Drought stricken birds should not be shooters’ targets
December 20, 2019RSPCA SA, Animal Protection & Conservation Coalition plead for cancellation of 2020 hunting season
The Treasures not Targets Coalition has called upon State Environment Minister David Speirs to urgently re-consider his decision to permit an open hunting season for ducks in
2020. (Minister Speirs has just announced a duck hunting open season for 2020 in South Australia, with some restrictions compared with previous years.)
The Coalition, comprised of animal protection and bird conservation groups, is adamant that any decision to allow the hunting of native birds in 2020 is irresponsible, considering the catastrophic drought conditions across eastern Australia. RSPCA South Australia’s Animal Welfare Advocate, Dr Rebekah Eyers, said the reasons to cancel the 2020 hunting season are not limited to the high wounding rates and the inevitable shooting of nontarget protected species.
“The two other compelling factors are that these wetland habitats are enduring the worst drought in 120 years, according to the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM), and aerial survey experts are telling us that the abundance of most waterbird species across Australia are in continual decline.”(1)
Dr Eyers urged the SA government to heed the advice of (native bird) aerial survey expert, Professor Richard Kingsford.(2) He cautions that the native duck numbers currently seen in southern SA give a false impression of species health, since many birds are simply seeking refuge from the drought.
Professor Kingsford has issued this warning:
“These birds, if they survive, will be next year’s breeders. Shooting them would be grossly irresponsible.”(3)
Sharing this concern, Birds SA Vice-President Jeff Groves said the disastrous rainfall and vegetation data for 2019, issued by the Bureau of Meteorology, starkly illustrate that birds are under immense pressure just to survive.(4)
“Large swathes of eastern Australia have recorded rainfall levels far below average, with some the lowest on record, and BOM vegetation studies confirm this dire situation. Compounding this are the record high temperatures recorded across the nation in December,” Mr Groves said.
“We believe that allowing the hunting of native ducks under these circumstances would be totally unacceptable to most Australians.”
Surveys indicate native waterbird numbers have dropped by up to 90% since the 1980s.(5)
Given this continual decline and increasing drought conditions, the Coalition believes most South Australians would support protection of birds from recreational shooters. (Research conducted in SA in 2011 by McGregor Tan Research revealed that 83% of South Australians surveyed were opposed to duck and quail hunting.)
The Treasures not Targets coalition is comprised of Birds SA, RSPCA SA, Fauna Rescue SA, Animal Justice Party SA and Animal Liberation SA. Other organisations who support the coalition’s stance on this major animal protection and conservation issue are BirdLife Australia and Sentient, the Veterinary Institute for Animal Ethics.
Background information:
- The 2019 duck shooting season ran from 16 Mar to 30 June. See the 2019 Open
Season announcement here: https://www.environment.sa.gov.au/licences-andpermits/wildlife-permits/permit-types/hunting/duck-hunting - SA permit numbers issued for:
o 2019 – 1679 duck permits, and 150 quail permits
o 2018 – 1841 duck permits and 190 quail permits
1 See Appendix 1, Australian Rainfall Deciles on p. 3 of this document.
See also the survey: https://www.ecosystem.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/2019-04/2018-Eastern-Australia-Waterbird-Survey-Summary-Report.pdf.
In addition, see https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-19/drought-and-water-policy-to-blame-for-water-birddecline/11715412.
2 Sydney scientist, Professor Richard Kingsford from the University of NSW has been involved in Australian waterbird aerial surveys since the early 1980’s. For more information on Professor
Kingsford also see https://www.bees.unsw.edu.au/richard-kingsford.
4 See Appendix 1, Australian Rainfall Deciles on p. 3 of this document.
5 See the Eastern Australian Aerial Waterbird Survey, by the University of NSW Centre for Ecosystem Science.
Appendix 1 – Australian Rainfall Deciles
