Fencing is important for stock control and netting protects fruit trees.
Both can be harmful to wildlife. Animals become trapped, causing suffering, injury, or death.
Discover tips and information to help you in selecting wildlife friendly fencing and netting.
Photo credit - Lib Ruytenberg
Hungry animals are also easily tangled in large nets covering flowering and fruiting trees.
Native animals often seek out fruit trees during severe weather events like drought and flood, when their natural food isn’t available.
Tips on choosing wildlife friendly netting
- Only use netting that passes the ‘finger test’, meaning you cannot poke your finger through it. The size of each hole needs to be less than 5mm so that animals cannot get trapped. More densely woven nets will protect trees while not trapping wildlife.
- Strand diameter thickness should be greater than 500 microns or with a cross-weave design.
- Use white netting so that animals can see it at night.
- Secure the base of nets to the tree trunk or ground to stop wildlife from getting inside.
For more information on the right netting for your property, visit Wildlife friendly netting
Dispose of nets safely
Discarded old netting can also be a risk. Snakes, lizards and other animals can get trapped in used mesh that is left lying around.
- Take down nets and store them safely when trees aren’t fruiting.
- Buy good quality netting that lasts to reduce the amount of old netting in the environment.
- Put it into a strong biodegradable bag before throwing away.
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Barbed wire fences are invisible at night, low-light or in smoky air. Animals can hit them at full speed. Barbed wire is particularly dangerous for nocturnal animals such as:
- Gliders
- Flying foxes
- Owls
- Wallabies
- Possums
- Koalas.
To protect wildlife:
- Remove unnecessary barbed wire fences. If you don’t have cattle on your property, you probably don’t need a barbed wire fence. Also remove any old, barbed wire that is lying around outdoors.
- Replace the top and bottom fence wires with wildlife-friendly twisted barbless wire. The majority of wildlife injuries are caused by the top and bottom barbed wire strands. Twisted barbless wire costs the same as barbed wire, uses the same kit for installation and cattle can’t break it.
- Reduce the risk of wildlife getting caught in barbed wire by making your fence more visible – see the tips below.
If your local hardware or farm shop doesn’t stock wildlife friendly fencing, ask them to get it in.
How to make barbed wire fencing safer for wildlife
Adjusting barbed fencing is especially important along parts of the fence most likely to be visited by wildlife such as:
- Fences between paddock trees or next to forests
- Along creek lines and wetlands
- Near food sources such as flowering or fruiting trees
- Near dens or nesting areas.
To make barbed fencing more visible you could:
Alternatives to barbed wire fencing
Alternatives to barbed wire include:
- Stock-proof fences made from multi-strand high-tensile smooth wire.
- Electric fences, only if designed to effectively control stock and consider wildlife protection.
- Where barbed wire is necessary use smooth wire on top and bottom strands. Barbed middle strands are usually enough to keep cattle at bay.