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Nature & Environment

'Eat more kangaroo meat', say ecologists

By T.K. Randall
September 12, 2017 · Comment icon 59 comments

There are now far too many kangaroos. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0 Lilly M
An overabundance of the iconic marsupial has led wildlife experts to recommend a change in diet.
Australia has long maintained strict rules and guidelines regarding the killing of its national animal - the kangaroo. Each state has rigid quotas on commercial shooting licenses and overall there is generally little demand for kangaroo meat and even less interest in eating it.

Perhaps inevitably, then, kangaroo numbers have been growing wildly out of control over the last few years, with the total population almost doubling from 27 million in 2010 to nearly 45 million in 2016.

There are now twice as many kangaroos in Australia as there are people.
This enormous overpopulation of the animals, in addition to causing damage to the environment in some areas, could also lead to a mass die-off if there ever happened to be a major drought.

Now in a renewed effort to solve the problem, ecologists have suggested that people should shun their dislike of eating kangaroo meat and take up the practice on a more regular basis.

Not only would the demand for it help reduce the number of kangaroos roaming the outback but it would also help reduce the need for other farm animals which produce a lot more methane.

"It's not the kangaroos' fault they're overabundant, it's probably we've just been too reluctant to take a stick to them, remove them out of the system sooner, to actually prevent the damage being caused," said Professor David Paton of the University of Adelaide.

Source: BBC News | Comments (59)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #50 Posted by White Unicorn 7 years ago
Unfortunately it's a food chain world to survive. I prefer veggies but I'm a meat eater too. It's easy to eat meat from a store since you don't have to think about the animal you are eating, that's why most of us can eat meat without remorse. 
Comment icon #51 Posted by Ryu 7 years ago
Meat in and of itself does NOT give you cancer. It is the meats that are processed and saturated with various chemicals to prolong the look of freshness that does it. Could we do ourselves a favor by eating less meat? Probably so but what we need to do is stop soaking our foods with preservatives, antibiotics and all manner of questionable fluids that only serve to make decayed meats look fresh. ALSO..just because someone looks like the Hulk doesn't automatically mean they are healthy just as someone who is slender is not automatically sick either At any rate I am wondering just why there is a... [More]
Comment icon #52 Posted by Michelle 7 years ago
Michael Duncan might not be the best example. He died of a heart attack at 54.
Comment icon #53 Posted by Nostrodumbass 7 years ago
Maybe a better way to control the numbers would be to spread a rumor that the meat has similar properties to rhino horn and certain eastern country's will poach them to extinction.
Comment icon #54 Posted by Myles 7 years ago
I don't think anyone wants them to go extinct.  
Comment icon #55 Posted by Nostrodumbass 7 years ago
Good point, maybe not such a good idea after all.
Comment icon #56 Posted by Atomical 7 years ago
I have eaten Kangaroo before and they are lovely
Comment icon #57 Posted by Black Monk 7 years ago
Does it matter if they do? It's perfactly normal for species to go extinct. It's been happening for millions of years.
Comment icon #58 Posted by Myles 7 years ago
That may be, but humans would be doing a disservice to look the other way while other humans kill off a species because they think the horn does things that it does not.   
Comment icon #59 Posted by Sir Smoke aLot 7 years ago
They are more lovely when they live under the Sun and feel it's warm or doing boxing show offs with inexperienced people or tourists   But then there we are, having taste for everything.  


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