Threatened Species crisis pushing volunteers to their limits

Volunteer wildlife rescuers in the state are battling a challenging season caring for orphaned Grey headed flying foxes, with usual volumes of the listed threatened species tripling. A highly specialised animal to care for, the limited number of licenced DEECA carers are bearing the brunt of what they are calling an ‘orphaning crisis’.

“We don’t know what is happening to these adults who are usually incredibly protective and dedicated parents to their one pup born each year. Are they suffering in illegal fruit tree nets still being used? Have they been electrocuted? Are they snared on barbed wire fences?” said Tamsyn Hogarth, Director of Fly By Night Bat clinic based in Olinda.

calls for help from the Victorian community

She says calls for help from the Victorian community haven’t slowed, with an average of three animals coming into care each day since late Spring, pushing these volunteers to their limits.

Volunteer Wildlife Carers believe that heavy rainfall and cold temperatures through Spring has contributed to a lack of native food source for pregnant adults by washing nectar from flowering gums. This, combined with other pressures like the continued use of illegal backyard fruit tree netting, electrocutions on overhead powerlines, and sometimes even cruelty cases, has resulted in the higher than usual numbers of animals needing care.

“We continue to see very compromised pups, some of them skin and bone, weeks behind where they should be developmentally” says Tamsyn.

Numbers have been declining over the last decade

Victoria is home to 3 Grey Headed flying fox colonies of national significance. Numbers have been declining over the last decade due to the pressures of the climate crisis and habitat destruction. Here in the state, the responsibility for rescuing and caring for individual animals is the sole responsibility of dedicated volunteers who open their homes, and wallets, in a desperate bid to get them back to the wild. And with the looming threat of scorching temperatures on the way next week which could bring even more pups and adults into care, volunteers are calling on the Environment Minister for urgent support.

“We give our time and energy and lots of our own money, but at this rate, we just can’t self- fund that we will need to get all of these natives back to the wild”.

need much more than this allocated amount

While the State government offers routine grants of up to $3000 each year for authorised wildlife carers, she says that they will need much more than this allocated amount to see these animals rehabilitated successfully.

“By the time they are raised and soft released at the end of Summer, each one of these 400 animals will eat approximately 20000kg of supplement food that we need to buy. With fruit prices higher than we have seen before, we estimate that figure to be around the $60 000 mark. This is an emergency situation that warrants emergency support”.

“The survival of this incredible threatened species should be a priority for the State government- including supporting the hundreds who have been given a second chance to support the rapidly diminishing national population. We’d really welcome the State’s support right now, we are at breaking point”.

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