Relief as corella numbers drop in Bridgewater

But that doesn’t mean the native bird is not causing trouble for some in the town, with Jill Hobbs saying the numbers are still significant to be causing compounding damage to the longevity of the trees.

“The old river red gums along the river are being seriously impacted,” she said.

“The trees are being denuded of leaves, power lines eaten and no one can do anything to move them on.”

Corellas wreaked havoc in the town in late 2016 and into 2017, with the Loddon Shire Council trying in vain to move them on.

Chief executive Phil Pinyon said a lot of time and effort had gone into it, including a drone trial and the use of firearms.

“We’ve certainly looked at a range of options in the past,” he said.

“There’s no foolproof method that we’ve been able to come up with.”

The council is this year yet to receive any reports of damage from the birds but Bridgewater on Loddon Development committee member Graham Morse said the scars were still evident on gum trees.

“At the moment they’re not harassing the town like they have in the past,” he said.

“We’ve always got some but this time last year they were in plague proportions. We’ve just been a bit relieved this year.”

He believed the creatures of habit would return, but at present they were creating carnage elsewhere. 

One council in the west of the state is also looking to drones to solve the problem after ovals and reserves had been churned up by the birds.

Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning acting environmental compliance regional manager Brady Childs encouraged landholders to report severe damage from the birds.

“DELWP has been working with the Bridgewater community and stakeholders over the past three years on management of the local corella population,” he said.

“DELWP is currently assisting Loddon Shire Council and the community in the implementation of their corella management plan which includes a range of management techniques and options.

“Where damage is severe landholders can call DELWP on 136 186 to be put in touch with their local forest and wildlife officer or find further information online at www.wildlife.vic.gov.au.”

In the City of Greater Bendigo, acting parks and open space manager Daniel McWilliam said, while the birds were still in the area, there had been no increase in reported activity nor damage.

“If there are community members that have concerns, we’re always interested in getting reports, especially with damage to trees,” he said.