Dog exemption zones required to help decreasing migratory shorebirds on Dr May’s Island

A group of more than 2 lots locals in a Queensland seaside town have actually voiced ecological and safety issues over dog owners who let their animals wander let loose at a website of nationwide worth to migratory shorebirds.

Kay Edney has actually led require exemption zones to avoid dogs from interrupting the birds along the foreshore of Elliott Heads, 360 kilometres north of Brisbane.

She said she was fretted about the influence on unusual and susceptible birds that take a trip country miles to roost and feed in this location, consisting of the seriously threatened eastern curlew.

“It truly worries me that our stunning location is being maltreated and dogs are threatening the shorebirds.”

A secured nesting website

Every year, countless birds fly from the Arctic to Australia, with more than 40 types checking out the Bundaberg area’s coasts from September through to April.

Dr May’s Island is an essential nesting website for these birds and lies at the crossway of Elliott Heads beach and the mouth of Elliott River.

The island is acknowledged as having nationwide ecological significance under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, with council indications alerting the location is shut throughout the seabird nesting duration.

But the sandy landscape has actually altered gradually, and the island is no longer surrounded by water, making it available to individuals even at high tide.

Long-time regional Debbie Bennett lives neighboring and said she was fretted that beachgoers were routinely flouting the guidelines and offering their off-leash dogs “unlimited freedom” of the location.

“It’s truly frightening to believe the dogs have more rights over these small little native birds [that] become part of our ecology and have actually been flying here for countless years,” she said.

It has actually triggered the Department of Environment and Science to advise beachgoers it was an offense to pursue or chase after secured shorebirds under the Nature Conservation Act.

“DES has actually recommended [Bundaberg Regional Council] it enjoys to support a trial of a dog off-leash location in a location that is far from delicate ecological locations,” a department representative said.

The BRC’s health, compliance and enforcement representative, Councillor May Mitchell, said there was no council stated off-leash beach at Elliott Heads. 

“Council officers routinely patrol regional beaches and might release on-the-spot fines to dog owners not following the policies,” she said. 

“Elliott Heads beach from the mouth of the river around to the browse club is a gazetted bathing reserve under council’s regional laws where dogs are restricted, along with Dr May’s Island from 1 September to 30 April when migratory shorebirds nest.”

Off-leash dogs a crucial danger to shorebirds

University of Queensland scientist Richard Fuller has actually studied migratory shorebirds for the previous twenty years and he said they were very susceptible to disruptions.

Professor Fuller said some birds did “legendary” big salami of approximately 20,000 kilometres each year and were tired by the time they got here on Queensland coasts.

“So we’re studying the dangers that are truly affecting the birds while they’re here in Australia, and likewise while they’re overseas, and attempting to exercise how to reverse them.”

Professor Fuller said off-leash dogs was among the essential dangers to the birds due to the fact that they disrupted their feeding practices, making it hard for them to refuel for the return journey northwards.

“They’re extremely frightening for birds,” he said.

A Department of Environment and Science representative said it acknowledged “disruption by individuals and domestic animals positions a hazard to decreasing shorebird populations”.

Dog owner Jeff, who did not wish to be recognized by his surname, said the wide-open beach at Elliott Heads was perfect for his dog to run totally free, and he believed it ought to be enabled as long as owners acted properly.

“If there’s a couple of individuals doing the incorrect thing, erupted the couple of for doing the incorrect thing, however do not penalize everyone.”

But Professor Fuller said it didn’t take a lot for off-leash dogs to have an influence on the long-lasting survival of migratory shorebirds.

“The birds are preventing locations where they routinely get disrupted and went crazy by off-leash dogs,” he said.

Professor Fuller said a research study he carried out on Brisbane beaches in 2016 discovered shorebird populations had actually decreased by 20 percent due to the fact that the majority of dog owners let their animals wander totally free.

“It develops a type of environment of worry,” he said.

Enforcing on-leash zones

Retired physician, Chris Barnes, has actually resided in Bundaberg for more than thirty years. He’s a passionate bird lover and professional photographer who does bird counts at Elliott Heads.

Small migratory birds, like the Pacific golden plover and sand plover types, frequently like to roost in the sand beyond designated limits for Dr May’s Island. 

Dr Barnes said it was irritating to see off-leash dogs, and in some cases kids, going after these birds whenever he surveyed the location.  

“[The owners] simply shrug their shoulders and state, ‘That’s what my dog does, it chases after birds’,” he said. 

For dog owner, Stephen Muller, off-leash dogs were likewise a safety concern for his animal Bundy.

“We have a Pomeranian who does not like other dogs, however he likes to opt for a walk, so we bring him down here due to the fact that it’s expected to be an on-leash beach,” he said.

“But we have actually had various altercations with individuals with off-leash dogs.”

While a check in front of Elliott Heads beach checks out ‘On-leash – fines use’, Mr Bennett said lots of dog owners were overlooking council cautions. 

Professor Fuller said the Brisbane research study revealed the very best method to resolve the issue was to perform studies of sanctuary and produce off-leash zones well away from where nesting websites were recognized.