ARTICLES
Animal Extinction – Australia’s Shabby Distinction (continued)
the mining companies wanting vast new coal mines opened up,
expecting government support (tax payers’ money) to help them
achieve greater profits! The list goes on and on. Native forests are
still being slaughtered, both to provide new population centres
and hardwood for buildings. Little thought is given to the many
animals relying upon the old-growth forests to provide homes
for our animals. Don’t new trees grow to replace those that are
cut down? In many cases they do, but it takes many more years
for that to happen. In the meantime, animals that depended on
those trees perish. Old trees have hollows providing habitats for
a greater range of invertebrates than do young trees. Old trees
are often the main seed trees in forest communities, whereas
younger trees are more intent on simply growing and getting
bigger. Natural replacement regimes are thrown into disarray. All
of this is very depressing and seems so senseless.
challenges. Regrettably, there is an abundance of case studies
available in Australia that epitomise the ruthless pursuit of profits
over the environment.
With elections very soon, candidates of all Parties – and
Independents – should be advised in no uncertain terms that we
need strong national environment laws to protect the wildlife and
the places we love, and follow it up with campaigns should these
improvements not be acted upon.
The following eight charismatic Australian animals are under
immediate threat. Please take the time to look, read about them,
and decide just how important they are to you and the future
generations of Australians. With two elections occurring within the
next months – in NSW and Federally – there is a real opportunity
for voices to be heard. Teachers and students, don’t be shy, be
willing to spread the word and to stand up for a better world for
all!
Dr Arthur White is a highly-experienced Ecological Scientist with
special expertise in herpetology (the study of frogs and reptiles).
For example, he is one of only four Australians allowed to touch
the eggs, tadpoles or adult Green and Golden Bell Frogs, a
national threatened frog species, without incurring a fine of
$200K. Arthur had major input into the conservation strategy for
the Bell Frogs at Homebush during the construction of the 2000
Olympic Games site. Those frogs were common in New South
Wales up until the late 1960s. In 20 years their numbers have now
been reduced to the point of endangerment. For SEN#3 in 2017
Dr White wrote a compelling article concerning the impact of
sand-mining at Smith’s Lake on the local frog community. Some
frog species disappeared while other actually benefitted from
the post-mining changes in habitat. The tragedy with this study
was that the mining companies were not required to assess the
impacts of the mining on the local fauna. The assurance they
gave that everything would be put back in place once all the
mining was finished had been sufficient for the Government of
the day.
Along with those dedicated battlers for conservation in the
Australian Conservation Foundation, I am convinced that the time
has come for we adults, and especially we schoolteachers, to
learn from the children. The students have shown us the way.
Insist that all politicians elected for both State and Territory and
Federal Governments act directly and continually to protect our
native wildlife and environment. Leave our children a legacy that
we are proud of, not one to be ashamed of.
Images of eight animals that are in serious danger of extinction
are attached. Respectively, these are:
1. The Palm Cockatoo
As the Australian Conservation Foundation writes, “Our
environment laws are there to protect the air we breathe, our
wildlife, and the places we love. Yet under these laws today, our
governments are allowing companies to mine, bulldoze, dredge
and destroy with little oversight.”
By bulldozing forests, digging mines, and sealing soil under
concrete, contaminating aquifers, big companies are tearing the
fragile web of life apart, so plants and animals are vanishing right
across the world like never before. This must not be allowed to
continue! Companies must be required to act in a responsible
and environmentally-neutral manner. We need laws that protect
life, not allow it to be destroyed. Teachers across Australia
must explain the consequences of reckless development to
their students, from junior primary to Year 12. There is now the
capacity in Biology for depth-studies to investigate some of these
Palm Cockatoo these rosy cheeked cockies make drum beats
to attract a mate but their drumsticks cannot beat bulldozers
demolishing their tree habitats.
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SCIENCE EDUCATIONAL NEWS VOL 68 NO 1