G'day,
With all the talk of Barbary Doves being caught down south I though
it might be worth mentioning that here in Alice Springs, Land for Wildlife
just held one of their feral Spotted Turtle-dove trapping workshops.
PWSNT almost eradicated the Spotted Turtle-dove from Alice Springs a few
years back with a dedicated program of trapping and shooting. They lost
their funding just as they got the population down to a few hundred. The
population has now climbed over 8000 and in current conditions they are
flourishing. As the native doves we get here are so small, Diamond and
Peaceful Doves, they really don't stand a chance against the STDs. Peaceful
Doves in particular are now very scarce around town.
So now community groups and citizens take responsibility for feral dove
control and the eradication program is a work in progress but has many
enthusiastic supporters. The traps are easily built and unobtrusive in the
backyard and do no damage to native by-catch. The Alice Springs Desert Park
kindly receives the birds from people who have caught them and their vets
dispose of the birds with humane CO2 euthanasia and the birds become part of
the behavioural enrichment diet for captive raptors and carnivorous mammal
species kept at the Desert Park - it's a very positive solution all round.
Could a program of citizen trapping be useful in other parts of Australia?
Do the laws prohibit the trapping of avian pests by citizens in other
states? Disposal is another issue, but I am sure there are similar Wildlife
Parks and rehabilitation centres that would welcome a ready supply of fresh
doves.
If anyone is interested in the possible application of a program like this
in their area then you can have a read of the information I have put on my
blog about this morning's workshop -
http://comebirdwatching.blogspot.com/2011/02/feral-spotted-turtle-dove-trapping.html
There are links in the text to the archived PDF factsheets for building your
own trap and the identification and handling of feral birds.
I'd be interested to hear the debate as I know that Indian Mynas are a big
problem around Melbourne along with the STDs and I believe Barbary Doves are
still on the loose in Adelaide.
Cheers,
Chris Watson
Alice Springs
PS. The Barbary Dove was successfully eradicated from Alice Springs by PWSNT
and none have been trapped or reported since 2006.
--
*BIRDS CENTRAL*
*Central Australian birding resource*
*Guiding, writing, and the latest site information*
*from Alice Springs*
www.comebirdwatching.blogspot.com
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