Guy Barnett,Minister for Primary Industries and Water
The Tasmanian Liberal Government takes the protection and safety of Little Penguins in Tasmania very seriously, and we are directing significant resources to enhance their protection.
A new citizen science-based toolkit has been launched today to help land managers and community groups monitor Tasmania's Little Penguins and manage threats to their colonies.
The toolkit, developed by Cradle Coast Authority in partnership with DPIPWE, provides guidance on survey methods that community groups can use to monitor changes to penguin populations in their local area.
It also provides methods to assess the Little Penguin habitat potential of an area, as well as ways to effectively assess current and future threats to colonies.
Data collected using these methods can be provided to Government through a dedicated email address to improve our understanding of Little Penguin populations and distribution around the state.
Tasmanians play an important part in monitoring and protecting this species, and effective protection requires cooperative action from all levels of Government, the private sector and individuals.
We are committed to protecting Little Penguins, which is why we amended the Dog Control Act 2000 in 2019 to increase penalties, as well as creating a new offence for instances where a dog injures or kills sensitive wildlife such as Little Penguins in declared areas.
The toolkit, which is endorsed by the Tasmanian Penguin Advisory Group and reviewed by DPIPWE wildlife experts, is available at www.dpipwe.tas.gov.au/toolkit
