❓ A parliamentary question addresses kangaroo shooting practices in WA, focusing on the number of kangaroos shot, the impact on populations, and the humane treatment of dependent offspring. The Minister's response provides data on shooting numbers, clarifies procedures for offspring, and affirms consistency with wildlife conservation laws.
AnsweredQoN 177Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
KANGAROOS — PROFESSIONAL SHOOTINGS
(1) How many kangaroos have been shot by professional kangaroo shooters in Western Australia in the past year and what percentage of these are female? (2) Does the minister agree that when female kangaroos are shot, the offspring in the mother’s pouch inevitably die? (3) What calculations have been made of the effect on populations of taking such a large percentage of females and their young? (4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT
(1) How many kangaroos have been shot by professional kangaroo shooters in Western Australia in the past year and what percentage of these are female? (2) Does the minister agree that when female kangaroos are shot, the offspring in the mother’s pouch inevitably die? (3) What calculations have been made of the effect on populations of taking such a large percentage of females and their young? (4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT
AnswerView source ↗
I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(2) Does the minister agree that when female kangaroos are shot, the offspring in the mother’s pouch inevitably die? (3) What calculations have been made of the effect on populations of taking such a large percentage of females and their young? (4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(3) What calculations have been made of the effect on populations of taking such a large percentage of females and their young? (4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(2) Does the minister agree that when female kangaroos are shot, the offspring in the mother’s pouch inevitably die? (3) What calculations have been made of the effect on populations of taking such a large percentage of females and their young? (4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(3) What calculations have been made of the effect on populations of taking such a large percentage of females and their young? (4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(4) Does the minister believe that leaving the orphan kangaroos to die of starvation, dehydration and predation is acceptable to the community? (5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(5) Does the minister believe that the conduct referred to in (4) is consistent with the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950? Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
Hon SALLY TALBOT replied: I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
I thank Hon Paul Llewellyn for some notice of this question. The minister has replied in the following terms — (1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(1) The Department of Environment and Conservation does not use the term “professional shooters”. However, using data available on 13 March 2008, a total of 116 907 red kangaroos and 126 281 grey kangaroos were shot for commercial purposes in 2007 in Western Australia. Of those, 49.5 per cent of red kangaroos were females and 46.2 per cent of grey kangaroos were female. (2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(2) No. Offspring may be dependent or independent. Commercial shooters humanely destroy dependent offspring. (3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(3) Kangaroo populations have been reliably monitored using aerial surveys since 1982, and have been demonstrably conserved over that period. The 35 years of data demonstrate that commercial shooting involving the harvesting of females can locally reduce kangaroo populations, which provides a level of damage mitigation for landholders. (4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(4) Dependent offspring are despatched humanely by shooters under licensed conditions and the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos. (5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
(5) See the answer to (4). Operations of commercial shooters under the code of practice are consistent with the Wildlife Conservation Act.
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