The Flinders Island Safe Haven project has reached an exciting new stage, with detection dogs now on the island searching for any signs of feral cats and rodents.
Five dogs – Fudge, Kalinka, Nui, Oaky and Shark – have been working alongside their handlers for several weeks, to help confirm the island’s pest-free status.
Their efforts, combined with camera monitoring, traps, foot searches and thermal drone surveys, have so far found no signs of recent cat activity – the last detection was in early June.
While there’s still some time before the island can officially be declared safe for threatened species reintroductions, the project team says the results are a positive step forward.
The project is jointly funded by the Australian Government, the South Australian Department for Environment and Water, and the Eyre Peninsula Landscape Board, in partnership with the Woolford family.
