26-05-2025
Grim discovery in abandoned fishing trap near popular Aussie track
For over three weeks, walkers along a popular Aussie track had no idea that something was rotting in the river below. It was only when Trevor Davy scrambled through dense bush, rubbish and leeches that he found four abandoned nets and the lifeless body of one of Australia's most remarkable animals inside.
The 63-year-old has become an expert in purging Melbourne's Yarra River of discarded fishing gear and other items dumped by tourists like barbecue skewers, knives and broken glass. He was walking along a 15km stretch in Warburton, east of Melbourne, when he discovered the drowned platypus.
'As soon as I saw the nets, I knew what was in it. The poor bugger had quite a violent end to his life the way he was entangled,' Trevor told Yahoo News Australia.
Platypus are listed as vulnerable to extinction in Victoria, with habitat destruction and degradation, and poor water quality leading to a significant drop in numbers and distribution since the early 1990s.
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Another frequent killer of the animals is the Opera House net, yabby traps that funnel aquatic life into an enclosed space they can't escape. While they've been banned in Victoria and NSW, other types of nets, when left unchecked, can still drown platypuses, which need to come up to the surface to breathe.
'He died in a standard hoop or bucket net, which people can readily buy,' Trevor said. Although these nets can be used in Victoria's rivers, they need to be tagged with the owner's name and licence number, and the nets found in Warburton were bare.
Trevor's foul discovery has prompted the Conservation Regulator, which sits within the department of environment (DEECA), to issue a warning about illegal and unchecked nets.
Its chief regulator Kate Gavens urged anyone with information about the nets that killed the platypus to contact CrimeStoppers.
'Platypus, turtles and rakali are at risk of being trapped in abandoned or illegal nets and we are hoping that someone will come forward with information about these nets,' she said.
'Volunteers do a great job reducing the risk posed by abandoned fishing gear to our native wildlife but they shouldn't have to do it. We need everyone to make sure their fishing gear is being used legally to reduce the risk to our native wildlife.'
The nets were found off Cement Creek Road, near the bridge in Warburton's famous redwood forest. Assisted by the Conservation Regulator and fisheries officers, Trevor was able to get three of the hoop nets out of the Yarra.
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'We lost a fourth one, unfortunately. As I was trying to pull the rope in, it snapped and dropped down under a rock shelf, and just can't be retrieved,' he said.
'I'm annoyed that I didn't go up there sooner, as I may have had a chance to get him out and set him free. It was an area I don't normally go to that I will be keeping an eye on from now on.'
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