The Phillip Island (Millowl) Wildlife Plan is backed by evidence

Melbourne University Student Vincent Knowles begun his research study on cape barren geese in August 2024, to determine movement and behaviour trends across Phillip Island (Millowl) and mainland Victoria.

So far, extension movement has been recorded across the state showing preliminary data that suggests close connections between the geographically distanced populations of cape barren geese.

The research project is expected to continue over a 3-year period and the latest update can be read in the Phillip Island (Millowl) Wildlife Plan Year 3 Report. (PDF, 3.3 MB).

The cape carren goose metapopulation model (PDF, 6.0 MB), was a funded project by the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action which outlines the projected outcomes of the population of cape barren geese across primary locations.

Results showed the combination of culling of more than 500 birds annually on Phillip Island (Millowl) and French Island along with fertility reduction at Phillip Island (Millowl), had the greatest predicted impact on cape barren geese populations.

Based on these findings, we provide the following management options.

• Implementing immediate control measures may effectively reduce the cape barren goose population to a level where impacts on agriculture, public amenity and other unique conservation values can be reasonably sustained
  • French Island requires immediate population assessment and management
  • Control will be an ongoing issue and there is no quick fix. It takes time and commitment by land managers and understanding within the community

With support from the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action and Phillip Island Nature Parks, Bunurong Land Council have started to create possum skin cloaks sourced directly from Bunurong Country. This marks an amazing step forward for the Bunurong Community and will help restore cultural connections and traditions.

Bunurong Land Council will continue to access possums for cultural use with hope to be able to integrate more traditional methods into the process.

The restoration of Gap Road wetland has involved planting an additional 2,000 plants across the 8-hectare site to enhance wildlife habitat and provide a refuge. Ongoing maintenance has been carried out to ensure the health of the plants and to control weed growth. While specific survival rates are not available, the overall success of the plantings has been high.

This project has benefited from the support of various organisations, including Phillip Island Landcare, local and Melbourne-based primary and secondary schools, Wildlife Coast Cruises, orienteering groups, and contractors. On World Environment Day 2024, the entire San Remo Primary School visited the site to plant a section of the wetland. Volunteer assistance is very important to ensure the site is planted and maintained to a high standard.

The project is ongoing and the next stage of the wetland restoration will depend on the next reiteration of the masterplan for the site.

A Phillip Island Nature Parks led project focusing on enhancing the resilience of the little penguin colony against climate-change induced threats on the Summerlands Peninsula, a site of high conservation value on Phillip Island (Millowl).
As part of the project, studies to quantify the impact of browsing pressure of revegetation outcomes were undertaken.

Read more on the Future-proofing of Little Penguins Project.

Transport for New South Wales conducted a study on Phillip Island (Millowl) into the effectiveness of technology to reduce wildlife vehicle collisions.

The study determined that virtual fencing was ineffective at reducing wallaby and possum vehicle collisions on Phillip Island (Millowl). A presentation by Christine Connelly details the key findings from the virtual fencing study.

Several sites on Phillip Island (Millowl) have been exposed to high levels of browsing pressure leading to degradation of seabird habitat including erosion and collapse of burrows. Trials to evaluate commercially-available deterrents (Sen-Tree and D-Ter) and exclusion strategies to reduce browsing pressure on native vegetation were undertaken.

Preliminary results indicate that both deterrent products were ineffective at reducing the impacts of browsing from cape barren geese and swamp wallabies, while the use of raised lattice panels to exclude large herbivores showed signs of vegetation recovery at degraded sites.

Exclusion fencing to protect over 6 hectares of eucalyptus plantations on Phillip Island (Millowl) has proven extremely effective at safe-guarding koala browse against the impacts of common brushtail possums and swamp wallabies. The fence includes a “floppy top” overhang design and “hot-wires” to prevent possums from gaining access. While extremely effective at protecting vegetation, the high costs associated with fence construction may exclude this strategy from broader applications.

A 12-month study conducted by Phillip Island Nature Parks on the impacts of possum browsing on the canopy health of eucalypts concluded in August 2024. Collars were placed on 16 Swamp Gums to exclude possums from accessing the canopy, while uncollared trees remained open to possum browsing for comparison. Remote cameras captured daily images of the canopy, which were processed and analysed to assess canopy cover through foliage cover, crown cover, and leaf area.

Findings from the study indicate the majority of collared trees (10 out of 16) showed canopy growth compared to the uncollared ones, suggesting that mitigating possum browsing could help improve tree health.

Investigations into the use of decoy crops to relieve pressure on surrounding agriculture indicate that this would not be an effective strategy used on its own, but would be better suited as part of an integrated approach in conjunction with other management approaches. The Steering Committee have deferred this initiative but will reconsider in year 5.