Translocation of Eastern Grey Kangaroos

For more detail please refer to Section 4.4.6 in the ACT Kangaroo Management Plan.

Translocation is the deliberate movement of multiple wild animals for free release away from their original home range. It is mainly used in the management of rare or threatened species and referred to as introduction, re-introduction and supplementation. Translocation has also been advocated by community groups as an alternative to culling, for dealing with excess numbers, especially when it is frequently suggested that large-scale, successful translocations are being carried out elsewhere. In fact, it is difficult to find documented examples of the capture and movement of large numbers of eastern grey kangaroos, including their long-term survival in the wild.

Translocation of eastern grey kangaroos will not be permitted as a management solution. The primary reasons for not undertaking or licensing large scale translocations of kangaroos in the ACT are:

• Eastern grey kangaroos are not a threatened species. There is no conservation reason for translocating eastern grey kangaroos because the conservation status of the species is secure. They are abundant across their range in eastern Australia (refer to Section 3.1 in the ACT Kangaroo Management Plan). Translocation is a technically demanding, labour-intensive, expensive activity and for these reasons is generally only applied to threatened species programs. Eastern grey kangaroos are a relatively nervous and excitable species, lightly built for speedy escape from predators, and require expert care to minimise deaths and injuries.
  
• Translocation is ineffective for population control. Translocation is not an effective management technique for reducing populations of eastern grey kangaroos at a rate faster than their capacity to increase. Large numbers of kangaroos (hundreds or perhaps thousands, depending on the specific site) would need to be translocated annually. At the level of care needed for the species, and the numbers which need to be handled at once for effectiveness, cost and time are prohibitive.
  
• Animal welfare. Translocation has inherent animal welfare concerns. Eastern grey kangaroos are fast, lightly built animals, prone to bone fractures in legs, feet, nasal bones, tails and necks, dislocated hips and other injuries. They are known to be nervous and excitable in captivity and prone to a range of debilitating or fatal conditions. Substantial suffering is likely without the appropriate expertise, or without substantial funding. Well meaning attempts in other states to translocate eastern grey kangaroos have killed a high proportion, even within the first 24 hours.
  
• Lack of suitable release sites. Ecological factors such as the availability of food supply, predators and habitat quality will limit the number of kangaroos that can survive on an area of land. These factors are often hard to identify but are the reason that most proposed sites turn out to be unsuitable when evaluated by qualified ecologists. With much effort being put into annual culling programs to reduce eastern grey kangaroo populations in the south-east of Australia, rural communities and government agencies alike, rarely favour proposals to move excess populations of eastern grey kangaroos to their land. 

Refer to the ACT Kangaroo Management Plan for more detail on the issues summarised above. The Plan contains references to hundreds of scientific publications underlying its policies and a helpful glossary of terms.