UDTR — Radar mondial des droits de la Nature

Dingo re-establishment and the suppression of feral goats: evidence from the Western Australian rangelands

Identification

Clé publique

radar:r-8759589e5291f6a225062b28f4bfc92d

Auteurs

Z. Jestrimski · Lily M. van Eeden · Mathew S. Crowther · Christopher R. Dickman · Thomas M. Newsome

Année déclarée

2026

Langue déclarée

en

Type source

article

Première détection

2026-11-14T01:59:24.105686+00:00

Dernière observation des métadonnées

2026-11-14T01:59:24.105686+00:00

Dernière vérification HTTP

Non effectuée

Institutions déclarées par la source

The University of Sydney · RMIT University

Pays d’affiliation déclarés

AU

Résumé documentaire — langue originale

Context Goats (Capra hircus) were introduced to Australia by early European settlers and have established feral populations that cause ecological, agricultural and economic damage. Contrastingly, landholders in some areas rely on income from harvesting free-ranging goats. Aside from these areas, reducing goat damage is a management priority in much of Australia, but effective control remains challenging. Dingoes (Canis dingo) are the largest native mammalian land predator in Australia and may reduce the population densities and distributions of feral goats, directly through predation, or indirectly by suppressing goat activity or habitat use. However, the effects of dingoes on feral goats are not well documented over time or over large spatial scales. Aims We use a mixed-methods approach to explore how the re-establishment of dingoes in a pastoral region in the southern rangelands of Western Australia may have affected the feral goat population. Methods Fluctuations in feral goat population size from 1987 to 2024 were documented using estimates for years when estimates were reported. Written records and local ecological knowledge were used to inform other years. This timeline was compared against a timeline of dingo re-establishment and covariates including annual rainfall, goat prices and goat control figures by using interrupted time series analysis. Key results A structural shift in goat population trajectory occurred in the mid-2000s, with a sustained and significant post-2005 decline. This shift coincided with the period of dingo re-establishment and was not explained by linear time trends. Goat control, goat prices and annual rainfall were not linked to the sustained drop in estimated population size of feral goats. Conclusions Since the natural re-colonisation of dingoes in the early 2000s, feral goat populations declined and are considered rare in the study region today. Implications This research suggests that the presence of dingoes is likely to assist feral goat control efforts. Reduced goat populations should be beneficial for biodiversity and ecosystem health and pasture availability for other livestock in the southern rangelands of Western Australia, and in Australian rangelands more broadly.

Identifiants

OPENALEX

https://openalex.org/W7171734184

DOI

10.1071/wr26040

Repères documentaires

Famille documentaire

article

Types déclarés par les sources

article

Éditeurs

CSIRO Publishing

Les mentions d’entités ne constituent pas une preuve de reconnaissance juridique. La juridiction étudiée est distincte du pays d’affiliation des auteurs.

Sources

OpenAlex · Document 1

• Document · https://doi.org/10.1071/wr26040

Statut documentaire

Pertinence à examiner

Bibliothèque

Cette identité n’est pas encore intégrée à la Bibliothèque juridique.