Stop the Dispersal of Spectacled Flying Foxes

October 2020

The Cairns Regional Council has been actively dispersing protected Spectacled Flying Foxes (SFF) from their roost trees at the Cairns Library for over 4 months now.

The original approval for this action was granted by the federal Environment Protection Agency (EPA) after council had stated that the action would only occur between May to September, so as not to interfere with the species’ breeding cycle. However the dispersal has inexplicably been allowed to continue well into birthing season.

Council workers have used LRADs, clapper boards and high powered torches to scare the flying foxes away. Many of the SFFs are heavily pregnant or carrying dependent pups.

Dozens of pups have been abandoned at the site as their mothers are unable to return for them whilst the dispersal activities continue.

At least 6 pups have now died in the trees at the library, and wildlife rescuers report an increase in deaths and rescues in the surrounding areas.

Please urgently email the Director General at the Department of Environment and Science to ask for an immediate withdrawal of approval for the Cairns Regional Council to continue the dispersal. We have created a template below but we encourage you to use your own words.

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flying foxes

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To the Director-General, Department of Environment & Science (Qld),

I am writing to express my extreme disappointment in the Department’s failure to protect the endangered Spectacled Flying Foxes in Cairns.

For over 4 months now, the Cairns Regional Council have been actively dispersing Spectacled Flying Foxes from the heritage-listed roost trees at the Cairns Library. This dispersal has continued well into the birthing and pup rearing season, in contradiction to the Council’s original Management Plan.

The dispersal has also continued despite multiple deaths of dependent pups at the site, none of which were investigated by the Department by way of an autopsy. The dispersal has continued despite evidence that the Spectacled Flying Foxes continue to roost in, creche their pups in and even give birth in the Library trees.

The dispersal has continued despite the Code of Practice Ecologically sustainable management of flying-fox roosts, Nature Conservation Act 1992 stating that:

“2.3. All management actions must immediately cease, and DES be immediately notified if a flying-fox is killed, injured, or found on the ground as a result of management actions

And:

“the person in charge must consider avoiding management actions—

2.6.1 - where possible during certain periods of the year, for example—when females are in the late stages of pregnancy or there are dependant young (e.g. creched young, pups) that cannot sustain independent flight, and

2.6.3 - which may negatively impact the conservation of flying-fox species which are listed as threatened wildlife under the Act.”

Dependent pups starving to death in the trees because their mothers were forced to abandon them is a result of management actions.

Furthermore, I am extremely concerned that council workers failed to remove a Spectacled Flying Fox from one of the trees on Thursday 5th November, yet proceeded to prune the same tree later that morning despite the Code of Practice saying that:

“2.2 No roost tree may be—

2.2.2 trimmed when there are flying-foxes near the trimming (for example, within 10 metres)”.

There appear to be multiple breaches of the Code of Practice by the Cairns Regional Council. Why has the Department failed to take legal action?

The Spectacled Flying Fox is a keystone species, critically important for the biodiversity of the region. Furthermore, they are a protected species and have lost significant numbers of their population over the past decade due to human activity.

Please, take urgent action to stop this dispersal, to protect these endangered animals, before more irreversible damage is done.

Sincerely,

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