VALERIE TAYLOR ISN’T your average 86-year-old. Instead of living out a quiet retirement, she's putting on a hot-pink wetsuit and petting sharks. “Tiger sharks are great big pussycats, they’re very easygoing,” she says. “I've known some pretty good tiger sharks. I know a guy who’s got a giant female [tiger shark] as
Animal Welfare
Dutch Government to push for EU ban on kangaroo products
THE DUTCH GOVERNMENT is set to push for a European ban on the import of kangaroo products, after adopting a proposal by the Party for the Animals. As can be seen from the website link (above), the cruelty and the unsanitary conditions of this bushmeat trade are encouraging Europeans to stop consuming
Victoria’s ‘progressive’ Labor government again greenlights bird cruelty, regional loss of tourism
Despite increasing numbers of Victorians demanding an end to it, another recreational native bird shoot has been approved in Victoria, causing outrage around the state. Regional Victorians Opposed to Duck Shooting inc (RVOTDS) say the Saturday announcement seems a “pretty gutless” attempt to keep the unpopular announcement under the radar. Announced Saturday
Threatened species don’t just live in national parks
Private landholders hold the key to retaining biodiversity Environmental research across Australia underlies this commentary and analysis by Stephen Kearney, The University of Queensland; April Reside, The University of Queensland; James Watson, The University of Queensland; Rebecca Louise Nelson, The University of Melbourne; Rebecca Spindler, UNSW Sydney, and Vanessa Adams, University
Feds applaud NSW wildlife trade. National symbol dies for petfood and shoe leather.
NSW kangaroo exports approved despite grave concerns raised by Parliamentary Inquiry Federal environment minister, The Hon Sussan Ley, has approved another five years of commercial kangaroo exports from New South Wales without heeding critical recommendations from a recent NSW Parliamentary Inquiry relating to population counts, animal welfare, the counting of orphaned joeys and genuine consultation with Indigenous
Christmas comes early for koala colony thanks to community work
KOALA LOVERS ARE celebrating after almost 200 hectares of prime habitat near Port Macquarie were put beyond the reach of property developers. NSW Environment Minister Matt Kean announced this morning the government, with a $3.5 million contribution from Koala Conservation Australia, had bought a 194ha block of forest next to Lake Innes Nature Reserve. The purchase follows a long community campaign
Koala sighting excites South Coast residents: “very important, very rare”
Habitat threatened by logging, development, bushfires A NEWLY ARRIVED resident of Dalmeny on the NSW south coast recently spotted a koala between Dalmeny and Bodalla near the Princes Highway. The sighting has been added to a local citizen science project. Keith Joliffe of the Eurobodalla Koala Project said “this is very important
Tough little koalas make a recovery from last year’s fires
IN JULY 2020 we reported on the fallout of the raging bushfire and firefighter plane crash catastrophe at the Two Thumbs Wildlife Trust Koala Sanctuary at Peak View in Palerang. When we got there, recovery was underway, with new shelters and rehabilitation of fire-affected koalas directed by landowner and wildlife
Your dog can think? Farmed pigs? NSW review fails to think so
HUMANE SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL reports that while a review of New South Wales’ suite of animal welfare laws is underway, a notable exclusion is the concept of animal sentience. This has animal welfare advocates concerned that NSW is lagging behind other states — and the world — when it comes to protecting