Fisher Island ‘Rock stars’
Friends of Fisher Island – ‘Rock stars’ – with a little help from their friend.
Nui – the top rodent detection dog continues his excellent work in helping eradication projects on Australia’s important seabird islands.
In December last year, a collaborative effort by Wildcare Tasmania (Friends of Fisher Island), Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service, Pennicott Foundation and Biosecurity Tasmania received a ‘Froggatt Award‘ for the eradication of black rats from the 125-hectare Big Green Island in Bass Strait.
The Friends of Fisher Island , along with Pennicott Wilderness Journeys, Robert Pennicott are continuing their volunteer-based island restoration projects and their work on George Rocks was recently highlighted in ‘The Weekend Australian’. (quoted below)
“The wily rodents, thought to have arrived via shipwreck or a visiting boat, wiped out breeding colonies of seabirds, such as white faced storm petrels and common diving petrels.”
The rats, which ate the petrel chicks and eggs, are now gone.
“Chief funder of the George Rocks rat eradication, tourism operator Rob Pennicott, said it showed how a little money, backed by dedicated expertise and volunteers, could achieve big outcomes.”
The next step for George Rocks is the removal of the invasive mirror bush which is choking out breeding seabirds. They have received a $10K grant from the Tasmanian Government’s Weeds Action Fund through NRM North to tackle the mirror bush this winter.
They then hope to move onto other small islands to similarly remove pest species to restore natural values.
