Trigger Warning: Community contains mostly bad environmental news (not by choice!). Community may also feature stories about animal agriculture and/or meat. Until tagging is available, please be aware and click accordingly.

🪲

Aussie Zone Rules.

Golden rule - be nice. If you wouldn’t say it in front of your ~~grandmother~~ favourite tree, don’t post it.
No bigotry - including racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, or xenophobia. You are allowed to denigrate invasive plants or animals.
Be respectful. Everyone should feel welcome here. Except invasive plants or animals.
No porn. Except photos of plants. Definitely not animals.
No Ads / Spamming. Except for photos or stories about plants and animals.
Nothing illegal in Australia. Like invasive plants or animals. Exotic microbes and invasive fungi also not welcome.
Make post titles descriptive with no swear words. Comments are a free for all using the above rules as a guide. Fuck invasive plants and animals.

🐝

/c/Aussie Environment acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present.

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

[email protected]

Going on a hike? Here’s why you shouldn't pick up sticks to use as walking aids (www.abc.net.au)

submitted 2 years ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

16 comments fedilink hide all child comments

When hiking through a national park, it may seem harmless to pick up a stick from the bush and use it as a type of walking aid.

"The sticks are used by the little creatures [and plants] of the national park, the echidnas burrowing underneath it … insects, lizards, birds, fungi and moss."

"The removal of just one stick can impact these animals in lots of different ways."

He said 75,000 people visit the national park every year and hikers picking up sticks as walking aids can become an "ecological nightmare" when done in volume.

"Every stick will either be habitat or food for organisms."

"I think a lot of people might just be thinking 'it’s just one stick', but they don’t see the sheer number of sticks that we are picking up and having to redistribute and put back into the bush."

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:

"Visitors might think, 'it’s only one stick', but it can have a very large, accumulated effect over time," Carnarvon national park ranger in charge Lindie Pasma said.

Ms Pasma said rangers had noticed a rise in the number of sticks being left at walking track exits matching an increase in visitation over winter.

Simon Ling is the co-owner of Australian Nature Guides and has been taking visitors through the Carnarvon National Park on tours for 20 years.

He said 75,000 people visit the national park every year and hikers picking up sticks as walking aids can become an "ecological nightmare" when done in volume.

"The key message to get across is that old adage, 'you’re not supposed to take anything but photographs and leave nothing but footprints' and if you stick to that principle you’re pretty well right.

Ms Pasma said it was great to see so many people visiting the national park, but urged them to do their research about the trails and whether they would need specialised hiking poles.

The original article contains 436 words, the summary contains 165 words. Saved 62%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!