Macropus giganteus

4 Eastern Grey Kangaroo at Isabella Plains, ACT

Request use of media

Identification history

Macropus giganteus	5 Jul 2023	MichaelMulvaney
Macropus giganteus	4 Jul 2023	CarbonAI
Macropus giganteus	4 Jul 2023	RodDeb

Identify this sighting

Please Login or Register to identify this sighting.

User's notes

includes one that was by itself with a collar on with 60L on.

6 comments

DonFletcher wrote:

4 Jul 2023

This type of collar is used on 'hand-injected' females involved in contraceptive research. A few of the collared ones are experimental controls, not expected to be infertile, but on most sites, most or all of the collared ones were injected about 7 years ago with Gonacon, which causes infertility. There are also 'dart delivered' females with no collars which received their Gonacon via a dart which fell out when they hopped away. After 25 years of frustrating kangaroo fertility control research by ACT Gov, Newcastle Uni, Sydney Uni and Melbourne Uni, Gonacon, imported from the USA by CSIRO, provided a fantastically successful result. It is now being trialled at the population level, in small areas, by ACTGOV and CSIRO. To dart enough females to make a big difference to population recovery rate following culling will be a HUGE challenge. I will forward this sighting to the contact for this reasearch Claire.Wimpenny@ACT.gov.au

RodDeb wrote:

4 Jul 2023

@DonFletcher - Thank you for the information and for forwarding the sighting to the right research person. Hope it proves useful.

HelenCross wrote:

5 Jul 2023

Good spotting Deb, I hadn't realised they were in Tuggeranong too

RodDeb wrote:

5 Jul 2023

thanks Helen, first time we have seen one here.

DonFletcher wrote:

5 Jul 2023

Tuggeranong HS (the area inside the fence) was one of the research sites. I cant remember clearly but it probably had 8-15 collared females originally of which most would have died of old age and other causes by now. This one must have hopped over the fence onto the road verge and may well go back inside. Contact Claire.Wimpenny@act.gov.au for more info. Also the manager of the homestead may know something. There are other collared ones still surviving at places like Weston Park, ANBG and Gold Creek Golf Course. Gonacon treated females grow bigger and live longer because they do not have the 'cost of reproduction' like normal females.

HelenCross wrote:

5 Jul 2023

Interesting, thanks Don. Have seen the ANBG and Weston Park ones but didn't know about the others. Going to the homestead next week so will ask.

Please Login or Register to comment.