Topics > Plants & animals > Living with wildlife

Impact causing wildlife

Wildlife management is often thought of in terms of protecting and nurturing wildlife populations and the habitat they live in.

However, wildlife management also includes managing conflict between wildlife and human interests. Changing land use and the increasing spread of suburbia means that wildlife are sometimes in conflict with humans when they compete for food, water, refuge and space.

Examples of the impact wildlife can have

Animal behaviour threatening human safety:

  • birds swooping to defend their young in the nest
  • hazard to aircraft safety from flocking birds congregating on or near runways
  • aggressive animals.

Damage to the built environment or assets:

  • chewing external timbers of buildings
  • digging up turf on sports ovals
  • fouling manufactured products, goods or fencing.

Damage to the natural environment:

  • overgrazing at newly planted sites
  • pruning and chewing branches of mature trees.

Damage to crops, produce and horticulture:

  • eating germinating cereal and/or grain crops
  • trampling crops
  • eating stock feed
  • eating fruit, vegetables and flowers.

Managing impact causing wildlife

The department is responsible for regulating the management of wildlife in accordance with the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972. We encourage you to take a Living with Wildlife approach when addressing the detrimental effects native animals can have on your property.

We provide technical advice to people with a wildlife problem and advocate the use of non-lethal methods to reduce damage. However, the department may grant a permit to destroy wildlife where wildlife is causing, or is likely to cause, damage to the environment, crops, stock or property, or poses a health and safety risk.

Examples of wildlife management tools

Non lethal management

Lethal management

the use of firearms to scare animals

the use of firearms to destroy some animals

use of gas guns, or other commercial scaring devices to scare animals

trapping and carbon dioxide narcosis of animals

modifying habitat or removing resources

egg oiling, egg pricking and egg breaking

placement of nest boxes in trees to provide refuge for hollow-dependent animals

create alternate roosting sites for displaced species

create alternative fencing or gates for wildlife

netting high value crops

planting decoy crops

tree collaring