Rare heath goannas killed by vehicles as visitor numbers increase in national parks

Wildlife rangers on South Australia’s southern Eyre Peninsula are heartbroken after 10 vulnerable heath goannas were killed by vehicles in two national parks over the holiday period.

Record numbers of people visited Lincoln and Coffin Bay National Parks with more than 6,000 visitors to each park last month.

But the increase in visitors brought a setback in recovery for a top-order predator reptile that takes nine years to reach breeding age.

National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) senior ranger Simon Oster said, while it was wonderful to see so many visitors, it was sad to see the significant amount of wildlife killed by motorists.

“We’d usually see maybe one goanna road death a month during their active period over the warmer months, so to have such a high number killed in a few weeks will have a significant impact on conservation efforts,” he said.

He urged motorists to slow down to the sign-posted speed limits to observe the wildlife that might be crossing the road.

NPWS ecologist Katrina Pobke said the premature loss of every heath goanna (Varanus rosenbergi) impacted upon decades of conservation efforts.

“Heath goannas were once common in South Australia; however, now there are only a handful of locations across the state where they survive, with unknown population sizes believed to be potentially less than a few hundred in these parks, with more work needed to know for sure,” Ms Pobke said.

She said it took at least nine years for the goannas to reach sexual maturity and only one in 12 survived their first year facing birds of prey and introduced predators such as feral cats and foxes.

She said one of the reported deaths was a female with a swollen belly, which rangers suspected was carrying eggs.

“If a female goanna carrying eggs is hit by a car, four or more goannas may be killed in one collision due to the eggs perishing as well,” Ms Pobke said.

“To lose so many in a matter of weeks to inattentive or speeding drivers is devastating.

“It’s a real setback for this endangered species and the next generation of young goannas.”

She said the goannas had largely disappeared from farms after foxes were introduced.

Parks for protection

Ms Pobke said national parks aimed to protect native animals and visitors should obey speed limits.

“We can’t understand if people were doing the right speed limit how they’d come to grief and hit this wildlife,” she said.

“It isn’t just goannas either — the rangers do get called out for kangaroos and recently some emus as well.”

She said rangers believed the deaths were accidental.

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