Latest Pest Monitoring Results are Encouraging

During the second week of September, we carried out our quarterly pest monitoring to assess pest numbers. We were particularly interested to see the effects of our winter toxin programme.  

We used three monitoring methods: tracking tunnels, chew cards and thermal imaging cameras. The results were mostly positive. 

Across all three monitoring methods, we recorded zero possum and zero rat detections, two hedgehog detections and 47 mouse detections. This does not mean we have zero possums and rats on Living Springs land, it just means that they did not show up on these monitoring devices due to their numbers being low.  

These are encouraging results and suggest our pest control efforts are having a positive impact. Recording zero rats and possums is a significant milestone, as both species pose a serious threat to native birds, their eggs and chicks, as well as native vegetation. 

Mice remain a challenging pest to control, but we will continue trapping and monitoring to keep their numbers in check and protect our native biodiversity.