The great barrier reef that harbours a substantial amount of aquatic life is under threat from climate change and a careless disregard for the environment. As one of the one of the seven wonders of the world and being the largest living organism on this planet, the great coral barrier reef is home to many […]
Tag: Australia
Queensland man to face court over death of 5.2-metre crocodile
A man is expected to face court in central Queensland next month accused of shooting dead a 5.2-metre saltwater crocodile. The reptile was found floating in the Fitzroy River near Rockhampton on 21 September. A 31-year-old Etna Creek man has been issued with a notice to appear in the Rockhampton Magistrates Court on 12 January […]
Land of the birds: why Australia has the world’s greatest diversity of avian life
If you live in Australia, you may not realise how unique and special the birds around you are. Our continent was perhaps the most important for the evolution of modern birds, with a majority of the world’s species tracing their ancestry here. Long ecologically adrift as an island continent, Australia benefited through the evolution of […]
POLL: Should Australia’s commercial hunting of kangaroos be banned?
It was 2002, and soccer superstar David Beckham was, for the first time, leading England into the World Cup as team captain. At each match he wore a different pair of personalized, champagne-colored cleats, embroidered with his children’s names on the red fold-over tongue. Though England lost in the quarterfinals, Beckham, and his shoes, went […]
Surge in eye injuries as Melbourne magpies go on attack spree
A penetrated eye that needed surgery is just one of an “extraordinary” spate of magpie-inflicted injuries in Melbourne, and one hospital has issued a warning about the swooping birds. The number of eye injuries caused by the bird has risen significantly, according to the emergency director of the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear hospital, Dr […]
POLL: Should outdoor cats be prevented from killing birds?
More than 1 million native Australian birds are killed across the country by cats every day, new research shows. The study, published in the journal Biological Conversation, estimates feral cats kill 316 million birds a year, while pet cats kill 61 million birds annually. More than 99% are native. “Everyone knows that cats kill birds, […]
POLL: Should crocodile hunting be legalized in Australia?
Two suspected crocodile attacks in the same north Queensland area within a day have prompted a bid by Katter’s Australian party to legalise hunting of the protected predators. Wildlife officers and police believe Warren Hughes, 35, may have been killed by a 4m-plus crocodile that later “charged” a police boat searching for the Cairns man’s […]
POLL: Should Australia’s feral cats be culled?
Feral cats now inhabit virtually the entire Australian landscape, and have been implicated in multiple recent mammal extinctions by conservationists. Illuminating the urgency of controlling cat populations across the continent, a new study in Biological Conservation finds that cats occupy over 99.8% of Australia. The study was conducted by over forty scientists—led by wildlife ecologists […]