Submission to the Senate on Australia’s faunal extinction crisis by Richard Cassels

 13 August 2018.

Dear Senate Standing Committees On Environment and Communications,

Please find below my submission to the Senate's Inquiry into Australia's faunal extinction crisis.

Introduction.

I have been an amateur watcher virtually all my life (from the age of 10 to my present age of 70) and have received enormous pleasure from watching and finding out about them, wherever I was in the world.

However the catastrophic global decline in birds that we are now witnessing (see below), notably in the last 10 years, but with an accelerating and horrifying speed in the last 5 years, has distressed me enormously.

“Analysis of the IUCN Red List shows that there has been a steady and continuing deterioration in the status of the world’s birds since the first comprehensive assessment in 1988. Highly threatened species continue to go extinct, while formerly common and widespread species are in sharp decline. At least 40% of bird species worldwide (3,967) have declining populations, compared with 44% that are stable (4,393), 7% that are increasing (653) and 8% with unknown trends (823).

“Biodiversity is in decline across the world, with unsustainable development degrading natural habitats and driving species to extinction. This in turn is reducing the capacity of our planet to sustain us into the future”.

Source Birdlife International, 2018. State of the World Birds. Taking the Pulse of the Planet.

That a wealthy country like Australia should be not just part of this trend, but a “leader of the pack”, is deeply distressing.

I have also been a professional archaeologist who studied the impact of humans on prehistoric environments, notably on the bird faunas of New Zealand and Pacific islands. Few in Australia appreciate that the rich heritage of birds and other wildlife that we have inherited (and still have the essence of) is something that most parts of the world lost many years, or even centuries, ago. To wake up in a small valley in suburban New South Wales to the sounds of over 100 bird species is an extraordinary privilege (I have recorded the numbers of birds in my small local area every week for over 5 years). But at the current rate, this entrancing cacophony will not last for long without concerted action by government,

1 community and individuals. Commonwealth Government practice and policy must be a leader.

The bigger picture.

I am concerned that this enquiry, by focusing on faunal extinctions, and so by implication, on the loss of rare species, is concerning itself with the tip of the iceberg, and not the mass of the iceberg.

The “mass of the iceberg” is the loss of biodiverse life on the planet.

To use a machinery analogy, to lose biodiverse life is like having a machine without oil: sooner or later the parts stop moving.  Without biodiverse life, we will still have beautiful sunsets over the sea, with softly lapping waves, but with not one seabird (see below) and there will more plastic in the sea than fish.  Without biodiverse life, we will still have forests, but they will be silent except for the sound of the wind in the branches.  Without biodiverse life, there will still be a few birds and mammals, but the likelihood is that we will call them pests ( rats in homes, ibises in parks and Cockatoos in wheatbelt country).

A further weakness of focussing on extinctions is that an argument to preserve biodiverse life can be cast as “Rare bird versus jobs for miners”, a battle that rare bird will always lose.

Caring for Biodiversity is caring about external health as much as we care about internal health.

I therefore urge the Enquiry to take into account the bigger picture of the world collapse of biodiverse life, and to see the decimation of bidioverse life in a wealthy country like Australia in that broader context.

Why birds?

My comments focus on birds because they are more popular and better studied than any other comparable group and are consequently an excellent means through which to take the pulse of the planet. We value birds in many ways: culturally, artistically, philosophically and economically. Birds provide a wide variety of ecosystem services. Birds also provide key benefits as pollinators and seed dispersers. Birds are exceptional indicators of biodiversity.

My Submission.

I would like to address the following terms of reference: a. The ongoing decline in the population and conservation status of Australia's nearly 500 threatened fauna species;

I am sure that others will more than adequately document the alarming extinction record of Australia in recent years, with particular reference to rare and endangered species.

2 I would like to draw your attention to four cases known to me.

Case 1. The looming loss of ALL seabirds.

A 2015 article in National Geographic, titled: “Nearly Every Seabird on Earth Is Eating Plastic”, made the following points.

 Plastic trash is found in 90 percent of seabirds. The rate is growing steadily as global production of plastics increases.

 So much plastic trash is flowing into the oceans that 90 percent of seabirds eat it now and virtually every one will be consuming it by 2050.

 In 1960, plastic was found in the stomachs of fewer than five percent, but by 1980, it had jumped to 80 percent.

 The most disturbing finding … is the link between the increasing rate of plastics manufacturing and the increasing rate at which the material is saturating seabirds. “Global plastic production doubles every 11 years,” Wilcox says. “So in the next 11 years, we’ll make as much plastic as we’ve made since plastic was invented. Seabirds’ ingestion of plastic is tracking with that.”

 The highest concentration of plastic in birds, Wilcox says, can be found in populations in southern Australia, South Africa, and South America -- where coastlines are closest to loosely-concentrated collections of ocean debris in the southern Pacific, southern Atlantic, and Indian Oceans.

Source: https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/09/15092-plastic-seabirds-albatross-australia/

Clearly both Federal and State government action is required to address the source of this problem, and the awful legacy of world oceans and beaches choked with plastic. They can do this by funding research into technological solutions and ways to change community and business behavior.

Case 2. Silent Night. Rodenticides and the secondary poisoning of - and probably most living things in the vicinity of human settlement in Australia.

Cold winter nights lead many Australians to having a rat problem- rats eating their plants, invading their roofs, chewing their electrical wires. But spare a thought for our owls.

New research by Mike Lohr Of Edith Cowan University in WA focused on Southern Boobook Owls in Western Australia. It is revealing that an alarmingly high number (74%) of the birds tested had been exposed to commonly-used rat poisons, specifically “Anticoagulant Rodenticides”. Both the percentage of birds exposed, and the levels of exposure, were very high by international standards. Nestlings were also found to be affected.

The highest levels of exposure were found in Boobook Owls near areas of human occupation, compared to areas of native vegetation or agriculture. International studies suggest that the birds at most risk of secondary poisoning are those on border between urban and rural areas with moderate housing density (like the Central Coast of NSW).

3 The study looked at Boobooks because they are fairly common and widely distributed all over Australia. The very high level of exposure in this species was alarming enough, but the author suggests that other species like Barking and Masked Owl may be even more at risk, as, unlike Boobooks, they concentrate on rodents all year round.

However rodenticides pose serious risks to many other organisms, including humans. Many raptors, frogmouths, herons, ibises and ravens eat rats. Dogs, cats and children have been poisoned by direct contact and consumption. In California even Mountain Lions have died of secondary (or perhaps even tertiary) AGR poisoning.

The poisons themselves (Anticoagulant Rodenticides , or “AR’s”) can be divided into two groups.  First Generation ones (FGAR’s) include are Warfarin and Coumatetryl (e.g. in the brand Racumin)  Second Generation ones (SGAR’s) like Brodifacoum ( the chief ingredient in most Ratsak brands, Bromadialone (in some Ratsak products) and Difenacoum (in some Big Cheese Products). Despite persisting for up to 35 days, the FGAR’s are not considered a major threat to wildlife like owls , compared to the SGARs, which can last for 200-250 days. Unfortunately FGARs are less effective at killing rats.

Australia’s regulation of AGR’s was found to be considerably more lax than other developed countries, with SGARs widely available and used.

The dreadful reach of rodenticides into our lives and our local environments is clearly an issue for requiring:  Community education and action by both local communities and local government.  Research funded by Federal Government.  Action by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority.

References:

Michael T. Lohr. Anticoagulant rodenticide exposure in an Australian predatory bird increases with proximity to developed habitat. Science of the Total Environment 643 (2018) 134–144.

Lohr, M.T., Davis, R.A., 2018. Anticoagulant rodenticide use, non-target impacts and regulation: a case study from Australia. Sci. Total Environ. 634:1372–1384. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.04.069.

See also: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-12/something-killing-barn-owls-in-victoria/9980016

Case 3. Obliteration of shorelines and the extinction of flagship shorebird species, the Eastern Curlew.

A recent publication, “The Eastern Curlew”, by author Harry Saddler (Affirm Press) documents in a highly accessible story telling way, the imminent extinction of this spectacular migratory species, Australia’s largest wading shorebird. In a recent book review, Lindy Jones said.

“All birds are miracles, but migratory shorebirds are perhaps the most wondrous of all. Author Harry Saddler is fascinated by the Eastern Curlews that chase summer across the hemispheres, breeding in the Arctic regions and returning—with only a stop or two for refuelling—to Australasia. The birds have followed these instinctual routes, which scientists

4 label the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, for millennia. However, the mudflats they rely on to rest and feed have been steadily ‘reclaimed’ by humans and this loss of their habitat has seen the Eastern Curlew numbers crash. They are close to extinction. This book is not a scientific monograph, though it does delve into ornithology. It is an accessible and personal account; at times, a meditation on the human impact on other creatures; a plea for understanding our environmental responsibilities, and a travelogue, as Saddler ventures to East Asia to see the areas that the curlews visit on their migration routes. Written primarily for the general reader rather than the serious birdwatcher (though this book will certainly still appeal to the latter), Saddler successfully conveys both the curlew’s plight and its magic. Readers will come away from this book understanding both the urgent need to conserve these wondrous birds, as well as the joys of birdwatching more generally. https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2018/06/01/108688/the-eastern-curlew-harry-saddler-affirm- press/

The reviewer could have added that additional nails in the coffin of this magnificent bird include an effect of climate change such that when those birds that do still manage the migration arrive to in the northern hemisphere, they are now too late for the flush of insect life they depend on for breeding and recovery from the stress of migration. The insect breeding now occurs three weeks earlier than it used to.

The Federal Government has to take the lead in urging Asian countries to meet their obligations under the RAMSAR Treaty and not to destroy their RAMSAR sites; and to ensure that all RAMSAR sites are effectively protected in Australia.

Case 4. Australia’s Largest Owl in trouble- and citizen science.

On Easter Saturday 2018 70 people (and 45 cars!) turned out at the Narara Ecovillage to hear DR. Beth Mott talk about Powerful Owls.

Dr. Beth Mott is the Project Officer for the Powerful Owl Project. This successful ‘citizen- science’ project has been running for 7 years, but comes to an end in June this year.

Dr. Mott told us that:

 Powerful Owls are Australia’s largest owls, our “apex avian predator” of the night.  Urban Sydney and its surrounds, including the Central Coast, is now one stronghold for this species. In recent years it has disappeared from around Melbourne and from the forested areas of the Southern NSW, for reasons that are not clear.  The Powerful Owl is an “Umbrella Species”, meaning that by preserving it, we preserve the whole ecosystem that supports it (which may include other, smaller owls that are also at risk of extinction). In the case of this owl, their habitat is mature native forest.  A key threat to this bird is the loss of both large nesting hollows in old trees, and the loss of foraging area when smaller trees and shrubs are cleared. We have to fight, lobby, persuade and advocate to keep every old tree possible, but ESPECIALLY any tree that has tree hollows! (There is a government-supported program to register hollows, see www.hollowsashomes.com).  This owl’s preferred prey is arboreal mammals like possums and gliders. But as these mammals become rarer, the owls are increasingly moving into suburbs at night and turning to eating birds, rats and rabbits. They take prey as big as Koalas, Sulphur- crested Cockatoos and Brush Turkeys, and as small as Black rats and Noisy Miners. Moving into suburbia exposes them to an alarming number of new hazards.

5  Car strike is the biggest urban threat to Powerful Owls, followed closely by electrocution and glass strike.  Electrocution on powerlines is a big problem for Powerful Owls. While bird-proofing all powerlines is probably unrealistic, as a minimum power companies should be required to report bird electrocutions to a central database. There are also opportunities to sleeve powerlines that are close to Powerful Owl territories.  In Sydney the owls will travel across whole suburbs at night, using even quite small trees patches as staging points. While saving large forest areas is ideal, even saving individual trees can really help.

For more information, contact Beth Mott, Powerful Owl Project Officer, . Web site: http://www.birdlife.org.au/projects/powerful-owl-project.

It is essential that the Federal Government funds the continuation of research into this species because of the much wider implications for biodiversity. In addition it must be made mandatory for power companies to report birds that are killed by collision with power lines. b. the wider ecological impact of faunal extinction;

To use a machinery analogy, to lose biodiverse life is like having a machine without oil: sooner or later the parts stop moving. Without biodiverse life, we will still have beautiful sunsets over the sea, with softly lapping waves, but with not one seabird (see below) and there will more plastic in the sea than fish. Without biodiverse life, we will still have forests, but they will be silent except for the sound of the wind in the branches. Without biodiverse life, there will be a few birds and mammals, but the likelihood is that we will call them pests ( rats in homes, ibises in parks and Cockatoos in wheatbelt country). c. the international and domestic obligations of the Commonwealth Government in conserving threatened fauna;

With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the Commonwealth Government is not meeting either its domestic or international obligations. This is particularly the case with its RAMSAR obligations to wetlands, and its Paris Climate Accord agreement on land clearing (see Clearing of native vegetation in NSW jumps 800% in three years https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/aug/04/clearing-of-native-vegetation- in-nsw-jumps-800-in-three-years?CMP=Share iOSApp Other). d. The adequacy of Commonwealth environment laws, including but not limited to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, in providing sufficient protections for threatened fauna and against key threatening processes .

With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the present laws are not adequate.

I have read the submission to this enquiry by Birdlife Australia and strongly support its recommendations. e. the adequacy and effectiveness of protections for critical habitat for threatened fauna under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999;

6 With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the present laws are not adequate. f. the adequacy of the management and extent of the National Reserve System, stewardship arrangements, covenants and connectivity through wildlife corridors in conserving threatened fauna;

With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the present arrangements are not adequate. h. the adequacy of existing funding streams for implementing threatened species recovery plans and preventing threatened fauna loss in general;

With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the present funding steams are not adequate.

The outstanding work of the Australian Wildlife Conservancy – in its research and land conservation- deserves special support (http://www.australianwildlife.org). i the adequacy of existing monitoring practices in relation to the threatened fauna assessment and adaptive management responses;

With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the present monitoring practices are not adequate. j. the adequacy of existing assessment processes for identifying threatened fauna conservation status;

We have excellent and brilliantly thought through studies like the 2014 Climate Change Adaptation Plan for Australian Birds by Stephen T . Garnett and Donald C. Franklin (eds), CSIRO Publishing, but no-one acts on them. k. the adequacy of existing compliance mechanisms for enforcing Commonwealth environment law; and

With biodiverse life in such dramatic decline, both in Australia and in the rest of the world, it is self evident that the present compliance mechanisms are not adequate

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

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