come in and feed him which they did,” they explained. “At times we would count 14 kookaburras keeping an eye on this little one. He would try to fly and achieved short distances but needed practice with his landing.” The family shared the update after Charlie “found the confidence” to return to the wild. “It was such an exciting thing to witness and to be part of,” the family wrote. It has been a wild year for the Queensland family, after Molly was <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/lifestyle/family-pets/outcry-after-authorities-seize-internet-famous-magpie-from-queensland-family" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voluntarily surrendered </a>to the Queensland Department of Environment, Science and Innovation in March, when authorities found the couple were not permitted to care for native wildlife. Over a month later, the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) announced that they would return Molly to the family with a few special conditions, including obtaining a license and meeting specific requirements to ensure her ongoing health and wellbeing. The reunion was definitely one to remember with followers and animal lovers across the country over-joyed at the <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/lifestyle/family-pets/first-pics-of-molly-the-magpie-reunion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reunion</a>. Images: Facebook

Family & Pets

No, the Voice to Parliament would not force people to give up their private land

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kate-galloway-9907">Kate Galloway</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/griffith-university-828">Griffith University</a> In the polarised debate about the Voice to Parliament referendum, some proponents of the “no” vote have <a href="https://www.aap.com.au/factcheck/voice-legislation-does-not-authorise-a-land-grab/">claimed</a> the creation of the new advisory body would lead to the conversion of private land titles in Australia to native title. The implication is that people will be forced to give up their land. This has sown fear among some Australians. Last week, a false letter purporting to be from a member of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria was distributed to homes in regional Victoria, saying the body was moving into the “next phase of reacquiring land”. The minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/fake-letter-scaremongering-about-indigenous-land-claims-sparks-outrage-20230912-p5e43n.html">called</a> it a “another example of the dirty tricks campaign” being waged to sow doubt over the Voice referendum. Similar concerns were raised following the High Court decision in the <a href="https://aiatsis.gov.au/explore/mabo-case">Mabo case</a> in 1992 and passage of the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2017C00178">Native Title Act</a> a year later. Like the fear-mongering over the Mabo decision, the current alarm over the potential loss of private lands with a Voice to Parliament is unwarranted because this claim is manifestly incorrect. There are two foundational legal reasons why: <ul> <li> because of the words of the proposed constitutional amendment itself </li> <li> and because of the way that native title works. </li> </ul> <h2>Would the proposed Voice have powers related to land?</h2> The proposed constitutional amendment that would create the Voice is very simple. It seeks to insert one new section into the Constitution, which reads: <blockquote> In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia: <ol> <li> there shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice; </li> <li> the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; </li> <li> the Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures. </li> </ol> </blockquote> The words clearly provide for only one activity to be undertaken by the Voice. The new body “may make representations” on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. There is no express or hidden power to either take people’s land or give land to First Nations people. The Voice is a committee that may provide advice to parliament and government on issues relating to First Nations people. That is all. And this advice is not binding. The parliament of the day is free to ignore it, if it wishes to. The new provision also gives one sole power to the parliament – it would have the capacity to set up the Voice. It is not possible to understand this provision as creating a special power to take people’s land, or to “convert” land to native title. Importantly, the power to establish the Voice would not be given to the government – it would belong to parliament. In exercising this power, normal parliamentary processes will apply and the parliament will be accountable to the public. There are no other changes to the Constitution proposed in this referendum. <h2>How native title works</h2> In the famous Mabo case, the High Court found that the land title of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, held under their traditional law and custom, survived the introduction of British sovereignty over Australia. Mabo confirmed native title can only be claimed over land where there is no interest in conflict with the exercise of this right. Native title will always give way to grants of exclusive land use. Following this decision, the law now states that every grant of freehold land (“private” land) extinguishes native title. Further, in the later case of <a href="https://jade.io/article/68082">Fejo v Northern Territory</a>, the High Court confirmed that once native title has been extinguished, it cannot be revived. Consequently, even if the constitutional change creating the Voice did (somehow) recognise native title, it is not possible to “convert” freehold land to native title. On private land, native title no longer exists under Australian law. To put these claims of “land conversion” in context, it is helpful to recall the public response to the Mabo decision. Following the High Court judgement in Mabo, the mining industry ran a national campaign asserting that native title would threaten people’s back yards. The managing director of Western Mining, Hugh Morgan, <a href="https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=(Id:library/prspub/raf10);rec=0">said</a> the High Court’s decision "put at risk the whole legal framework of property rights throughout the whole community." This campaign led to significant public fear about the effects of native title. These claims about native title after Mabo were incorrect. Private landholdings have not been threatened. Indeed, on the ten-year anniversary of the Mabo decision, former Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett even <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/i-was-wrong-on-mabo-kennett-20020601-gdu9dt.html">admitted that his initial fears had been unfounded</a>. In reading or listening to claims about the effect of the Voice, it is prudent to question the source of information. If you have questions, seek a reliable source to read the words of the proposed amendment and understand the objective of the constitutional change. If you hear of a claim that seems extreme, it may well be aimed at diverting the public’s attention from the real issues.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212784/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kate-galloway-9907">Kate Galloway</a>, Associate Professor of Law, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/griffith-university-828">Griffith University</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/no-the-voice-to-parliament-would-not-force-people-to-give-up-their-private-land-212784">original article</a>.

Legal

Magpie murderer slapped with massive penalty

A Victorian man has copped a $2,349 penalty after inflicting “callous” acts on magpies. His sentence comes after an investigation by Victorian authorities who were tipped off that birds were being shot at a property in the state’s Sunraysia region. After inspecting the property in 2021, investigators discovered four dead magpies as well as two so severely injured they had to be euthanised. The 57-year-old was placed on a good behaviour bond after appearing at the Mildura Magistrates Court. He admitted to 10 offences of wounding and inflicting aggravated cruelty on the native birds. While Victoria does allow wildlife to be killed by property owners, they must apply for a permit before they start shooting. After the sentence was handed down, the state’s Conservation Regulator Glen Smith warned offenders would be prosecuted. “Magpies are an iconic native bird and they are protected in Victoria. There is no excuse for unlawfully killing or injuring them," he said. “The Conservation Regulator takes wildlife crime extremely seriously and this court result should act as a warning that we will pursue penalties for offenders.” These “callous” acts on the native birds come soon after another Australian man was found guilty of <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/finance/legal/man-who-killed-350-kookaburras-ordered-to-pay-fine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shooting and killing</a> a staggering 350 kookaburras. Anyone with information about wildlife crime can report it anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Image credit: Shutterstock

Legal

Don’t kill the curl grubs in your garden – they could be native beetle babies

<figure><a style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;" href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tanya-latty-132">Tanya Latty</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> and <a style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;" href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chris-reid-1402564">Chris Reid</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-sydney-1414">UNSW Sydney</a></figure> Have you ever been in the garden and found a large, white, C-shaped grub with a distinctive brown head and six legs clustered near the head? If so, you’ve had an encounter with the larva of a scarab beetle (family: Scarabaeidae) also known as a “curl grub”. Many gardeners worry these large larvae might damage plants. So what are curl grubs? And should you be concerned if you discover them in your garden? <h2>What are curl grubs?</h2> Curl grubs turn into scarab beetles. There are more than 30,000 species of scarab beetles worldwide. Australia is home to at least 2,300 of these species, including iridescent Christmas beetles (<a href="https://australian.museum/learn/animals/insects/christmas-beetle/">Anoplognathus</a>), spectacularly horned rhinoceros beetles (Dynastinae), and the beautifully patterned flower chafers (<a href="https://keys.lucidcentral.org/keys/v3/aus_museum/flower_chafers/key/Cetoniinae/Media/Html/key.htm">Cetoniinae</a>). While the adults might be the most conspicuous life stage, scarabs spend most of their lives as larvae, living underground or in rotting wood. <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499922/original/file-20221209-25133-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="A bird holds a curl grub in its beak." /></a><figcaption>Curl grubs make an excellent meal for hungry birds. Shutterstock</figcaption></figure> <h2>Scarab larvae can help the environment</h2> Soil-dwelling scarab larvae can aerate soils and help <a href="https://www-sciencedirect-com.ezproxy.library.sydney.edu.au/science/article/pii/S0006320708001420">disperse</a> seeds. Species that eat decaying matter help recycle nutrients and keep soils healthy. Most scarab larvae are large and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4684676/">full of protein and fat</a>. They make an excellent meal for <a href="https://deepgreenpermaculture.com/2018/08/12/organic-control-of-curl-grubs-in-lawn/#:%7E:text=The%20most%20useful%20natural%20enemies,digging%20them%20out%20of%20lawns.">hungry birds</a>. Besides being important for ecosystems, scarabs also play a role in <a href="https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1093&context=entomologypapers">cultural celebrations</a>. For example, the ancient Egyptians famously worshipped the sun through the symbol of the ball-rolling dung beetle. In Australia, colourful Christmas beetles traditionally heralded the arrival of the holiday season. Sadly, Christmas beetle numbers have <a href="https://australian.museum/learn/animals/insects/christmas-beetles/">declined</a> over the last few decades, likely due to habitat loss. <h2>Are the curl grubs in my garden harming my plants?</h2> Most scarab larvae feed on grass roots, and this can cause damage to plants when there’s a lot of them. In Australia, the <a href="https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/517487-Cyclocephala-signaticollis">Argentine lawn scarab</a> and the <a href="https://www.agric.wa.gov.au/olives/african-black-beetle-horticulture">African black beetle</a> are invasive pest species that cause significant damage to pastures and lawns. Native scarab species can also be pests under the right circumstances. For example, when Europeans began planting sugar cane (a type of grass) and converting native grasslands to pastures, many native Australian scarab species found an abundant new food source and were subsequently classified as <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/11/1/54/htm">pests</a>. Unfortunately, we know little about the feeding habits of many native scarab larvae, including those found in gardens. Some common garden species, like the beautifully patterned <a href="https://australian.museum/learn/animals/insects/fiddler-beetle/">fiddler beetle</a> (Eupoecila australasiae), feed on decaying wood and are unlikely to harm garden plants. Even species that consume roots are likely not a problem under normal conditions. Plants are surprisingly <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00442-011-2210-y">resilient</a>, and most can handle losing a small number of their roots to beetle larvae. Even while damaging plants, curl grubs may be helping keep soil healthy by providing aeration and nutrient mixing. <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502386/original/file-20221221-18-bs2txf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="manicured grass and garden" /><figcaption>Most plants can handle losing a small number of their roots to beetle larvae. </figcaption></figure> <h2>How do I know if I have ‘good’ or ‘bad’ beetle larvae in my garden?</h2> Unfortunately, identifying scarab larvae species is challenging. Many of the features we use to tell groups apart are difficult to see without magnification. While there are identification guides for scarabs larvae found in <a href="https://cesaraustralia.com/pestfacts/scarabs-and-cockchafers-identification/">pastures</a>, there are currently no such identification resources for the scarabs found in household gardens. Since identification may not be possible, the best guide to whether or not scarab larvae are a problem in your garden is the health of your plants. Plants with damaged roots may wilt or turn yellow. Since most root-feeding scarabs prefer grass roots, lawn turf is most at risk and damage is usually caused by exotic scarab species. <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501443/original/file-20221215-14-rbzlz0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="" /></a><figcaption>Unfortunately, identifying scarab larvae species is challenging. </figcaption></figure> <h2>What should I do if I find curl grubs in my garden?</h2> Seeing suspiciously plump curl grubs amongst the roots of prized garden plants can be alarming, but please don’t automatically reach for insecticides. The chemicals used to control curl grubs will harm all scarab larvae, regardless of whether or not they are pests. Many of the most common treatments for curl grubs contain chemicals called “anthranilic diamides”, which are also <a href="http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/chlorantraniliprole.html#howwork">toxic</a> to butterflies, moths and aquatic invertebrates. And by disrupting soil ecosystems, using insecticides might do more harm than good and could kill harmless native beetle larvae. So what to do instead? Larvae found in decaying wood or mulch are wood feeders and are useful composters; they will not harm your plants and should be left where they are. Larvae found in compost bins are helping to break down wastes and should also be left alone. If you find larvae in your garden soil, use your plant’s health as a guide. If your plants appear otherwise healthy, consider simply leaving curl grubs where they are. Scarab larvae are part of the soil ecosystem and are unlikely to do damage if they are not present in high numbers. If your plants appear yellow or wilted and you’ve ruled out other causes, such as under-watering or nutrient deficiencies, consider feeding grubs to the birds or squishing them. It’s not nice, but it’s better than insecticides. Lawns are particularly susceptible to attack by the larvae of non-native scarabs. Consider replacing lawns with <a href="https://www.sgaonline.org.au/lawn-alternatives/">native</a> ground covers. This increases biodiversity and lowers the chances of damage from non-native scarab larvae. Scarab beetles are beautiful and fascinating insects that help keep our soils healthy and our wildlife well fed.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191771/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> Image credit: Shutterstock <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tanya-latty-132">Tanya Latty</a>, Associate professor, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chris-reid-1402564">Chris Reid</a>, Adjunct Associate Professor in Zoology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-sydney-1414">UNSW Sydney</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-kill-the-curl-grubs-in-your-garden-they-could-be-native-beetle-babies-191771">original article</a>.

Home & Garden

Child hospitalised from dingo attack

A primary school-aged girl has been hospitalised after getting attacked by a dingo while swimming at Queensland’s K’gari-Fraser island. It is understood that the girl was swimming in shallow water on the eastern side of the island on April 3 when the dingo launched at her in an attempt to drag her underwater. Family members on the island were able to free the girl, however, she suffered bites to her head and fingers. A RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter arrived at the scene and she was treated by paramedics and a critical care doctor before being flown to Hervey Bay Hospital where she remains in a stable position. The girl was pictured sitting upright and holding a stuffed toy when the helicopter arrived at the hospital. The incident comes after a five-year-old boy was attacked by a dingo and suffered a bite to his arm, head and buttocks while playing on a beach at K’gari-Fraser Island. The boy was with his nine-year-old brother in the sand when the incident occurred. Authorities said the attack was unprovoked and the boy’s father “quickly intervened” to pull the dingo off his young son. An off-duty paramedic rushed to the boy’s aid before he was flown to hospital to be treated for his injuries. K’gari dingoes are protected by law as native species on the island. There are an estimated 20 to 30 packs of the animals in K-gari, with each consisting of three to 12 dingoes. Visitors are urged to use caution as the wild animals are unpredictable and dangerous. Image credit: Shutterstock

News

Sneezing with hay fever? Native plants aren’t usually the culprit

Hay fever is a downside of springtime around the world. As temperatures increase, plant growth resumes and flowers start appearing. But while native flowering plants such as wattle often get the blame when the seasonal sneezes strike, hay fever in Australia is typically caused by introduced plant species often pollinated by the wind. <h2>A closer look at pollen</h2> Pollen grains are the tiny reproductive structures that move genetic material between flower parts, individual flowers on the same plant or a nearby member of the same species. They are typically lightweight structures easily carried on wind currents or are sticky and picked up in clumps on the feathers of a honeyeater or the fur of a fruit bat or possum. Hay fever is when the human immune system overreacts to allergens in the air. It is not only caused by pollen grains but fungal spores, non-flowering plant spores, mites and even pet hair. The classic symptoms of hay fever are sneezing, runny noses, red, itchy, and watery eyes, swelling around the eyes and scratchy ears and throat. The problem with pollen grains is when they land on the skin around our eyes, in our nose and mouth, the proteins found in the wall of these tiny structures leak out and are recognised as foreign by the body and trigger a reaction from the immune system. <h2>So what plants are the worst culprits for causing hay fever?</h2> Grasses, trees, and herbaceous weeds such as plantain are the main problem species as their pollen is usually scattered by wind. In Australia, the main grass offenders are exotic species including rye grass and couch grass (a commonly used lawn species). Weed species that cause hay fever problems include introduced ragweed, Paterson’s curse, parthenium weed and plantain. The <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5102629/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">problematic tree species</a> are also exotic in origin and include liquid amber, Chinese elm, maple, cypress, ash, birch, poplar, and plane trees. Although there are some native plants that have wind-spread pollen such as she-oaks and white cypress pine, and which can induce hay fever, these species are exceptional in the Australian flora. Many Australian plants are not wind pollinated and <a href="https://blog.publish.csiro.au/austpollinatorweek/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">use animals</a> to move their clumped pollen around. For example, yellow-coloured flowers such as wattles and peas are pollinated by insect such as bees. Red- and orange-coloured flowers are usually visited by birds such as honeyeaters. Large, dull-coloured flowers with copious nectar (the reward for pollination) are visited by nocturnal mammals including bats and possums. Obviously Australian plant pollen can still potentially cause the immune system to overreact, but these structures are less likely to reach the mucous membranes of humans. <h2>What can we do to prevent hay fever attacks at this time of the year?</h2> With all of this in mind, here are some strategies to prevent the affects of hay fever: <ol> <li>stay inside and keep the house closed up on warm, windy days when more pollen is in the air</li> <li>if you must go outside, wear sunglasses and a face mask</li> <li>when you return indoors gently rinse (and don’t rub) your eyes with running water, change your clothes and shower to remove pollen grains from hair and skin</li> <li>try to avoid mowing the lawn in spring particularly when grasses are in flower (the multi-pronged spiked flowers of couch grass are distinctive)</li> <li>when working in the garden, wear gloves and facial coverings particularly when handling flowers consider converting your garden to a native one. Grevilleas are a great alternative to rose bushes. Coastal rosemary are a fabulous native replacement for lavender. Why not replace your liquid amber tree with a fast growing, evergreen and low-allergenic lilly pilly tree?</li> </ol> <h2>If you do suffer a hay fever attack</h2> Sometimes even with our best efforts, or if it’s not always possible to stay at home, hay fever can still creep up on us. If this happens: <ul> <li>antihistamines will reduce sneezing and itching symptoms</li> <li>corticosteroid nasal sprays are very effective at reducing inflammation and clearing blocked noses</li> <li>decongestants provide quick and temporary relief by drying runny noses but should not be used by those with high blood pressure</li> <li>salt water is a good way to remove excessive mucous from the nasal passages.</li> </ul> Behavioural changes on warm, windy spring days are a good way of avoiding a hay fever attack. An awareness of the plants around us and their basic reproductive biology is also useful in preventing our immune systems from overreacting to pollen proteins that they are not used to encountering. This article first appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/sneezing-with-hay-fever-native-plants-arent-usually-the-culprit-190336" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>. Image: Shutterstock

Body

You’re less likely to die if you’re treated in your own language

<div> Hospital patients who speak the same language as their physicians end up healthier, according to new research. The study, which was <a href="https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.212155" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, found that hospital patients had shorter stays and were less likely to die, fall, or catch infections during their treatment if they had a physician speaking their language. The researchers examined medical records for home-care care recipients in Ontario, Canada, between 2010 and 2018. In total, they looked at 189,690 records. A third of Ontario’s population doesn’t speak English as a first language. Among these home-care recipients, 84% were English speakers (Anglophones), 13% spoke French (Francophones) and 2.7% spoke other languages (Allophones). The researchers examined whether these patients were treated by a physician who spoke their first language (language concordant) or didn’t (language discordant). “We found that patients who received language-discordant care had more adverse events (such as falls and infections), longer hospital stays and were more likely die in hospital,” the researchers told Cosmos over email. Francophones treated by a French speaker were 24% less likely to die, while Allophones’ chances of death dropped by 54% when they had language-concordant care. The authors float a few reasons for this disparity. Previous studies have shown that better patient-physician communication leads to faster and more accurate diagnoses, and more patient cooperation – both of which have better health outcomes on average. Language discordance, on the other hand, correlates to cultural differences between patients and healthcare workers, which is typically bad for patients. “These are staggering findings that make a strong case for providing care in the same language for linguistic minorities in hospitals,” says co-author Dr Peter Tanuseputro, a physician scientist in the Department of Medicine of The Ottawa Hospital, Institut du Savoir Montfort and Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario. “It’s clearly easier to convey important information about your health in your primary language. Regardless, the more than doubling in odds of serious harms, including death, for patients receiving care in a different language is eye-opening.” Just 44% of Francophones and under 2% of Allophones received care from physicians who spoke their language. For comparison, 58% of physicians in the study spoke English exclusively. “We expect these disparities to be more pronounced in linguistically diverse populations for the following reason: the odds of receiving care from a physician who speaks your primary language decreases if there are more linguistic groups in the population,” the researchers told Cosmos. “We believe that the results of our study highlight the importance of identifying patients who live in minority language communities so that appropriate strategies can be implemented to increase the provision of language-concordant care to these patients.” This means hospitals should ask patients what languages they speak, establish directories of their staff’s language proficiencies, refer patients to doctors who share their languages, and use professional interpreters. “Furthermore, a healthcare system’s ability to provide language-concordant care depends on the languages spoken by physicians, which should match that of the general population,” say the researchers. “This could be optimised by recruiting physicians with specific language proficiencies, and by dedicating resources to increase opportunities for medical education among minority language communities.” Image credits: Getty Images </div> <div id="contributors"> This article was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/language-hospitals-care/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cosmosmagazine.com </a>and was written by Ellen Phiddian. </div>

Mind

Why dingoes should be considered native to mainland Australia – even though humans introduced them

Dingoes are <a href="https://academic.oup.com/cz/article-abstract/57/5/668/5004458">often demonised</a> as a danger to livestock, while many consider them a natural and essential part of the environment. But is our most controversial wild species actually native to Australia? Dingoes were brought to Australia by humans from Southeast Asia some 4,000 years ago. Technically, this means they are an introduced species, and an “alien” species by <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article-abstract/68/7/496/5050532">classic ecological definitions </a>. By contrast, most legal definitions consider dingoes native, because they were here before Europeans arrived. Though it sounds academic, the controversy has real consequences for this ancient dog lineage. In 2018, the Western Australian government declared dingoes <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-the-wa-government-is-wrong-to-play-identity-politics-with-dingoes-102344">were not native fauna</a> due to crossbreeding with domestic dogs. This potentially makes it easier to control their numbers. In a <a href="https://meridian.allenpress.com/australian-zoologist/article-abstract/41/3/358/472935/An-eco-evolutionary-rationale-to-distinguish-alien">new research paper</a>, I find dingoes do indeed fit the bill as an Australian native species, using three new criteria I propose. These criteria can help us answer questions over whether alien species can ever be considered native, and if so, over what time frame. <h2>Why does alien or native status matter?</h2> Humans have been moving animal species around for millennia. Thousands of years ago, neolithic settlers <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2907.1992.tb00129.x">moved rabbits</a> to Mediterranean islands, traders unwittingly took black rats from India to Europe and Indigenous Southeast Asian people took pigs to Papua New Guinea. The rate of species introductions has ramped up with the movement and spread of people, with many recent arrivals posing a major threat to biodiversity. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435486/original/file-20211203-25-eianud.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435486/original/file-20211203-25-eianud.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Pigs were introduced to Papua New Guinea by Indigenous people thousands of years ago. Does that make them native? Shutterstock Researchers often distinguish between alien and native using the year the species was introduced. There are obvious problems with this, given the dates used can be arbitrary and the fact perceptions of nativeness can be based on how much <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0309132507079499">humans like the species</a>, rather than its ecological impact. For example, there has been strong opposition to killing “friendly” hedgehogs in areas of Scotland where they are introduced, but less cute animals like American mink get no such consideration. For conservationists, alien status certainly matters. <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2006.0444">Alien species act differently</a> to native species in their new environments, which can give them an advantage over locals in terms of competition for food, predation and spreading new diseases. This can cause native population declines and extinctions. As a result, species considered alien in their ecosystems are often targets for control and eradication. But species considered native are usually protected even if they have extended their range significantly, like eastern water dragons or the Australian white ibis. Native status is, of course, a human construct. Past definitions of nativeness have not directly considered the ecological reasons for concern about alien species. This is what <a href="https://meridian.allenpress.com/australian-zoologist/article-abstract/41/3/358/472935/An-eco-evolutionary-rationale-to-distinguish-alien">my new research</a> seeks to address. <h2>An ecological definition of nativeness</h2> What I propose are three staged criteria to determine when an introduced species becomes native: <ol> <li> has the introduced species evolved in its new environment? </li> <li> do native species recognise and respond to the introduced species as they do other local species? </li> <li> are the interactions between introduced and established native species similar to interactions between native species (that is, their impacts on local species are not negative and exaggerated)? </li> </ol> For dingoes on mainland Australia, the answer is yes for all three criteria. We should consider them native. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435474/original/file-20211203-23-1o19jql.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435474/original/file-20211203-23-1o19jql.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Dingoes on mainland Australia meet the criteria for native status. Peter Banks, Author provided Firstly, dingoes are not the same dogs first brought here. Dingoes are now <a href="https://www.mapress.com/j/zt/article/view/zootaxa.4564.1.6">quite different</a> to their close ancestors in Southeast Asia, in terms of behaviour, how they reproduce and how they look. These <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-14515-6">differences have a genetic basis</a>, suggesting they have evolved since their arrival in Australia. Their heads are now shaped differently, they breed less often and have better problem solving skills than other close dog relatives. Second, it is well established that native prey species on mainland Australia <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2018.0857">recognise and respond to dingoes</a> as dangerous predators – which they are. Finally, dingo impacts on prey species <a href="https://meridian.allenpress.com/australian-zoologist/article-abstract/41/3/338/447847/Introgression-does-not-influence-the-positive?redirectedFrom=fulltext">are not devastating</a> like those of alien predators such as feral cats and foxes. While hunting by dingoes does suppress prey numbers, they don’t keep them as low (and at greater risk of extinction) as do foxes and cats. Of course, dingo impacts were unlikely to have always been so benign. Dingoes are <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1191/0959683603hl682fa">linked to the extinction</a> of Tasmanian tigers (Thylacines), Tasmanian devils and the Tasmanian flightless hen, which disappeared from mainland Australia soon after the dingo arrived. In my paper, I argue such impacts no longer occur because of evolutionary change in both dingoes and their prey. We can see this in Tasmania, which dingoes never reached. There, prey species like bandicoots still show <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0161447">naiveté towards dogs</a>. That means we should not consider dingoes to be native to Tasmania. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435484/original/file-20211203-23-101r65w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435484/original/file-20211203-23-101r65w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Native prey species on the mainland recognise and respond to dingoes. Shutterstock <h2>Alien today, native tomorrow?</h2> This idea challenges the dogma alien species remain alien forever. This is an unsettling concept for ecologists dealing with the major and ongoing damage done by newer arrivals. <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article-abstract/62/3/217/358332">Some argue</a> we should never embrace alien species into natural ecosystems. This makes no sense for long-established introduced species, which might now be playing a <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-dingo-fence-from-space-satellite-images-show-how-these-top-predators-alter-the-desert-155642">positive role</a> in ecosystems. But it’s a different story for recently introduced species like cats, given not enough time has passed to get past the exaggerated impacts on local species. These ideas are not about considering all species present in an ecosystem to be native. Introduced species should still be considered alien until proven native. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435482/original/file-20211203-27-1atm2p2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/435482/original/file-20211203-27-1atm2p2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Cat sitting in the outback" /></a> Cats are a bigger threat to Australian wildlife than dingoes. Shutterstock This approach suggests ways of classifying species which might be native to a country but have moved to new places within the country through mechanisms like climate change or re-wilding. For example, we can’t simply assume returning Tasmanian devils to <a href="https://theconversation.com/bringing-devils-back-to-the-mainland-could-help-wildlife-conservation-43121">mainland Australia</a> more than 3,000 years after dingoes drove them extinct there would count as reintroducing a native species. Defining nativeness in this ecological way will help resolve some of the heated and long-running debates over how to distinguish alien and native species. How? Because it targets the key reason conservationists were worried about alien species in the first place – the damage they can do.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172756/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/peter-banks-7272">Peter Banks</a>, Professor of Conservation Biology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-dingoes-should-be-considered-native-to-mainland-australia-even-though-humans-introduced-them-172756">original article</a>. Image: Shutterstock

Domestic Travel

Wildlife advocates call for Bunnings to ditch bird-killing poisons

BirdLife Australia, the country’s largest bird conservation group, has called on Bunnings Warehouse to stop the sale of certain poisons used to kill rats and mice, claiming that native birds are being killed after eating the poisoned pests. The group has launched a <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.actforbirds.org/ratpoison" target="_blank">petition</a> imploring Bunnings, the largest hardware chain in Australia and New Zealand, to “Take bird-killing poisons off [their] shelves!” The petition explains that Bunnings controls about half of Australia’s DIY hardware market share, and sells a larger variety of second-generation anticoagulant rodenticide products (also known as SGARs) than any other major outlet. SGARs are the poisons that work most effectively on rodents, and sales of such products have increased dramatically as a result of the plague of mice that swept eastern Australia this year, leaving shelves at stores around the country completely bare. BirdLife Australia says that native birds of prey, including wedge-tailed eagles, southern boobooks and possibly even powerful owls are dying after eating rodents that have been poisoned by SGARs. As the group explains in the petition, there are alternative products that are “just as effective that don't poison our natural foodchains”. SGARs have been restricted for sale in many parts of the world, including the US, Canada, and parts of Europe. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GdAQPiC2dsA" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> SGARs work by causing internal bleeding, but when pests like rats and mice eat bait that has been poisoned, they become poisonous themselves, harming and even killing animals that eat them. BirdLife’s petition states that studies have already shown how southern boobooks and wedge-tailed eagles have been affected by the increased use of SGARs, and they are currently researching the impact on powerful owls. BirdLife argues that first generation anticoagulant rodenticide products have active ingredients like warfarin and work just as well as SGARs, but do not have the same impact on non-target species. In addition, the group recommends snap traps as the most humane option for dealing with pests. A Bunnings spokesperson <a rel="noopener" href="https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/take-your-bird-killing-poisons-off-your-shelves-bird-lovers-call-for-ban-on-popular-buy-at-bunnings-c-4297277" target="_blank">told 7News</a> that it offers many rodent control products that are safe for wildlife, and that it was working with suppliers to help shoppers make informed purchases. “We always respect community feedback and we recently met with BirdLife Australia to understand their views and to explain the steps we are taking to educate customers about rodent control products,” Bunnings general manager, merchandise, Adrian Pearce said. Pearce went on to say that Bunnings understands there are risks associated with the use of SGARs, and that they “proactively promote the safe use of these products and support customers in making informed purchasing decisions.” He added that the retailer offers a range of rodent control products that are not poisonous, including repellers, live catch traps, regular rat traps, and natural bait pellets. Pearce explained Bunnings’ next steps, saying, “In addition, we are creating further training for our team members to help improve their knowledge about this topic. We are also in the process of implementing the separation of first generation and second generation rat poison varieties, along with naturally-derived rodenticides on our shelves to further assist with easier customer product selection. “We will continue to closely follow the advice of the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA), and work with our suppliers to innovate in this area.” Image: Ken Griffiths/Getty Images

Family & Pets

“It broke my heart”: Native Americans outbid to buy back their own sacred site

Over 290 prehistoric Native American glyphs that depict people, animals, and mythological figures adorn the walls of Picture Cave in eastern Missouri. The cave has been deemed an “ultimate sacred site” by the Osage Nation, who were pushed out of the land as a consequence of the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Since the 1950s, the land has been owned by the extremely wealthy Busch family, who mostly used it as a hunting ground. When the Busch family announced last year that they would be selling the cave, and the 43 acres of land surrounding it, the Osage Nation began a campaign to procure their land back. They teamed up with the Conservation Fund, as well as Fish and Wildlife Services, on the account of endangered bats living in the cave. Despite their mammoth efforts, the Osage Nation could not gather enough money to buy their sacred land back. “[Picture Cave] is our ultimate sacred site,” says Andrea Hunter, a member of the Osage Nation and director of its Historic Preservation Office. “It was our land to begin with and we then had to resort to trying to buy it back. “And we’ve got landowners who don’t understand the history of the place they live in and whose significance doesn’t amount to more than monetary value [for them].” The Busch family sold the land to an anonymous buyer for $2,200,000USD, just $200,000 more than the Osage Nation offered. “Watching it get to $2 million stopped my heart,” said Hunter. “It broke my heart.” Hunter and her team are currently trying to contact the anonymous bidder from Nashville to explain the historical and cultural significance of the land. So far, they have not been successful in their communications. Image credit: Youtube - Selkirk Auctioneers & Appraisers

Art

Should we keep native Australian animals as pets?

<h2>Should we keep native Australian animals as pets?</h2> <h2>If we turn Australian mammals into pets on a large scale, will it help or hinder their survival in the wild?</h2> <div class="copy"> This article first appeared in Cosmos Weekly on <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/new-south-australia-park-preserves-dawn-of-time-creatures/" target="_blank">23 </a><a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/animals/home-truths/" target="_blank">July </a><a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/new-south-australia-park-preserves-dawn-of-time-creatures/" target="_blank">2021</a>. Mike Archer has opened his home to possums, flying foxes, quolls and wallabies. But although he’s a renowned biologist, he’s no wildlife carer. The native Australian animals have been his pets. “I’ve had so many wonderful native animals that have shared my house and my backyard,” Archer tells me. “I think we’re nuts for just feeling we have to stick with the introduced alien species as pets.” The adoption of native Australian mammals as pets is a divisive topic. My introduction came with sugar gliders. When a friend said they were thinking of getting pet sugar gliders I was quietly horrified. It’s not illegal – you can keep sugar gliders in Victoria, the Northern Territory and South Australia if you have a licence – but it didn’t sit right with me. They should remain in their natural habitat, I thought. They’re wild animals after all. But as Archer points out, many native animals are not doing too well in their diminishing natural habitat. <blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-text-align-right"> Our mammals live in a world of fractured national parks and narrow corridors between human cities, towns and farmland, where they’re vulnerable to hungry cats and foxes. </blockquote> “We’re squeezing these animals into ever tinier corners,” he warns. “Wildlife is increasingly not safe in the wild.” And it’s true. In Australia, where most of our mammals are endemic (found nowhere else), we’ve managed to eliminate over 30 species since the arrival of Europeans – the highest mammalian extinction rate in the world. <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/science-environment/2014/06/australian-endangered-species-list/" target="_blank">Many more species are endangered</a>. “We need every strategy we can find to give these animals a chance to survive into the future,” Archer says. “Keeping native animals as pets is going to mean having breeding facilities, it’ll mean a population of them as a safety net that won’t go extinct, and it will enhance people’s interest in them.” Our mammals live in a world of fractured national parks and narrow corridors between human cities, towns and farmland, where they’re vulnerable to hungry cats and foxes. The smaller the population, the less resilient it is after bushfires, droughts, or flooding. <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.12682" target="_blank">A research paper published in 2019</a> found that the Australian government spends $122 million a year on threatened species recovery. That’s about a tenth of what the US spends, and according to the researchers, it’s around 15% of the amount that’s actually needed to recover Australia’s threatened species. Archer has been keeping native mammals since the 1970s. In 2015 he recruited Senator David Leyonhjelm to the cause, with Leyonhjelm suggesting to the Senate that “the quoll may replace domestic cats”. This may sound crazy, but it’s a decent point – there are 3.8 million pet cats and another few million feral cats in Australia, and each one kills <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.nespthreatenedspecies.edu.au/media/eeufmpqx/112-the-impact-of-cats-in-australia-findings-factsheetweb.pdf" target="_blank">between 200 and 800 native animals a year</a>. But many don’t agree. “WIRES strongly believes that [keeping native pets as animals] will not lead to better conservation outcomes,” says WIRES campaigns manager Kristie Newton. “I fear that young people will have a disconnect with the animals in the wild. How can they understand they are threatened by extinction, for example, when you can go buy one at your local pet shop?” As was starkly highlighted in the lockdown TV series hit Tiger King, there are at least <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/5-things-tiger-king-doesn-t-explain-about-captive-tigers" target="_blank">5,000 captive tigers</a> in the US (most are privately owned), which is significantly more than the number remaining in the wild. But allowing people to keep tigers has done very little to help conservation of their wild brethren. Many of the “pet” tigers have inbred or mixed genetics, which makes them <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/is-ohio-zoo-slaughter-a-setback-for-tiger-conservation-3926" target="_blank">unhelpful for breeding</a> programs. Plus, the regulations are so lax that there’s no way to even count how many privately owned tigers are in the country, let alone a system to plan for their conservation. <blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-text-align-left"> The Australian government spends $122 million a year on threatened species recovery. That’s about a tenth of what the US spends, and around 15% of the amount actually needed to recover Australia’s threatened species. </blockquote> Another exotic species increasingly popular as a pet in the US is the sugar glider – legal to own in nearly every state, though a licence is required to breed them. Websites advertise their purchase for around $800 each. These animals require specialised care, and although there is a community of owners who love having these marsupials as pets, many animal rights groups and conservation organisations are unimpressed. “There has been evidence in the US of gliders kept as solitary pets developing behavioural issues, refusing to eat or self-mutilating through over-preening,” says Newton. “They are very prone to stress. Most vets lack training or experience with these species, so diagnosing and treating health issues can be difficult.” Many animal researchers fall somewhere in the middle. Three quoll scientists wrote an article for <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/pet-quolls-are-practically-useless-for-real-world-conservation-39039" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> a few years ago, saying that although quolls could make good companion animals and reducing cats in Australia would be ideal, they think that pet quolls – in the same vein as US tigers – would be practically useless for conservation reasons. <img style="width: 354px; height: 199px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7843967/native-pets-2-um.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/e33422983647440a84676a75d66ee377" /> Dingo researcher Kylie Cairns agrees. “It could increase knowledge about the plight of our native animals in Australia and engage the public better in caring for our native animals,” she says. However, “it is more likely that the captive animal population would become domesticated over time and follow selective breeding for easier-to-handle ‘pets’. “It is unlikely that captive animals kept as pets would be bred in a manner that would allow them to be returned to the wild, or used for rewilding projects, and so their utility for conservation is limited.” But there’s another question here, too. Apart from the small number of native pet owners we already have, do most people really want to replace their cat or dog with a native animal? In a number of states around Australia you can already obtain licences for keeping quolls, gliders, wallabies and dingoes. Once you have a licence to keep a native animal, most of the time you don’t need a separate licence to breed them. But in my home state of Victoria, once you spend the hundred dollars on a licence, you need to find someone to sell you an animal. On online sales site Gumtree, there is a waitlist for sugar gliders – and one squirrel glider for sale for $600. Which isn’t always easy. “The availability of mammals varies widely,” explains Nicholas Petropoulos, a wildlife presenter and breeder. “If you wanted, say, hopping mice or sugar gliders you could find some for sale today. Ringtail or brushtail possums you’d likely have to wait until spring when babies are being weaned. For others, like quolls, you’d likely need to go on a waiting list for a breeder. “To actually get them you’d join marsupial societies, get to know licenced breeders on social media, and contact zoos about their surplus lists.” It seems that even if I wanted to replace my cat with a quoll, there are limited systems in place to acquire one. And most people, like me, are probably still uncomfortable with the idea of locking up native animals in our homes. Perhaps it’s easier to keep them out of sight and out of mind, imagining them in idyllic native surrounds, far from humans, cats or foxes. Although native animal researchers might have significantly different views when it comes to keeping native animals as pets, all agree that not enough is being done to protect them in the wild. Even Archer is adamant that keeping native mammals as pets is just one step in a much larger conservation project – but one that he believes is critical. “No animal we’ve ever put our arms around has ever gone extinct. They go extinct when we ignore them on the other side of the fence.” This article first appeared in Cosmos Weekly on 23 July 2021. To see more in-depth stories like this, subscribe today and get access to our weekly e-publication, plus access to all back issues of Cosmos Weekly.  <img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=160176&title=Should+we+keep+native+Australian+animals+as+pets%3F" alt="" width="1" height="1" /> </div> <div id="contributors"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/animals/native-animals-as-pets/">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/jacinta-bowler">Jacinta Bowler</a>. Jacinta Bowler is an accomplished science journalist who has written about far-flung exoplanets, terrifying superbugs and everything in between. They have written articles for ABC, SBS, ScienceAlert and Pedestrian, and are a regular contributor for kids magazines Double Helix and KIT. </div>

Family & Pets

Why most Aboriginal people have little say over clean energy projects planned for their land

Huge clean energy projects, such as the <a href="https://asianrehub.com/">Asian Renewable Energy Hub</a> in the Pilbara, Western Australia, are set to produce gigawatts of electricity over vast expanses of land in the near future. The Asian Renewable Energy Hub is planning to erect wind turbines and solar arrays across 6,500 square kilometres of land. But, like with other renewable energy mega projects, this land is subject to Aboriginal rights and interests — known as the Indigenous Estate. While renewable energy projects are essential for transitioning Australia to a zero-carbon economy, they come with a caveat: most traditional owners in Australia have little legal say over them. Projects on the Indigenous Estate How much say Aboriginal people have over mining and renewable energy projects depends on the legal regime their land is under. In the Northern Territory, the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2016C00111">Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (Cth)</a> (ALRA) allows traditional owners to say no to developments proposed for their land. While the commonwealth can override this veto, they never have as far as we know. In comparison, the dominant Aboriginal land tenure in Western Australia (and nationwide) is <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2019C00054">native title</a>. Native title — as recognised in the 1992 Mabo decision and later codified in the Native Title Act 1993 — recognises that Aboriginal peoples’ rights to land and waters still exist under certain circumstances despite British colonisation. But unlike the ALRA, the Native Title Act does not allow traditional owners to veto developments proposed for their land. Both the Native Title Act and the the ALRA are federal laws, but the ALRA only applies in the NT. The Native Title Act applies nationwide, including in some parts of the NT. Shortcomings in the Native Title Act Native title holders can enter into a voluntary agreement with a company, known as an <a href="http://www.nntt.gov.au/ILUAs/Pages/default.aspx#:%7E:text=An%20ILUA%20is%20a%20voluntary,to%20suit%20their%20particular%20circumstances.">Indigenous Land Use Agreement</a>, when a development is proposed for their land. This <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/explainer/indigenous-land-use-agreements-what-are-they-and-how-can-we-use-them">allows both parties</a> to negotiate how the land and waters would be used, among other things. If this is not negotiated, then native title holders have only certain, limited safeguards. The strongest of these safeguards is known as the “right to negotiate”. This says resource companies must negotiate in good faith for at least six months with native title holders, and aim to reach an agreement. But it is not a veto right. The company can fail to get the agreement of native title holders and still be granted access to the land by government. For example, Fortescue Metals Group controversially built their Solomon iron ore mine in the Pilbara, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-29/fortescue-andrew-forrest-native-title-yac-high-court-decision/12299700">despite not getting the agreement</a> of the Yindjibarndi people who hold native title to the area. In fact, the National Native Title Tribunal — which rules on disputes between native title holders and companies — has sided with native title holders <a href="http://www.nntt.gov.au/searchRegApps/FutureActs/Pages/default.aspx">only three times</a>, and with companies 126 times (of which 55 had conditions attached). There are also lesser safeguards in the act, which stipulate that native title holders should be consulted, or notified, about proposed developments, and may have certain objection rights. Negotiating fair agreements So how does the Native Title Act treat large-scale renewable energy developments? The answer is complicated because a renewable energy development likely contains different aspects (for example: wind turbines, roads and HVDC cables), and the act may treat each differently. Broadly speaking, these huge developments don’t fall under the right to negotiate, but under <a href="https://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=561460080958803;res=IELIND">lesser safeguards</a>. Does this matter? Yes, it does. We know from experience in the mining industry that while some companies negotiate fair agreements with Aboriginal landowners, some do not. For example, two very similar LNG projects — one in Western Australia and the other in Queensland — resulted in land access and benefit sharing agreements that were <a href="https://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article/gasploitation-in-queensland">poles apart</a>. The WA project’s agreements with traditional owners were worth A$1.5 billion, while the Queensland project’s agreements were worth just A$10 million. Likewise, Rio Tinto’s agreement for the area including Juukan Gorge reportedly “<a href="https://www.watoday.com.au/national/western-australia/juukan-gorge-destruction-shines-light-on-aboriginal-group-gags-20200807-p55jpd.html">gagged</a>” traditional owners from objecting to any activities by the company, which <a href="https://theconversation.com/rio-tinto-just-blasted-away-an-ancient-aboriginal-site-heres-why-that-was-allowed-139466">then destroyed</a> the 46,000-year-old rock shelters. A matter of leverage <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10361140500507252?casa_token=pgA3NwkmP80AAAAA%3AFvPukre8zXiUDsqcNiuEt3Z-hCzq34mqY9aHzvFijtNiQS8pjezW7gHNGAECJQ-Tv4AxD_Kg46H5EUY">We also know</a> the likelihood of a new development having positive impacts for Aboriginal communities depends in part on the leverage they have to negotiate a strong agreement. And the best leverage is <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10361140500507252?casa_token=pgA3NwkmP80AAAAA%3AFvPukre8zXiUDsqcNiuEt3Z-hCzq34mqY9aHzvFijtNiQS8pjezW7gHNGAECJQ-Tv4AxD_Kg46H5EUY">political power</a>. This comes from the ability to wage <a href="https://www.goldmanprize.org/recipient/jacqui-katona-yvonne-margarula/">community campaigns against companies</a> to force politicians to listen, or <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51452217">galvanise nation-wide protests</a> that prevent work on a development continuing. Legal rights are also very effective: the stronger your legal rights are, the better your negotiation position. And the strongest legal position to be in is if you can say no to the development. For land under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976, this ability to say no means traditional owners are in a good position to negotiate strong environmental, cultural heritage and economic benefits. For land under the Native Title Act, traditional owners are in a weaker legal position. It is not a level playing field. A just transition To remedy this imbalance, the federal government must give native title holders the same rights for renewable energy projects as traditional owners have under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act in the NT. Or, at the very least, extend the right to negotiate to cover the types of large-scale renewable energy projects likely to be proposed for native title land in coming decades. We must ensure the transition to a zero-carbon economy is a just transition for First Nations. Written by Lily O’Neill, Brad Riley, Ganur Maynard and Janet Hunt. Republished with permission of <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-most-aboriginal-people-have-little-say-over-clean-energy-projects-planned-for-their-land-139119">The Conversation.</a>

Caring

Wombats airlifted to safety and 680 homes destroyed

The current bushfire in NSW has been rapid and relentless as more than 680 homes have been destroyed by the flames. Communities have since banded together to help evacuate a wildlife sanctuary that had more than 300 native animals under threat from the massive blazes. Less than a month ago, the Rural Fire Service (RFS) told Australia Walkabout Wildlife Park, 60kms north of Sydney, that there was a chance that the park could come under threat from the Gospers Mountain fire. Naturally, the park’s owner Tassin Barnard was concerned that there was no way to evacuate all of the animals safely if the blaze hit the park. She put out a call on Facebook that reached more than 170,000 people and containers were brought to the park to help evacuate the farm animals. “All our farm animals are on the farm and they are having a lovely time – I don’t think they’re going to want to come home,” Barnard said to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/dec/06/wombats-airlifted-to-safety-as-community-rallies-to-evacuate-bushfire-menaced-wildlife-sanctuary">The Guardian</a>. The hundreds of native wildlife, including kangaroos, emus, koalas, wombats and dingos were left behind as Barnard had no way to move them without causing them pain or stress. However, RFS told Barnard two days ago that due to the intense fires that engulfed 230,000 hectares of Gospers Mountain, the sanctuary could not be protected. “I felt sick, because I thought I’d made the wrong decision and it was too late,” she said. Barnard and her crew made an evacuation plan and shifted the animals to Blackbutt Reserve. This is when two “craggy old wombats” were taken to Featherdale Wildlife Park by helicopter. “They’re two particularly craggy old wombats that weren’t going to take well to travelling anyway, so the fact that we could give them a 15-minute helicopter ride instead of a two- potentially three-hour car trip was really, really important,” she said. Barnard credits her team and the effort they went to practice evacuating the animals safely. “To move these 40-odd kangaroos and wallabies and five emus, I thought it was two days’ work, and I was also convinced that we were going to have animals injured in the process,” Barnard said. “But because my team has been practising this for three weeks, they were absolutely phenomenal … We started at 10 am and we finished at 2.30pm. And no serious injuries.” The animals are in safe hands, but the closure of the park means no income to feed the animals. A <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/Save-Walkabout-Sanctuary?utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet" target="_blank">GoFundMe </a>page has been set up to support the park, which has so far raised more than $25,000. NSW RFS deputy commissioner Rob Rogers said that crews are planning to assess the damage from blazes today and over the weekend. "I think that firefighters did some incredible saves last night on properties and I think some of the vision has shown that," he said to the <a href="https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-06/properties-destroyed-total-fire-bans-in-place-as-nsw-burns/11772568?pfmredir=sm">ABC</a>. "We've got to work out how many homes we have lost." Footage of walls of flames have been released on social media, which Rogers says is reflective of the current landscape. "It's reflective of how dry the landscape is. "The drought makes the fuel so quick to burn and it burns so volatile when it burns." Scroll through the gallery to see just how Barnard and her team moved the animals. Photo credits: <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/Save-Walkabout-Sanctuary?utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet">GoFundMe</a>

News

Australia's threatened bird species decline dramatically by 59 per cent over 30 years

Australia’s threatened birds declined by nearly 60% on average over 30 years, according to new research that reveals the true impact on native wildlife of habitat loss, introduced pests, and other human-caused pressures. Alarmingly, migratory shorebirds have declined by 72%. Many of these species inhabit our mudflats and coasts on their migration from Siberia, Alaska or China each year. These concerning figures are revealed in our world-first <a href="https://tsx.org.au/tsx/#/">Threatened Bird Index</a>. The index, now updated with its second year of data, combines over 400,000 surveys at more than 17,000 locations. It’s hoped the results will shed light on where conservation efforts are having success, and where more work must be done. <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"><iframe class="embed-responsive-item" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tAYQO-sNQp0"></iframe></div> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9">Bringing conservation efforts together</div> The index found a 59% fall in Australia’s threatened and near threatened bird populations between 1985 and 2016. Migratory shorebirds in South Australia and New South Wales have been worst hit, losing 82% and 88% of their populations, respectively. In contrast, shorebirds in the Northern Territory have increased by 147% since 1985, potentially due to the safe roosting habitat at Darwin Harbour where <a href="http://www.nespthreatenedspecies.edu.au/Project%205.1.1_2018_Lilleyman%20et%20al.pdf">human access to the site is restricted</a>. Habitat loss and pest species (<a href="https://theconversation.com/for-whom-the-bell-tolls-cats-kill-more-than-a-million-australian-birds-every-day-85084">particularly feral cats</a>) are the most common reasons for these dramatic population declines. Many of Australia’s threatened species are monitored by various organisations across the country. In the past there has never been a way to combine and analyse all of this evidence in one place. The Threatened Species Recovery Hub created the index to bring this information together. It combines 17,328 monitoring “time series” for threatened and near threatened bird species and subspecies. This means going back to the same sites in different years and using the same monitoring method, so results over time can be compared. Over the past year the amount of data underpinning the index has grown considerably and now includes more than 400,000 surveys, across 43 monitoring programs on 65 bird species and subspecies, increasing our confidence in these alarming trends. About one-third of Australia’s threatened and near threatened birds are in the index but that proportion is expected to grow. As more quality data becomes available, the index will get more powerful, meaningful and representative. For the first time Australia will be able to tell how our threatened species are going overall, and which groups are doing better or worse, which is vital to identifying which groups and regions most need help. Finding the trends Trends can be calculated for any grouping with at least three species. A grouping might include all threatened species in a state or territory, all woodland birds or all migratory shorebirds. The 59% average decrease in threatened bird relative abundance over the last 30 years is very similar to the global wildlife trends reported by the 2018 <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/all_publications/living_planet_report_2018/">Living Planet Report</a>. Between 1970 and 2014, global average mammal, fish, bird, amphibian and reptile populations <a href="http://theconversation.com/tipping-point-huge-wildlife-loss-threatens-the-life-support-of-our-small-planet-106037">fell by 60%</a>. One valuable feature of the Threatened Species Index is a <a href="https://tsx.org.au/tsx">visualisation tool</a> which allows anyone to explore the wealth of data, and to look at trends for states and territories. For instance, in Victoria by 2002 threatened birds had dropped to a bit more than half of their numbers in 1985 on average (60%), but they have remained fairly constant since then. We can also look at different bird groups. Threatened migratory shorebirds have had the largest declines, with their numbers down by more than 72% since 1985. Threatened terrestrial birds, on the other hand, have decreased in relative abundance by about 51% between 2000 and the year 2016, and show a relatively stable trend since 2006. Making the index better The index is being expanded to reveal trends in species other than birds. Monitoring data on threatened mammals and threatened plants is being assembled. Trends for these groups will be released in 2020, providing new insights into how a broader range of Australia’s threatened species are faring. This research is led by the University of Queensland in close partnership with BirdLife Australia, and more than 40 partners from research, government, and non-government organisations. Collaboration on such a scale is unprecedented, and provides extremely detailed information. The index team are continuing to work with monitoring organisations across Australia to expand the amount of sites, and the number of species included in the index. We applaud the dedicated researchers, managers and citizen scientists from every corner of the country who have been assembling this data for the nation. We’d also like to hear from community groups, consultants and other groups that have been monitoring threatened or near-threatened species, <a href="http://www.nespthreatenedspecies.edu.au/3.1%20TSX%20data%20usage%20findings%20factsheet.pdf">collecting data</a> at the same site with the same method in multiple years. The Threatened Species Index represents more than just data. Over time it will give us a window into the results of our collective conservation efforts. <hr /> This article also received input from James O'Connor (BirdLife Australia) and Hugh Possingham (The Nature Conservancy).<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128114/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/elisa-bayraktarov-411460">Elisa Bayraktarov</a>, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Conservation Biology, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jaana-dielenberg-557036">Jaana Dielenberg</a>, Science Communication Manager, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a> This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-threatened-birds-declined-by-59-over-the-past-30-years-128114">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

“Dangerous nuisance animal”: Man accused of ripping kookaburra's head off named and shamed

The lawyer for a Perth man who is alleged to have ripped the head off beloved Kevin the Kookaburra has called the bird a “dangerous nuisance animal” that should have been dealt with by the Parkerville Tavern much earlier. The Parkerville Tavern is where the man is alleged to have grabbed the local favourite known as Kevin, ripped his head off and thrown the bird under the table. Ross Williamson said that his client Daniel Welfare had left the country after a barrage of death threats and attacks over last week’s killing via social media. However, Williamson would not confirm whether or not his client was guilty of being responsible for the death of Kevin. He has also issued restraining orders to two women who he has accused of issuing an “online vigilante campaign” against his client. However, the women said that they will not stop until Welfare is brought to justice. Tania Scheulin, witness to the incident, has been outspoken about this. “I will never stop until the person that did this has some repercussions for it, charged by police or gets a fine.” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"> There's a new development in the case of a kookaburra that had its head ripped off at a Hills pub. <a href="https://twitter.com/kamingock?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KaminGock</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/9News?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#9News</a> <a href="https://t.co/TQe8N6qICt">pic.twitter.com/TQe8N6qICt</a> — Nine News Perth (@9NewsPerth) <a href="https://twitter.com/9NewsPerth/status/1189124300785123329?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 29, 2019</a></blockquote> However, Williamson has said that he has previous information relating to Kevin’s behaviour at the Tavern and that kookaburras are an invasive species in WA. "The kookaburra is an invasive species in WA," he said to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/perth-kevin-the-kookaburra-beheaded-man-leaves-australia-death-threats-crime-news-wa-australia/e3c92ab2-5af5-4df1-bca7-c5b5f9089de2" target="_blank">9News</a>. "Until recently you could shoot them with impunity and people used to do that and get a community service award for doing that sort of thing. "This particular bird I have reports about. It has attacked children. It's injured the faces of children... this bird is - or was - a dangerous nuisance animal and the Parkerville Tavern should have done something to deal with it." He has also criticised the state government’s role in the case. "I noticed the Police Commissioner, with the Police Minister at his side, called a press conference saying they are going to prosecute my client over the demise of a pest - a harmful, nuisance bird," he said. "I hear nothing about the police investigating and prosecuting people for making threats to harm, kill and rape my clients. "I call on the police to do that - to investigate this criminal vigilante."

News

Justice for Kevin: Man who tore kookaburra's head off could face prosecution

A man who tore the head off a kookaburra in a Perth pub in front of families with young children may still face prosecution. The man, allegedly in his 40s, was at the Parkerville Tavern, when the beloved but chip stealing resident kookaburra known as Kevin stole some chips off his plate. The man allegedly grabbed the kookaburra, pulled the bird's head off and threw it under the table. Kevin was beloved by locals who attended the pub. An RSPCA spokeswoman told AAP that the organisation had not given up on pursuing the man but said that the Animal Welfare Act was unclear. Agriculture and Food Minister Alannah MacTiernan has promised to search legal avenues surrounding native wildlife protection. “It is pretty disgusting I think everyone is rightly appalled. We are now checking with the department whether or not this can be characterised as an act of animal cruelty,” she said on Monday to <a rel="noopener" href="https://10daily.com.au/shows/10-news-first/a191028drqhz/shock-and-disbelief-as-man-who-allegedly-ripped-head-of-kookaburra-may-not-be-prosecuted-20191028" target="_blank">10daily</a>. “I think everyone in this community would say there should be some penalty for behaving in this way. And that’s what we are very determined that we will sort this out.” Environment Minister Stephen Dawson has said that a review of the Animal Welfare Act is underway. “If the allegations are true, this is a despicable act. The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) and WA Police are conducting a joint investigation into the incident,” he said. “The State Government currently has a review of the Animal Welfare Act underway, with an independent panel due to provide advice to the Agriculture Minister next year. “Cases like this will be examined as part of the review.”

Family & Pets

A selfie-loving emu is quickly putting a small Queensland town on the map

A town in the Queensland Hinterland is quickly finding itself on the map after news got out about a fun-run’s local mascot: Fluffy the emu. Fluffy has been turning up every Saturday to keep fun-run joggers company as they run through Nambour. The emu is even ready to help organisers set up before the sun rises. “We don’t get big numbers normally, but since Fluffy has been around our numbers have been increasing,” Parkrun organiser Melissa Taylor told 7 News. Organisers said that Fluffy has been boosting numbers as people are flying from around the nation to get a photo with the emu. <iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2F7NEWSAdelaide%2Fvideos%2F2455662484494154%2F&show_text=0&width=560" width="560" height="315" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe> However, event organisers were worried last month as Fluffy and emu buddy Muffy might be forcibly relocated from the Nambour site due to a complaint. The complaint that was lodged to Queensland’s Parks and Wildlife Services. QPWS spoke to 7 News and said that at the time, there is no intention to remove the animals. Rangers would be monitoring the emus closely.

Domestic Travel

Australia’s animal extinction crisis “inevitable” under current conservation laws

A Senate inquiry report recently released painted a grim picture for the native animals of the native Australian landscape. The report explained that the current approach to wildlife protection was “incapable” of stopping the spiralling rates of extinction and recommended a “complete overhaul” of legislation. Suzanne Milthrope, national nature campaign manager at the Wilderness Society, said that three native species have been wiped out in the last decade. “The evidence is clear — Australia is in an extinction crisis,” Ms Milthorpe said to <a href="https://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/conservation/australias-animal-extinction-crisis-worsening-and-inevitable-under-current-conservation-laws/news-story/7c19cb36c26de897c95477a07567f889">news.com.au</a>. “We’re number two in the world for species loss, and if we keep turning a blind eye to major threats to wildlife like deforestation, even iconic animals like the koala will go.” The World Wildlife Fund said that the equivalent of 14 football fields of habitat for koalas is bulldozed every day in NSW. WWF- Australia conservationist Stuart Blanch said that there are currently less than 20,000 koalas left in NSW and they are set to be extinct in the state by 2050. “Koalas will disappear from NSW unless the state increases legal protections of mature forests and woodlands,” Dr Blanch said. “It is a wakeup call for our east coast to appear alongside notorious forest destruction hot spots such as the Amazon, Congo Basin, Sumatra and Borneo,” WWF-Australia boss Dermot O’Gorman said. The Senate has called for an independent environmental protection authority with powers and funding to enforce compliance with laws. Ms Milthorpe agrees. “We welcome the recommendation for strong national environment laws that can actually stop the threats to wildlife and an independent watchdog with teeth to enforce them,” Ms Milthorpe said. “But we need more than recommendations. Positive action on the environment is showing up as a huge issue in both national polls and the recent NSW election. “What that tells us is neither party can be a credible candidate for government without having detailed, costed policies on how they’ll deal with major causes of extinction, like the legacy of 200 years of inappropriate deforestation and the worsening impacts of climate change.”

Domestic Travel

Prince William reveals George's role in school nativity play

Mere months after starting school, Prince George has reached another exciting milestone – participating in his first nativity play. The Duke of Cambridge revealed his four-year-old son’s adorable role in the performance while visiting the Children’s Global Media Summit in Manchester yesterday. “I went to my boy’s nativity play," he told a group of kids at the event. “It was funny. He was a sheep." Could this be the start of an acting career? Last month, <a href="/news/news/2017/11/prince-george-set-to-star-in-his-favourite-tv-show/" target="_blank">it was reported</a> that George would be making a cameo in a special “royal" episode of his favourite animated series, Fireman Sam. “We’re going to celebrate Fireman Sam’s 30th anniversary by introducing a very special episode,” producer Ian McCue said. “We heard that we have a very famous fan in Prince George, so we thought it would be really fun to bring a royal family to Pontypandy and see how the community reacts to that.” We bet soon-to-be aunt Meghan Markle would happily share some tips!

News

Meet Nepal’s oldest native

Villagers believe in the hills of Nuwakot lives Nepal’s oldest native who may even be one of the oldest women in the world. According to her ID, Batuli is 112-years-old but villagers think that she may be older than that age. The centenarian leads an active life by working hard and believes that this lifestyle has helped her live for so long. When asked about the key to longevity she said, “People of this modern age who don’t work and are useless or idle won’t live long. The ones who study a lot and work hard are likely to live a longer life.” Batuli is breaking stereotypes through her work ethic in her old age and spending the money she doesn’t give away on cigarettes and biscuits. During the Nepal earthquake Batuli never left her house even though it was damaged. She explained, “Later I found the walls were collapsed. The pillars too were not straight.” Other villagers said, “She never left her destroyed house. She refused to shelter at a straight house.” Video credit:YouTube/TIG Media via Storyful

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Meet Nepal’s oldest native

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