Today I received word from Wildlife Services in Tassie that I now hold a Special Wildlife Permit to catch and collect reptiles and amphibians. As a holder of this particular Herp permit, I can hold up to 6 reptiles at a time, including venomous snakes, blotched Blue Tongues and a range of fabulous frogs, skinks as well as mountain dragons. I should state, this permit covers rescue & relocation scenarios – with an ability to hold them in care for up to 7 days. This special permit is aside from, or in addition to, the Registration process I’m in the midst of for Birds/Seabirds/Possums/ Pademelons and Wallabies. As part of the Registration process the Department is looking for a couple of suitable mentors across these species, who will be on hand to guide me in those early days as an independent wildlife carer/rehabilitator. I believe a mentor for Possums and reptiles may have been found so that’s a bit exciting, though it’s going to be after the Easter break before I find out anything more. I did find out that strictly speaking I don’t need a mentor for possums, wallabies and pademelons – it’s just advisable… but to be honest… I think for the first few cases, I will be very thankful to have someone I can contact. I had no experience of handling wallabies and pademelons in NSW so my training still feels very ‘new’ in this area.
Our family has a bit of a “thing” about frogs – we always have done. It’s just something that connects us to our mum and I know she would be nodding in approval at this latest development. Since coming to Australia my love for reptiles, snakes, and all things wildlife, has grown even more (if that were possible), along with my education. On our property on the Central Coast, we had resident Goannas, Eastern Blue Tongues (you may remember Russell?) Red Bellied Black snakes, Golden Crown snakes, Marsh snakes and the most incredible chunky diamond pythons. To be honest, I’ve missed the variety of reptiles, turtles and amphibians, but since discovering we have Blotched Blue Tongue on our property here in Tassie, I’m a happy woman.
The venomous snake handling course and the theory of the reptile courses I’ve done will be a good starting point for me. Time will tell where my skills will take me. It may be that Blotched Blue Tongues become my focus in the reptile world, or it may be that I find I have something to contribute on the snake side of things – but either way, I will always be an advocate for our native wildlife, venomous snakes included.
The possibility of developing my skills around seabirds is also very exciting. We live on a rural property, but we are surrounded by water and I have become so familiar with the Pied Oystercatcher and the array of Gulls on our shores. Recently I had the rather sad task of removing a dead Fairy Penguin from our local beach, from which point a whole new area of discovery and interest was born. What had happened to it? Why was it on our shores in the first place? Were there more?
That’s the trouble when you are a lover of all animals and all wildlife.
Choosing your speciality is very difficult. I tend to think it’s better to concentrate on your local area and support the wildlife that you live alongside, but then there are campaigns of state significance such as the rehabilitation of the Tasmanian Devil, or the horrendous, callous carnage of wildlife on Tasmanian roads. I am trusting that over time, it will become evident where I am needed so I can focus – otherwise I could end up exhausted and that doesn’t help anyone – least of all the wildlife. So for now – I’m celebrating with a YAY as I take another step closer to providing some much-needed care for our unique Tassie wildlife.