AUSTRALIAN FAUNA.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 8 November 1924, Page 16

AUSTRALIAN FAUNA.

MANY SPECIES DISAPPEARING. Observations by games and fisheries inspectors in different parts of Victoria show that year by year many species of Australian native animals and birds are steadily becoming fewer, and it seems inevitable (says a Melbourne paper) that, in spite of the present measures for protection, which are rigidly ep* forced, some of our most interesting and, from a scientific point of view, most valuable creatures will before long become extinct.

Three factors appear to be responsible for tins decline—the illicit destruction of creatures of the dying species for the furs or plumes that they will yield; the steady encroachment of agriculture on bush strongholds which have for centuries been the home of the shy Australian fauna; and the enormous annual destruction of our native game by foxes. Commendable work is being done by the Games and Fisheries Department in' its endeavours to prevent the wanton slaughter which annually accounts for thousands of lives, but against the foxes nothing can be done, and the clearing of bush land is an inevitable consequence of increasing population.

There are indications that the platybe the first to disappear. Already it is becoming extremely rare in the few remaining rivers that it haunts intthe Western districts of Victoria, and it will probably become extinct in 50 years. . In a land which, from its native fauna, has been described as a museum of past types, the platypus is, perhaps, the most interesting of all our native creatures, forming a link between the mammals and lower types of life, which is not provided bv any other known creature. For this reason it ii of very great biological importance.

LYRE BIRDS VER YRARE. Other creatures are also disappearwig, and the lyre birds and bell birds are rapidly becoming very rare in many uistncts where once they were found in large numbers. Again the steady clearmg of the bush lands and the ravages of foxes are to be blamed. - Many species 'of parrots which were frequently found in all parts of the State are disappearing from some distncts, but as these birds appear to be more adaptable to new conditions they are moving back from the settled areas without serious diminution in their numbers. Long ago it was found necessary. to protect the black cockatoo, ana it is stated that large numbers of these handsome birds are now thriving m the different game reservations in various parts of the State.

The protection of the opossum has ■ always presented a serious problem to ! the Game and Fisheries Department, for, although indiscriminate shooting for furs seriously reduced the numbers of ttiis creature in many districts, the opossum undoubtedly doc® considerable damage in fruitgrowing, areas, and ap- • pear s to be wantonly 'destructive to many fruits. It has therefore given landholders a legitimate cause for complaint, and many applications are made to the Department for shooting permits. ■

The position is much the same with regard to kangaroos, which do an enormous amount of damage annually in many cereal-growing districts, with the result that'shooting permits are freely issued by the Department. It is becoming evident that the kangaroo is steadily disappearing from Victoria, and it is believed that before very Jong it will have vanished from all parts of the State except the game reserves. In those sanctuaries it appears to "be holding its own. The emu is also vanishing rapidly, in spite of the strict protection afforded it.

THE BALANCE OP NATURE. . The introduction of the rabbit and fox into Australia affords one of the moat impressive and disastrous examples known to history of the destruction by man of the “balance of Nature.” It is found that in every country where natural conditions are allowed to remain undisturbed a state of balance is created whereby all species of the fauna tend to hold their .own. Carnivorous creatures develop means for attacking their prey, and suitable protective measures are adopted by the hunted animals or birds. The result is that no one species can outgrow its neighbours. If, however, a new element is introduced into the community the whole delicately connected fabric is upset and the balance may not again be restored for scores of centuries.

Such was the case when the rabbit was introduced into Australia. Freed from the attack of its natural English enemy, the fox, the rabbit, which had developed great fertility as one means of maintaining its numbers in the struggle for existence in its native country, commenced to spread unchecked, and rapidly reached a condition where all hope of controlling it vanished. The mistake was realised, and the logical remedy seemed to> be to introduce its natural enemy to combat it. But when the fox was introduced to, Australia it found conditions of existence very different from those to which it was accustomed in England, and instead of preying on the rabbit as had been intended, it commenced to attack the slow-moving and ill-equipped Australian native game. Thus it has been responsible for the disappearance of , many of our most remarkable birds. Meahwhile the rabbit is spreading rapidly, and, by the destruction, of large areas of pasture, has made the struggle of many other native f creatures much harder, thus Contributing to their disappearance.