Yahoo News 31 Mar 08;
Hundreds of kangaroos at an Australian naval defence site have won a reprieve from death, after officials said they have halted a proposed cull, and will instead move them off the land by other means.
In a statement issued late Monday, the Department of Defence said that it had postponed the killing and asked the local Australian Capital Territory government to approve a trial, of which it gave few details, of relocating the animals.
The military said it was trying to avoid killing the 400 eastern grey kangaroos on the former naval site after public outcry over the proposal.
The local government had previously rejected a proposal to transfer the jumping marsupials interstate, saying relocation was inhumane.
It said the defence department should begin the cull quickly to protect native grasslands and threatened species.
The defence department however said it had asked for approval to undertake a scientific trial of kangaroo management techniques, including translocation.
"Pending the Australian Capital Territory government's response to the defence proposal, the cull of kangaroos at BNTS (Belconnen Naval Transmitting Station) will be placed on hold," it said in the statement.
If the cull had gone ahead, the animals would have been shot with tranquillising darts and then euthanased with a lethal drug.
British-based animal welfare group Viva, which has the support of former Beatle Paul McCartney, had launched a petition against the cull and said on its website that it has received support from people in 25 countries.
