Fruit tree netting that can entangle flying foxes and birds now banned
June 29, 2024 7:09 AM Subscribe
Fruit tree netting that can entangle flying foxes and birds now banned in Canberra backyards.
Fruit tree netting with large holes is now prohibited in Canberra backyards, with residents facing fines of up to $800 if caught using it. Netting must now have a mesh size of 5mm by 5mm or smaller.
Aw, I spent the '90s in Canberra and never saw any flying foxes there. Had to go up to Sydney to see those. *shakes fist at sky* Damn you, climate not-yet-change!
(Seriously, though, it's disturbing to see evidence of dramatic shifts in species' range in the space of half of my puny human lifetime.)
posted by rory at 7:32 AM on June 29
(Seriously, though, it's disturbing to see evidence of dramatic shifts in species' range in the space of half of my puny human lifetime.)
posted by rory at 7:32 AM on June 29
Wait, you got FLYING FOXES down there!?
I visited my wife's relatives in Sydney in 2011, my first time in Australia, and among the things that made me feel "I am very far away from home", a huge tree *covered* with flying foxes at the Royal Botanic Gardens tops the list. An amazing sight.
posted by ryanshepard at 7:56 AM on June 29 [2 favorites]
I visited my wife's relatives in Sydney in 2011, my first time in Australia, and among the things that made me feel "I am very far away from home", a huge tree *covered* with flying foxes at the Royal Botanic Gardens tops the list. An amazing sight.
posted by ryanshepard at 7:56 AM on June 29 [2 favorites]
No fox holes in Aussie meshes
posted by chavenet at 10:22 AM on June 29 [1 favorite]
posted by chavenet at 10:22 AM on June 29 [1 favorite]
Hurray! I'm glad there is change with this. You can see the large mesh is terrible. I imagine it's hard to get off the tree too, thus inviting people to leave it as tangled trash, sort of like fishing line.
I'm just wondering if the small holes are a problem with little claws and birdy feet getting tangled in the mesh. Human solutions are so often nature's problems.
posted by BlueHorse at 11:08 AM on June 29 [1 favorite]
I'm just wondering if the small holes are a problem with little claws and birdy feet getting tangled in the mesh. Human solutions are so often nature's problems.
posted by BlueHorse at 11:08 AM on June 29 [1 favorite]
This needs to happen everywhere. *looks hard at New Zealand*
posted by rednikki at 12:44 PM on June 29 [1 favorite]
posted by rednikki at 12:44 PM on June 29 [1 favorite]
Here's a bunch of flying foxes hanging out at Tarban Creek in Sydney in 2019—click through for a few more, including some close-ups.
And the finer mesh is a very good move.
posted by rory at 1:17 PM on June 29
And the finer mesh is a very good move.
posted by rory at 1:17 PM on June 29
Hi, it's your friendly fruit tree farmer piping in from over here in California. Yay Canberra! The finer mesh works better in every way. I find if you let it drape all the way to the ground, and then weight it to the earth with rocks, birds and other creatures can't even get in. It's great stuff, not cheap, but worth it.
I don't mind giving the wild things a tithe of the harvest, but the birbs will flock to my fig trees and put a single hole in each and every fruit. And don't you go telling me birds aren't real either!
posted by birdsongster at 2:26 PM on June 29 [6 favorites]
I don't mind giving the wild things a tithe of the harvest, but the birbs will flock to my fig trees and put a single hole in each and every fruit. And don't you go telling me birds aren't real either!
posted by birdsongster at 2:26 PM on June 29 [6 favorites]
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posted by chavenet at 7:23 AM on June 29 [1 favorite]