Living with wildlife in NSW alpine resorts

Most of these animals will be natives taking advantage of the warmth and shelter offered by the building. Some animals are attracted by 'free food' – a good reason to keep a clean kitchen and to secure food supplies.

Native animals include:

• dusky antechinus
• southern bush rat
• broad-toothed rat
• mountain pygmy-possum
• brush-tailed possum
• ring-tailed possum
• wombats
• bats
• snakes.

A poster, Small mammals making their home in the ski resorts of Kosciuszko National Park, is available from the National Parks and Wildlife Service Perisher Office or Jindabyne Office to help visitors and lessees identify small native ground mammals.

A trapping guideline, Small mammal trapping in ski resorts, is provided to lessees, including lodge operators and building managers, for the appropriate use of Elliott traps to capture and release native animals without harm.

All animals in the national park are protected, and some are listed as threatened species.

Occasionally, you may find introduced animals, including rabbits, European wasps, black rats and house mice, in your lodge, premises or nearby buildings. If this happens, the National Parks and Wildlife Service may give approval to use alternative methods of control.

It is an offence under the National Parks and Wildlife Regulation to harm any animal in the national park. This means it is illegal to use snap traps or poison bait without written approval or a permit.