|
How you can work with DEC to help conserve Muir’s Corella and reduce the damage it causes on farms.
 About Muir’s Corella
- The World’s only population of Muir’s Corella (Cacatua pastinator pastinator) occurs in southwestern Australia from Boyup Brook and Qualeup south to the lower Perup River, Lake Muir and Cambellup
- Like other cockatoos, Muir’s Corella depends on mature eucalypts with hollows for nesting
- When large areas of the south-west were cleared for agriculture, numbers were reduced to fewer than 3000
- Muir’s Corella is now Endangered and the bird and its habitat are protected by law
- Traditionally, Muir’s Corella fed on native shoots, bulbs and seeds, but it now flocks to farmland to feed, where it can damage crops and young trees
- Shooting to kill and poisoning are illegal and are probably not effective control methods in the longterm
- There is no easy solution to the problems caused by Muir’s Corella, but with planning, co-operation and communication, farmers can reduce the damage
- A knowledge of the biology of Muir’s Corella can assist with planning damage control
Reducing damage on farms
The facts
- Muir’s Corella feeds on different crops at different times of the year as they germinate and ripen
- Most damage occurs to germinating cereal crops in autumn and seedling trees in winter
- Food is scarce in summer, when the population can be controlled by reducing the availability of grain
- Birds use regular flight paths, flock and feed together and regularly return to good feeding sites
- Flocks feed in the afternoon and morning in summer and can feed all day in winter
- Onion grass (Romulea rosea) is preferred to commercial crops and can be used as a decoy during sowing
The plan
- Work together to monitor the whereabouts, movements and numbers of birds
- Feed sheep away from crops and at or after dusk rather than in the morning
- Sow at the same time as your neighbours and as many paddocks as possible at the same time
- Develop a program of frequent and random scaring, such as moving scare guns from farm to farm
- Monitor crops for damage during the first few weeks of growth and take action at the first signs of damage
- Identify sites for decoy feeding where the corellas are provided with food away from crops
 |
Seasonal Cycle
Understanding the biology of Muir’s Corella can help reduce damage to crops and young trees |
The management
1. Crop management
- Sow at the recommended rate, at the same time as your neighbours
- Cover grain, avoid and clean up spills during sowing and harvesting
- Minimise residual grain in the stubble by grazing sheep
- Direct drill to avoid exposing onion grass corms in seeded paddocks
2. Scare tactics
- Monitor the activity of birds and combine several methods of scaring with licensed scare shooting
- Scare erratically, early in the season, early in the day and shift scare guns often
3. Decoy feeding
- Decoy feed to divert birds from crops and continue to scare at crops
- Decoy feed as far away as possible from crops
- Use seconds seed or plough up onion grass in paddocks to expose corms
- Reducing Damage on Farms “We can’t out number them, but we can out smart them”
Working together
Farmers can work with DEC to help conserve Muir’s Corella and reduce the damage it causes by:
- Retaining paddock trees
- Planning damage control early in the season and monitoring bird numbers, movements and damage
- Co-operating with neighbours to manage crops, scare birds and decoy feed
- Recording successful methods of damage control and sharing them with neighbours
Further information
Department of Environment and Conservation
Brain St, Manjimup WA 6258
Ph 9771 7988, Fax 9771 2677
 Muir's corella (196.08 kB)
Living with Muir’s corella (432.42 kB)
Muir’s corella: conserving a threatened species (678.56 kB)
Minimising the damage and nuisance caused by Muir’s corella (430.26 kB)
Using explosive cartridges (Bird Frite®) to scare Muir’s corella from crops (254.83 kB)
Managing Muir's Corella in Blue Gum Plantations - (185kB)
|
