Fraser Island camps stay shut due to dingo feeding

Published: January 23, 2021

Ongoing poor behaviour by visitors means the four Fraser Island campsites that were closed last year due to dingo activity are to stay shut.

The Eli, Maheno, Guluri and Wahba campgrounds were made off limits to overnighters in September because of what the Queensland environment department described as “inappropriate human interactions with dingoes”.

Now, the department has announced the closure will be extended to June.

“We closed these four popular campgrounds last year for safety reasons, because some residents and visitors were either feeding wongari (dingoes) or deliberately interfering with them,” ranger-in-charge Linda Behrendorff said. “Unfortunately, that behaviour by day visitors has continued, leaving us with no choice but to extend the temporary closure until June 30 for these popular campgrounds.”

Channel 7 reports that the department has been provided with evidence of multiple examples of people interacting with dingoes, including social media footage.

“These campgrounds will not be reopened until this dangerous and foolish behaviour by day visitors and residents on the island stops,” Ms Behrendorff said. “People who want a selfie with a wongari are extremely selfish, because they’re not thinking about future interactions between the wongari and residents or visitors to the island.”

Channel 7 reports that three people have been fined this year over their behaviour with dingoes, including two men who encouraged a juvenile to smell and lick their hands.

The duo received fines totalling $4270.

Last year, tourist Jamie Andrew Siddons was fined for feeding a dingo which then attacked a French boy and woman.

Ms Behrendorff said the dingo population’s ability to survive while the island was closed to tourists last year proved the animals had ‘access to plenty of natural food and do not need to be fed’. She said people’s interactions with dingoes had a ‘direct impact’ on future visitors to the island.

“Feeding or deliberately interfering with wongari can habituate them, which puts people and the wongari in danger,” Ms Behrendorff said. “Rangers have also recently trapped and inserted ear tags on six wongari around other popular campsites and residential areas, for ongoing monitoring due to the poor behaviour of humans.”

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Maybe the rangers should trap and insert ear tags on the campers that do not comply with the rules.

You can see where this is heading. First Ayres rock next mt waring then Fraser Island.

Maybe camera evidence of dingoes being fed reported to authorities.
Police turn up with $2000 fine and escorted straight off the island and barred for 2years…
Then would that really stop feeding the dingoes??

There are those who think rules don’t apply to them.
Like these dog owners complaining unable to take their mdog into a national park… come on, a national park is there for the wildlife to live freely and we have the privilege of visiting and respecting nature in their home.
Each year many acres are taken forcibly from our wildlife, surely a few hours of honouring and respecting them is no hard feat.

I think we should have a minutes silence for the dingoes on Australia Day

Oi oi oi!

Hey Den..go have a good look see at some regional Nat Parks. Wild dogs, feral cats, feral pigs, foxes, deer buffalo donkeys and horses…just to name a few.
Don’t worry bout dogs on a leash mate..!

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