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ensuring effective treatment <strong>of</strong> unrestrained <strong>animals</strong>. Immunocontraception has <strong>the</strong> potential to provide a target specific form <strong>of</strong> fertility control which can be used on wild goat populations. If <strong>the</strong> immunocontraception can be made to work, it may provide a cheap, easily disseminated method for reducing fertility <strong>and</strong> populations <strong>of</strong> some pest species on a continental scale. Broad scale control <strong>of</strong> goats using an immunocontraceptive vaccine, if one were developed, would depend on developing a suitable delivery mechanism for <strong>the</strong> vaccine <strong>and</strong> obtaining appropriate approvals to release <strong>the</strong> vaccine into <strong>the</strong> wild. The development <strong>and</strong> initial employment <strong>of</strong> such a vaccine would initially be very expensive; however <strong>the</strong> long-term cost <strong>of</strong> a successful immunocontraception program would be low due to <strong>the</strong> low on-going costs. Currently no immunocontraceptive research for <strong>feral</strong> goats is being undertaken. Poisoning <strong>and</strong> baiting The only poison that has been trialled for <strong>feral</strong> goat control in Australia is 1080 (sodium mon<strong>of</strong>luoroacetate). The main risk with this technique is consumption <strong>of</strong> baits by non-target species. Three baiting techniques have been reported: pelletised grain bait (Forsyth & Parkes, 1995); foliage baiting (Parkes 1983); <strong>and</strong> poisoning <strong>of</strong> a water supply (Norbury 1993). This last technique to kill <strong>feral</strong> goats by adding 1080 to water troughs, was trialled in Western Australia (Norbury 1993). The trial showed that goats could be killed with minimal non target risks by designing <strong>the</strong> troughs to exclude birds <strong>and</strong> providing <strong>the</strong>m with alternative water, by excluding domestic stock, <strong>and</strong> by poisoning between 8.00am <strong>and</strong> noon to reduce <strong>the</strong> risk to macropods. Following a public environment review (Agriculture Protection Board 1993), <strong>the</strong> technique <strong>of</strong> adding 1080 to water troughs, under strict <strong>management</strong> conditions, is now being used in Western Australia. This technique is not registered in any o<strong>the</strong>r state. Goats free-fed on untreated bait material (such as grain) might be able to be immobilised with bait to which a sedative such as Valium has been added. Initial trials in South Australia have been promising, but fur<strong>the</strong>r development is needed (R. Henzell, unpublished). If effective, this technique could avert many <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> animal welfare concerns associated with poisoning or trapping at water. Biological control Control <strong>of</strong> <strong>feral</strong> goats using a pathogen may be <strong>the</strong>oretically possible, but currently none is known to be virulent, humane, specific to goats <strong>and</strong> not transferable to o<strong>the</strong>r species. The potential risks to both <strong>the</strong> domestic goat industry <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r livestock industries from using a pathogen are too high to warrant any research on this approach. Ano<strong>the</strong>r disadvantage is that <strong>animals</strong> are likely to develop resistance to <strong>the</strong> pathogen <strong>and</strong> such resistance will eventually spread through <strong>the</strong> species. Feral goats do not generally occur where <strong>the</strong>re are uncontrolled populations <strong>of</strong> dingoes (Parkes et al. 1996). One <strong>feral</strong> goat population on an <strong>of</strong>fshore isl<strong>and</strong> was successfully controlled by releasing dingoes onto <strong>the</strong> isl<strong>and</strong> (Allen & Lee 1995). It is unlikely that dingoes would be acceptable as a 'biological control' in pastoral areas where most <strong>feral</strong> goats occur, as predation by dingoes is not a target specific control measure <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r livestock would be at risk. Bounties Bounties on goats’ ears have been paid in Western Australia to induce people mustering goats to kill unmarketable <strong>animals</strong> instead <strong>of</strong> releasing <strong>the</strong>m. Over 120 000 bounties were paid between 1977 <strong>and</strong> 1985, but discontinued in 1985 as <strong>the</strong> scheme 108
was considered <strong>of</strong> doubtful value (Parkes et al. 1996). A bounty scheme would be <strong>of</strong> no use in <strong>the</strong> sparsely populated Rangel<strong>and</strong>s. Current <strong>management</strong> NSW - In NSW <strong>the</strong> majority <strong>of</strong> goat control efforts are focussed on live removal for commercial use with mustering (56.8%) <strong>and</strong> trapping (20.9%) <strong>the</strong> most utilised techniques. These efforts are supported with ground shooting (13.4%), aerial shooting (4.5%), exclusion fencing (2.1%) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong> Judas goats (0.4%). In areas around National Parks, mustering followed by aerial culling is used to reduce <strong>the</strong> <strong>impact</strong>s <strong>of</strong> <strong>feral</strong> goats. NT – In <strong>the</strong> arid sou<strong>the</strong>rn regions where dingos are prevalent, <strong>feral</strong> goats are not a problem <strong>and</strong> no control is undertaken. In <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn regions no <strong>feral</strong> goat control occurs, although safari hunting is popular on private l<strong>and</strong>s. QLD - In QLD limited pest control <strong>of</strong> <strong>feral</strong> goats occurs due to <strong>the</strong>ir value as an economic resource to many farmers. In fact, in some cases, farmers are thought to breed goats to increase herd sizes (Strong pers. comm). Most control is associated with commercial exploitation <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> goats, <strong>and</strong> thus mustering <strong>and</strong> trapping are <strong>the</strong> predominant control measures. In National Parks aerial shooting is <strong>of</strong>ten implemented to control goat densities in more difficult to access terrain. SA - Commercial mustering occurs at high goat densities, particularly on agricultural l<strong>and</strong>s. O<strong>the</strong>r methods used include trapping near water points <strong>and</strong> both aerial <strong>and</strong> ground shooting. Large scale integrated control programs in high value conservation areas <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Flinders, Gammon <strong>and</strong> Olary Ranges appear to have been successful in reducing <strong>feral</strong> goat numbers. The use <strong>of</strong> Judas goats with ground <strong>and</strong> aerial shooting at low goat population densities is proving to be effective. Volunteer recreational hunters are sometimes used to target <strong>feral</strong> goats where localised eradication is <strong>the</strong> target WA - The value <strong>of</strong> goats to agriculturalists is proving to be a great hindrance to <strong>the</strong> effective <strong>management</strong> <strong>of</strong> goats in WA. Despite this, <strong>the</strong>re is a <strong>feral</strong> goat <strong>management</strong> plan that involves trapping <strong>and</strong> mustering goats for commercial sale to achieve an initial population reduction, followed by aerial <strong>and</strong> ground shooting to remove <strong>the</strong> rest. The installation <strong>of</strong> fencing has been tried; however <strong>the</strong> persistent nature <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> goats resulted in <strong>the</strong> fences frequently being breaches. More secure fences were deemed to be too expensive for large areas. The capping or control <strong>of</strong> access to artificial watering points in more arid regions has helped restrict goat densities to areas surrounding available water, <strong>and</strong> increased <strong>the</strong> efficiency <strong>of</strong> trapping Management <strong>of</strong> <strong>feral</strong> goats in <strong>the</strong> Rangel<strong>and</strong>s Most <strong>feral</strong> goats in Australia live on l<strong>and</strong> managed by pastoral farmers <strong>of</strong> sheep. How <strong>the</strong>se pastoralists perceive <strong>the</strong> risks <strong>and</strong> costs or benefits <strong>of</strong> managing goats will be <strong>the</strong> crucial factor, both in <strong>the</strong> short <strong>and</strong> long term, in determining <strong>the</strong> fate <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>feral</strong> goats. Eradication is <strong>the</strong> most efficient way <strong>of</strong> dealing with small colonies <strong>of</strong> <strong>feral</strong> goats which have <strong>the</strong> potential to exp<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir range into unoccupied territory. Management strategies including both aerial shooting <strong>and</strong> mustering will achieve <strong>the</strong> highest population reductions for <strong>the</strong> minimum net cost. In inaccessible terrain, aerial shooting is really <strong>the</strong> only successful control technique. Mustering does not reduce goat populations to <strong>the</strong> same extent as helicopter shooting, however, this is <strong>of</strong>fset by 109
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Review of<
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Contributors Andrew Norris Pest Ani
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3.7.36 Common Myna (Acridot
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Table of figures F
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Section 2 Introduction Feral <stron
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Amanda Dimmock, QD
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Section 3 A status review o
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3.4 Birds Thirteen (or 14) species
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Information on the
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Summary A rodent that contributes t
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Dingoes can become a threat to wild
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The significance of</strong
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macropods and b<st
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^Lasiorhinus krefftii North
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Perceived threat Geopsittacus occid
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conservation areas. It is less clea
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Table 8 Rare species found in <stro
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Competition Several examples are re
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In truth, camels do substantial dam
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the Tanami. Buffal
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The situation today Buffalo numbers
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qualify under IUCN criteria as enda
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3.7.16 Goat (Capra hircus) Summary
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Drakonorchis drakeoides Hinged Drag
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3.7.19 Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) Su
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Impacts Much is known about <strong
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Distribution Ostriches have won <st
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nest in tree hollows along
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Distribution The skylark is found i
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Distribution The blackbird is wides
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Land, and<
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have been translocated to o
Page 66 and 67: esources. Significant investment in
Page 68 and 69: many native species (Clarke et al.
Page 70 and 71: spread across the
Page 72 and 73: Section 4 Legislative framework 4.1
Page 74 and 75: protection, as long as it falls wit
Page 76 and 77: Native Vegetation Conservation Act
Page 78 and 79: ehabilitate existing native vegetat
Page 80 and 81: suppression, which is the</
Page 82 and 83: al. 1986, 1987). The use of
Page 84 and 85: 5.1.4 Mustering Commercial musterin
Page 86 and 87: etal. (1997) found that many native
Page 88 and 89: the vaccine <stron
Page 90 and 91: Where possible, integration <strong
Page 92 and 93: strategy, relative cost-effectivene
Page 94 and 95: Fencing Feral buffalo have a reputa
Page 96 and 97: 5.3 Management of
Page 98 and 99: Summary of <strong
Page 100 and 101: time comes for the
Page 104 and 105: Individual tracking Tracking is a l
Page 106 and 107: SA - Currently cats are not widely
Page 108 and 109: Method of control
Page 110 and 111: Aerial shooting Aerial shooting can
Page 114 and 115: 80% of export was
Page 118 and 119: the lower cost, wi
Page 122 and 123: conservation value rathe</s
Page 124 and 125: effort on the cont
Page 128 and 129: follow transect lines, one kilometr
Page 130 and 131: as a refuge from predators. Removal
Page 134 and 135: was completed it was the</s
Page 136 and 137: warren structure amenable to recolo
Page 138 and 139: Poisons Traditionally, strychnine,
Page 140 and 141: infected and steri
Page 142 and 143: of high priority.
Page 144 and 145: Method of control
Page 148 and 149: technique can allow for cost-effect
Page 152 and 153: In South Australia, between 30 <str
Page 156 and 157: % respondents 100% 90% 80% 70% 60%
Page 158 and 159: a) b) Figure 3. a) Extent o
Page 160 and 161: Figure 4 Response frequency for lik
Page 162 and 163: distribution of <s
Page 164 and 165: Section 7 Key problems and<
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• Goats degrading temperate woodl
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conservation problems in Europe <st
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message that camels are a valuable
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In the Koolatong R
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environmental degradation’ (Nor<s
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ecause dingo and d
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Various control methods have been a
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Pascale Taplin, an Indigenous L<str
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Lack of a Strategi
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eradicated after seeing the
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In some situations, payment <strong
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could have led to better protocols
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Game hunting is a growing business,
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Much as we might like it, t
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conservation outcome. In such a sit
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community consultation and<
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• Have the non-t
Page 200 and 201:
provide opportunities for strategic
Page 202 and 203:
Section 9 Priorities for investment
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contacted for exact locations <stro
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way. Achilles heel research should
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efficient in any given situation. R
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west Queensland re
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Crossland, MR, 199
Page 214 and 215:
Forsyth, DM, and P
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Lange, RT, and Gra
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Morgan, LA and But
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Parkes, JP, 1990, Feral goat contro
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Van Rensberg, PJJ, Skinner, JD, <st
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Appendix A Ferals animals</
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Indigenous lands I
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Appendix B Stakeholder survey form
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222
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224
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226
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Appendix C Database on past NHT fun
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Lachlan Rehabilitation of</
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Northern Territory
Page 242 and 243:
Cape York Ambiilmungu-Ngarra tradit
Page 244 and 245:
Wet Tropics Expansion and</
Page 246 and 247:
Avon Protecting and</strong
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