Push to protect Dryandra Woodland

A new partnership between local environmental groups is providing support to landholders near the Dryandra Woodland to control feral animals on properties and protect threatened native animals.

The Peel-Harvey Catchment Council, Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions and Project Numbat will focus their attention to Dryandra Woodland, a national park located in the upper reaches of the Peel-Harvey catchment, straddling the Shires of Narrogin, Cuballing, Williams and Wandering.

Unique native flora and fauna make the woodland one of WA's most valuable conservation reserves.

The area is also home to many animals including the threatened woylie and Western Australia’s state mammal emblem, the numbat, is one of the 20 mammals identified in the Commonwealth Government’s Threatened Species Strategy.

The Strategy has an ambitious target of culling 2 million feral cats across Australia by 2020.

Monitoring at Dryandra shows that feral cats and foxes are coming into the woodland through adjacent bushland and farmland areas, and woylie and numbat populations were continuing to decline.

In response the DBCA introduced the Dryandra Numbat Woylie (Predator Control) project in 2015 and began working with the community, and collaborating with neighbouring landowners to assist to protect these mammals.

The project has already enabled some complementary feral predator control initiatives to be introduced in addition to the ongoing baiting to control foxes

The PHCC and Project Numbat are now working with surrounding landholders who are keen to play a role in the protection of native animals through the Farmers 4 Fauna project. 

By applying this coordinated approach across public and private land, PHCC, DBCA, Project Numbat and the Farming community aim to increase the number of native animals in, and around the Park and minimise risks to agriculture from disease and predation by foxes and feral cats.

Farmers around Dryandra now have access to free cat traps and 1080 baits which have been provided to the Shires of Cuballing, Narrogin, Wandering and Williams.  

Training and licensing support is also being provided, as well as events and field days which will continue to bring the Farming community together to share information and success stories.

Monitoring will continue to assess the impact of the actions and focus efforts to areas of most need.

PHCC Chairman Andy Gulliver said the project was a great example of how these types of partnerships achieve important goals for the community and environment. 

"This project will result in meaningful support for some of our most treasured native species, in one of the most significant bushland remnants remaining across the West Australian Wheatbelt," he said. 

"We thank both the DBCA and Project Numbat for all their hard work in the development and initiation of this great project, and our Farming community for their enthusiasm in playing a key role in protecting our native animals”.

This project is supported by the Peel-Harvey Catchment Council through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme.