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Home›Dog attacks›Additional funding for first wallaby relocation project after success in Far North

Additional funding for first wallaby relocation project after success in Far North

By Vincent Harness
February 9, 2022
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A shot of stress, a bag and being dropped off in the bush might not sound like the ideal way home, but for some wallabies in Far North Queensland it worked out pretty well.

Key points:

  • The population of agile wallabies has increased to over 1,000 at the Trinity Beach sports enclosure
  • Displaced individuals survived and formed smaller groups in the bush
  • Previously, it was not considered possible to successfully relocate macropod populations

Australia’s first attempt at a mass macropod relocation began in far north Queensland last year, when around 400 agile wallabies were relocated from their home in northern Cairns.

Founder of The Agile Project Shai Ager struggled for a long time to secure funds and permits for her and a group of volunteers to begin the relocation process. She even sued the state government over it.

But, Ms Ager said something had to be done about Trinity Beach’s dangerously large population.

“The wallabies don’t know, but they really don’t live in optimal conditions anymore, because there just isn’t space,” she said.

“But there are piles of green grass, so the wallabies think these are the best conditions and continue to breed.”

About 400 wallabies have already been transported from the sports arena to the bush.(Provided: Agile Wallaby Project)

At one point, local councilor Brett Olds said there were around 1,400 wallabies in the fields around the Trinity Beach sports precinct.

He said population growth has been a problem for years.

“Because the conditions were so good, they went crazy and got high,” he said.

“[But] then you have car strikes, dog attacks and all these negative repercussions,” he said.

The very first attempt

Ms Ager said the first round of relocations was a huge success and proved that moving macropod populations to more suitable locations could be done successfully, despite previous evidence to the contrary.

“Before that, we kind of knew that relocation wasn’t working, [but] it’s just because it wasn’t performed in a particular way by people who knew how to deal with the stress and behavior of these animals,” she said.

“I get goosebumps even thinking about it, and also seeing the data and the stats coming out.

“My favorite part is the trail cameras – I can actually see the physical photos and videos of the wallabies thriving in the new habitats.”

two people are sitting on the grass looking at a wallaby on the grass in front of them
While some wallabies have died from attacks by native predators, Shai Ager says the population is doing well.(Provided: Agile Wallaby Project)

Next steps

Ms Ager said the first project was largely funded by donations from the community, but now that the group of volunteers had received approval to relocate another 400 wallabies, it was time for local and state governments to step in.

“This time we wanted to set a precedent that a state agency and a consulting organization can fund something like this,” she said.

“It shouldn’t be left to non-profit community groups to do the work and fund it.”

The $40,000 proposal has now been approved by Cairns Regional Council, which Ms Ager said would cover essential costs, such as stress medication, needles, fuel and some new traps.

woman with wallaby in back of car
Shai Ager led the campaign to remove the wallabies from the northern beaches of Cairns.(Provided: Inntronimagery/Instagram)

Following the success of the first trial, interest in the project has spread nationwide and Ms Ager says she would like to broaden the range of volunteers for the next round.

“I want to give people the opportunity to volunteer for resettlement projects so that they can return to their [home districts] and play it there as well,” she said.

It’s an idea Councilor Brett Olds is also keen on, saying a wallaby advisory committee is looking into the possibility of helping other macropod populations in the area.

“It’s the best result for these wallabies, it gives them half a chance,” he said.

“Because doing nothing or doing a showdown…wasn’t good enough.

“Doing nothing was basically stealth killing, because there were car strikes every day, dog attacks.”

Cr Olds said it is also a great model for low cost solutions.

“If the council did it or if the state did it, it would cost hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars,” he said.

The $40,000 given to the wallaby project by the council is said to come from unused funds in a flying fox control program.

Cr Olds said the funds came after around $250,000 to $300,000 was spent on fencing and other projects to control the wallaby population.

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several wallabies stand in a large field
The number of agile wallabies has also skyrocketed in other parts of the country.(Supplied: CDU)

Cr Olds said the council would also write to the state government asking them to allocate $20,000 to another project administering contraceptives to the remaining wallaby population.

Ms Ager said with new fencing and a smaller population, contraception should be one of the last steps needed to ensure a manageable population at the Trinity Beach site.

“People will still be able to see them on the sports field, but certainly not in those uncontrollable numbers that we’re used to,” she said.

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