3 Safer Fencing
This page has ‘Crane-friendly Fencing’ suggestions from landowners, agricultural advisers and wildlife carers. For background see the Intro, Issues and Risks, and Decision Guide. Little actual research has been done on safer fencing methods for Australian conditions and feedback is especially welcome from landowners who have tried using these or other modified fencing styles. More field trials are needed so ideally all grants for environmental fencing can mandate wildlife-friendly methods and materials, suitable for the site and production setting.
Plain top wire
Using High Tensile plain wire for the top, or two top, wires in an otherwise standard barb fence is often proposed for wildlife safety but costs more, and there is a perception that it degrades fences unacceptably. Owners stress that fences must work.
- They may be liable for damage if cattle stray onto roads.
- Breeding management requires herd separation, including large-scale properties with little active day-to-day supervision.
- Smaller dams and waterholes are under major pressure after long dry spells. Stock, feral and wild animals can become bogged and the water source degraded.
Working examples The Wildlife Friendly Fencing website has details of three Queensland grazing properties successfully using HT plain wire in wildlife ‘trouble spots’ along their fences. Upper Johnstone Catchment Landcare (far north Queensland) have used plain top wire with dairy cattle and quieter Brahmins (no on-line link available).
TOPFence markers
← Wildlife protection on 4-barb cattle fencing (Millaa Millaa NQ Wet Tropics, Tolga Bat Hospital). The top marker is discarded electric fence tape strung between posts, with no loose ends to tempt grazing livestock
When fencing must be done, and it must use barb wire, markers could be used on the top barb to alert or repel low-flying cranes and other wildlife at key risk points eg near water. Markers could be mandated now for public-funded environmental fences, with markers bought using the grant.
Working examples Wildlife Friendly Fencing has details of used electric fencing tape, for ridgeline fences in hilly terrain (far north Qld Wet Tropics).
More ideas –
- Beer cans – as used on camel fences at Newhaven, a Northern Territory conservation property
- Other recycled metal objects that are bright and rattle in the wind – giving a visual and aural warning
- Brightly-coloured plastic balls threaded on the fence, or clipped to it, like airstrip powerline markers. These markers work well to prevent powerline strike, a serious problem for cranes in some parts of Europe and the U.S.
- Plastic ribbon or second-hand car yard bunting/flags – warning: cannot be used where there are cattle. Cattle eat stray plastic, suffer digestive problems and may die.
Vegetation
← Long Guinea Grass Panicum maximum on barb wire fenceline in periodically-grazed paddock, Wet season (cranesnorth, NQ Wet Tropics). The same fenceline is much more exposed in the Dry season, especially the late Dry when grazing pressure increases
Vegetation height along fencelines is worth considering for safer fencing in some situations. This idea arose from experience from revegetation sites, where birds and bats are not caught on surrounding barb wire once closely-planted trees grow to fence height. Also, wildlife carers in north Queensland report fewer bats trapped when fenceline grass stays long (non-tropical readers: please note that ‘long’ grass in the tropics is easily >800mm high).
Whether allowing longer growth along fencelines is a viable safety measure for wetland fencing depends very much on property management considerations including grazing pressure, fire risk and access for maintenance. Long grass or other dense vegetation growing around a wetland will ultimately exclude cranes, and techniques used to keep the wetland surrounds suitable for cranes (burning, crash or moderate grazing, sprays etc) would regularly expose the fence again.
Costs
- Labour costs: Catchment, Landcare or bird watching groups may be willing to help property owners install fence markers
- Use-by is important, markers should not be too easily damaged by water or UV or they will need regular replacement
- Horse-wire: expensive
«Fencing Intro .. «1| Issues and Risks .. «2| Decision Guide
Feedback
Comments and suggestions on Crane-friendly Fencing are welcome, contact details here». More safe fencing ideas are on the developing Wildlife Friendly Fencing site (External).
