More dugongs found dead in nets in Australia

Kristy Sexton-McGrath ABC 7 Jun 10;

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) says it is investigating the death of two more dugongs in nets off the far north Queensland coast.

A GBRMPA patrol found the dead dugongs in the nets off Yarrabah, south of Cairns.

The incident comes nearly two months after three dugongs were found dead in nets off Cairns.

Animal activist Colin Riddell is campaigning to overturn traditional hunting laws and says a moratorium on dugong killings is needed.

"There needs to be clear guidelines on what humanely [killing] is," he said.

"There needs to be a moratorium placed immediately to ensure sustainable numbers and there needs to be a comprehensive permit system set up so that when they are hunted - it's controlled.

"We [need to] know how many are killed, we know where they are killed, and we know what's left."

Yarrabah patrol uncovers dead dugongs in nets
Ben Blomfield The Cairns Post 7 Jun 10;

THE death of two dugongs found in illegal nets has prompted calls for more rangers to be deployed to catch poachers

The incident near Yarrabah last Thursday comes less than two months after three dugongs were found dead in nets about 3.5 nautical miles off Cairns.

The State and Federal governments are facing increasing pressure to scrap laws which allow traditional land owners to hunt dugongs and turtles using nets with a permit.

Aboriginal elders say the practice is an insult to traditional hunting heritage and that it fuels an
illegal meat trade where dugong can fetch $150 a kilo.

Commercial gains from hunting the animal breaches Commonwealth law.

The incident has sparked fresh calls for more rangers with greater powers to be deployed in areas prone to poaching.

Yarrabah Mayor Percy Neal said his council had rejected requests from dugong hunters to support the use of netting .

"Our people need to hunt the traditional way using 14ft (4.2m)wooden boats with special spears, it’s fair game then," he said.

"It’s not traditional hunting and it shouldn’t be tolerated … but we can’t do anything about it because people have permits from the State Government."

Federal Opposition environment spokesman Greg Hunt said rangers should be given more power to prosecute poachers while the Government needed to regulate the practice.

"Immediately, we need additional resources for indigenous rangers and more support for inspectors of the illegal dugong and turtle meat trade and their ability to prosecute," Mr Hunt said.

"The slaughtering of dugongs is out of control because of poachers. There is an epidemic of poaching."

Animal activist Colin Riddell, who is heading a campaign to overturn hunting laws, said a moratorium on dugong killing had to be introduced so the numbers could be monitored.

"No one knows how the dugong population has been affected by this," he said.

"Most of these hunters don’t have permits, it’s just open slather."

A spokesman for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, which is investigating the latest dugong deaths, confirmed the
incident.

"The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority found a set net as part of a patrol of the Yarrabah area which had two dead dugongs in it," he said.

Aborigines plead for dugong hunting say
Jessica Mawer ABC 8 Jun 10;

An Aboriginal spokesman is calling for Indigenous people to have greater input into how dugong hunting is managed in far north Queensland.

Five dugongs have been found dead in nets off the far north Queensland coast over the past two months, including two found off Yarrabah, south of Cairns, last week.

Animal activists are calling for a moratorium on dugong hunting.

But Kuku Yalanji people's spokesman at Mossman, Linc Walker, says hunting is an important part of Aboriginal culture.

"It's not an activity that is to be taken lightly. It's a pretty dangerous activity," he said.

"People don't just go out there for fun - it's not a fun activity - you can get seriously injured hunting. You actually have to put up with a lot of emotional scarring as well as the physical scarring that could happen to you."

Mr Walker says people at Mossman say Indigenous people have a right to hunt dugongs and should be given more of a say on how the practice is managed.

"They have the right to hunt in their country, other people don't," he said.

"So when it comes down to it, those people have to be empowered to manage the resources from their country and then the problems with the over-hunting and the people hunting in other places should cease."