Could Maria Island’s iconic wombats be facing a cull?

Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service is not ruling out a future wombat cull on Maria Island, prompting apprehension from conservationists. LATEST HERE >>

Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service is not ruling out a future wombat cull on Maria Island, prompting apprehension from conservationists.

The island is home to a menagerie of colourful critters, including Cape Barren geese, kangaroos and wallabies, as well as the endangered forty-spotted pardalote and swift parrot.

But none are more synonymous with the place than wombats.

With visitation to the national park exploding in recent years, and with it the need to upgrade infrastructure, the PWS is currently developing a new draft management plan for the island.

Feedback received through the pre-draft consultation phase is now being considered before an updated draft plan is prepared and released for public comment later this year.

As part of the consultation process, the PWS has released five discussion papers on the challenges facing the island, including one relating to threats to its ecosystem.

Maria Island, Tasmania. Picture: Tourism Australia Escape, Kendall Hill

“There is a macropod management program, but other native animals are excluded, such as the over-abundant wombats,” the paper reads. “To address the impacts of over-abundant wildlife, a review of the macropod program, and the development of a more comprehensive native wildlife grazing management program, is clearly needed.”

The Mercury asked the PWS if it was considering implementing a wombat cull on Maria Island, to which a spokesperson replied: “It is likely that a comprehensive native wildlife grazing management program will be a recommendation of the management plan review”.

“The details of what this management program may involve has not yet been addressed and will be informed by scientific monitoring,” the spokesperson said.

“Maria Island has a number of introduced grazing animals which compete for limited food sources. Overgrazing results in degradation of the native vegetation, spread of weeds and erosion. Erosion then affects other species of vegetation and bird colonies can become vulnerable through loss of habitat.”

The PWS says population control on the island is considered an “animal welfare issue” and it has been managing macropod species since 1994. It’s culling up to 600 animals on Maria Island this year alone, including 150 Bennetts wallabies, 350 Tasmanian pademelons and 100 Forester kangaroos.

Greens MP Rosalie Woodruff addresses state parliament during Question Time on Tuesday June 29, 2021.

Wilderness Society Tasmania campaign manager Tom Allen said if the PWS was “genuinely concerned” about animal welfare, a wombat cull was “hardly the way to go”.

“We need to see the raw data of native fauna on the island to determine if there really is an ‘overabundance’, as PWS claims,” Mr Allen said. “If there is, the best ways to manage it need to be identified.”

Greens environment spokeswoman Rosalie Woodruff said if a wombat cull was being considered, she hoped “other options are also on the table”.

“Everyone loves the wombats on Maria Island, they are an iconic delight,” Dr Woodruff said. “No one wants to see them suffer, or to die needlessly.”

“Any change to the wildlife grazing management needs to factor the impact of Tasmanian devils, a relatively newly introduced predator.

“We would urge the government to communicate as clearly as possible [on this].”

The final approved management plan is due to be released in mid-2022.