animal pests of south australia

7/27/2019 Animal Pests of South Australia

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Declared animal pests

Declared animal pests

ntroduced animal pests pose a major threat to agriculture,he environment and public saety in South Australia. Thisbrochure explains landowner responsibilities and methodsr controlling some o our worst pest animals. It also identifesme Alert Pest animals – serious pests not currently present,but which are at risk o establishing in South Australia.

Existing animal pests

Alert animal pests

Animal Pests

of South Australia

What you need to knowFeral Camel

Camelus dromedarius

Northern & western sandy deserts

& adjacent pastoral stations.

Damages native vegetation,

waters, ences & inrastructure.

Control by mustering or

coordinated aerial shooting.

Red FoxVulpes vulpes

Widespread across state;

not Kangaroo Island.

Kills lambs, goat kids & poultry;

serious wildlie predator.

Control by coordinated baiting,

shooting & den umigation.

Dingo/ Wild DogCanis lupus dingo

& hybrids

Native animal north o Dog Fence;

declared pest south o ence.

Serious threat to sheep industry.

Illegal to keep as a pet.


humane traps & shooting.

Feral PigSus scrofa

Murray, Cooper & Diamantina

Rivers; western Kangaroo Island.

Damages livestock pasture, crops,

native vegetation & wetlands.

Control by coordinated aerial &

ground shooting, baiting & traps.

Feral Deereg. Red Deer

Cervus elaphus

Six species in agricultural areas:

Fallow Red Rusa Sambar Chital Hog.

Competes or livestock pasture;

damages vegetation; trafc hazard.

Control by coordinated aerial

& ground shooting.

Brown HareLepus capensis

Widespread in agricultural areas;


Damages crops, pasture

& native vegetation.

Control by spotlight shooting;

guard tree seedlings.

European RabbitOryctolagus cuniculus

Widespread across state;


Damages crops, pasture

& native vegetation.


warren ripping & umigation.

3 4

1 2

Rangelands south o Dog Fence

& scrub in agricultural areas.

Competes or livestock pasture;

damages native vegetation.

Control by coordinated mustering,

trapping & shooting.

Feral GoatCapra hircus

7 8

6

Common (Indian)Myna

Acridotheres tristis

Chocolate brown; white windows

in wings; yellow bill & behind eye.

Walking gait; eeds on ground.

Noisy, backyard & biodiversity pest.

Spreading west across Victoria

towards South-East & Riverland.

House CrowCorvus splendens

Diers rom all black native crows

by smaller size & greyish neck.

Occasionally enters Australia

aboard ships.

Serious commensal pest.

Look out or at shipping ports.

Red-whiskeredBulbul

Pycnonotus jocosus

Small with erect black crest;

white cheeks & throat.

Active & noisy.

Nuisance pest o east coast

gardens & orchards.

Prohibited in SA.

Spice Finch(Nutmeg Mannikin)

Lonchura punctulata

Chocolate brown & white

sparrow-sized fnch.

Common cage bird

in eastern states.

Competes with native birds.

Prohibited in SA.

Cane ToadBufo marinus

Large & warty; sharp eyebrow

ridge; poison glands behind eyes.

Occasional stowaways to SA via

pot plants, urniture & produce.

Potential to invade SA via ar

north-east river systems.

Red-eared SliderTrachemys scripta elegans

Red behind eye; yellow stripes on

head & legs; domed shell.

Escaped populations in

interstate wetlands.

Competes with native tortoises.

Prohibited in SA.

Five-lined PalmSquirrel

Funambulus pennanti

Rat-sized squirrel with bushy

banded tail & striped back.

Lives in trees;

preers palms & pines.

Nuisance backyard pest.

Prohibited in SA.

Long-tailed, green parrot;

red bill; loud ‘kee-ak’ call.

Black & pink collar in males.

Common cage bird;

occasional escapes occur.

Competes with native birds.

Indian RingneckParakeet

Psittacula krameri

9 10

16

13 14

12 1511

5

I m a g e b y D ar y l P an t h er

Impacts o Pest AnimalsIntroduced animal pests cost South Australian agriculturemillions o dollars in damage, lost production and controleorts. Rabbits damage sown crops and, with otherintroduced herbivores, compete with domestic livestockor pasture. Foxes and wild dogs prey on livestockcausing severe losses especially to the sheep industry.

Animal pests also cause incalculable damage to thenatural environment. Rabbits and other introducedherbivores over-graze and prevent regeneration onative plants threatening individual plant species andreducing pasture availability or native herbivores.Rabbits also support large populations o oxes anderal cats. Foxes have been implicated in the extinctiono almost 30 native mammals rom mainland SouthAustralia and continue to threaten many more.

Introduced pests cause a range o other problems. Deerand other large herbivores are a road hazard. Rabbitsand hares damage revegetation and amenity plantingsand oxes chew holes in irrigation pipes. As well,introduced pests can act as reservoirs or serious exoticdiseases including Foot and Mouth Disease and Rabiesthat might enter Australia. Dealing with wild pestanimal populations increases the complexity and costo eradicating exotic diseases.

Eective control o pest animals by all landowners is thekey to reducing their impacts.

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Contact your regional Natural Resources Management

(NRM) board ofce or urther advice on pest animals

and their control.

Adelaide & Mount Loty Ranges NRM Board

www.amlrnrm.sa.gov.au

Email: [email protected]

Adelaide (head ofce) 8273 9100

Gawler 8523 7700

Lobethal 8389 5900

Willunga 8550 3400

Alinytjara Wilurara NRM Board

www.awnrm.sa.gov.au


Adelaide (head ofce) 8357 3880Ceduna 8625 3706

Eyre Peninsula NRM Board

www.epnrm.sa.gov.au


Port Lincoln (head ofce) 8682 7555

Tumby Bay 8688 2610

Elliston 8687 9330

Streaky Bay 8626 1108

Ceduna 8625 3060

Wudinna 8680 2653

Cleve 8628 2077

Whyalla 8640 3480

Kangaroo Island NRM Board

www.kinrm.sa.gov.au


Kingscote (head ofce) 8553 4300

Northern & Yorke NRM Board

www.nynrm.sa.gov.au


Declared pest animals

Contact your NRM board or help

Declared pests State Alert pest animals

Potential new pests

Contact your NRM board or help

State Alerts are potential new pests. They are not

present in the wild in SA, but pose a high risk o

establishing with serious consequences or agriculture,

the environment and publ ic saety.

These include major international pest species such as

the Common (or Indian) Myna and Cane Toad which

have wild populations interstate and occasionally turn

up in South Australia and the House Crow which does

not occur in Australia but sometimes arrives here

aboard visiting ships.

It is important that landowners are amiliar with State

Alert pest animals to enable timely eradication o anyoutbreaks beore they spread. Report all suspected

State Alert pest animals to your regional NRM board.

Many exotic animals pose a high risk o becoming new

pests in Australia. Without controls over their keeping

and importation, some would inevitably escape due

to poor security or accidental or deliberate release and

establish new populations.

Animals such as lagomorphs (e.g. North American

cotton-tail rabbits), rodents (e.g. hamsters), mustelids

(e.g. stoats and weasels) and most exotic reptiles and

amphibians are considered to pose such a serious threat

that they are prohibited rom being imported into

Australia or the pet trade.

The entry, movement, keeping, sale and wilul or

negligent release o high risk exotic declared pest animals

without a permit is illegal. Severe penalties apply or

some oences under the NRM Act.

In general, purposes or which permits may be granted

or high risk species include research and development,

conservation in accordance with national plans, and

public education. These species can only be kept in

high security zoos and research acilities which meet

strict criteria.

Crystal Brook (head ofce) 8636 2361

Riverton 8847 2544

Minlaton 8853 2795

Orroroo 8658 1086

South Australian Arid Lands NRM Board

www.saalnrm.sa.gov.au


Port Augusta (head ofce) 8648 5977

South Australian Murray-Darling Basin

NRM Board

www.samdbnrm.sa.gov.au


Murray Bridge (head ofce) 8532 1432

Berri 8582 4477

Burra 8892 3033

Lameroo 8576 3400

Mt Barker 8391 7500

South East NRM Board

www.senrm.sa.gov.au


Mt Gambier (head ofce) 8724 6000

Inormation on animal pests can also

be obtained rom:

Biosecurity SA

www.pir.sa.gov.au/biosecuritysa/nrm_biosecurity


Adelaide 8303 9620

Adelaide & Mount Loty Ranges

Alinytjara Wilurara

Eyre Peninsula

Kangaroo Island

Northern & Yorke

South Australian Arid Lands

South Australian Murray-Darling Basin

South East

South Australia’s NRM boards

All landowners in South Australia have a legal

responsibility to manage pest animals declared

under the Natural Resources Management Act 2004.

Declaration places restrictions on the movement,

keeping, sale and release o some animals. It may also

require landowners to control or destroy declared

pests on their property or to notiy authorities about

their presence.

Landowners are required to be aware o declared

pest species on their properties and take appropriate

measures to control them. A property management

plan incorporating a pest animal control calendar isa good way to meet your responsibilities. For example,

the best time to control rabbits by baiting is in late

summer and early autumn when their numbers are

least, breeding has ceased, ood is declining and the

rabbits are hungry. This is ollowed by ripping all

warrens then umigating any burrows that re-open.

Contact an Authorised Ofcer at your regional

NRM board to assist you with developing a property

management plan to manage the pests on

your property.

It is important that landowners be aware o their

responsibilities regarding pest species that occur

on their land. The ollowing notes outline the legal

requirements or managing eight o South Australia’s

most serious declared pest animals (high-lighted in

blue overlea). In addition to the ollowing restrictions,

no declared animal may be wilully released

rom captivity.

Red Fox – must not be moved, kept or sold across

whole o state. Landowners required to control. Notiy

NRM board & destroy on oshore islands.

Dingo & dingo crosses – must not be moved, kept

or sold south o the Dog Fence. Landowners are

required to destroy south o Dog Fence.

European Rabbit – wild rabbits must not be moved,

kept or sold. Landowners required to control.* Notiy

NRM board & destroy on oshore islands (excluding

Wardang Island). Domestic rabbits must not be moved,

kept or sold on Kangaroo Island.

Brown Hare – must not be moved, kept or sold on

oshore islands. Notiy NRM board & destroy on all

oshore islands.

Feral Camel – must not be released rom captivity.

Feral Deer – take prescribed measures to control.

Notiy NRM board & destroy on oshore islands. Must

not be moved, kept or sold on oshore islands without

a permit.

Feral Goat – take prescribed measures to control. Must

not be moved, kept or sold on oshore islands without

a permit.

Feral Pig – must not be released rom captivity.

* Contact NRM board regarding control of rabbits

on adjoining roadsides.

This pamphlet is intended as a guide to pest animal regulations in

South Australia under the Natural Resources Management Act 2004.

It does not replace the Act and should not be relied upon as a legal

document. Declarations and regulations change rom time to time.Image by Peter Bird

Photo credits key: 1, 6 Daryl Panther

2,15 Peter Bird

3 Scott Jennings

4 Philip Stott

5 Rob Sleep

7 Robert Henzell

8 Invasive Animals CRC

9 Toby Roscoe, Australian NationalUniversity Myna Project

10 Jay Yeung

11 J. M. Garg

12 Petri Pietilainen

13 Cyril Laubscher

14 D. Gordon E. Robertson

16 WA Dept. Agriculture & Food

animal pests of south australia

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