Living with Wildlife Tasmania

Bury half an apple or other fruit at the bottom of your compost bin and leave it open – next morning your compost will be turned and aerated for you!

Know the differences between house (black) rats, bush rats and antechinus, dunnarts or bandicoots.

Mothballs (naphthalene) and other strong-smelling things can be inserted into walls, ceilings etc to deter rats, and probably possums as well. It won’t harm them, just encourages them to move on. Seems to last about a year, but the rats haven’t returned to my place in 3 years.

If you hear an animal in your roof – please don’t just throw baits up. Rodenticide poisoning is a major cause of death for many of our native wildlife, who are only in our roofs because we have cleared the old growth forests they need for tree hollows. We shouldn’t hurt them further.

Tidy up junk piles in the garden, shed or garage. Remove uneaten pet or chook food/birdseed. Keep those foods in metal rodent-proof containers. Reduce/remove loose hay and straw as rodents use it for nests. AB Bishop

If you keep possums fed with native plant foods (in a buffer zone around exotic gardens), which can handle possum predations because they’ve co-evolved, they are less likely to obliterate your exotic plants – fruit trees, roses, vegies. But don’t forget, your native foods need to be a whole-of-year thing. Native plants that feed possums include banksias, grevilleas, eucalypts and other nectar-producers.

Totally enclosing your produce garden with square aviary mesh (eg 12mm) and/or corrugated iron at the base, is a brilliant way of protecting fruit and veggies from the most destructive critters, while insects and skinks can still get in and out. AB Bishop

Don’t forget to put an outward skirt on the bottom of your fences (so it’s like an L) so critters (eg rabbits, quolls) can’t burrow under the fence and get into your garden/chookshed.

In forests, possums mostly feed on eucalyptus leaves, but as we all know they aren’t fussy eaters. Plant more native species to distract hungry possums from your roses. Other ideas are spraying your deciduous trees etc with a few cloves of garlic steeped in hot water overnight and strained. Or sprinkle blood and bone around your plants – but these ideas aren’t a failsafe.

Possums generally avoid strongly scented plants eg salvias, pelargoniums, lavender and some daisies. They are territorial so you’ll usually only end up with one or two residents. That’s why most relocated brushtail possums die stressfully soon after release. If you have a possum in your roof and would like to know how to gently move them into a nest box, we encourage you to read this advice (https://bit.ly/3yvWl47).

At about 8 cm, the Tasmanian pygmy possum is the world’s smallest possum. Sugar gliders feed on nectar, pollen, eucalyptus sap and insects, so contribute to pollination and pest control. Possums and gliders have been known to become quite tame.

Crawleighwood Garden notes ‘nothing much keeps possums out so we pretty much have to live with them. The main things that have assisted us in managing their impact are having a tall perimeter fence around the whole garden, trees around the fenceline and a dog on the inside. While the possums still climb the fence, they tend to stay in the tree tops along the boundary to keep clear of the dog. We still see lots of munched leaves in the boundary trees  – but at least the veggies and special plants nearer the house are generally ok.’

Spring and summer sees an increase in snake sightings, as they come out of brumation and start to look for a mate and food. Unfortunately this is also a time where they can be killed on the road or get into trouble with people and pets.

If you are concerned about a snake on your property, please stay calm and still (don’t try to hurt it, so you avoid being bitten). Call a snake relocation service while keeping a distant eye on the snake and your pets and children inside. If you are happy let the snake stay in its territory, you can make your property safer by keeping weeds and grasses low (remember to be careful not to hurt little animals when trimming) and avoiding unsafe spots like wood piles. Use birdbaths rather than ponds for water and deal with any rodent problem (snake food, as are frogs).

We also suggest wearing thick clothes and boots while out walking, booking a snake avoidance course for your dog, updating your first aid training and making sure you have a pressure bandage in your kit. If you suspect a pet has been bitten, please take it to a vet immediately.

Snakes are protected and play important roles in our ecosystems! Their populations are declining, so we need to learn to live respectfully with them, while keeping our distance.

Snakes feed on frogs, so build your frog pond away from your house.

When trying to attract birds, we need to consider what species naturally live in our area and which of these we’d like in our gardens. Then we must consider all their needs.

By using a few indigenous plants and providing water on balconies or courtyards, inner-city gardeners are contributing to wildlife corridors and survival for city wildlife.

Tolerating cobwebs on some parts of your house means that birds will have this resource for nesting.

If you have lots of nectar-producing plants in your garden, you’ll also have lots of nectar-loving birds such as honeyeaters, which can be territorial and drive away other small birds. Planting a garden for all ie seed-eaters, nectar-feeders, fruit-munchers and insect-eaters provides for a balanced population of birds. Their beaks are a clue to what they mainly eat. And if they have food all year round, you’ll have residents with families.

Provide bare (no leaves) prunings, cobwebs, coconut coir, string or cotton, chook feathers, pet fur and human hair to use for nesting material (avoid synthetics). AB Bishop

In Tasmania there are Forester kangaroos and two types of wallaby; Bennett’s and Rufous (pademelon). As herbivores that love short, fine grasses, they can save you a lot of mowing time, keeping lawns short while fertilising them. If left to it, macropods will groom lawns around houses and keep them very short, safe for bushfire protection and cooling in summer for your house. You may even end up with a marsupial lawn, a short lawn made up of grasses, moss and herbaceous plants that can feed many animals.

If you want to sow some suitable grasses for macropods, choose bent, creeping fescue or native grasses such as wallaby or kangaroo grass. These native grasses can be kept in check by cool (cultural) burning, as they resprout after a cool burn.

Macropods can be kept out of gardens usually by a 1.2-1.5m high fence. They feed on grassy areas as well as shrubby understorey plants, and need trees or shrubs for shelter.

Lizards and frogs help to keep our pest insect numbers in check, and are also a valuable food source for various birds and other animals. Cats and dogs must be kept away for frogs and reptiles to survive.

Cold-blooded frogs and reptiles eat the same kinds of foods. Most of them feed on arthropods – spiders, crickets, moths, mosquitos, grasshoppers – and snails and worms. Some reptiles prey on other reptiles as well as on mice, and on fruit, seeds and vegetative matter. Compost heaps attract a lot of bugs for them. Plant insect-pollinated flowers to feed frogs and reptiles, and plant sedges, grasses such as poa or lomandra, and groundcovers near ponds to provide shelter for frogs and small lizards.

Most frogs lay their eggs in water. A frog pond should receive about 70% shade and 30% sun, to enable enough algae to grow to support tadpoles but not so much that water quality is reduced.

Lizards also need areas to shelter such as hollow logs and crevices under rocks, plus basking areas on paths and rocks to warm up.

In Tasmania we have various warm-blooded microbats which are pest-control specialists. They aren’t aggressive and don’t feed on blood! They need tree hollows, crevices, caves, mine shafts or dead palm leaves to roost in. They can travel down chimneys or through cracks in your house – just open doors and windows and they will make their way out.

Their prey includes cabbage moths, beetles and weevils, and if you have a mosquito problem, install a batbox or three. See the book Habitat by AB Bishop for building instructions. And go to the Australasian Bat Society website for further bat information.

Provide some cover, such as dense shrubs, for them in your garden, where they can get away from cats and dogs, and plant grasses and sedges for their nesting habitat where they actually nest within that grass as well. This habitat will suit bettongs as well.

Feeding any native animal impacts them both as individuals (through malnutrition, imprinting on humans, exposure to pet attacks and disease) and as a species (by reducing their participation in their ecosystem). 

By planting a multi-level (ie groundcovers and higher shrubs/grasses) unsprayed native garden, your local bandicoots will have access to the food they have evolved to eat (invertebrates, tubers, bulbs and corms). Lawns, leaf litter, branches and logs attract the insects and worms that bandicoots feed on. They love to find little insects around your lawn, but they need somewhere to hide. Bandicoots will also avoid you and your pets, which is safer for them and their young. To keep them safe, plant prickly shrubs that provide protection from dogs and cats. They also need to be hidden from other prying eyes too, such as hawks and owls — larger shrubs and trees, including manuka (teatree), lemon bottlebrush and silver banksia, can provide that protection. And don’t forget they need water, preferably from a pond they can get out of if they fall in.

They need to be able to get into the garden: so, when fencing the yard, make sure the bandicoots can still get in and out. 

Bandicoots are a great asset in the garden. They help to return leaf litter, water, nutrients and fungi to the soil and research has shown that they improve seed germination and plant distribution in forests. Holes in your lawn may mean that bandicoots are eating your lawn beetles – an environmentally-friendly pest control, plus the holes help water penetration (also reducing erosion) and nutrient recycling.

By creating a bandicoot haven, you can also create an ark for other species. If you would like to help these important little diggers (and as a bonus, help your Bluetongues and other lizards), here’s a few easy changes you can make: >

< Native plant gardening

• Plant local native groundcovers, dense shrubs and small trees, to provide food, nest sites and protection. Plant grasses and sedges in clumps: tussock grass, sagg and flax lily make for good species.

• Link new plantings to existing areas and create wildlife corridors.

• Mulch, compost and leaf litter all boost beneficial insects (a food source) and improve soil health and hydration.

• Bandicoots, antechinus, dunnarts, skinks, frogs and Bluetongues will manage your insect pests for you, if you avoid baits and pesticides.

• Reduce power tool use (whippersnippers, leaf blowers, chainsaws) if possible, to avoid injuring or frightening little animals away.

Shelters and corridors

• Terracotta pipes , hollow logs, rocks, wooden planks, bricks, roof tiles and other shed items can provide protection and wildlife corridors between plant ‘islands’.

Keep pets away

• Fence dogs into a separate area and walk them on a leash.

• Keep cats inside or in a custom-built catio – safer for pets and wildlife!

• Avoid leaving pet or human food where wildlife can access it, to avoid nutritional problems and reduce contact with pets.

• Don’t put cat litter in your garden – wildlife and raptors can die after exposure to toxoplasmosis.

Provide safe water 

• Keep your pool covered & add an escape ramp eg a large stick.

• Place low water dishes around your garden (add sticks and stones so little animals can escape), particularly in hot weather.

A sudden influx of insects can be weather-related. Wind can push flying insects thousands of kilometres out of their natural range. ‘Perfect’ conditions such as the right humidity, lack of wind, warmth, and the emergence of juvenile leaves, often result in outbreaks of pests such as aphids or beetles. Their predators don’t usually start appearing until pest numbers reach a critical level.

Squish early aphids when you notice them. Once their favoured conditions change, numbers will quickly dissipate. Chickens and ducks are supreme pest controllers if they are allowed to range free.

Numbers of insects are declining so rapidly that there have been warnings of an ‘ecological armageddon’. A huge number of our fruit and vegetable crops are insect-pollinated. Wild insects can produce a greater abundance and variety of crops than honeybees. Like all wildlife they need shelter, water and a variety of food to survive, but don’t need our poisons or land-clearing habits.

Keep gardens and land well-covered with organic mulches to allow insects to breed. Bandicoots and other small animals will love you for it. And plenty of tufty grasses and small dense shrubs will provide insect shelter, and provide food for your birds.