Wilson’s Promontory National Park is a remarkable place; its scenery and biodiversity values are outstanding, however, the park is not immune from invasive feral animals such as deer, rabbits, foxes and feral cats. In fact over years “The Prom” has supported a large population of around 2000 hog deer.
The park is almost an island, being connected to the mainland by a narrow and low isthmus which has been the conduit for these feral animals to occupy the park. This quirk of geomorphology means the park can be potentially isolated from the rest of the mainland by creating a barrier across the isthmus. This idea has been around for a long time and we are now finally seeing some action.
Parks Victoria says it aims to “give nature the best chance of thriving”, at The Prom by building a 10 kilometre predator-proof exclusion fence across the Yanakie isthmus and opening up the opportunity to then eradicate deer, rabbits, foxes and feral cats from the park.
A national park is not the place to provide a sanctuary for feral deer and many would welcome “The Prom” being finally free of introduced hog deer, along with cats, foxes and rabbits.
You can hear more about this by tuning into the video below.
