Dingoes in the Australian outback maintain wildlife biodiversity
In a paper published today in Proceedings B of the Royal Society, Australian scientists have determined that dingoes are beneficial to ecosystems in which they are the top predator. Nothing unusual there perhaps, except that dingoes were an introduced species coming with settlers some 5000 years ago from Indonesia and usually alien species are detrimental to their environment. In some areas of Australia where fencing has removed dingoes, kangaroos have increased and destroyed much of the arid grasslands thereby reducing numbers of smaller mammals and other wildlife dependent on that ecosystem. The red fox was also seen to increase in numbers. However, in those areas of the outback beyond the dingo fences the wild dog retained its role as the top predator and more importantly retained a more diverse cascade of wildlife in the pyramid beneath it and the grasslands remained more intact. Therefore a role for dingoes in the conservation of outback wildlife and increased farming productivity is suggested.
Tags: Australia, biodiversity, ecosystems, wildlife
