Queensland will become the last jurisdiction in the country to fully criminalise the shooting of flying-foxes as part of a state government plan to phase out permits for farmers to shoot the animals for crop protection.
Since 2012, damage mitigation permits (DMP) have been issued to fruit growers in Queensland to shoot flying foxes which impact on commercial fruit orchards.
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From July 2023, it is expected the state government will phase out the permits over a period of three years to allow growers time to adjust their crop protection and management practices.
A spokesman for the Department of Environment and Science said there will also be "reductions in the annual quota" of DMPs which are issued to shoot flying-foxes over the course of the three-year transition.
The decision followed extensive consultation in 2022 between the state government and the commercial fruit growing industry as well as animal welfare and conservation groups.
Wildlife campaigner for Humane Society International (HSI) Australia, Dr. Louise Boronyak, hailed the changes, saying it was a step in the right direction for animal welfare.
"All too often shooting flying-foxes results in punctured wings and agonising, slow deaths, especially when the shooting occurs at dusk and into the night," she said.
"The reduction in shooting quotas over this 3-year adjustment period means a significant step forward in the conservation and protection of these keystone species.
"HSI looks forward to a time when all fruit growers are successfully protecting their crops without shooting our native wildlife."
Despite their protection under the Nature Conservation Act of 1992, the state government has issued permits to fruit growers to shoot flying-foxes since 2012.
According to a spokesman for the Department of Environment and Science, there were 13 permits issued to commercial fruit growers across a twelve month period from 2022 to 2023, with just 23 issued in the last five years.
"Many commercial fruit growers have already moved away from the lethal take of flying foxes," the spokesman said.
"A three-year phase-out period will give affected growers time to adjust their crop protection and management practices, and there will also be reductions in the annual quota for lethal take during the transition period.
"These changes are anticipated to come into effect in early July and will be in place for the upcoming 2023/24 fruit season."
The Departments of Agriculture and Fisheries and Environment and Science recommend exclusion netting as the most effective method for protecting crops from damage by flying-foxes.
Fruit growers can receive financial assistance for the netting under the federal government's horticultural netting rebate program.
