MEMBER for Noosa Glen Elmes has slammed the killing of one of the Fraser Island dingoes believed to be responsible for the attack on a three-year-old girl near Hook Point on Monday.
Five dingoes have been euthanised on the World Heritage listed island this year by Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service rangers.
The rangers were searching yesterday for another dingo believed to have been responsible for the attack. It will be put down.
Mr Elmes said while he felt “dreadfully sorry” for the girl and her parents, he did not believe killing the dingoes was the answer.
“The very worst that should happen is they should be caught and moved to a wildlife sanctuary,” Mr Elmes said.
“There is no excuse for euthanising the animals.”
Animal activist Jennifer Parkhurst said an eye-witness told her the little girl had wandered off before being attacked.
“The children were not being supervised. The eye-witness saw the dingo on the beach and then one child ran up to the bush and a dingo chased her,” she said.
“Ms Parkhurst, who was fined $40,000 and given a three-year-suspended jail sentence in November for feeding dingoes, said it was time parents on the island were fined for not supervising their children.
“It is really important they look after their children. They are going into an area where wild animals exist,” she said..
A QPWS spokesman said witnesses had provided a “very clear description” of the two animals involved in the attack.
“The humane destruction of dingoes occurs only if there is clear evidence the dingo was involved in a serious attack. It is part of the Fraser Island Dingo Management Strategy developed after the death of a young boy on the island,” the spokesman said.
“It is done as soon as practical after the animal’s identification has been confirmed and it has been located.”
The dingo population on Fraser Island was estimated “at about 200”, but many people, including Mr Elmes, believe the number is far less.
A Gympie Hospital spokesman said the girl was in a stable condition yesterday.
Five dingoes have been euthanised on the World Heritage listed island this year by Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service rangers.
The rangers were searching yesterday for another dingo believed to have been responsible for the attack. It will be put down.
Mr Elmes said while he felt “dreadfully sorry” for the girl and her parents, he did not believe killing the dingoes was the answer.
“The very worst that should happen is they should be caught and moved to a wildlife sanctuary,” Mr Elmes said.
“There is no excuse for euthanising the animals.”
Animal activist Jennifer Parkhurst said an eye-witness told her the little girl had wandered off before being attacked.
“The children were not being supervised. The eye-witness saw the dingo on the beach and then one child ran up to the bush and a dingo chased her,” she said.
“It is really important they look after their children. They are going into an area where wild animals exist,” she said..
A QPWS spokesman said witnesses had provided a “very clear description” of the two animals involved in the attack.
“The humane destruction of dingoes occurs only if there is clear evidence the dingo was involved in a serious attack. It is part of the Fraser Island Dingo Management Strategy developed after the death of a young boy on the island,” the spokesman said.
“It is done as soon as practical after the animal’s identification has been confirmed and it has been located.”
The dingo population on Fraser Island was estimated “at about 200”, but many people, including Mr Elmes, believe the number is far less.
A Gympie Hospital spokesman said the girl was in a stable condition yesterday.
