Kangaroo industry

The kangaroo industry is based on the hearvesting of the large species of kangaroos, which are abundant and are sustainably harvested in Australia under strict government control. Conserving the Kangaroo http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/biology.html#kancons] Many professional ecologists support this industry on the basis that it delivers significant environmental benefits [The kangaroo industry - ecologists and conservationists http://www.kangaroo-industry.asn.au/media/sci_list.html] . Many argue kangaroos, which are native to Australia, are a more environmentally friendly livestock option than introduced sheep and cattle. [ FATE Program http://www.fate.unsw.edu.au/glance/index.htm]

Products

Kangaroo meat is widely consumed in Australia and available in most Australian supermarkets. It is also exported to over 55 countries. Kangaroo leather is recognized as the strongest lightweight leather in the world and extensively used in first class sporting shoes and gloves [Enhancing the unique properties of kangaroo leather http://www.rirdc.gov.au/reports/NAP/02-105.pdf] .

Kangaroo Populations

There are 48 species of macropods (kangaroos) in Australia. Of these only 6 can be commercially harvested. Conserving the Kangaroo http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/biology.html#kancons] .

Over 99% of the commercial kangaroo harvest occurs in the arid grazing rangelands. The populations of kangaroos in these areas are estimated every year in each State by well developed aerial survey techniques. It must be understood that these are sparsely timbered, [savannah] type ecosystems. Hence it is possible to fly over them and count the large animals, such as kangaroos, seen. Using either low flying fixed wing aircraft or helicopters, flying at heights of 2-300 meters the National Parks Authorities count the numbers of kangaroos seen over fixed transects. Thirty years of such monitoring have allowed them to develop sophisticated and accurate techniques of extrapolating out to total population numbers [Commercial Harvesting of Kangaroos in Australia http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/harvesting/index.html] . Kangaroos are one of only a very few species (including humans) who have an annual census of their populations.

Current populations stand around the 25 million mark [Kangaroo Population Estimates http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/population/index.html] . This means there are similar numbers of kangaroos in Australia as there are cattle [Australian Agricultural Statistics http://www.abareconomics.com/interactive/ac_dec07/] . It is widely accepted that within the rangelands kangaroos are now more common than prior to European settlement [Commercial Harvesting of Kangaroos in Australia http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/harvesting/index.html] . This situation has arisen due to the increased food and water supply generated by the activities of the sheep and cattle industry. Prior to European settlement these areas had very few places of surface water from which kangaroos could drink. The pastoral industry has tapped into below ground water supplies to the point where now very few points in the rangelands are further that 3 km from a permanent water source and no point is further than 10 km (Landsburg 1999) [ Landsburg, J (1999). The effects of artificial sources of water on rangeland biodiversity. CSIRO Div. Wildlife and Ecology, Biodiversity Technical Paper no 3] .

The Harvest Quota Setting Process

For any kangaroo species to be harvested the States National Parks Authority must have a detailed Management Plan approved by the Federal conservation Department. These Plans must detail the population monitoring and quota setting controls, the controls over the take and they must be renewed every 5 years Conserving the Kangaroo http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/biology.html#kancons] .

Each year after the population estimate is obtained, each Management Plan will set a maximum allowable take (quota) of between 10-20% of total population. The populations fluctuate depending on seasonal conditions, during droughts they can decline, or they can increase dramatically during good seasons. The States Authority will then issue individually and sequentially numbered plastic lockable tags. These tags are designed to ensure that once properly applied any tampering with them will be perfectly obvious Conserving the Kangaroo http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/biology.html#kancons] .

Each kangaroo taken by licensed harvesters must have such a tag fixed to it and the harvester and processor must report back to the Authorities on a monthly basis the details of the exact number of the tags they have used, where the tags were used and what species, sex and weight of animal they were attached to. The Authority monitors the release and use of tags to ensure the harvest in any one area does not exceed the quota.

The complexity and detail of the controls in the Management Plans can be indicated by a brief examination of the NSW Plan. It divides the State into 15 different zones, 14 in which commercial kangaroo harvesting is allowed and one comprising over one third of the State in which no harvesting can take place. The population is estimated in each individual zone and a harvest quota allocated to it. An appropriate number of tags are then issued to the conservation authority Managers in each zone and these can only be obtained by kangaroo harvesters on two days of each month. The harvester must use and submit reports for all of his tags issued before more can be obtained and the issue of tags by zone is closely monitored. As soon as the harvest in any one zone approaches the quota it is closed to commercial activity for the rest of the year [Kangaroo Management Program http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/wildlifemanagement/KangarooManagementProgram.htm] .

Licensing Controls over Kangaroo Harvesters

In order to purchase the tags issued by the Authorities an individual must be licensed as a kangaroo harvester. To do so they must undergo training delivered by government accredited agencies and approved by the Australian TAFE (Tertiary and Further Education) agency in the appropriate State. This training covers the regulatory controls and compliance requirements, the animal welfare controls and the hygiene controls each harvester must adhere to. They must then pass assessment in their knowledge and practices relating to these controls by two separate Government Departments. This will include assessment of their competency with their firearm. Only then will they be able to obtain the required licenses from the two Authorities concerned Conserving the Kangaroo http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/biology.html#kancons] .

It is a condition of every kangaroo harvesters license that they adhere to the guidelines laid out in the Federal Government document ‘Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos’. This specifies the minimum high caliber firearms which can be used, it requires that all animals be head shot and documents procedures for the humane dispatch of any pouch young [Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/practice.html] .

Any kangaroo or kangaroo product accepted by processors, be it for meat or skins, must have an approved tag applied to it and be supplied by a licensed harvester. Each processor must report on a monthly basis to the State Authority the numbers of kangaroos purchased, who from and the relevant tags numbers.

Environmental Impacts of Utilising Kangaroos

The Kangaroo Management Plans have been operating under strict and intensive supervision for almost 30 years. Over this period the average harvest per year has been in excess of 2 million animals.

Population sustainability

Despite long term harvests in excess of 2 million animals per year the kangaroo population has consistently increased. Even following the worse drought on record (2005-07) numbers in 2008 are still at what could be considered historically typical levels. Their current population of 25 million is only marginally lower than the 25 year average of 26.7 million (which is skewed by the very high levels reached during a run of highly favorable years in the late 1990’s) [Kangaroo Population Estimates http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/population/index.html] .

A project conducted by NSW Dept Agriculture, which employed extensive field study and highly sophisticated computer modeling techniques, has cast light on why kangaroo populations are so resilient to harvesting. The project examined harvester activity and modeled it in response to terrain and prices paid for kangaroos harvested. It demonstrated that in the areas investigated and at current prices, 20-40% of any one property will rarely be visited by a kangaroo harvester because the terrain is too rough or other limitations make it not economic to do so. These areas then become ‘refugia’, areas in which the resident kangaroo population is never harvested and from which the population expands to re-populate areas which are harvested [ Kangaroo Management Options in the Murray-Darling Basin. 2004. Ron Hacker, Steve McLeod, John Druhan, Brigitte Tenhumberg & Udai Pradhan. Murray-Darling Basin Commission and NSW Agriculture. ISBN: 1876830700 MDBC Publication number: 02/04] .

The authors conclude:

“Models presented here suggest that kangaroo populations may be more resilient to harvesting than we had previously thought” (McLeod et al 2001) [ Kangaroo Management Options in the Murray-Darling Basin. 2004. Ron Hacker, Steve McLeod, John Druhan, Brigitte Tenhumberg & Udai Pradhan. Murray-Darling Basin Commission and NSW Agriculture. ISBN: 1876830700 MDBC Publication number: 02/04] .

Effects on the species

The argument is often mooted that kangaroo harvesting selects the largest animals and will therefore affect the genetic fitness of the species. The scientific data strongly refutes this argument. Four separate reports have recently provided considerable evidence to discount these claims.

1) An examination of the question submitted to the NSW National parks and Wildlife Service in 2001 concluded:

“Currently, there is no evidence of real or potential genetic ‘deterioration’ due to harvesting, nor any reason to suspect it. Indeed, indications are that kangaroo numbers would have to be reduced to extremely low levels for genetic impacts to become important and by then other impacts, such as demographic disruption, would be overridingly important” [ Situation Analysis Report: Current state of scientific knowledge on kangaroos in the environment, including ecological and environmental impact and effect of culling. http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/nature/SituationAnalysisFinal.pdf] .

2) A extensive report into factors affecting genetic makeup in kangaroos by the University of Queensland concluded that:

“The effects of the commercial harvest are therefore unlikely to produce genetic changes in the population. First, the heritability of the characters in question is low. Second, the selection differential is low because differences in fitness between younger and older adult males is small, older males do not appear to monopolise matings, only a small proportion of older males are selected against (so most animals are in the selected group), and only a small proportion of the population is harvested.” [ Kangaroo genetics, Impacts of Harvesting http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/nature/genetics.pdf] .

3) A study of Queensland kangaroo populations harvested at rates of 0 to 30% has shown no differences in the genetic diversity of the various populations. That is, intensively harvested populations show no reductions in genetic diversity compared to unharvested ones (Pople 1996). This study also cites information showing virtual uniformity of genetic codes across widely dispersed kangaroo populations, suggesting the extensive harvesting to date has had no effect on the species.

4) A study conducted by the NSW Dept. of Ag. has applied extremely sophisticated computer modeling techniques to kangaroo population’s dynamics. It has demonstrated that even after several hundred years of intensive harvesting there would be no impact on the genetic makeup of the population. A large cause of this being that there are always areas of rugged terrain in which kangaroos are never harvested (refugia) and migration of animals and their genetic material out of these areas offsets any selection which may occur through harvesting (NSW Dept. Ag. 2002)

Environmental Impacts of NOT Utilising Kangaroos

Several trials have indicated that an uncontrolled kangaroo numbers present a risk to plant biodiversity. Kangaroos can not be commercially harvested in National Parks, as a result their numbers often rise to staggering levels which sometimes require culling programs to be used. In biodiversity monitoring done following a cull at Hattah-Kulkyne National Park in Victoria increased abundance of 20 rare or threatened plant species was recorded in areas where kangaroo were culled compared with unculled areas (Sluiter et al 1997) [ Sluiter, I., Allen, G., Morgan, D. and Walker, I. (1997) Vegetation responses to stratified kangaroo grazing at Hattah-Kulkyne National Park, 1992-96. Dept. Natural Resource, Melb] .

Animal Welfare

All kangaroos taken for commercial use are harvested by professional shooters. State and Federal Government controls ensure that no kangaroo can enter the commercial industry unless they have been taken by a licensed kangaroo harvester who has passed an accredited training course which includes training in the animal welfare aspects of kangaroo harvesting. In addition anyone wishing to harvest kangaroos for human consumption must undergo assessment of their accuracy with their firearm. The accreditation and competency assessment are controlled by State Government regulations in each State Conserving the Kangaroo http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/biology.html#kancons] .

All kangaroos must be taken according to the guidelines laid out in the Federal Government document ‘Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos’. This specifies the minimum high caliber firearms which can be used, it requires that all animals be head shot and documents procedures for the humane dispatch of any pouch young [Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/practice.html] .

Kangaroo utilisation and a new ecological model

To date agricultural development in Australia has largely been based on modified European systems, using European animals. In recent decades this Eurocentric view has come under considerable academic question. A ground swell of opinion is developing that Australian’s should develop management systems adapted to the specific environmental conditions, not impose systems adapted to Europe [ FATE Program http://www.fate.unsw.edu.au/glance/index.htm] . Under this philosophy utilisation of free ranging populations of native animals adapted to the environment makes enormous environmental wisdom. To this end the University of New South Wales has implemented a major new project aimed at encouraging the development of farm enterprises based on utilising native plants and animals and specifically kangaroos. The project intends to monitor the environment benefits that accrue from doing so [FATE and kangaroos http://www.fate.unsw.edu.au/detail/kangaroos.htm] .

Kangaroo’s and global warming

Kangaroos don’t emit methane. Cattle and sheep do in large volumes and methane is 21 times worse than carbon dioxide as a global warming gas. It’s estimated the beef industry alone accounts for 11% of Australia’s carbon emissions. Many ecologists are now suggesting changing production systems to grow kangaroo meat rather than beef or mutton can help reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions [Native wildlife on rangelands to minimize methane and produce lower-emission meat: kangaroos versus livestock http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/120775899/HTMLSTART ] .

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