Jump to content
IndiaDivine.org

Australia to Cull Wild Camel Population

Rate this topic


Guest guest

Recommended Posts

Guest guest

[Australian government is sickly moving right along I

see. They should be sterilizing some of the camels,

not killing them. They also shouldn't be eating cows.

The cows no doubt are using most of the water. Rick.]

 

AP

Australia to Cull Wild Camel Population

 

Source >

http://news./news?tmpl=story & u=/ap/20050426/ap_on_re_au_an/australia_ca\

mel_cull_3

 

By MERAIAH FOLEY, Associated Press Writer Tue Apr

26,11:56 AM ET

 

SYDNEY, Australia - Authorities in Australia's Outback

said Tuesday they plan to shoot wild camels from

helicopters because the rapidly expanding population

is encroaching on ranch land — an idea that outraged

animal welfare groups.

 

 

Officials in South Australia state said they needed to

reduce the camel population — which grows by an

estimated 11 percent a year — because the animals are

straining limited water supplies for sheep and cattle.

 

" The simplest, quickest and most cost effective way of

doing that is an aerial cull, " rural lands inspector

Chris Turner told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

radio.

 

He estimated the number of camels near ranch lands at

60,000.

 

The ABC reported that thousands of camels would be

culled by marksmen in helicopters. Turner declined to

comment on the exact number.

 

Glenys Oogjes, head of the animal welfare group

Animals Australia Animal, said aerial shooting has

been used in the past to cull wild horses and goats,

and the result was a " bloodbath. "

 

" We've seen terrible cruelty involved in that sort of

killing spree and it's virtually impossible operating

from the air to check that every animal is killed

outright, " Oogjes said.

 

Hugh Wirth, the national president of the Royal

Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals,

agreed.

 

" You cannot cleanly kill, instantly kill, humanely

kill a moving animal from a moving platform, " he said.

 

Camels were introduced to Australia in the mid-1880s

to transport supplies across the desert. After trains

and trucks replaced them, they were released into the

wild, where, with no natural predators and ample

grazing land, the population exploded.

 

Some scientists have estimated that as many as 500,000

wild camels are now roaming the country's vast

deserts.

 

Australia has a history of infestations by animals

from overseas.

 

Rabbits brought from Europe swarmed across parts of

the Outback, and noxious cane toads brought from South

America to control bugs in sugar cane fields are now

spreading across the north, killing native wildlife

from snakes to the small crocodiles that eat them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...