To us who walk upon the Ridge several times each week over the past 30 years, Kangaroos are not overpopulating Isaacs Ridge, nor causing stress to the grasslands nor to themselves. The killing is brutal to Kangaroos who are herd creatures.

The Ridge extends easterly from the backyard fence of homes abutting it to the top of the ridge and extending from East O’Malley in the North to Long Gulley Road in the South. It is popular place for residents to walk, relax, exercise their dogs, cycle and run.  Many visitors to Canberra come to experience the Ridge and its wildlife and views.

There are many residents of the adjacent suburbs who are concerned each night at the thought of the trauma inflicted on these endearing creatures. They have interacted with them over a long time. The distress to sympathetic residents is not short-lived. It is protracted over two and a half months. And they are powerless to stop the cull. 

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“It was not until physical signs were placed on the walking paths at the junction to the Ridge that anyone became aware of the closure details and the warning of the danger of firearms and monitory penalties. The sign warns of a penalty of $750 for entering the area and of prosecution and fines of up to $7,500”.

We do not know if the killing is to be executed over a matter of days by way of coordinated effort. Or whether it is like “duck season” and shooters can enter and kill Kangaroos any time over the 2.5 months allocated to the killing. Nor are we informed as to how the Government keeps track of the number killed in our nature parks and reserves. Nor do we know if the count includes joeys.

The Government’s own uses of the land disqualify them from saying there are precious ecosystems or flora and fauna that need protecting from the Kangaroos. There is no apparent overabundance of Kangaroos. The Government has implemented the Isaac’s Ridge Kangaroo killing activity without regard to adequate occupational health and safety standards. No information letter from the ACT Government has been sent to affected residents.

It is open to conclude the program appears to have been implemented to minimise public awareness and prevent interference by those who wish to protect Kangaroos.

FOOTNOTE: The Kangaroos, Wallabies and birdlife, the exception is the Echidna, were not filmed in Canberra’s nature parks, where we found none. The footage is from the Creative Cowboy Films archive and the animals were filmed elsewhere in Australia. It looks to us that Canberra’s wildlife extermination program has been extremely successful.

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