Concern over kangaroo cull at Watsonia

UPDATE: A Watsonia resident has accused Banyule Council and Parks Victoria of fudging local kangaroo population figures to justify a cull.

But authorities have assured 3AW Drive the figures are on the mark.

Jamie told 3AW Drive he received a letter in the mail recently, notifying him 50 of the 197 kangaroos in Gresswell Forest were going to be culled next Tuesday.

He said there was a problem with those figures.

‘There’s not 197 kangaroos there,’ Jamie explained on 3AW Drive.

‘We walk the park every day, virtually.

‘There could be like 50 kangaroos in total.

‘It’s a little bit concerning that they’ve been issued with a permit from the Department of Land, Water and Planning to cull, based on figures I don’t believe add up.’

LISTEN: Jamie voices his concerns on 3AW Drive

But Chris Hardman, from Parks Victoria, said authorities conducted four population checks a year and that 197 was accurate.

‘We are quite confident in that number,’ he said.

Mr Hardman said they first came across a ‘major animal welfare issue’ in the forest in 2013.

‘We found 68 kangaroos had died and a large portion of the population were in really poor condition,’ he explained.

Mr Hardman said the cause of those deaths was largely from malnutrition and parasites.

He said the forest simply couldn’t sustain the current population.

LISTEN: Chris Hardman explains the reasons for the cull