Menu
Menu
Our online forums with special guest speakers explore the complex world of invasive species in Australia.
Look around your garden or neighbourhood right now. What do you see? Can you pick the native species from the non-native?
What about in the trees and sky? Do sparrows, starlings and Indian mynas outnumber the pardalotes, parrots and rosellas?
Our new online Q&A Sessions: Aliens Among Us, are aimed at exploring the complex and chaotic world of invasive species in Australia. How did they get here? Are they harming our native ecosystems, plants and wildlife? And what’s being done to repair the damage they have caused up.
In this 9th episode of our Aliens Among Us Q&A webinar we are glad to have had Guy Hull as our special guest. Guy Hull is a best selling author, qualified dog behaviouralist and former recreational hunter. His most book from 2022 The Ferals that Ate Australia discusses the history of feral animals in Australia and the damage they’ve caused.
We discuss all of this and more which you can watch in the video below.
Additional Q&A
There were so many good questions we ran out of time to answer them all live! Our panel have taken the time to answer them below:
What is needed to create the cultural shift required for Australians to accept the responsibility of custodianship is everyone who has the ability to influence culture needs to do their part. Historians, authors, sports people, the arts, advertising etc.
– Richard Swain
As of March 2024, the total number of horses removed since November 2021 is 4,152, by a range of methods including aerial and ground shooting and some rehoming.
As a point of comparison for those numbers, over this same time period (since November 2021) more than 13,000 feral animals, including more than 8,000 feral deer, have also been shot in Kosciuszko National Park.
– Richard Swain
The removal of rodents from Lord Howe Island is a huge good news story. The native species are multiplying dramatically in response. Invasive mammals have also been removed from Macquarie Island and cats from a few islands, all with inspiring results. There are new biocontrol agents for weeds such as wandering trad (Tradescantia fluminensis) and sea spurge (Euphorbia paralias). A new fungicide will become available soon for myrtle rust control.
– Tim Low
It is widely believed that dingoes outcompeted tigers and preyed on devils, causing their extinction from the mainland (and also the mainland extinction of the Tasmanian native hen), although an alternative view is that increasing intense Aboriginal resource use played a larger role than dingoes. The marsupial lion (Thylacoleo) went extinct tens of thousands of years before dingoes arrived
– Tim Low
We agree it should be a high priority. For example, the Invasive Species Council has been advocating research on alternatives to 1080 baiting (currently essential for saving rare species). The recently developed Felixer is one example of a more targeted technology for cat and fox control.
– Dr Carol Booth
One example of drone use is for deploying baits near urban areas for the control of Fire Ants.
– Richard Swain
Yes, recent improvements in technology offer hope – new methods for detection (such as eDNA detectors and thermal imaging) and new methods for trapping and controlling species (such as the Felixer for cat control and the pheromone trap being developed for northern Pacific seastars).
– Dr Carol Booth
The most effective method for large-scale control of these predators is aerial baiting. Unfortunately, because cats prefer to take live prey, baiting is often ineffective for them. Developing effective large-scale methods for cat control is one of Australia’s most important conservation challenges.
– Dr Carol Booth
The harvesting of invasive species can be counterproductive. You can read more about that in our article here.
– Tim Low
We focus attention on the harm being done if pest animals are not killed, such as native animals killed by foxes and cats, and wildlife with no habitat because rabbits have prevented regeneration of mulga and myall woodlands.
– Tim Low
Every study of bounties finds that they do not work as expected. The money is worthwhile when the pest is plentiful but as soon as its numbers go down the rate of return decreases and people reduce their effort without the bounty having achieved a lasting benefit. ISC does not support bounties and nor do government pest experts.
– Tim Low
Feral horses through trashing and trampling cause enormous amounts of damage to our national parks and native wildlife, yet there are fringe groups of feral horse advocates who want them protected.
In this 8th episode of our Aliens Among Us webinar we have Dr Isa Menzies as our special guest. She is a cultural historian with a PhD in cultural studies from ANU and has published many scholarly articles on this topic. We dive in to find out they become bound up in the identity of a small but vocal minority? Why did the NSW government change laws to protect feral horses in a national park? Is there a connection between this and the voice referendum and more.
Additional Q&A
Our panel was kind enough to write some quick answers to some of the questions asked during the session that we didn’t have time to get to.
Our culture treats pigs as farm animals that end up as meat. Our culture treats horses as something we don’t normally kill. We don’t have strong cultural associations with deer.
– Tim
Yes there have been studies of damage that found it strongly associated with presence of horse dung, not deer or pig dung, eg. An assessment of feral horse impacts on treeless drainage lines in the Australian Alps, and Horse activity is associated with degraded subalpine grasslands structure and reduced habitat for a threatened
– Tim
They suffer greatly. Horse starvation is addressed here: https://theconversation.com/the-grim-story-of-the-snowy-mountains-cannibal-horses-31691
Rats that attack adult albatross and dive into water to prey on crabs. Possums that forgo their plant-based diet for native birds eggs. Welcome to the world of invasive species across the Tasman where masses of stoats, ferrets, possums, cats and weasels are playing havoc with nature. Like Australia, Aotearoa/New Zealand has experienced many extinctions and many more of their native species are in big trouble due to introduced species.
But New Zealanders agreed they were worth saving.
So, in 2016, they started Predator Free 2050 – an ambitious nationwide program to protect biodiversity by eliminating the country’s most damaging introduced predators.
But how did they rally Aotearoa/New Zealanders in a collective effort in the pursuit of this ‘crazy and ambitious’ goal to bring back their dawn chorus? Bringing government, community groups, Maori, charity groups and the community together to agree on anything is no easy feat, let alone for such a mammoth challenge.
Joining us will be:
All welcome to come along to this free webinar! Just note that registrations are essential and numbers are limited.
In 2016, Aotearoa/New Zealand started Predator Free 2050 – an ambitious nationwide program to protect biodiversity by eliminating the country’s most damaging introduced predators.
But how did they rally in a collective effort in the pursuit of this ‘crazy and ambitious’ goal to bring back their dawn chorus? Bringing government, community groups, Maori, charity groups and the community together to agree on anything is no easy feat, let alone for such a mammoth challenge.
Additional Q&A
Our panel was kind enough to write some quick answers to some of the questions asked during the session that we didn’t have time to get to.
Earlier this year, red fire ants were detected in the precious environments of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) for the very first time. These highly invasive and dangerous ants were first found in Australia in 2001. A large outbreak in southeast Queensland remains active and is still subject to a major eradication effort. But if we fail to get on top of red fire ants, modelling shows they will spread to every corner of Australia. Our way of life will be changed forever.
Our expert panel, joined by Eli Perry from QYAC, talks with Sarah Corcoran who has been up close and personal with red fire ants and knows what’s at stake if fire ants swarm Australia.
On September 16, in response to allegations aired on shock-jock Sydney radio, the NSW Environment Minister announced a ban on all shooting operations in Kosciuszko National Park. The ban was supposed to only last two weeks. Five weeks later, not only was it still in place, but we learnt the ban had been applied to every national park across the entirety of NSW. The surge in feral animals being reported state-wide thanks to recent wet weather meant that the lack of feral animal control across NSW was jeopardising nature and livelihoods.
The issue of protecting Kosciuszko from feral horses is once again coming to a head.
Come behind the scenes with us in this Aliens Among Us session as we lift the lid on how we discovered feral animal control had been banned across the state of NSW, and how we worked with our tireless supporters to have the ban reversed.
Australia’s State of the Environment Report 2021, finally released earlier this year, makes for grim reading. But how central are invasive species to Australia’s extinction crisis? What can we take from the record level of Indigenous authorship in this edition of the report? What do cut flowers have to do with the state of Australia’s environment?
Our fourth Aliens Among Us session welcomes Barry Hunter, one of the co-authors of Australia’s latest State of the Environment Report. Alongside Barry is author and biologist Tim Low, Invasive Species Council Indigenous Ambassador Richard Swain, and Invasive Species Council CEO Andrew Cox as host.
Additional Q&A
Our panel was kind enough to write some quick answers to some of the questions asked during the session that we didn’t have time to get to.
Our third Aliens Among Us session welcomed John Read, ecologist and author of Among the Pigeons; Why our cats belong indoors. John is considered by some to be Australia’s leading expert on the impacts of feral and roaming cats, and this is a special opportunity to see the world of cats through his eyes.
Alongside John was our expert panel consisting of former Tasmanian Senator Christine Milne, author Tim Low and Invasive Species Council CEO Andrew Cox.
Additional Q&A
Our panel was kind enough to write some quick answers to the many questions that were asked during this session. It was fantastic to see so much interest in what is such a tricky issue to talk about!
es, any animal (including sheep, mice, humans, bandicoots and even seals etc) can become infected, but the Toxoplasmosis life cycle (production of oocysts) requires a Feline host, so Toxo will rapidly diminish without free-ranging cats. – John
For our first Aliens Among Us of 2022, we welcome Leslie Anthony – author of the book that we named this series after!
Join Leslie, former Tasmanian Senator Christine Milne, author Tim Low and Invasive Species Council CEO Andrew Cox as they explore the complex and chaotic world of invasive species.
Based in Whistler, Leslie is a writer, editor, biologist and occasional filmmaker. His former life as an editor for a number of acclaimed mountain and ski publications has left his name printed into the masthead of a swathe of magazines.
His zoology PhD from the University of Toronto and postdoctoral fellowship at McGill University’s Redpath Museum have left him well-equipped as he has turned his attention towards writing about travel, adventure and science.
Aside from being the inspiration (with permission!) for the name of this seminar series, his book ‘The Aliens Among Us: How Invasive Species are Transforming the Planet—and Ourselves’ is a thoughtful, accessible look at the rapidly growing issue of invasive plants, animals, and microbes around the globe. He draws on science, travel, history and humor to understand the ecological, social, and economic aspects to the burgeoning problem of invasive species.
Our first session stars Australian author Pete Minard, who wrote All Things Harmless, Useful and Ornamental.
Pete grew up in regional Australia surrounded by a landscape infested with rabbits, sparrows and hares. His fascination with how Australia’s landscape and ecology has changed through the introduction of non-native plants and animals reveals an intriguing history shaped and formed by the men behind early acclimatisation societies.
In his book he tells the story of this movement, arguing that far from attempting to re-create London or Paris, settlers sought to combine plants and animals to correct earlier environmental damage and to populate forests, farms, and streams to make them healthier and more productive.
By focusing particularly on the Australian colony of Victoria, Minard reveals a global network of would-be acclimatisers, from Britain and France to Russia and the United States.
Although the movement was short-lived, the long reach of nineteenth-century acclimatisation societies continues to be felt today, from choked waterways to the uncontrollable expansion of European pests in former colonies, including Australia.
The Invasive Species Council acknowledges the Traditional Custodians throughout Australia and their connections to land and sea. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. The Invasive Species Council supports voting ‘YES’ for a Voice to Parliament.
Dear Project Team,
[YOUR PERSONALISED MESSAGE WILL APPEAR HERE.]
I support the amendment to the Kosciuszko National Park Wild Horse Heritage Management Plan to allow our incredible National Parks staff to use aerial shooting as one method to rapidly reduce feral horse numbers. I want to see feral horse numbers urgently reduced in order to save the national park and our native wildlife that live there.
The current approach is not solving the problem. Feral horse numbers have rapidly increased in Kosciuszko National Park to around 18,000, a 30% jump in just the past 2 years. With the population so high, thousands of feral horses need to be removed annually to reduce numbers and stop our National Park becoming a horse paddock. Aerial shooting, undertaken humanely and safely by professionals using standard protocols, is the only way this can happen.
The government’s own management plan for feral horses states that ‘if undertaken in accordance with best practice, aerial shooting can have the lowest negative animal welfare impacts of all lethal control methods’.
This humane and effective practice is already used across Australia to manage hundreds of thousands of feral animals like horses, deer, pigs, and goats.
Trapping and rehoming of feral horses has been used in Kosciuszko National Park for well over a decade but has consistently failed to reduce the population, has delayed meaningful action and is expensive. There are too many feral horses in the Alps and not enough demand for rehoming for it to be relied upon for the reduction of the population.
Fertility control as a management tool is only effective for a small, geographically isolated, and accessible population of feral horses where the management outcome sought is to maintain the population at its current size. It is not a viable option to reduce the large and growing feral horse population in the vast and rugged terrain of Kosciuszko National Park.
Feral horses are trashing and trampling our sensitive alpine ecosystems and streams, causing the decline and extinction of native animals. The federal government’s Threatened Species Scientific Committee has stated that feral horses ‘may be the crucial factor that causes final extinction’ for 12 alpine species.
I recognise the sad reality that urgent and humane measures are necessary to urgently remove the horses or they will destroy the Snowies and the native wildlife that call the mountains home. I support a healthy national park where native species like the Corroboree Frog and Mountain Pygmy Possum can thrive.
Dear Project Team,
[YOUR PERSONALISED MESSAGE WILL APPEAR HERE.]
I support the amendment to the Kosciuszko National Park Wild Horse Heritage Management Plan to allow our incredible National Parks staff to use aerial shooting as one method to rapidly reduce feral horse numbers. I want to see feral horse numbers urgently reduced in order to save the national park and our native wildlife that live there.
The current approach is not solving the problem. Feral horse numbers have rapidly increased in Kosciuszko National Park to around 18,000, a 30% jump in just the past 2 years. With the population so high, thousands of feral horses need to be removed annually to reduce numbers and stop our National Park becoming a horse paddock. Aerial shooting, undertaken humanely and safely by professionals using standard protocols, is the only way this can happen.
The government’s own management plan for feral horses states that ‘if undertaken in accordance with best practice, aerial shooting can have the lowest negative animal welfare impacts of all lethal control methods’.
This humane and effective practice is already used across Australia to manage hundreds of thousands of feral animals like horses, deer, pigs, and goats.
Trapping and rehoming of feral horses has been used in Kosciuszko National Park for well over a decade but has consistently failed to reduce the population, has delayed meaningful action and is expensive. There are too many feral horses in the Alps and not enough demand for rehoming for it to be relied upon for the reduction of the population.
Fertility control as a management tool is only effective for a small, geographically isolated, and accessible population of feral horses where the management outcome sought is to maintain the population at its current size. It is not a viable option to reduce the large and growing feral horse population in the vast and rugged terrain of Kosciuszko National Park.
Feral horses are trashing and trampling our sensitive alpine ecosystems and streams, causing the decline and extinction of native animals. The federal government’s Threatened Species Scientific Committee has stated that feral horses ‘may be the crucial factor that causes final extinction’ for 12 alpine species.
I recognise the sad reality that urgent and humane measures are necessary to urgently remove the horses or they will destroy the Snowies and the native wildlife that call the mountains home. I support a healthy national park where native species like the Corroboree Frog and Mountain Pygmy Possum can thrive.
