K’gari’s brumbies may be extinct, offering hope for the island’s delicate ecosystem. The removal of feral horses is a significant step towards preserving the island’s natural beauty and protecting its unique wildlife.
K’gari’s brumbies have likely ‘died out’ bringing hope to island’s fragile ecosystem
History of Brumbies on K’gari
Brumbies were introduced to K’gari in the late 1800s and bred for the English Army. They were also used for transport and to haul timber for the logging industry on the island later that century. Forester Andy Anderson recalled his parents riding the horses on the island during the 1940s.
Relocation Efforts
By the early 2000s, wildlife rangers launched a rehoming program to capture and move the brumbies off the island. Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service said 28 feral horses had been relocated to the mainland by August 2005. However, it was not the last of them.
Trail Cameras
In about 2013, Senior Ranger Linda Behrendorff said they were collecting dingo scats and found one very long hair that was found in a dingo scat. This led them to put out trail cameras. Since then, none of the cameras have shown any signs of horses since 2019.
Impact on Ecosystem
Rangers say the last sighting of a brumby was on a trail camera in 2019. Ms Behrendorff said K’gari was no place for wild horses due to its fragile ecosystems and dune systems. Horses damage these areas with their hooves, causing stomach and other issues.
Hope for Island’s Ecosystem
The likely death of the brumbies brings hope to the island’s ecosystem. Without the pest species, rangers say the island will benefit.
Introduction
K’gari (Fraser Island) is a heritage-listed sand island off Queensland’s east coast. The island is home to a fragile ecosystem that has been impacted by the presence of feral horses, also known as brumbies.
The brumbies were introduced to the island in the late 1800s and bred for the English Army. They were later used for transport and to haul timber for the logging industry on the island. In the early 2000s, wildlife rangers launched a rehoming program to capture and move them off the island.
Decline of Brumbies
According to Senior Ranger Linda Behrendorff, the last sighting of a brumby was in 2019. Since then, there have been no signs of horses on the island, including tracks, scats, hair, or other evidence. In about 2013, trail cameras were set up to monitor the population, and none of them have shown any signs of horses since 2019.
Rangers say that feral horses don’t really belong on K’gari as part of its ecosystem. They damage the fragile dune systems with their hooves and cause stomach issues due to the grasses they eat. Despite being a branded part of the island’s history post-colonization, Ms Behrendorff said K’gari was no place for wild horses.
Conclusion
The likely disappearance of brumbies from K’gari brings hope to the island’s fragile ecosystem. Rangers say that without the pest species, the island will benefit. The removal of feral horses is a significant step towards preserving the island’s natural beauty and protecting its unique wildlife.
