Media statements - Parks and Wildlife Service

Media statements (407)

Technology breakthrough for whale disentanglements

Details: Published: Wednesday, 13 June 2018 11:30

Western Australian government scientists have partnered with marine wildlife experts to develop a new whale rescue tool that tracks the real-time location of whales entangled in fishing gear. The technology allows responders from the Parks and Wildlife Service at the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions to remotely monitor the whale before safely attempting a disentanglement. A total of 10 trackable buoys have been provided to specialist whale disentanglement teams at strategic locations between Esperance and Broome, including three in Perth. The technology was developed by Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development scientists, with $73,000 in funding from the Australian Department of the Environment and Energy. The Western Rock Lobster Council has provided $20,000 for the purchase of the 10 buoys. Comments attributed to…

Environment Minister Stephen Dawson with a detector dog

New weapon against feral cats in detector dog trial

Details: Published: Friday, 25 May 2018 14:06

An innovative trial using expertly trained dogs to detect feral cats in a Wheatbelt reserve could help protect threatened species, such as numbats and woylies. In stage one of the trial this month, three dogs - a Malinois, a Terrier cross and a Labrador cross - and their handlers are working in Tutanning Nature Reserve, near Pingelly, to detect the presence of feral cats. Stage two, scheduled for 2019, will determine their effectiveness, in comparison with other control techniques and test combining techniques, to win the fight against feral cats. The dogs are trained to not attack the cats or native animals. Tutanning Nature Reserve is home to several threatened species that are vulnerable to feral cat predation, including numbats, woylies, chuditch and red-tailed phascogales.…

Free park entry during Ningaloo Whale Shark Festival

Details: Published: Friday, 25 May 2018 13:57

The Ningaloo Whale Shark Festival will celebrate the annual whale shark migration with a family festival day, gala cocktail evening, movies under the stars and live music this weekend. As part of the three-day festival, which starts today and is held in Exmouth, there will be free entry for visitors into Cape Range National Park on Sunday, May 27. The festival is a celebration of the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Reef and the iconic whale sharks that aggregate at Ningaloo Marine Park, between March and August each year, to feed on plankton and krill. The marine park's tropical waters are considered one of the best places to swim with whale sharks due to reliability of numbers and accessibility. Whale shark swim tours operating from Coral Bay…

Free park entry during Ningaloo Whale Shark Festival

Details: Published: Friday, 25 May 2018 12:59

The festival is held annually during the last weekend of May Whale sharks are one of the State's most significant attractions drawing visitors to the region, creating tourism jobs and stimulating the economy The Ningaloo Whale Shark Festival will celebrate the annual whale shark migration with a family festival day, gala cocktail evening, movies under the stars and live music this weekend. As part of the three-day festival, which starts today and is held in Exmouth, there will be free entry for visitors into Cape Range National Park on Sunday, May 27. The festival is a celebration of the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Reef and the iconic whale sharks that aggregate at Ningaloo Marine Park, between March and August each year, to feed on plankton and…

Annual prescribed burning target achieved - second consecutive year

Details: Published: Wednesday, 23 May 2018 12:18

Environment Minister Stephen Dawson today announced that as of May 23, 2018, about 216,000 hectares of prescribed burning had been achieved - the second year in a row that the target of at least 200,000 hectares has been exceeded, and the first time for two consecutive years since 1996-97. Since July 1, 2017, the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions' (DBCA) Parks and Wildlife Service has commenced 127 burns on land that it manages, including national parks, conservation reserves and State forest from Gingin in the north to Denmark on the south coast, including the Perth Hills area. This amount of prescribed burning will significantly reduce the threat and severity of devastating bushfires, minimising the risk to life, infrastructure and biodiversity values by reducing the…