Milestone’s for Pest Management on the Sunshine Coast
A united effort between Council and the community yields a success story for protecting local biodiversity.
Invasive plants and animals are recognised as a significant threat to our natural environment, agricultural areas and communities including human health and well-being.
In 2023 Council’s Healthy Places team worked with the community to manage three priority invasive species that pose significant threats to Council’s biodiversity:
Feral Deer
Feral deer impact agriculture, damage fragile habitats, spread disease and are a danger to road users. Council worked with private landholders in the community to remove 335 feral deer which was almost triple the previous record set in 2021.
Indian myna birds
Indian myna birds threaten native biodiversity with their territorial behaviour. They compete with native animals for nesting hollows, aggressively defending their territory. They are known to compete for tree hollows with native species, such as parrots and gliders. Community members trapped and removed 1315 Indian myna birds across the region.
Foxes
Foxes hunt native species and eat eggs of endangered Mary River, green and loggerhead turtles. Foxes also pose a serious threat to native wildlife. They also play a major role in the decline of many Australian marsupials. Through trapping and other control strategies including spring-activated baiting and den detection using conservation dogs, a total 91 foxes were trapped across private and public land.
You can find more information about the priority invasive species and report any sightings here.
Working together the community has come closer to meeting invasive animal management goals to enhance biodiversity across the region.
Find out about the regions priority invasive animals and how you can help here.