Indian mynas are in the sights of a Sunbury councillor who wants them eradicated from Hume
In the avian world they are the neighbours from hell. Now a councillor from Sunbury is waging a war to banish the winged pests from his entire municipality.
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In the avian world they are the neighbours from hell. Now a councillor from Sunbury is waging a war to banish the winged pests from his entire municipality.
Cr Jack Medcraft said Indian mynas were aggressive pests, killed native birds and wildlife, and he has called on Hume Council to adopt an eradication program.
“Indian mynas are the southeastern Australian equivalent of cane toads,” Cr Medcraft said.
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“They are adaptable, opportunistic and aggressive to native bird species like rosellas and lorikeets and take over their nests and homes.
“Obviously with the vast open landscape outside of Sunbury, they have the means to build up numbers, but we really need to find ways to limit their spread.”
Cr Medcraft said he was trapping the birds to stop them nesting under and damaging his home’s eaves.
Sunbury conservationist Robert Irvine said termination, particularly through trapping, was widespread in Australia.
“Mynas will always thrive in backyards and urbanised areas,” he said.
“Any form of eradicating them and limiting their impact would win the support of most people, I’d say.”
Hume Mayor Geoff Porter said the council would explore the idea.
“We need to work out what would be the best way to manage this problem as we want our indigenous animals to prosper, not our introduced species.”
Last year, Casey Council had its staff and residents use laser beams to scare off a flock of up to 150 Indian mynas wreaking havoc in a street in Hallam.
A RSPCA Australia position paper found sustained culling year on year would be needed to control the pests’ populations.
It found work done in trying to diversify bird populations in urban landscapes could also be effective in reducing the impacts of Indian mynas.
Traps rather than baiting has been the preferred method for dealing with the species.
Melbourne’s Bayside Council is among Australian councils running official Indian myna cull programs.
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