Information

With the exception of the platypus and echidna, which are egg laying mammals, (monotremes), Tasmanian native animals are marsupials and carry their young in a pouch.  A female gives birth to a tiny embryo, which crawls from the birth canal into the pouch. The young animal is initially furless and blind, with its ears stuck down flat on its head. The young joey latches onto a teat and stays there until it has grown fur, opened its eyes and is able to get in and out of the pouch by itself.

Even when spending time out of the pouch, the joey depends on its mother for security and instruction.

Some young, such as Possums, Quolls and Tasmanian Devils, ride on their mothers' backs for a short time before becoming independent.  Wombat and Bandicoot babies follow their mothers when they are too big for the pouch.

Echidna and platypus young emerge from soft-shelled eggs which are laid in burrows and suckle milk from special ducts on the mother's belly. 

Why do animals come into care?

1. Hit by motor vehicles  (injured or mother killed)
2. Mother shot and killed by hunters
3. Attacked by dogs and cats
4. Destruction of habitat; clearing of native vegetation and felling of trees
5. Collisions with windows, fences, electric power lines, etc
6. Injured or blown off course through storms
7. Fledglings falling from nests
8. Fishing related: wings and legs caught in fishing line,
9. Rubbish related:  plastic items caught around necks, ingestion of plastic etc
   
   

1. Hit by motor vehicles

By far the largest number of orphaned wildlife in Tasmania come from female native animals being hit by cars travelling on roads between dusk and dawn.  Roadkill occurs because the mainly nocturnal animals are out searching for mates, breeding sites or food.

When animals are crossing roads at night, the headlights confuse and blind them and they may panic and run.  The most common species for road kill are wallabies, wombats, possums and bandicoots. Raptors are sometimes killed as they are feeding off roadkill carrion.

What you can do:

• Driving 10 or 20 kph slower at night can give animals time to get clear
• Think about fitting a sonic animal alert on your car, - most are cheap and effective
  

3. Dog and Cat attacks

What you can do:

• Obey dog signs and do not let your animals run loose through nature reserves.
• Dog faeces spread disease and the smell disturbs and stresses native animals, so please pick faeces up and dispose of it hygienically.
• Keep your dog in at night and don't let it roam about. 
• Cats are responsible for vast losses of native wildlife.  Small birds (including smaller penguins and nesting seabirds), bandicoots, pygmy possums, sugar gliders, dunnarts, lizards, snakes and frogs are all fair game.
  Feral cats are large, cunning predators that harbour potentially dangerous diseases such as toxoplasmosis and feline aids. 
• It is best to keep your pet cat in at night, and place a reflective collar with two or three bells around its neck.
• Provide a purpose built enclosure for your cat to exercise in. This will not only save native wildlife but will protect your cat from harm.
• Responsible owners have their pets desexed and microchipped.
• Do not dump unwanted kittens or pets in the bush. This is cruel and contributes to the feral population.
• Lobby your Member of Parliament and local Council to implement cat control legislation.

4. Destruction of Habitat

In Tasmania, as in many other parts of Australia, natural habitat is being cleared at a very rapid rate for urban development, farming and forestry activities.  Animals are forced to compete for shrinking natural habitats, which are quite often bisected by roadways or fences. 

Islandisation (small unconnected blocks of bush) means that species lose their genetic diversity and breeding partners because they will not cross the open spaces between bush areas.

Many animals such as quolls and raptors (eagles, hawks and owls) require large territories to hunt over and bush clearing dramatically affects them.

Felling large or dead trees means that animals dependant on hollows such as possums, owls, bats and parrots, cannot find homes to raise young.


In urban areas, trees may be retained, but the understorey vegetation is cleared.
This vegetation is crucial to native species. Apart from providing shelter from heat, cold, wind, rain and predators, it provides food in the form of flowers, fruits, roots and insects. Without it, many species are facing local extinction.

Clearing the understorey may lead to the death of any trees that have been left, because the soil becomes exposed to the sun and dries out.

Weeds are creating problems for wildlife.  Many rampant exotic weed species replace native plants but do not provide the food necessary for the highly specialised diets of our native animals.

However, some species such as bandicoots and penguins have adapted to breeding in weeds such as gorse and blackberries, which because they are prickly and dense, discourage predators.

Draining or filling in wetlands impacts dramatically on local biodiversity, as does contaminating the ground water through sewerage, toxic leachate etc.  Animals need water to survive. The insects that breed close to water are an important food supply for birds, and other animals.

Note: We have a tendency to discount the importance of insects in our environment. Many species still have not been identified or named and yet they form the foundation of the food chain for many animals.

Farmers are becoming more aware of the advantages of having insect eating birds, devils and raptors on their properties, and are increasingly providing small wildlife reserves and bush corridors.  Swamp Harriers, birds of prey which predate on mice, rats and rabbits, make their nests in cropping paddocks. Farmers are learning to recognise nest sites and avoid them during harvesting.

What you can do:

• Keep bushland intact wherever possible, even the smallest bit will support some wildlife. If you have a rural property, consider setting a piece of bush aside under a covenant or agreement such as Bushcare's 'Land for Wildlife'
• Join a conservation or wildlife group as a volunteer, there is a lot of work to be done! Check out these links:
  Tasmanian Conservation Trust
  Threatened Species Australia
  Australian Wilderness Society
• Find out more about our wildlife and survey your local area.
  Many groups are interested in local information, check these out:
  Birds Australia
  Weeds
  Greening Australia
  Understorey Network
  Australian Plant Society
  Bushcare
  Land for Wildlife/Gardens for Wildlife 
  Living with Wildlife
  
  Organisations:
  Tasmanian Landcare Association

             Coastcare
             Tasmanian Conservation Trust
             Australian Wilderness Society
             WILDCARE

• Provide water for birds and frogs. Do not feed wild animals. Design your garden with native flowering plants, rather than exotic ones, which may escape and go feral.  
• CNWCR with support from Latrobe Council has developed a project called 'The Backyard Goes Wild' which will shortly be available on this website and includes ideas for gardens and some simple activities for children to do at home and school. 
• Check these websites for more info:
  Unique Flora of Tasmania
  Australian Plants Society
• Learn about your local geography, think about what might depend on the little puddle of water that you see in the bush.
  Waterwatch
  Wetlands Project

5. Collisions with windows and fences/electric wires

What you can do:

• Place an injured bird in a box and keep it warm, quiet and dark. Sometimes it will recover and be able to be released in a few hours.
• If a wing is obviously broken take the bird to professional care as soon as possible
• To discourage collisions, hang blinds/curtains at windows, grow plants in front of them to stop reflections, or stick posters or stickers on the glass. Even leaving window panes dusty in the breeding season will make a difference.
• Grow non-invasive native climbing plants over fences or cover them in hessian or shadecloth.
• Eelectrocution is responsible for some bird deaths. Birds with large wings spans such as eagles and swans may get electrocuted when they inadvertently fly into high power lines.  If these animals survive, they need immediate professional and expert care.

• Keep concussed birds warm, quiet and in a dark box, -they may recover after a few hours.
  If injured take to a vet as soon as possible.
• Fledglings need warmth from a heat source such as a chick incubator (see first aid).
• Chicks need specialised care. Identifying them can be difficult if they have no feathers, and it is very important to establish if they are insectivores, seed or meat eaters.

For further information:

Sea birds and marine mammals can become entangled in fishing line, nets or floating plastic rubbish such as supermarket bags.  If fishing line gets wound around a bird's leg, it may act as a tourniquet, and lead to gangrene and loss of the leg.

Each year thousands of marine mammals, sea birds and fish drown from being caught up in fishing nets and marine rubbish. 

What you can do:

• Never leave fishing line or hooks behind on jetties, or throw them overboard.
• Obey regulations related to net fishing, marine reserves and 'no netting' areas. Don't leave fishing nets unattended
• Have a look at these websites for further information:
  CoastCare
  Fishcare

Telephone contacts: 

      Fisherman's Watch   1800 005 555
      Seal Hotline   0418 123 772
     Whale Hotline   0427 942 537

9 Rubbish Related

Rubbish in stormwater water drains can pose threats for land animals to.  Platypus have been found with rubber 'O' rings or hair 'scrunchies' around their necks or legs.  As the animal grows, the ring cuts into the flesh and the animal cannot swallow and the wound becomes infected, leading to a slow and gruesome death from infection and starvation.

Platypus can also get caught up in fishing 'deadlines' along river banks.  This practice, although against the law, is still used on many Tasmanian rivers.

Leaving rubbish lying around and uncovered encourages European wasps which are deadly enemies to many native insect species.  Rubbish also encourages sea gulls, brushtail possums and rats to breed up and become nuisances.

What you can do:

• Dispose of rubbish in the appropriate manner. Always try to recycle or re-use.  Join campaigns such as 'Clean Up Australia' and clean up rivers and stormwater drains.
• Be careful when using plastic bags. Apart from swimming into them (penguins and fish), some animals such as seals, think they are squid or jellyfish and ingest them. The bags stay in the animal's stomach making it feel full. The animal may subsequently die from starvation or bowel obstruction. Stop using plastic shopping bags, go calico!
• Many seabirds have stomachs full of bits of plastic which are swallowed during feeding.  Currents are washing great rafts of this debris together and causing major problems for oceanic life.
• Tons of rubbish are washed out to sea through stormwater systems including vast numbers of cigarette butts.  A special item that is causing deep concern at the present time is the use of millions of balloons for human celebrations.  Helium filled balloons can travel great distances before they deflate and they may get washed into the sea where they can be swallowed by seals, dolphins and birds.  By changing our habits we can stop these serious threats to our oceans.
  

            Clean Up Australia Campaign 

The care of native wildlife is specialised and should not be undertaken by anyone who has not received proper training. Untrained caring may result in the death of the animal.  For further information on Tasmania Wildlife, ring the Wildlife Management Branch - Dept. Primary Industries and Water  03 62 336556

All native animals are protected under law, (Nature Conservation Act 2002) and the Government requires carers to obtain permits for most species. Carers must be over 18 years, and be able to demonstrate how they are going to rehabilitate the animal back to the wild. Other laws protecting native animals include the Animal Welfare Act 1993 and the Threatened Species Act 1995. Breaches of these laws can result in heavy penalties. In addition, permits are also required for possession of native animal parts, ie jawbones, skulls, teeth, skins etc.

The legislation may be viewed at Tasmanian Legislation Search.