History of Clarence Valley Indian (Common) Myna Control/Trapping Program

2007 Clarence Valley Council (CVC) had started a trapping program with about 100 PeeGee standard traps built (just wire) (20 approx. by Grafton Mens Shed + 80 by Envite March 2007 to Nov 2008). The first trap loaned out was on 20/3/07 and the last trap loaned out was recorded on 17/3/08.  Probably traps continued to be loaned out but trapper information was no longer recorded or followed up by CVC.

Our conservation group (CVCIA) was formed in November 2008 and were soon well established in organising and assisting volunteers and NPWS in controlling cane toads in the LGA.  We also had members who were interested in and already individually active in trapping Indian Mynas on their own properties.  When council’s resources struggled to maintain an Indian Myna control/trapping program, the CVCIA Myna team was formed in January 2011 to resurrect CVC’s program. 

CVCIA contacted all 71 residents on CVC’s data list and by the end of February 2011 we had 10 traps in use. During 2011, the Myna team located 60 council traps, restored and improved with animal welfare additions (perches, feeders, shade cloth, roofs) and rectified other issues such as tunnel openings too big, no service doors, sharp wire ends, no funnel cover, broken joints/wire.  A further 15 or so traps were built by volunteers giving us a total of 75 traps.  Some trappers were using their own built trap.

So @ 2011 Dec 31^st CVCIA’s trapper data list  =  57 trappers,  31 ex-trappers.
Total 1593 birds euthanased in 2011.

Council’s support and assistance has continued by suppling wire for traps, printing of newsletters, protocols, etc, and reimbursement of costs ($1,000-$2,000 pa) such as re-gassing of CO₂ bottles, bait and mileage.  Council also forwards any Myna inquiries to us.

It was difficult to find organisations to build traps, Mens Sheds no longer interested and other initial trap building programs were unsuccessful as more time spent organising than traps being made.  

In March 2012, CVCIA and CVC in partnership with Nortec Employment and Training Ltd (work experience activity) started trap building program.  CVC provided wire and the Myna team worked with Nortec in managing the production.  The quality and uniformity of the traps was consistently good.  Nortec ceased making traps for Council as there was sufficient surplus of traps around Dec 2012 (approx. 40 were made), so CVC no longer provided wire.  The Nortec partnership continued with CVCIA until Dec 2019 when suspended due to Bush Fire relieve and then Covid-19.  We sold over 400 traps to numerous Landcare groups, Councils and individuals at minimal cost to reimburse for materials and tools ($20-25.00 + freight).  K&L from the Myna team continue to voluntarily make traps in their lounge room but will be stop by mid-2022.

CVCIA Myna newsletters (available on this website >Mynas>Newsletters) provide more history detail on the trapping program in Clarence Valley and other areas.
Listed below are the grants and funding/support received.  The initial grant in 2012 was very important.

Grants/Funding

May 2011                 – National Parks & Wildlife assisted by purchasing $100 of dog biscuits.
– Initially CVC assisted by purchasing the rolls of wire to make the traps.  This was no longer required by Dec 2012 as there was a sufficient supply of council traps.
CVC have continued with on-going financial and photocopying support.

Mar 2012                  – $18,170 “Caring for Our Country Community Action” grant provided CVCIA Myna team with a part time project officer and funds for education and promotional
to June 2013              works. This enabled us to continue our visits to markets and other community activities and extending our CO2 euthanasing set-ups and locations.

July 2014                  – $9,975 “Norman Wettenhall Foundation Small Environmental” grant was awarded to CVCIA myna team for “Monitoring Common (Indian) Myna in Clarence
to July 2015              Valley”. This enabled assistance of professional survey contractors to establish a data baseline for the distribution and abundance of these pest birds in the LGA”.

August 2016              – $3,520 “Local Land Services” grant to explore the viability of an integrated Myna control program by trialing –
to 2018                        Mist Netting; Shooting; Arborist for Nest Removal; Aviary Trap.

Due to available grants in 2021, Clarence Landcare has been involved with Indian (Common) Myna Control Program (Feb-June 2021 North Coast Local Land Services Pest Management Grant and August 2021-April 2022 Australia Landcare Led Bushfire Recovery Grant).  These funds allowed a few people to be hired and trained to assist in the trapping program in the LGA plus the construction, use and servicing of another 2 aviary traps.

PERSONAL COMMENT

There are many ways that groups or councils or organisations run a Myna trapping program.

It can be time consuming to provide education and training to residents prior to them borrowing a trap. Then there’s maintaining data (contact details), keeping in touch with the trappers for bird tallies and state of trap or arranging for the trap’s return, repairing/maintaining traps, storage.  But this is the way CVCIA operate and that is why we can supply total tallies of mynas removed in our LGA by our trappers and that we still can supply traps to new trappers.  However, it is also understandable why other organisations (Councils and Landcare) do not have the resources to support a program the way CVCIA has with volunteers and support funding from CVC.

Some other organisations:

• Councils run a couple of hours Indian Myna workshop.  Attendees are given a certificate to confirm their participation which then allows them to purchase a trap from the local Mens Shed.  I think it is important that people cannot just go and buy a trap without any education on correct bird identification, trapping techniques and humane euthanasing methods.   People not practicing good trapping techniques teach mynas to be trap wary and some people just want to trap the mynas to relocate them elsewhere instead of arranging humane euthanasing.
• Other groups such as Landcare on-sell the traps to their constituents but then have no future supply of traps.
• Some councils just “tick the box” by supplying some information on their website and that’s fine as education is number one – it is also understandable that they supply info only as it is very hard to source Myna traps.
• Some organisation don’t do anything as they find it a difficult subject and do not want to experience an unpleasant response/backlash from some residents.

EXTRA ACTIVITIES

Listed are Myna talks which we were invited to give for other areas and presented in our LGA, networking at Myna conferences and local markets.

Workshops/presentations by invitation

Nov 2012         – For Granite Border Landcare:
  16^th Nov Stanthorpe (Qld) 1pm – 12 attended; 
  17^th Nov Drake 9am – 3 attended;
  17^th Nov Tenterfield 2pm – 25 attended.

19^th May 2014  – Bathurst Council
6^th Nov 2014    – Northern Landcare Support Services, Kyogle – 12 attended
14^th Mar 2015   – Bulimba Creek Catchment Co-ordinating Committee, Brisbane.   Full day workshop; 40 attended in the morning and 20 in the afternoon for trap building.
7^th Sept 2016    – Glenrac Inc. (Landcare) in Glen Innes – 20 attended (3 from Tamworth Birdos).
10^th Sept 2016  – assisting John Williams, Harvey Bay Qld at Gympie Landcare – 17 attended includes Gympie Council.
12^th Dec 2016   – Macleay Landcare (Kempsey). At venue, trapped 1myna during the presentation.
18^th Feb 2017   – Granite Border Landcare at Tenterfield in the morning– 8 attended;
– & Stanthorpe (Condamine Headwaters Landcare group, Mens Shed & Southern Downs Regional Council) pm.
20^th Feb 2017   – For BRRVLN & LLS at Roseberry Creek, north of Kyogle – 30 attended. |
7^th Sept 2017    – Glenrac (Landcare), Glen Innes in the morning;
– & Gwymac (Landcare), Inverell in the afternoon.
7^th Oct 2017     – For BRRVLN at Jiggi Hall, northwest of Lismore – 25 attended.
28^th Nov 2017  – Macleay Landcare (Kempsey).
15^th Feb 2018   – Hastings Landcare (Port Macquarie) – 60 attended.
14^th May 2019  – Gwymac (Landcare), Inverell – 10 attended.
15^th May 2019  – Northern Slopes Landcare at Moree – 12 attended.
16^th May 2019  – Northern Slopes Landcare at Bingara – 22 attended.
17^th May 2019  – Tamworth Landcare at Moore Creek – 20 attended.
18^th May 2019  – Glenrac (Landcare), Glen Innes.
15^th Sept 2020  – Glenrac & Northern Slopes Landcare, via Webinar from Clarence Landcare office.
11^th Dec 2021   – Pappinbarra Landcare group (near Wauchope) trap building – 25 attended.

Presentations in Clarence Valley

 Oct 2011                   – guest speaker at U3A Yamba Garden Club.
27^th Feb 2012            – guest speaker at the Grafton Rotary Club, 25 attended. 6-8.30pm.
19^th March 2012        – guest speaker Earth Matters, 20 attended.
19th April 2012         – guest speaker Bunning Garden Club, 18 attended.
21^st June 2012           – Tucabia Primary School. 48 pupils & several teachers (Kindy and year 5 & 6).
11^th Nov 2012           – Wine & Weed Comm Group talk at Angourie, numerous speakers, brief talk
   re toads, mynas and up-coming Myna workshop on 30^th – 40 attended.
30^th Nov 2012           – Yamba workshop at The Old Kirk hall – 35 attended.
Jan 2016                   – guest speaker Grafton District Garden Club.
21^st April 2016          – guest speaker Bunning Garden Club – 5 attended.
20^th Nov 2017           – guest speaker Earth Matters.
26^th April 2021          – Tucabia Primary School.
21^st Feb 2022            – speaker Grafton District Garden Club – 30 attended.

Networking

June 2012        – Annual Myna Network Meeting at Gladstone NSW (near Kempsey). Hosts Macleay Landcare & Mid-North Coast Myna Trapping Program.

Dec 2012         – Murwillumbah Conference. A group of representatives from Tweed, Lismore, Byron and Gold Coast Councils together with
Granite Borders Landcare and Richmond Landcare and CVCIA to discuss ongoing control of Mynas in our areas.

19^th 20^th June 2013        – one of several guest speakers at the Indian Myna Conference, Canberra, hosted by CIMAG – 200-300 attended.

27^th Feb 2014   – Mid North Coast Closure meeting. Nambucca/Bellingen/Coffs Harbour group have finished their 5 year grant and are transitioning into a voluntary group like CVCIA.

Jan 2015          Research by Australian Museum Research Institute, University of Newcastle and Uni of Qld.  We assisted in providing frozen Myna bird specimens to analyse the birds DNA.

21^st Aug 2017   – Attended Coffs Landcare meeting on mynas – overall discussion on the trapping program moving forward with volunteers with Pia from Coffs Landcare office.

17^th Dec 2019   – Regional Indian Myna Action Group catch up at the West Byron Sewage Treatment Plant. 10 people attended representing Northern Borders Richmond Valley Landcare (Kyogle), Kyogle Council, Tweed Council, Byron Council, Gold Coast Council, Lismore Council and CVCIA.  It was basically to re-confirm that the Myna Control Program was still running in the Northern Rivers area and how each LGA was managing it.

Local Markets visited: 

March 2011               – Halfway Creek.
Sept 2011                  – Halfway Creek.
10^th Sept 2011           – Maclean.
2^nd Oct 2011              – Wooli Goanna Festival.
23^rd Oct 2011            – Yamba River market.
26^th Nov 2011           – Grafton DSC market.
30^th Oct 2011            – Chatsworth School Fair.
4^th Feb 2012              – Glenreagh, 8-1pm, about 60 people.
25^th Feb 2012            – Grafton District Service Club, 8-12pm, about 30 people.
10^th March 2012        – Maclean Community, 8-12.30pm, 50-60 visitors.
8^th April 2012            – Tucabia Squatter’s Rest, 8-12.00, 40 visitors.
2^nd & 3^rd May 2012    – Maclean Show.  Shared CVC’s marquee with Weeds Dept. 7-5pm.
  500 walked past with 80 visiting our display.
4^th May 2012             – Grafton Show.  Shared CVC’s marquee with Weeds Dpt. 7-5pm.
150 walked past with 50 visitors.
5^th May 2012             – Grafton Show.  Manned by Weeds employees and a CVCIA toadbuster.
13^th May 2012           – Nymboida, 7.30-1pm, 80 walked past with 30 visiting.
30th June 2012          – Coutts Crossing, 40 visitors. 
4^th Nov 2012             – Iluka, 50 visitors.
Feb 2014                   – part of Landcare window display at Summerland Credit Union office, Grafton.
30^th Aug 2014           – Nymboida Adventure Festival.
11^th Oct 2014            – Volunteering Expo, Grafton Bunnings’s car park.
Feb 2019                   – Wildthings & Bats Festival in Maclean.
20^th April 2021          – Maclean Show (with Clarence Landcare).
21^st April 2021          – Maclean Show (with Clarence Landcare).
22-23 April 2021       – Grafton Show (with Clarence Landcare).
24^th Oct 2021            – Yamba River market (with Clarence Landcare).
26^th Jan 2022             – Brooms Head Australia Day (with Clarence Landcare)