Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Possums Tortured 10/8/11

Possums Tortured

A northern Tasmanian man is in custody after pleading guilty to torturing and killing possums. Jason Stephen Hampton, 20, of Deloraine pleaded guilty in the Magistrates Court in Launceston to 14 animal cruelty charges. It is alleged he hunted and tortured about five possums between October and November 2009. The court was shown videos obtained from a laptop depicting possums being stabbed with knives, clubbed with broom handles, set alight and blown up using aerosol cans and sparklers. The video also showed possums being deliberately run over. Prosecutor Glenn Carey told the court the animals would have experienced great distress and pain. Hampton's lawyer, Sasha Wong, said his client found the footage "quite disgusting" and was ashamed of his actions. "He is certainly remorseful and ashamed of the acts he's committed," he said. Magistrate Tim Hill said it was the most serious case of this type he had dealt with. "People who care for orphaned animals will be horrified by this. Anybody would be horrified by this." Hampton has been remanded in custody for sentencing later this month. *ABC

Rare Possums Found 10/8/11

Rare Possums Found

Scientists have found the only known population of scaly tailed possums in the east Kimberley almost 100 years since the last reported sighting in the area. Researchers led by Monash University ecologist Sean Doody were using infrared cameras to look for northern quolls as part of cane toad research when they snapped the possums at Emma Gorge, near Kununurra. The small marsupials, which live on steep rocky escarpments, were previously thought to be found only in pockets of the north-west Kimberley. The find extends their range several hundred kilometres. Dr Doody said the last reported sighting in the east Kimberley was in 1919 near Warmun. The find was exciting, especially with mammal populations declining across tropical Australia. *WA news

Birth control 10/8/11

Possums

A plan to put possums on birth control may cost ratepayers of one city council $160,000. The brushtail possum population in Carlton North's Curtain Square is held responsible for damaging its trees. Culling the passel of about 60 possums would cost $60,000 less, but Yarra Council says it would be controversial and upset wildlife lovers. The council plans a two-year hormone implant trial to stop possums breeding in the square. Greens Mayor Alison Clarke said yesterday the square's trees were in poor condition because of possum numbers, but culling was not the answer. "We could potentially cull the possums, but that would mean a lot of people would be very upset," she said."We don't want to just kill all the possums. We want to have wildlife in the city and we have to learn to co-exist with it." Public comment will be sought on the plan, with the council to make a final decision in September. A law to ban possum feeding will also be considered.

Animal Active campaign director Rheya Linden said a cull would be misdirected and counterproductive. "Other possums will move in within three weeks and that will be after nightly fighting for control of the territory," she said. Ms Linden said possums did not damage trees. She blamed years of neglect and drought. Wildlife Victoria spokeswoman Amy Amato called for other options to be considered, such as indigenous plantings to provide adequate food. "Introducing practices that promote a healthy ecosystem, is a more sustainable, humane and long-term solution," she said. Lord Mayor Robert Doyle last year described city-dwelling possums as vermin and suggested attracting powerful owls to parks was one way of dealing with the problem. *Herald Sun

Possum Chainsaw 10/8/11

Possums

A possum has been dubbed Chainsaw after surviving a round with a chainsaw along with her tiny joey, Two-Stroke, hidden in its pouch. The possum was asleep and so well camouflaged that workers sent to chop down a tree didn't see it. The chainsaw hit the possum, leaving it seriously injured. Panicked workers rushed Chainsaw to the Currumbin Wildlife Hospital on the Gold Coast, suffering major internal and external injuries. As staff carefully stitched the possum's internal and external wounds, they found a joey in her pouch, which had also survived the ordeal. Senior vet Michael Pyne will brief the media about the pair's remarkable survival on Friday. *CM