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Simon-
I work
in the area of feral animal control, and foxes are one of the animals that I
have to deal with most.
The
whole "bounty" issues is a strange one. It doesnt matter how much evidence
is presented to show that bounties have no real positive impact on feral animal
impact reduction. People still insist on having them, and yelling loud and
long to have them brought in or reinstated. It seems to be a sort of
cultural thing, and it is very hard to argue against. Arguements for
bounties are usually accompanied by all sorts of other statements asking us to
harken back to the good old days, when we didnt need fancy studies by the
government, or ecology, or and kind of planned response to wildlife management
problems. My experience has been that bounties are usually brought in as a
result of political pressure. There are rural interests who are totally
opposed to any rational approach to feral animal management- they equate
rational with academic, and they are absolutely opposed to anything that smacks
of being academic, on the grounds that anything academic is ineffectual,
inexpensive and likely to show disrespect for the undisputed superior
understanding of "the man on the land". When the call goes out
to raise a bounty, it inevitably means that an animal problem is not being
solved, and revenge must be sought. A body count, not a solution, is what
is called for when you want revenge.
Bounties, at least in their old manifestation, are a
waste of money. Worse still, they distract attention from proper
discussion and understanding of biosecurity issues- things that are sorely
needed.
Scott
O'Keeffe
I understand from word of mouth that the
government decided to offer $50,000 to anyone who could bag a fox for
conservation. Hardly surprising then that a few enterprising bounty hunters
have teamed up with some fishermen and imported a few. I would have thought
however that it would be sensible to shoot them first before releasing them
into the wild.
As a consultant ecologist with considerable
experience of foxes in the UK I reckon I can track them pretty well. Anyone
fancy teaming up and making a few grand?!! Only joking - If it is true, how
long can the government maintain this ridiculous incentive. I ask you, who on
earth decided that this would work?
Simon.
_____________________________________________
Simon Mustoe - Principal
AES Applied Ecology Solutions Pty Ltd.
59 Joan Avenue
Ferntree
Gully
Melbourne
Victoria 3156
AUSTRALIA
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