After the recent death of three juvenile cassowaries, reportedly by a dog attack, conservationists and the wider community are now calling for a complete dog ban in the Daintree National Park.

Ian Locke from the Cassowary Foundation and a former tour guide has witnessed a decline in cassowary population over the past 20 years commenting that this is due to “road kills, loss of habitat and it’s getting worse every year but it’s mainly dogs now.  Often the dogs jump off the back of trucks or get lost in the wild and thats when the problems occur,’ he said.

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Conservations say the Daintree Ferry is the key to their survival and others say regulating the route is the only way to ensure wildlife safety.  They are calling for a total ban on all dogs to stop the often fatal attacks on wildlife, reported seven local news.

This recent reported dog attack has sparked a fierce search for the animals and owner responsible. 

Mayor Julie Leu commented that “Douglas Shire Council has stepped up the patrols significantly north of the Daintree River and staff are visiting on a daily basis,” she said.

DSC General Manager of Operations Paul Hoye advised Newsport “DSC is doing what it can to reduce or eliminate the death and injuries to cassowaries in the Daintree in the areas it administers.

“It is an offence under DSC’s Local Laws to keep more than one dog or any cats north of the Kimberley Range on any allotment located in a Conservation Planning Area.  This Local Law was introduced to offer greater protection for wildlife in the Daintree.  Council is limited in some regards as it is not allowed to trap for dingoes or dogs in a National Park.  It is an offence to do so and if council does trap a dingo in a national park it has to be set free according to state government laws and regulations,” said Mr Hoye.

More than 90 percent of the area form the Daintree River to Cape Tribulation is National Parks which is administered by Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service.  The Department of Environment and Heritage Protection is responsible for native fauna within National Parks.

Council advised that due to the vast size of the area surveillance cameras, which could be utilised in the limited areas where council is allowed to trap for wild dogs/dingoes, are virtually useless.  They can respond with targeted patrols and surveillance if roaming dogs are reported to council.

On a local level council can issue a $235.80 fine for a dog being in a public place uncontrolled.  Under the state legislation Animal Management Act, there are heavier penalties.  The options are to prosecute for allowing a dog to attack and kill an animal and carries a maximum penalty of $11,780. The other alternatives are to either declare the dog dangerous which carries strict confinement conditions or seize and destroy the dog, which is difficult unless the dog is already declared dangerous.

In response to the ongoing cassowary decline in the Daintree, Mr Hoye said “council has discussed the issue as part of the inaugural Daintree Joint Management Group meeting [last week] with stakeholders including Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, the Wet Tropics Management Authority, Terrain Natural Resource Management, Jabalbina and the Daintree Coast Community Council.  Part of those discussions involved lobbying for cassowaries to be recognised as part of the Threatened Species Recovery Plan, which is being developed by the Threatened Species Commissioner and will assist in securing funding to protect the species and their habitat.  Councils’ Local Laws and Pest Management  teams are doing as much as they can to assist on a local level with increased patrols and surveillance in the Daintree,” he said.

That being said, there is no doubt there is an urgent need for protecting a rapidly declining cassowary population in the Daintree.