Fox: fact or fiction

Col Bailey

If the State Government remains convinced that there are still foxes running free in Tasmania, it is doing little to convince the populace. We have recently seen the Fox Task Force being wound down to one capable of only a token response in dealing with any possible sightings and future action.

RECENT comment on the evergreen red fox saga prompts me to offer a layman’s response to a situation that has intrigued me from day one.

Overall, the red fox scenario raises more questions than it answers. To this point in time, there does not appear to have been a definite conclusion — scant if any tangible proof and little positive voice to be heard from the authorities involved in this matter.

As a consequence, the general public are somewhat perplexed, and is it any wonder?

If the State Government remains convinced that there are still foxes running free in Tasmania, it is doing little to convince the populace. We have recently seen the Fox Task Force being wound down to one capable of only a token response in dealing with any possible sightings and future action.

If the government were fair dinkum about this foxes would be on the top of their priority heap. And well may the government be saying, “ but what more can we do to convince Tasmanians that there are foxes running free in the state?”

If they are genuinely concerned for our much-heralded wildlife, and especially the smaller bird and marsupial members of that exclusive fraternity, they could at least show a bit more concern.

By scaling down the Fox Task Force to only a token number, they have effectively all but closed the door on the issue, and by doing this have displayed an incredible lack of interest in ridding the state of this inherent danger — if in fact it does exists at all?

Not only does the possibility of foxes roaming the countryside remain, but the equally dangerous situation exists of the feral cat menace.

Whether or not there are foxes is open to conjecture, but can we really afford to take this chance? Let’s say for instance that there are no foxes in Tasmania, as many would venture to say. That being the case, the State Government would have been right in ignoring this perceptible threat. This would amount to the whole scenario having been one giant hoax — and an extremely expensive one at that.

But if, as the rumour goes, some redneck ratbag/s did intentionally and wilfully introduce a number of young foxes into various areas of the state a few years ago, then we are in big trouble.

Those original foxes would most probably all be dead by now, but the ramifications of their having bred up and produced copious young, which themselves would have repeated the same process many times over is very real. The offshoot of this is the possibility that we could now have hundreds of foxes scattered around the state.

Impossible you say! It is a risk we can ill afford to take. We already have enough trouble with feral cats, and there are thousands upon thousands of those menaces running riot in the bush killing uncountable numbers of our smaller native wildlife. The red fox though is in another league, and if it were to get out of control we would have an un-winnable crisis on our hands.

I have been captivated by the drama

For many years I have been captivated by this enduring drama, and along the way have collected almost every newspaper cutting appearing in The Mercury from day one when the Burnie Ship drama first took place on May 31, 1998.

Needless to say, I now have a quite substantial fox file.

My interest in foxes began many years ago while living and working on mainland Australia where they are considered vermin of the highest order and to be eliminated at every opportunity.

I have sat in hide cover on hillsides and called them up with a fox whistle, carefully noting their sagacious skill as they cautiously approach the target area. They, like the thylacine, have a remarkable sense of smell, and once they catch your scent are off in a flash. Their hearing too is acute, and nature has armed this remarkable little creature with all the attributes of a top-class hunter.

You can always smell a fox in the vicinity, for they have an extremely strong, pungent odour, and that is usually your first, and quite often your only clue that a fox is lurking in the vicinity.

I once came upon a fox den with several month old young — the vixen was apparently away hunting, or so I thought, allowing me to pause for several minutes and admire her beautiful and truly irresistible babies. Suddenly my bliss was rudely interrupted by a loud hiss not four feet behind, and there viciously baring her fangs was mother fox, and as small as she was, she was ready and willing to take me on if I didn’t get the hell out of it and be fast about it.

Needless to say I quickly departed. I had my gun with me and could easily have shot her on the spot, and many would condemn me for not doing so. But I am a passionate man and I felt for her babies, and besides, I was on her patch amongst the bracken and had no right to intrude.

My fascination for this beautiful animal taught me many things, and while it is one of nature’s truly remarkable creatures as well as one of its most capable hunters, it is also a ruthless out and out killing machine.

Let it loose in a hen house and within minutes every hen will be dead, Turn it loose in a sheep fold and it will progressively kill every lamb it can sink its teeth into. It has the ability to take full advantage of each and every situation and by its very nature can spare its victims no mercy.

This vicious marauder

On mainland Australia today, whatever is left of the smaller wildlife population live on in peril of this vicious marauder, and such will be the case if ever it becomes established on our island.

It can breed rapidly if circumstances permit, and can live in virtually any situation, whether that be city, suburban, outer fringes or alpine regions. It would be just at home in the midlands as it would be in the central highlands, for harshness of terrain matters little. It can survive on a vegetarian diet of berries and natural fare just as well as it can by raiding rubbish tips and household waste — nature has endowed it with an amazing constitution. It can live on practically anything.

It is interesting to look back on the ebb and flow of both departmental and public comment and opinions over the years since THAT fox allegedly walked down the gangplank of a container ship from Melbourne on May 31, 1998.

All said and done, you’ve got to give the government credit for trying to catch the bloody thing if nothing else. They have given this episode their best shot, let’s make no qualms about that, but for all their efforts they have achieved very little. I still believe their best is yet to come — and that can only happen when there is indisputable evidence to support the fact that there are foxes at large throughout Tasmania. Then everyone will wake up — but will it already be too late!

Let’s not forget that we are dealing with, not only a perceived threat, but a true wildlife legend — and one with the amazing capability of outwitting a whole team of hunting hounds baying for its blood, as many a huntsman will attest.

Sadly the government was behind the eight ball from day one; they lacked experience, they had to fight the Feds hard for sufficient funding, they had to put up with a hostile public totally ignorant of how much damage this animal can actually reap, and their cause has suffered badly through lack of tangible results.

Right throughout this enduring saga they have had their detractors; large and small, both knowledgeable and totally ignorant — it we can’t see it we won’t believe!

I honestly believe the time has come for action. From whatever quarter this will come remains to be seen, but I for one am throwing my hat into the ring. I recently imported some interesting fox hunting gear from the US, various techniques that may just give me an edge in proving one way or the other that there are foxes running wild in Tasmania. And if I show up with the evidence, then you’d better believe me, because I know this animal well.

Poor old Buck

I have delved into my files and would like to touch briefly on the drama that has unfolded over the years since, and on-going as it is, one could well wonder if and when it is all going to end.

First cab off the rank was Buck, a five year old Beagle working full time for the quarantine service. Poor old Buck sniffed his little heart out without success. Mind you he was at a definite disadvantage, because although born and initially trained in Sydney, he had spent his whole working life in Tasmania — where there had been no foxes. His handler, Stan Smith was unsure if Buck had ever laid eyes on a fox before — a definite disadvantage.

Wildlife authorities invited Victorian fox hunters and their hounds over in an attempt to run the unwelcome immigrant to ground.

Opposition environment spokesman Lara Giddings claimed a breakdown in communications was scandalous and had given the invader a 48 hour start, quite a healthy advantage for a critter that can cover 20 miles or more in a single night with ease. Telephone answering machines at Parks and Wildlife offices told callers to ring back during normal office hours and as a result, any early sightings that did surface went unregistered because the fox hunt couldn’t officially begin until 9am the following Monday morning,

“Environmental protection is a 24 hours-a-day, seven–days–a–week task,” Miss Giddings emphasised, and she was right!

While there was little doubt about this first fox invader — migrating as it did from the heavily fox-infested Melbourne Docks area, the burning question was, how many times had it happened before? It was possible that a dead fox found on the outskirts of Launceston in 1972 could have entered the state in the same way.

Parks & Wildlife management officer, Nick Mooney hit the nail firmly on the head when he claimed; “ The most concern we have is that it could be a pregnant female. If we don’t catch it, nothing will happen for ages. Then about ten years down the track there could be a boom and you will not recognise Tasmania for its loss of wildlife.”

Sand traps were set up at various sites around Burnie after suspicious tracks were discovered along West and Camdale beaches. Fox tracks usually follow fence lines and along the edge of scrubland, and almost always in a fairly straight line, and such trails will almost invariably produce scats. These droppings produce a strong and pungent odour as do foxes themselves.

The discovery of a fox skin hanging on a fence at Cooee saleyards in June 1999 sent shockwaves through Parks & Wildlife officers. It was believed to have been skun only 48 hours previously, leaving officials pondering whether it was the Burnie Fox.

The truth was revealed a week later when an unidentified caller phoned The Mercury claiming it was a prank hatched over a few beers at the local pub. Despite an intensive investigation, those responsible were never found.

Igniting the saga

Almost two years were to pass before a fox sighting in a pine plantation at Wynyard closely followed by another at Longford once again igniting the saga.

The NPWS declared both incidents believable, and centred their search on the Northern Midlands, where a team of eight officers concentrated on the towns of Carrick and Longford setting up sand traps and checking along fence lines for scats and hair samples. An Aerial photograph was taken in an attempt to identify farm dams, tracks and bush areas within a five kilometre radius of the sightings. However, nothing further was found.

It wasn’t long before fox sightings were coming in from all around the state with reports from as far away as Tullah and Triabunna.
Primary Industries minister David Llewellyn dubbed the fox Reynard, claiming it was calling all the shots.

Well known South Australian environmentalist, John Wamsley went on record saying he believed that foxes were introduced into Tasmania by “nutters” out to destroy the state’s fox free status.

Startling allegations were made by fox team leader Greg Tease, claiming he had so far not found a single shred of evidence to support the existence of a Tasmanian fox.

“These ‘positive sightings’ had turned out to be ginger cats, while other ‘fairly sure’ sightings turned out to be possums.”

Tease went on to say he believed NPWS officers would benefit from some ‘fox education’, inviting them over to Victoria to look at foxes first hand. His invitation was taken up when in July 2001, six NPWS field staff and a scientist headed off for Victoria and a week’s intensive training in fox-know–how. The training was mostly carried out in East Gippsland and at the Melbourne offices of the DRNE.

It was about this time that the East Coast township of St Helens hit the headlines when retired farmer Ray Riley claimed to have shot a fox on his farm. The local hotel promptly changed its name to “The Foxhunter’s Return” complete with a menu that included such tantalisers as; “Fox-on-the-run cocktails”, “Basil Brush benedictine” and Brushy-tailed Bailey’s and Irish rum”.
They were available at the bar where the ‘foxy ladies’ prowl’, Mr Riley said.

It was all a bit of a joke, but NPWS officers were not amused. A web of intrigue surrounded Mr Riley’s claim that involved his shooting companion, Victorian bricklayer Wolfgang Bohm who claimed to have thrown the fox pelt into a dam. Mr Bohm said he was not aware of significance of the kill at the time. A subsequent search of the dam failed to reveal the carcass and the whole thing was eventually discarded as a hoax.

Meanwhile, fears were mounting of an exploding fox population with more than 80 reported fox sightings state – wide over a six -month period ending December 2001. Calls for a fox bounty were ruled out for fear of interstate hunters bringing their kills into Tasmania to claim rewards.

Strange fox sightings and a lack of basic evidence to support fox-kill reports were the main reasons Tasmania climbed 6 per cent in the weirdness stakes in 2000-20001 according to “Tim the Yowie Man” publisher of the annual barometer for the bizarre.

In October 2001, analysis of the gut content of a fox allegedly shot and killed at Symmons Plains in northern Tasmania revealed the fox had been feeding on native birds, berries, and an endemic rat and skinks. The good news was that the fox had not been eating domestic stock. The 18 month old fox had not been sexually active, and posed the question of whether it was a second generation fox — or was it brought into the state as a cub?

By January 2002, the question of funding reared its head. Victorian fox expert Tim Bloomfield slammed the lack of resources available to tackle “the most serious environmental threat to this state”. He claimed the six full time and one part time members allocated to the fox task force were not enough to combat the menace. He said a conservative estimate of $9 million was spent interstate annually in an effort to combat the fox and protect agriculture. A further $6 million was spent was spent on measures to protect native wildlife.

“The Commonwealth has a Fox Abatement Plan which says if foxes get onto islands, everything possible will be done to remove them. But when that plan was written, nobody expected the island to be Tasmania — they hoped it would be a postage-sized island somewhere, Mr Bloomfield said.

“The Commonwealth is being negligent in failing to address this issue.”

The government was getting serious

Primary Industries and Environment Minister David Llewellyn went on record pledging the fight against foxes would be his department’s “No 1 priority”. He said that after a meeting with Mr Bloomfield and the Tasmanian Farmer’s and Graziers Association, resources would be adjusted internally to meet the problem head-on.

“I have told my department that for the time being existing services should be adjusted so all required resources are made available,” Mr Llewellyn said. So at that stage, clearly the government was getting serious about the matter.

The State Government said a funding submission sent to the Commonwealth Government some months before had been ignored. The Federal Government claimed no such submission had been received. Federal Environment Minister Robert Hill gave ‘in-principal’ support to funding an eradication programme, but said a formal application was needed from the Tasmanian Government before a decision could be made.

The ensuing debate saw Mr Llewellyn reject Mr Hill’s claim, saying in a letter dated August 23rd 2001 “ was quite clearly an approach for assistance.” Included was a 41 page action plan detailing what the State Government required, including a request for $386,000 over three years. It is clear the Feds were dodging the issue; they were already over-committed and could spare little in the way of emergency funds.

A sensational claim that as many as 19 foxes may have been introduced, reared and released into the wild by locals was aired by Victorian fox consultant Tim Bloomfield. In appealing for more help from the public, Mr Bloomfield said, “the circumstantial evidence from person or persons involved in the translocation of foxes into Tasmania is somewhere in the vicinity of 11 to 19 cubs.

“What we don’t know is how many were male, how many were female, where they were released and whether or not it was it in groups. DNA testing on the skin from the Longford fox and DNA testing on the fox carcass from Symmons Plains indicated they are siblings,” Mr Bloomfield said.

“That then feeds into the story that persons unknown collected a family of foxes and raised and released them. We need more help from the public. It is not anyone’s fault, but it requires a reappraisal.”

Mr Bloomfield went on to say that his department had received clusters of good quality sightings from Carrick, Symmons Plains, Pioneer, Derby, Oatlands, Campania, Primrose Sands and the Tasmanian Peninsula.

The Mercury of June 5th 2002 blazed the headline; “FOX PLOT” and claimed authorities believed they knew who had brought foxes into Tasmania. They believed young foxes were dumped with litters at four separate sites around the state. But under existing laws, the fox smugglers could not be charged because the statute of limitation had run out.

The dumping sites were allegedly at Longford, south of Oatlands, near St Helens and near Campania. Environment Minister David Llewellyn said,” some people are dubious but certainly I am not, and I can’t afford to take risks.”

Mr Llewellyn estimated the fox population at between 11 and 20. There had been speculation that some young had been eaten by Tasmania devils, keeping numbers down.

Fox elimination ideas

Parks and Wildlife head Peter Mooney said NPWS had received information over 12 months before that a litter of fox cubs had been released in Tasmania. He said police had “rigorously investigated the claims but were unable to find any conclusive evidence. Recent DNA testing had established that the “Bosworth fox” was not related to the “Burnie fox” as some thought.

Mr Mooney said an increase in daytime sightings was further indication that a fox population was in residence. He was seeking assistance from some community shooters experienced in pest management to try to eliminate free-ranging individuals.

Various fox elimination ideas were flaunted including the daddy of them all — the enlistment of a “randy momma” to lure in male foxes. The brainchild of Melbourne obstetrician Roger Short, it centred on using ‘judas vixen’ and keeping them in continuous oestrus, removing the ovaries and letting them loose. The plan was to pull in every male fox for miles around and in doing so abort the mating season, because all males would be otherwise engaged.

Tasmanian senator Shane Murphy weighed into the debate, claiming the fox controversy was based on rumour, hearsay, gossip, guesswork and misinformation.

The outspoken senator claimed to have documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act that supported his doubts on the existence of foxes in Tasmania. In strongly criticising the NPWS, he said a lot of the scientific reports raised more questions that they answered.

In April 2002, Federal Environment Minister David Kemp granted $400,000 emergency funding to the fox taskforce.
In criticising the state for what he said was an incompetent funding submission, Dr Kemp said he had approved one year’s funding, not three as requested, because Tasmania must ensure the fox was gone before the winter mating season.

“To fund on the assumption of failure is not what the Natural Heritage Trust is about,” he said.

Dr Kemp went on to point out that 77 Tasmanian animal species were at risk from the fox, while in some mainland areas, foxes were responsible for the death of up to 30 per cent of newborn lambs.

Murchison MLC Tony Fletcher weighed into the fox debate claiming a ‘fox fraud’. “Tasmania’s foxes are either the most cunning and elusive in the world or a massive hoax,” he announced to The Mercury in November 2004.

Mr Fletcher claimed the fox hunt had already cost at least $5 million over four years and called on the State Government to halt its fruitless search. Further, he claimed the work of the Fox Free Taskforce would cost the Tasmanian taxpayers a further $1.2 million the present financial year along with a $400,000 injection from the Federal Government.

In calling for a windup of the whole project, he questioned whether the state could justify spending further millions of dollars on what appeared to be a ‘major hoax’.

Excellent and informative articles

Mr Fletcher joined a high-profile list of detractors claiming there were no foxes in Tasmania, including his Upper House colleague Ivan Dean and former Independent senator Shayne Murphy.

Mercury reporter Rohan Wade was fast becoming one of the best versed people on the fox story, having written extensively on the ebb and flow of the saga and presenting some excellent and informative articles along the way

One interesting point is that during the early 1950’s, a severe mange epidemic ravaged fox populations throughout mainland Australia that very nearly lead to their complete eradication — but not quite.

Certain prominent Tasmanians have voiced their opinions in no uncertain manner as to the credibility of the existence of the red fox on our island today. And it is quite astounding that some 5 or six million dollars plus many thousands of man hours later, the general public is still to be convinced.

Last year, the three most prominent figures in the fox eradication programme, Chris Emms, Tim Bloomfield and Nick Mooney conceded to a New Zealand forum that Tasmanians were super-sceptic about foxes in their state, and that authorities might not act on future fox incursions unless the evidence was overwhelming.

They said doubts were fed by the small amount of hard evidence, decades of thylacine hoaxes and ‘outlandish claims’ by both sides of conservation politics. A presentation poster submitted to the forum by Nick Mooney and Tim Bloomfield stated that “Most people don’t know what to believe”.

The poster pointed out deficiencies in Tasmania’s Ports system in preventing foxes from entering the state, and said there were no effective means of containing an escaped fox at any State Port.

The presentation poster also blamed opposition to the fox response on 1080 poison used in a broad-scale baiting programme. It said that ‘the use of 1080 poison is extremely contentious in Tasmania because it primarily targets native animals.” It concluded that the state is committed to funding the task force until 2007.

I can attest to the rash of hoax thylacine reports eventuating over recent years. Such hoodwinking causes much scepticism and unbelief, and if anything it does far more harm than good. It may be a big joke on the part of the hoaxer, but for those that commit time and money investigating such reports, it breeds nothing but utter frustration and contempt for such people.

I would be a tragedy if the fox task force were to be wound up prematurely. To do this, we would run the risk of being over-run with foxes further down the track.

To reiterate the words of Nick Mooney from 1988; “If we don’t catch it, nothing will happen for ages, then about 10 years down the track there would be a boom and you would not recognise Tasmania for its loss of wildlife.”

That would be a catastrophe indeed — and the compelling question is — can we afford to take that chance?

Only time will tell in this most enduring of sagas.