Thanks to all who responded and apologies to everyone for more
on this.
Local protests have been muted but the Animal Liberation Front
has been demonstrating on Sundays and is seeing the Victorian
Minister for the Environment, Sherryl Garbutt, on Wednesday.
The RBG's explanation is on: www.rbgmelb.org.au/Flyfox.htm
It doesn't actually say they intend to kill all 8,000 animals,
merely that the aims are "to strategically reduce the
population" and "remove the memory of the Gardens, as a
desirable roosting location, in the broader flying-fox
population". Staff tell me that the cleansing will not be
completed this year: they are starting with the young bats.
For some reason I could not locate the direct e-mail and other
addresses of Ministers on the web site but comments can be made
via the "Have your say" section of the Victorian State
Government's web site at: www.vic.gov.au
(use the premier or environment options).
I've been puzzling over a bird analogy to this situation.
Perhaps one is that the little penguins breeding at St Kilda in
Melbourne are a nuisance because they get conservationists to
stop people walking on the (artificial) breakwater.
But enough of this "off-topic" stuff. I would be glad to
discuss and network about it "privately".
Michael Norris
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