The rescue of the Mahogany Glider

November 14, 1995
Issue 

By Anthony Brown BRISBANE — After fours years of intense political lobbying conservationists have achieved what is being described as one of Queensland's greatest environmental victories. In late October the Queensland and federal governments announced a $16 million package to protect the endangered Mahogany Glider and other unique flora and fauna in tropical lowland woodlands along the North Queensland coastline. Queensland environment minister Tom Barton and his federal counterpart Senator John Faulkner said the package would enable more than 38,000 hectares of freehold land to be voluntarily acquired to protect the Mahogany Glider. Conservationists, led by the Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland and the North Queensland Conservation Council (NQCC), have been campaigning to prevent the extinction of the estimated remaining 2000 Mahogany Gliders. Researchers led by Dr Steve Van Dyck from the Queensland Museum rediscovered the glider near the sugarcane town of Tully in 1991. Until then it was thought to have been extinct. Each glider needs territories of over 20 square hectares, where it usually forages alone, and corridors of wilderness to move within. Unfortunately, its habitat lay outside the protection of national parks or other conservation zones. This area of North Queensland is known for its sugarcane industry, and the glider lived on uncleared lands within unprotected sugarcane properties. Conservationists feared that if sugarcane growers cleared this habitat for increased yields, the once thought extinct mammal would become extinct. They estimated that some 80% of its habitat had already been cleared to make way for sugarcane farms, and demanded that the state government intervene immediately. In 1994 the Queensland Department of Environment and Heritage finally asked cane growers to stop clearing land while it ascertained the quantity, quality and range of habitat. However, after 18 months some growers became impatient and, exercising their freehold rights, began clearing their properties in preparation for planting. Following the clearing of some 100 hectares known to contain gliders, in June the government issued an Interim Conservation Order to prevent the further clearing of important habitat areas on properties. This protection expired in August and conservationists know of at least two instances where important habitat was cleared between then and the joint governments' management plan announced in October. In a move which paved the way for the rescue package, the NQCC joined forces with the sugarcane growers in July to lobby both governments. Many growers indicated they were prepared to sell areas of land at fair market prices to ensure the preservation of the habitat. Conservationists were able to use this opening to persuade both governments to initiate a rescue package. Although they believe the Queensland government should have acted much sooner, they are nevertheless delighted with the result. NQCC spokesperson David Sutton and council coordinator Imogen Zethoven described it as one of the state's major conservation victories. Most of the crucial habitats will be bought and added to existing national parks between Tully and Ingham. Queensland environment minister Tom Barton said the government was already negotiating to buy properties. He said one of the major habitat areas had already been acquired and that "by early in the new year the future of the Mahogany Glider will be absolutely assured because we will have acquired all those properties". He also promised that the government would introduce a Conservation Plan for the glider under the state's 1992 Nature Conservation Act.

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