Dingo attacks in Australia

Dingo attacks in Australia on humans are considered rare but are known to happen. Dingoes are more of a danger to livestock, with sheep being the most and cattle being the least vulnerable, which is why the Dingo Fence was constructed.

Wild dogs are large predators, and can be dangerous to humans. Fraser Island is a special centre of attention regarding such, since interaction between dingoes and humans there is very high due to tourism, therefore the majority of reported incidents originate there.

Cause

A warning sign from Fraser Island

The likelihood of wild dogs being a danger to humans depends to a large degree on how humans behave toward them. The more frequently these dogs are fed or scavenge human leftovers, the more likely it is that they lose all caution and sometimes react aggressively towards humans when they no longer receive or find food.

During a study on Fraser Island dingoes, the researchers reasoned that the presence of humans influences the activity of dingoes. The tourism industry on the island encouraged people to approach dingoes without caution, and such encounters were practically expected by the tourists. People lost their caution when dealing with dingoes more and more frequently, and the number of reported interactions increased. The way the dingoes reacted towards humans was dependent on the way humans behaved toward them. Dingoes tended to show aggressive behavior when humans fled, and tended to be intimidated when humans consciously or aggressively moved towards them. Humans making submissive postures seemed to cause a neutral or submissive reaction of the dingoes. That dingoes showed aggressive behavior towards humans seemed to be similarly likely during different times of the year. However, adult dingoes might be more dangerous during the breeding season, and female dingoes especially when they raise their pups.

Even when habituation to humans seems to be the cause for attacks, it is not clear what the ultimate cause for attacks and overall threat towards humans is. It is possible that some attacks result from the "play" of young pups, especially with children. Attacks can also be caused by false reactions of humans to aggressive and dominance behavior of dingoes. It is assumed that dingoes might have started to regard "human" food sources (garbage cans, leftovers, handouts, etc.) as part of their territory and that attacks on humans can therefore occur because the dingoes see humans as competitors and want to protect their food sources. That some dingoes might regard humans as prey was also deemed possible because humans, especially children, could be theoretically overpowered.^[1][2]

Known cases

Pastoralists views on the possibility of dingo attacks in connection with the disappearance of three girls in Brisbane in 1933

In December 1933 when three girls went missing, near Mount Coot-tha^[3] the possibility of their being attacked by dingoes was considered, but dismissed by pastoralists. Mr R. Philp, president of the Cattle Growers' Association said that some people claimed dingoes had attacked humans but he had never seen one himself. The possibility of a dingo attack was considered likely only if a person was disabled or nearly dead.^[4]

The first well-documented case of a dingo attack on Fraser Island is from the year 1988. Already 60 years before, a newspaper account reported of problems with dingoes. Between 1996 and 2001 altogether 279 incidences with dingoes have been reported, with 39 of the cases assessed as "major" and one as "catastrophic".^[5]

Two reports of dingo attacks on humans caused special attention:

• On 19 August 1980 a nine-week-old girl named Azaria Chamberlain was allegedly captured by a dingo near the Uluru and killed.^[6] Her mother was suspected and convicted of murder. Four years later she was released from prison when the jacket of the baby was found in a dingo den and the mother was therefore found innocent. This incident caused much outcry for and against the dingoes. The story was adapted into a film named A Cry in the Dark starring Meryl Streep.^[7][8]
• On 30 April 2001 nine-year-old Clinton Gage was attacked and killed by two dingoes near Waddy Point on Fraser Island. The incident and the following culling of 31 dingoes caused much outcry among the residents. There were many protests and the suggestion was made to erect fences. The incident seemed to have had only a low impact on the tourism industry, and some tourists even felt safer due to the increased presence of rangers.^[2][5]

Reactions

To be better prepared for dingo attacks demands were made that a better recording of problematic cases should be implemented. Also non-lethal guns, spray cans with appropriate content, whips and aversive baits should be used to increase the caution of the dingoes. "Problem-dingoes" should be killed, since relocation attempts proved to be ineffective.

The behaviour of humans might undermine these efforts; therefore the change of human behaviour is in the centre of attention. Warning signs like "Beware Dingoes" seem to have lost their effect on Fraser Island, despite their high numbers. Furthermore, some humans do not realize how adaptive and quick dingoes are. Therefore they don’t stay attentive enough and for instance don’t consider that dingoes even steal food like fruits and vegetables. In addition some tourists seemed to be confused by the high numbers of rules in some parks and have been prompted in some cases to actively feed the wild animals.^[1][2][5][9]

Attacks on humans

Below is a list of dingo attacks that occurred in Australia in reverse chronological order.

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Name, age	Date	Species	Location; Comments
4 year old female	Apr 2007		Fraser Island, severely bitten [10]
9 year old male	Apr 2001		Waddy Point on Fraser Island, attacked and killed by two dingoes [11]
Azaria Chamberlain, 2mths old	August 1980		Ayers Rock (Uluru), famous case, mother initially convicted of the murder, but later exonerated.

Attacks on other animals

See also: Economic impact of the dingo

Dingos frequently predate on sheep, goats and cattle when they have the chance, which is why the Dingo Fence was built. Cattle are usually quite capable of defending themselves against dog attacks and the losses for cattle owners are therefore usually low, but sheep are extremely vulnerable and their behaviour in the presence of a predator can often lead to surplus killing. Some notable dingo attacks on animals which have appeared in reliable sources:

Name, age	Date	Species	Location; Comments
young calf	July 2009	dingo	Kawana Forest near Caloundra, pair of young dingoes killed the calf [12]
£1000 worth of sheep	1941-8	dingo	Tumbarumba, 13yo dingo six feet long and weighed 100 lb [13]
at least 1000 sheep	1942	dingo	Captain's Flat,[14]
200+ sheep	1939	dingo	Billa Billa near Goondiwindi,[15]
'many sheep'	1937	dingo	Oranmeir near Braidwood,[16]
10 wallabies	1936	dingo	Melbourne Zoo, [2] [17]
300 sheep	1933	dingo	Benalla,[18]
sheep, goats, cattle	1924	dingo	Lake Nash district, dingoes described as being extremely numerous and troublesome [19]
600+ sheep	years before 1916	dingo	Between Deepwater and Dundee River,[20]

Reference

1. ^ ^{a b} Kate Lawrance, Karen Higginbottom (2002). "Behavioural Responses of Dingoes to Tourist on Fraser Island". Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre. http://www.crctourism.com.au/WMS/Upload/Resources/bookshop/WT27_Lawrance-DingoFraserIs.pdf. Retrieved 3 May 2009. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Risk Assessment: Risk to humans posed by the dingo population on Fraser Island". Environmental Protection Agency. May 2001. http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/register/p00560aa.pdf. Retrieved 14 May 2009. 
3. ^ Three Brisbane Girls missing The Courier-Mail Monday 11 December 1933
4. ^ Not Man-killer Australian dingo The Courier-Mail Tuesday 12 December 1933
5. ^ ^{a b c} E. Beckmann, Gillian Savage (June 2003). "Evaluation of Dingo Education Strategy and Programs for Fraser Island and Literature review: Communicating to the public about potentially dangerous wildlife in natural settings". Queensland Government. https://www.epa.qld.gov.au/register/p01136aa.pdf. Retrieved 14 May 2009. 
6. ^ Günther, Janine; Jens Mohr (2007) (in german). Das Northern Territory und weiterführende Routen (1 ed.). Gamehl: 360°. ISBN 978-3-9809763-2-9. 
7. ^ "Mother jailed in dingo baby murder". BBC-News. 29 October 1982. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/29/newsid_2467000/2467665.stm. Retrieved 14 May 2009. 
8. ^ "Little hope for baby girl taken by wild dog at Ayers Rock". The Sydney Morning Herald. 19 August 1980. http://www.smh.com.au/news/175-years/little-hope-for-baby-girl-taken-by-wild-dog-at-ayers-rock/2006/04/17/1145126044792.html. Retrieved 14 May 2009. 
9. ^ Parks and Wildlife Service. "A Management Program for the Dingo (Canis lupus dingo) in the Northern Territory of Australia, 2006–2011". Department of Natural Resources. http://www.nt.gov.au/nreta/wildlife/programs/pdf/dingo_management.pdf. Retrieved 4 May 2009. 
10. ^ Residents blamed for dingo attack
11. ^ [1] E. Beckmann, Gillian Savage (June 2003). "Evaluation of Dingo Education Strategy and Programs for Fraser Island and Literature review: Communicating to the public about potentially dangerous wildlife in natural settings". Queensland Government. https://www.epa.qld.gov.au/register/p01136aa.pdf. Retrieved 10 Oct 2009.
12. ^ Dingo attack in Queensland raises fears
13. ^ Dingo shot at Tumbarumba The Canberra Times 30 January 1948
14. ^ Dingo destroyed at Captain's Flat The Canberra Times 15 September 1942
15. ^ The end of a killer The Argus 18 March 1939
16. ^ Chased Dingo in Motor-car The Argus 18 June 1937
17. ^ Dingo that killed 10 wallabies The Argus 15 January 1936
18. ^ Large dingo caught The Argus 20 May 1933
19. ^ Dingo Pest Northern Territory Times and Gazette 16 May 1924
20. ^ A dingo with a past The Advertiser 27 December 1916