Shire Councillors at their 8 August meeting voted to write to the State Government to demand that the Peninsula be removed from the state commercial kangaroo harvesting program. As reported in the Southern Peninsula News, the purpose of the letter is "to further inform the state government of the urgent need to protect the viability of kangaroos on the peninsula". Why is this good news? Kangaroo numbers: A detailed survey conducted for the Shire over a decade ago…
Genetic analysis reported by Australian scientists in Science Advances has found that dingoes occupy their own niche between wolves and domestic dogs. Their long residency in Australia has allowed their genes to evolve to better adapt them to our unique environments. They are now a critical peak predator in the Australian landscape, indeed one of the few such predators left. Yet, as Dr. Kyle Cairns from UNSW commented, they are: “the only native animal that is baited and killed across…
Following on from previous newsletter articles on the growing evidence that species other than us are sentient comes a review of a book that presents evidence that bees are very-much sentient. In particular, bees appear to display the following sentient qualities: sophisticated emotions resembling optimism, frustration, playfulness and fear; experiencing PTSD-like symptoms; recognizing different human faces; processing long-term memories while sleeping; and maybe even dreaming. Cartoon from here..
In a first for Australia, the ACT Minister for Human Rights has introduced a bill to amend the territory’s Human Rights Act 2004 to include the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Great news for the folks at ACT, and I reckon their native flora and fauna will be celebrating as well. What does this actually mean? The UN Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment has defined it as including the following: clean air a safe climate access to safe drinking water and…
The long and tortuous path to establishing a new international law on ecocide became a lot shorter last month with the release of recommendations from an Expert Panel, which recommended the following amendments to the Rome Statute: To add ecocide as a new crime to the Rome Statute, the Panel recommends the following amendments. We note that consequential amendments may also be required for other provisions of the Rome Statute, such as Article 9, and to the ICC Rules of Procedure and…
"As birds have flight, our special gift is reason. Part of that reason drives the intelligence that allows us to master DNA or build big power plants. But our reason could also keep us from following blindly the biological imperatives toward endless growth in numbers and territory. Our reason allows us to conceive of our species as a species, and to recognize the danger that our growth poses to it, and to feel something for the other species we threaten. Should we so choose, we could…
Landcare.Historical Perspective As many of you will know, Hillview Quarries is the revenue generating arm of the philanthropic RE Ross Trust that presently runs a gravel quarry close to Arthurs Seat. But their reserves of gravel are running low and so over the past decade they have been looking for alternative revenue opportunities. View of the area from the Bay side. To the far right is Arthurs Seat Road, in the centre is the current quarry…
This is an evolution of the Book of the Month to provide a more diverse set of topics on topics/books/ movies of interest to members. How many kangaroos do you think there are on the Peninsula (say south and west of Frankston)? Read on for the answer. Late in May, the Green’s Bush Association screened a special showing of the documentary “Kangaroo: A Love-Hate Story” at the Main Ridge Hall - preceded by a presentation from Mal Brown on the status of Peninsula kangaroos. The…
