The National Parks Association of the ACT wants to establish a zone in Canberra’s Ainslie – Majura Nature Reserve to protect a declining population of Rosenberg’s Goannas and has submitted a plan to the ACT Government.

The proposed zone would exclude dogs, except along certain roads, where a 40 m wide strip would be left free of fox baits or spring-activated mechanical devices, known as canid pest ejectors, to allow dog walking. A wide strip on the reserve’s eastern and southern edges would be free of fox-control devices, also to enable dog walking.

The plan strongly recommends community consultation and education and engagement with neighbouring rural landholders.

Until the 1970s, populations of two species of goanna – the Rosenberg’s Goanna and the Lace Monitor – were often seen in the hills that constitute Canberra Nature Park.

Lace Monitors are no longer present in Canberra Nature Park and are rare outside the city area. The only remaining peri-urban population of either species is the group of Rosenberg’s Goannas in Ainslie – Majura reserve.

This population will also disappear unless there is action to remove threats, especially from dogs and foxes, that have led to the decline of goannas in Canberra Nature Park.

‘There is increasing recognition of the need for action to restore and recover eco-systems in this area, and throughout Australia,’ said the plan’s author and NPA goanna project team leader Don Fletcher.

‘Urban areas are a focus for such activity. The possibility of protecting the Rosenberg’s Goanna population at Ainslie – Majura is a fine opportunity for the ACT to show it too can make worthwhile achievements protecting its ecological environment.’

You can read the full plan at https://tinyurl.com/2nzj3484

Contact: Don Fletcher 0428 489 990