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| Foxes in Tasmania - A Grave Threat to Our Wildlife A fox takes an eastern barred bandicoot |
The European red fox (Vulpes vulpes) has a natural distribution across the continents of Europe, Asia and North America. In the southern hemisphere, the red fox occurs only in Australia, where its first recorded introduction was by English settlers in Victoria in the 1850s for hunting. Following this and other introductions in Victoria, foxes were reported in NSW by 1893, in South Australia by 1901, in Queensland by 1907 and in Western Australia by 1912. Within 30 years of its release in southern Victoria, it was given the status of "agricultural pest" and has since inflicted enormous damage on the native wildlife of Australia.
Foxes are implicated in the decline or extinction of over 20 native animals in Australia. Indeed, Australia's appalling record of mammal extinctions in the last 200 years - the worst in the world - is in no small part due to the fox.
Unfortunately, physical evidence indicates that there is a population of foxes of unknown size in Tasmania.
Foxes represents the single most devastating threat to Tasmania's native mammals and birds. This Island State is recognised internationally as a fauna haven due to the lack of introduced predators (such as foxes). Should foxes become established in Tasmania nearly all of the state's native land animals would be at risk.
It is estimated that at least 78 native vertebrate species would be at risk if foxes became established. Of these, 34 species have locally restricted ranges, 16 are suspected to be already declining in distribution and 12 species are threatened according to Commonwealth or State threatened species legislation. This list does not include invertebrate species, many of which would also be at risk of fox predation.
Threatened and high conservation significance species at risk would include: The Tasmanian pademelon and Tasmanian bettong, both of which thrive in Tasmania, are now extinct on the mainland because of the fox. The mainland eastern barred bandicoot has been reduced to a mere 200 surviving individuals because of the fox. The young of unique species such as the Tasmanian devil, spotted tail quoll that are left unattended in dens are highly vulnerable to fox predation.
More widespread species like ducks, shorebirds, ground nesting birds, blue tongue lizards, mountain dragons, skinks and frogs are all highly at risk. Even animals such as the little penguin and platypus are at risk. Additionally, foxes are carriers of disease and spread environmental weeds.
A lamb attacked by a fox | Domestic poultry, sheep and lambs are targeted by foxes. Foxes can also carry diseases which impact upon both native wildlife and domestic stock. They are known carriers of distemper, parvovirus, canine hepatitis, heart worm, hydatids and sarcoptic mange. Indeed, it is believed that the individual fox which escaped from a container ship in Burnie in May 1998 had a 12% chance of carrying heart worm.
The economic losses of livestock from fox attacks and expenditure for fox control measures would equate to many millions of dollars per annum in Tasmania’s sheep industry alone.
In Europe, the fox is the main carrier of rabies. Should rabies ever be introduced into Australia, foxes would likely be the main agent of its spread.
The European Red Fox is recognised nationally as the single most devastating introduced pest and threat to Australia's native land animals. It has been listed as a National Threat on the Commonwealth Endangered Species Protection Act 1992.
A national research and management effort is underway to investigate and trial biological and other forms of eradication. To date, there is no evidence that control measures have met with success in limiting the distribution or abundance of the fox. Introduced to mainland Australia in the 1850's, it is now widespread across every state except for tropical areas in the far north.
Australia's wildlife has not evolved in the presence of foxes, and therefore lacks adequate adaptations to cope with the predatory prowess of the fox. In Victoria, for example, the fox has established itself in all terrestrial environments from inner urban areas to alpine heaths, rainforests to coastal heaths and mallee. It is known to have directly caused the extinction of six mammals and is currently causing the near extinction of the: - Eastern barred bandicoot
- Long footed potoroo
- Broad toothed rat
- New Holland mouse
- Mountain pygmy possum
- Brushtailed rock wallaby
- Broad-shelled tortoise
- Malleefowl
- Hooded plover
- Little tern
Contact: Invasive Species EnquiriesInvasive Species Branch
171 Westbury Road
PROSPECT TAS 7250
Phone: 03 6336 5320
Fax: 03 6336 5453
Email: invasivespecies@dpipwe.tas.gov.au
Media enquiries should be directed to 03 6233 6340.
Report all fox sightings and any possible evidence of fox activity to 1300 FOX OUT (1300 369 688) | |
