Council looks at options for corellas

Bunbury City Council is weighing up its options to deal with an increasing number of “nuisance” birds flocking to the city.

Corellas have been causing a stir across Bunbury forcing more than 40 residents surrounding Horseshoe Lake in East Bunbury to express concerns at a recent community gathering.

Residents complained the birds had been causing them stress due to sleepless nights and damage to their properties costing hundreds of dollars to repair.

The council has been forced to take action and is undertaking an “active control program” in line with a Department of Parks and Wildlife permit.

While a cull of the birds has not been ruled out by either the council or DPaW, Mayor Gary Brennan said all options would be considered and it was a difficult issue to manage.

“No one likes to cull animals but this is a serious issue that left unmanaged will likely result in ongoing and increasing issues for the community of Bunbury,” Mr Brennan said. “It is part of a broader regional problem that needs to be managed responsibly, sensitively and humanely.”

The council is liaising with other affected landholders including the Southern Ports Authority regarding the control of the birds and investigating ways to disperse the birds from problem areas.

A DPaW spokeswoman said corellas were known to move in big flocks across the South West in a bid to find food and shelter and control of the “introduced pest birds” was a shared responsibility.

“These species can damage local trees and food production as well as infrastructure, such as sporting fields, street trees, lights and irrigation,” the spokeswoman said.

“They also compete with native species for hollows and food resources and cause noise issues, fouling and amenity loss.

“An effective control program needs to be coordinated across a broad area and implemented over a number of years.”