Possum in the Roof

Possums Tortured 10/8/11

2011-08-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

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

2011-08-09T13:02:00.001-07:00

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

2011-08-09T13:00:00.000-07:00

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

2011-08-09T12:58:00.000-07:00

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

New Aussie Animal Flood Victim Appeal!

2011-01-19T23:12:00.001-08:00

Sydney Pet Rescue & Adoption, has launched the Animal Flood Victims Emergency Appeal, and together with various other rescue groups, they are working hard to raise funds to support animals affected by the recent devastating floods in Qld. The Wildlife Protection Association of Australia is one of the organisations they have chosen to support with the Appeal. We will be using the funds they raise to support foster carers in the worst affected and priority areas, with financial support to assist with the rescue and foster care of wildlife. ……….We thank SPRA and all the rescue groups who are working hard with them, for their support…..

Please click on this link to find out more about the appeal: SPRA Flood Animal Appeal Here!

Tasmanian Possum Kill Plan 27/7/10

2010-07-26T13:58:00.000-07:00

The new feature on the Tas possum proposed plan is now live on the website – you can see it directly here - (please copy and paste this link)

http://www.animalsaustralia.org/take_action/save-tassie-possums/

But it is also on the front page so that everyone will see it.

I am sure it will result in hundreds of emails to the Minister, so lets hope he is listening. If an election is held soon of course he will be in caretaker mode and not able to sign off on the management plan – so there may be a reprieve. *Animals Australia

Possums 27/7/10

2010-07-26T13:47:00.001-07:00

I was very disturbed by an article in your paper encouraging violence against possums (Heckler, July 23). I am a wildlife carer and have some hints on how to live in harmony with possums.

My neighbour has a very productive vegetable garden and when a possum eats his produce he puts it down to experience and works out ways to outsmart the marsupial. That is the beauty of being human and having a large brain - we can work out non-violent solutions to problems.

Australia holds the record for the highest rate of mammal extinction on the planet and habitat destruction continues apace. Consequently, our cities are often the last refuge for wildlife . This is the predicament facing the "common" possum, which is native to Australia and not an introduced pest, as it is in New Zealand.

The brushtail possum is lucky enough to be adaptable and has found ways to survive in our cityscapes. I think we will be grateful for this adaptability in years to come. There is concern that with the current rate of land clearing and climate change we will see a catastrophic loss of wildlife over the next 10 to 20 years. The federal government recently conceded that extinction for some species is inevitable, so why then are we not taking every possible step to protect our urban wildlife ? Once they are gone, we can't get them back.

As an inner city resident, I feel blessed that we have such a plethora of wildlife in our backyards and I strongly believe our lives and those of our children are made richer for their presence. So, next time you wake up to the sound of jackboots on your roof as a possum uses your house as a highway, roll over and put in some earplugs.

In the morning, trim back the branches on the trees close to your house. Not only will this encourage the possum to find an alternative route to his destination, but you will be doing your gutters a favour and reducing fire risk.

Brigette Sharp chairwoman, WIRES inner west branch, Petersham

Possums 25/5/10

2010-05-24T19:57:00.001-07:00

Possums

Sydney is undergoing an "epidemic" of possum-napping as increasing numbers of residents illegally trap the troublesome marsupials then dump them in city and suburban parks. But experts say moving the animals to another area is a death sentence for many possums. Native animal rescue service WIRES said moving the animals to places such as the Royal Botanic Gardens causes possum warfare as the new arrivals fight for territory with existing animals. "It's a common belief that by relocating a possum there are no consequences for the animal," said WIRES spokeswoman Jilea Carney. "Unfortunately, it is usually a death sentence for a possum." WIRES staff have been called to rescue 1030 ringtail and 843 brushtail possums this year in NSW. It suspects many of these animals have come from other areas. WIRES said the number of possum rescue calls has risen 10 per cent each year since 2006.

St Ives has the highest number of possum rescues from private properties in the Sydney-Blue Mountains region, followed by Springwood, Avalon, North Ryde, Newport, Roseville, Lane Cove, Wahroonga, Mosman and Mona Vale. Outside the metropolitan area, Coffs Harbour, Katoomba and Alstonville have the highest possum rescues. "WIRES knows of recent and ongoing possum dumpings at Waverton and illegal trappings at Vaucluse for relocation on the north shore but it almost certainly would not be limited to any particular area," Ms Carney said. "WIRES suspects that we are dealing with the victims of possum dumping almost every day."

Trapping native animals without a permit is illegal and people can be prosecuted under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. The Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water said it only issues possum-trapping licences as a last resort and is asking anyone who knows about possum-trapping to notify a NSW Parks and Wildlife office. A department spokesman said the best way to get a possum out of a roof is to build it a small shelter in a nearby tree. "In their natural environment, possums usually live in tree hollows but with the loss of native bushland many of these natural homes have been destroyed," the spokesman said. *SunHerald

We've just heard this possum story from a wildlife carer. "A call came in some minutes ago on our Emergency Line from a very embarrassed father. His little daughter woke him up repeatedly last night crying that there were monsters under her bed - he, half asleep told her to go back to bed she was dreaming. Well, this morning she came out to him while he was having breakfast, took him by the hand and led him into her bedroom and demanded he look under the bed...He did, only to come face to face with a brushtail possum! So from now on he advises, he will believe everything his little daughter tells him!" *

NZ possums 18/12/09

2009-12-17T11:44:00.001-08:00

Dealing humanely with the NZ possums appears to be still along way from reality. Heres a very good article here... http://candobetter.org/node/1687

Possum Stuff 17/11/09

2009-11-16T13:46:00.001-08:00

There are 23 described species of possum in Australia and at least as many species in New Guinea. A related species is sufficiently different to warrant its own superfamily -- the honey-possum of south-western Australia.

The possums are divided into three major families: the ringtail possums and gliders (Family Petauridae); the brushtail possums and cuscuses (Family Phalangeridae) and the pygmy possums and feathertail glider (Family Burramyidae). The fine details of the relationships between the possums is still unclear and no doubt new findings will result in changes to their classification.

The Australian possums were so named because of their supposed similarity to the opossums of South America. In fact, the two groups are not closely related apart from both being aboreal (tree-dwelling) marsupials. Indeed, some old-timers still refer to these animals as opossums and Opossum Bay, an outer suburb of Hobart, takes its name from the misnomer.

Baby Possum Rescued

2009-11-02T17:16:00.000-08:00

A baby possum under threat of extinction hung on to its life on Wednesday, October 28, when it was rescued from the jaws of a cat. Eagle's Nest Wildlife Hospital president Harry Kunz came to the rescue of the brown lemuroid ringtail possum when he saw it being taken by a cat at East Evelyn on Wednesday morning. He said the possum 's species was on its way to extinction due to climate change, but they were often killed by cats, dogs and barbed wire too. He said the cat dropped a large female possum after he stopped his car and chased it.

The possum was dead, but nestled inside her pouch was a five-month-old baby. "The mother had her throat completely munched up," Mr Kunz said. Mr Kunz said he would raise the baby possum and release it back into the wild. The Lemuroid possum is found in just two locations, at the Carbine Tablelands at the Daintree and at the Atherton Tableland. The Daintree population of the possum was until recently believed wiped out during a heat wave in 2005.

Baby Possums being Killed!

2009-07-08T23:41:00.000-07:00

Baby brushtail possums still in their mother’s pouch are being killed as part of a possum cull by the Sydney Botanic Gardens Trust. The Trust is licenced by the NSW Department of Environment to trap and cull the possums to prevent overcrowding, with 400 possums killed by lethal injection since culling began in 2002. Central can reveal that joeys caught along with their mothers in the gardens have been taken to a veterinary clinic in Kingsford and put down. Wildlife carers have criticised the Trust for killing the babies as well as the parents, saying they should be handed over to licenced wildlife foster carers.

Linda Wilson, a volunteer with Sydney Metropolitan Wildlife Services, has been rescuing injured possums in the Botanic Gardens for many years and says she is shocked at the Trust’s attitude towards the possums. “I’m really angry because I approached them a number of times and wrote to them about this, because there are ways we can help them out, such as taking the mothers until the baby’s are old enough to be raised on their own,” she said. A spokeswoman for the Trust said it was standard practice to euthanase mother and baby. “Of the possums euthanased approximately 50 per cent have been female, with about 40 per cent of these females carrying young that would be unable to survive on their own,” she said. “Frequency of trapping varies but over the last year it has averaged once a fortnight.”

Ms Wilson questioned the Trust’s claim that possums were trapped just once a fortnight. “Its eight to 12 traps a week according to people at the Trust I have spoken to,” Ms Wilson said. “That’s a hell of a lot of possums.” The Trust spokeswoman said a recent policy change meant possums with joeys were now being released back into the gardens and a contraceptive trial was being considered to control overpopulation. This follows an article in Central last month revealing wildlife organisations were calling on the Trust to sterilise some adult possums as a way of reducing numbers without killing the animals. Ms Wilson said the Trust had resisted sterilisation and passing on joeys to foster care for the last seven years, because killing them was “an easier, cheaper, option.”

The Trust spokeswoman said overpopulation caused damage to the gardens and to the possums which fought amongst themselves, causing injuries. She said illegal dumping of possums in the gardens had exacerbated this. “The overpopulation of Brush-tailed Possums is caused by a lack of predators and apparent use of the gardens and Domain as a dumping ground for captured possums,” she said. * Central News, Story by Robert Burton-Bradley

Sydney Botanic Gardens killing Possums!

2009-07-01T02:16:00.000-07:00

Almost 400 brush-tailed possums have been culled by the Royal Botanic Gardens Trust since 2002, but environmentalists are now arguing that alternatives should be sought. The Trust receives a licence from the National Parks and Wildlife Service through the NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, which allows the animals to be trapped and taken to a vet to be euthanased. Representatives of the Trust said culling was necessary to deal with overcrowding and damage caused to plants as well as injuries caused by territorial behaviour among possums. Under National Parks guidelines, it is illegal to relocate possums more than 50 metres from where they were caught, because their territorial nature makes survival rates among relocated animals very low.

Some environmentalists suggest a more humane approach to population control should be considered. One environmentalist, who did not wish to be named, said sterilisation of the animals would be a better alternative to culling. This has not been taken up by the Trust, which maintains that culling is the best option. In internal correspondence obtained by Central, a Botanic Gardens Director Mark Savio wrote: “When trapping first started in the Gardens, the possums found were in horrific condition - covered in injuries from fights with other possums and stress dermatitis from overcrowding.’’ According to Mr Savio, at the time of writing, 394 brush-tailed possums had been culled since permission was granted by National Parks in July 2002, an average of 55 a year.

Mr Savio said Botanic Garden’s staff found the overall health of the brush-tailed population improved after culling began. “Because we are managing the population at a sustainable level, such injuries and stress-related illnesses are rare in the trapped possums. Due to our trapping program, our possum population is now much healthier than it used to be,” he wrote. Animal activists have also expressed concern that there had been an increase in the culling in recent weeks. Mr Savio wrote that trapping occurred only “when horticulturalists are having problems with possums damaging plants in a particular area, but no more than once a week”. *SMH
Story by Robert Burton-Bradley

Two Possum Species!

2009-06-17T03:05:00.000-07:00

In 2004 it was discovered that possum has been playing tricks with science for nearly two centuries. Since it was first described by biologists in the early 1800s, the mountain brushtail possum was thought to be one species that lived in cool high forest from Melbourne to Gladstone in Queensland.

But Queenslanders being Queenslanders always had another name for their animal - the short-eared possum. Now 15 years of scientific research has proved what many people have long suspected: things are different in the north, for possums at least.

What science now knows is that there are two species: Trichosurus cunninghami south of Sydney and the newly described Trichosurus caninus, which is found from northern NSW to central Queensland.

To vindicate the Queenslanders, their animal is now known as the northern short-eared possum.
Possum expert Professor David Lindenmayer from Canberra's Australian National University, who led the research, said that although many people confuse the two animals with the common brushtail, the Trichosurus vulpecula, the mountain and short-eared possums had very different behaviour and biology.

"The common brushtail is now quite uncommon in the bush, they mostly now live in cities and suburbs," Professor Lindenmayer said. "It is also about 30 per cent smaller and lives from seven to 10 years, while these two species live up to 17.

"The mountain and short-eared possums also have quite stable, settled territories and, compared to the common brushtail, invest a lot more into rearing their young."
But he said it wasn't until they carried out body measurement and DNA analysis that they were able to prove that the northern and southern animals were different species.

Preventing possum from eating your plants!

2009-06-17T03:01:00.000-07:00

If possums are damaging ornamental plants or fruit in your garden, build a floppy fence around the garden. Use 80cm wide, heavily galvanised chicken wire, bury the bottom 20 cm and support the remainder on vertical lengths of flexible, high-tensile fencing wire. Bend the wire to curve the upper section outwards. When the possum attempts to climb the fence it will bend over and then spring back. Use collars to protect fruit trees. Recent tests showed none of 15 repellent compounds effectively prevented possums damaging ornamental trees or fruit.

If you trap the possum, it must be released in your yard. If you were to release the possum in another area, it would have to search and compete with other possums for shelter and food in unfamiliar territory. By providing a possum house, you are encouraging the possum to stay and claim your yard as its territory. The possum will then discourage other possums from moving into your roof and yard. By making friends with a possum, you can help to conserve the species and learn about their way of life at the same time.