Goat Cull, Right Or Wrong?

[greybeard]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-28/r ... ef/7668268

Daryl.

[perry]

Hardly ideal Daryl, cleaning up a mess is never easy. Sure the Dingo's/ Wild Dogs will hunt the Goats, but they'll also Hunt what ever else they get the opportunity too. I don't like the 1080 implant, hideous stuff. Like it or not Professional Shooters / Helicopter Cull. Forget the Dogs. I would not worry too much about cleaning Ferals out of the off shore Islands, no body will want to visit anything on whats left of the Great Barrier Reef after Adani and the other Miners are finished dumping their Mining Waste in what ever half baked solution the Government will offer to appease the Greenies


regards Perry

[Bill]

The Queensland Government could get rid of the goats by this means again and its a win, win situation all around.
As to the date it was a few years ago, not this May just gone by.

[cadet]

So who's doing the MRM on that and getting it though the CO? I doubt many units would go near such an activity now; nor do I think the F88 and issue F1 ball is the rifle and cartridge combo for that job.

[Jim]

The Army won't touch that kind of thing. Feral dogs were such a problem in Tville a few years back that they had to get culled from Army ranges and they got in civ. contractors to shoot them. You're not going to see soldiers doing any more of that in our lifetime I don't think.

[Jim]

So who's doing the MRM on that and getting it though the CO? I doubt many units would go near such an activity now; nor do I think the F88 and issue F1 ball is the rifle and cartridge combo for that job.

Nothing to do with risk, it's about Army's reputation. And I think you'll find the humble .223 is perfectly adequate for killing some goats. Pretty sure that old Ace in the photo has a steyr in his hand...

[cadet]

So who's doing the MRM on that and getting it though the CO? I doubt many units would go near such an activity now; nor do I think the F88 and issue F1 ball is the rifle and cartridge combo for that job.

Nothing to do with risk, it's about Army's reputation. And I think you'll find the humble .223 is perfectly adequate for killing some goats. Pretty sure that old Ace in the photo has a steyr in his hand...

Reputation would be one of the things at risk.

I know enough about service rifles and cartridges and sporting rifles and cartrides and their use on game thanks. Indeed, there's nothing wrong with .223/5.56 for goats, but F1 ball, and the 1.5x and donut reticle set for a doctrinal 100m CZP is far from ideal - it's a goat with relatively small vitals to be culled humanely, not a fig 11. I'd be doing it differently.

[GrahameA]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-28/r ... ef/7668268

Update.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-18/q ... es/7763038

[greybeard]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-28/r ... ef/7668268

Update.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-18/q ... es/7763038

“GBRMPA is funded by Commonwealth Government appropriations and an environmental management charge levied on the permit-holders' passengers. Currently this is $6.00 per day per passenger (to a maximum of $16.50 per trip).

The Government of Australia manages the reef through the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and in partnership with the Government of Queensland, to ensure that it is widely understood and used in a sustainable manner.
A combination of zoning, management plans, permits, education and an incentive (such as eco-tourism certification) is used in the effort to conserve the Great Barrier Reef.”

It would appear that the Hinchinbrook Shire Council is the caretaker for the GBRMPA in this area.

Is this another example of bureaucratic bungling on all levels?

Did any one of them [bureaucrats] think to carry out an Environmental Impact Study before implementing this dubious eradication program?

Daryl.

[rodlonq]

I don't recall them offering hunting access to the local bowman to try and reduce the numbers. I can see Pelorus Island from the beach and dream of hunting it. I am sure many of the Hinchinbrook Bowman would get behind the effort to cull the goats.

[perry]

Your right Rod, it's obvious solution that will not be considered by Local or State Government, heaven forbid making a considered beneficial decision. Sporting Shooters, Archers Bow and Rifle Hunter's make up a minimum of 10% of the voting public. Heaven forbid the Politicians actually listen to groups such as the SSAA, ABA and other Hunting organisations instead of being hoodwinked by Anti's and Greenies hysteria.


Public Land Hunting is working very well in Victoria, if the Government would leave it alone in NSW it would work better than it has. It's time for Queensland to wake up and introduce Public Land Hunting in our State Forests and to consider it as a viable tool for removing Feral's in National Parks and sensitive area's such as off shore Islands.


regards Perry

[greybeard]

I don't recall them offering hunting access to the local bowman to try and reduce the numbers.........

Your right Rod, it's obvious solution that will not be considered by Local or State Government.........Public Land Hunting is working very well in Victoria....

“The island is managed by the Hinchinbrook Shire Council and has a pristine and fragile environment, which is protected by both state and federal environmental provisions.”

Lack of data showing the reduction in feral game numbers on the Australian mainland using a bow and arrow would suggest that it is not an effective weapon in the control of or elimination of feral game.

Although a postage stamp sized island with difficult terrain how long would it take for bow hunters to dispatch the supposedly 300 feral goats.

“Hinchinbrook Shire Mayor Ramon Jayo has said that previous attempts to trap or shoot the goats had proven "pretty impossible" because of the rough and heavily forested terrain.”

As we are aware bow hunting is a pastime and generally occurs when a bit of spare cash is available, the hunter can get some time off work and the ball and chain gives permission.

“Coral Princess Cruises, an Australian small-ship cruise line maintains a long term private lease on part of the island and visits the island for a picnic stopover during their Great Barrier Reef cruises.”

Can you imagine the island being closed down for any length of time so some bow hunters can chase goats around a hill?

If rifle shooters were to partake in an eradication program an exclusion zone around the island would have to be put in place to protect tourists and those who work in the marine park area.

The government needs to come up with an eradication plan that will work in the medium term without damaging the ecology of the island or adversely affecting the tourist industry.

I could suggest some alternatives but they would most likely be considered as politically incorrect.

Daryl.

[perry]

It must be possible to coordinate with a Tourist Business's timetable, just take a bit of planning and Government backing. Government is the greatest issue to a solution being found quickly.

It may well be that Politically Incorrect methods will prove the fastest way to eradicate these Goats. I'll bet that a coordinated Cull run by say the ABA and SSAA would eradicate the Goats well inside 2 years. Has anybody spoken to the ABA. They have records of Game Animal's legally shot and claimed going back near 40 years that would indicate the Bow and Arrow is an effective tool in Feral Animal control.

Sure they are not as effective as a Professional Marksman with a Suppressed Rifle, maybe a accomplished Hunter snuck in close with Lever Rifle. Hows about Judas Goats with Tracking Collars so that when the Goats retreat to thick scrub so they could be tracked. A group of Hunters with well trained Dogs would make a dent very quickly in the Goat Population. There are organisations about who could put Government onto the right People with correctly Trained Hunting Dogs.

The SSAA has run many very successful Culls in cooperation with other State Governments in the Past in inaccessible Regions for a wide range of Feral Animals. Some of these Culls have been so successful that Australian Native Animals that were on the verge of extinction have been saved. You only have to look to the SSAA success in the Flinders Ranges and the Yellow Footed Rock Wallaby. They have shooters that have passed marksmanship tests and a number of other accredited Skills that Governments would look for in these circumstances.

Here's an SSAA Article with some examples of good work in a wide range of conservation efforts in cooperation with Government, Landowners and Animal Welfare groups. Even mention of work done on another Island. I am quite sure that ABA is capable of a coordinated approach in combination with the likes of the SSAA.

The expertise is out there in Australia's Hunting Community. It is a wasted resource that Government must wake up to eventually. There is even money to be made through introducing Licences to Hunt on public land as I suggested last post. Biggest thing is they must stop listening to the Anti's bleating.

http://ssaa.org.au/news-resources/hunti ... e-animals/

[clinglish]

In my opinion I think we need to allow these type of Experiments to be tried and allowed to fail. Eventually there will be no other option than to engage with groups such as the SSAA. one of the main issues in WA around this type of control is the lack of Training pathways that allow this to become a viable occupational choice. I believe that this is mostly due to the Stigma attached to hunting and the misconception that is a cruel past time. If the government would put effort into this side of the problem then there are a myriad of social and environmental issues that can be addressed.

[greybeard]

I had a similar idea when the ABC released their first story.

http://www.pestsmart.org.au/judas-techn ... t-control/

Threat Abatement Plan- Goat Report.

Threat Abatement Plan _Goat Report.doc

(178 KiB) Downloaded 154 times

Daryl.

[jindydiver]

Sure they are not as effective as a Professional Marksman with a Suppressed Rifle, maybe a accomplished Hunter snuck in close with Lever Rifle. Hows about Judas Goats with Tracking Collars so that when the Goats retreat to thick scrub so they could be tracked. A group of Hunters with well trained Dogs would make a dent very quickly in the Goat Population. There are organisations about who could put Government onto the right People with correctly Trained Hunting Dogs.

All of this and more has been tried on Pelorus and the goats persist. This is not about controlling the population, this is about exterminating them and a variety of methods have to be used at any time to find the last goats. Adding the dogs into the mix was a great idea and it is only political pressure applied by animal libbers (and others opposed to conservation measures that involve the death of invasive animals) that forced the State Gov' to jump in. The beach stone-curlew they are using as an excuse to can the experiment is found in good numbers on the other islands of the area and it would be a simple thing to reintroduce them if the dogs did turn out to be a threat to them on Pelorus.