The
ravages of fire, predators and land clearing have slashed the
nation's EMU population by half over the past two decades. "If
the drought intensifies a lot of birds will die" says Brenton
Arnold Regional Manager NPWS SA
Forced
south: EMU's in search of food and water just outside Ravensthorpe
W.A.
Birds
Australia chief executive Jim Downey said that if the trend
were allowed to continue, the common EMU and fellow ground-feeder,
the bustard, could become critically endangered. " It's
an early warning sign", he said.
"Already
21 per cent of Australia's birds are classified as threatened…if
they continue to decline there will a point where they will
join that 21 per cent. Five obscure birds were added to the
list of endangered species, and four fragile breeding sites
in Tasmania - frequented by the majestic and increasingly rare
sea-bird, the albatross - became the first areas to be earmarked
for protection under the national Register of Critical Habitat.
Iconic
birds such as the EMU and the wedge-tailed eagle are under threat.
One in five Australian birds species were threatened or near-
threatened with EMU and smaller ground feeders, such as the
spotted quail-thrush vulnerable to foxes and cats. Most species
have declined because of loss of habitat.
The Registry of Critical Habitat would identify and protect
habitats vital to the survival of threatened species.
"Birds
are the best indicators we have of the general state of ecological
health. A decline in birds usually means t here is a general
decline in ecosystem health across the board. NSW has the most
problems because it has the highest proportion of temperate
woodlands and these have seen the most agricultural expansion.
The worst affected are small ground-feeders, but the largest
ground dwellers - emus, brolgas and Australian bustards -have
also seen sharp decline. EMU numbers are down 50 per cent
nationally.
Loss
of woodland habitat, tree dieback, predation by foxes and cats,
pollution of waterways and loss of native grasslands have hit
ground-feeders like the spotted quail-thrush, the tiny white-fronted
chat and the rock warblers seen around the escarpments of the
Blue Mountains. Of all Australia's birds, none faces a greater
challenge than the plains wanderer, which has seen 90 per cent
of its lowland native grasslands disappear through agricultural
expansion.
Large
flocks of EMU's, driven south by the drought, are threatening
to destroy crops in South Australia's mid-north grain belt,
with hundreds feeding on wheat and barley crops near Orroroo
and Peterborough, 200km north of Adelaide.
"The last time it was this bad was in 1982" SA Farmers
Federation President said "They are destroying the livelihood
of farmers" "An EMU 'cull' was the only solution"
In
a bid to save crops and fences torn down by the rampaging birds,
some farmers are herding them on to less costly livestock feed
crops. But Mr Arnold NPWS said a widespread cull was out of
the question, at least in the short term.
