Corella Management

What are Corellas?

• Corellas are long-lived, highly intelligent birds that learn from each other. They are increasingly common in the urban landscape of Western Australia.
  
  
• Unfortunately there is little the Town of Port Hedland can do, as Western and Little corellas are a native species protected under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. 

Why are they a pest?

• Noise: When corellas gather in large groups, they make a lot of noise, especially when feeding or resting. Their droppings can dirty trees, clothes on washing lines, buildings, and recreational areas.
  
  
• Environmental impact: Descending in large numbers, corellas will strip trees of their leaves.  They can turn a healthy tree into a stag, with no leaves on its upper branches through their chewing and breaking off branches.
  
  
• Economic impact: Corellas have a varied diet and are naturally very curious - traits that often result in damage to public and private amenities.  They chew through power lines, damage vehicles, shops and housing with their powerful beaks. They can often be seen on sporting fields or large areas of grass where they will pull up and damage both synthetic and natural turf. They damage crops, grain storage facilities and bodies of water.

What can I do about corellas? 

• Corellas are a Category 3 declared pest under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Regulations 2013 which requires landholders to undertake some form of management that will alleviate the harmful impact; reduce the numbers or distribution; or prevent or contain the spread of the declared pest in the area.
  
  
• Property owners/occupiers that experience nuisance issues need to undertake their own management controls to protect and relieve nuisance on their own properties or private land.
  
  
• The Town of Port Hedland recommends landowners seek out pest management equipment: https://birdcontrolaustralia.com.au/ 
  
  
• It must be recognised that the corellas along with many other pest species pose a significant problem, one that extends beyond local government boundaries, resource availability and statutory responsibilities.
  
  

• There are a range of measures you can take to reduce the number of Corellas on your property, and decrease potential damage/destruction they may cause:

  • Protect or cover any open water sources that might attract Corellas;
  • Remove bird feeders and refrain from handfeeding all birds;
  • Place netting on any fruit trees or large trees that may be used for roosting;
  • Make noise to move any Corellas away and disrupt roosting (e.g. blowing a whistle, “shooing”, tapping tree trunks, using clap boards, downloading a bird repellent sound app). Please consider your neighbours if using noise as a deterrent;
  • Shine a bright light or torch into roosting flocks at night as they arrive and are beginning to settle; and
  • Plant native species that are not favourable to Corellas.