Hundreds of kangaroos have moved onto land at an Australian university campus as both development and the country’s drought takes hold, according to students.
A video posted online appears to show dozens of the marsupials leaping in convoy close to Charles Sturt University in the city of Bathurst, New South Wales.
“There are literally hundreds of Roos, this is just a few,” wrote the uploader. “Currently campus has an extraordinary number… I’ve been a student for many years and never seen anything like this this close to the CBD [the city’s central business district]).”
She said the movement of the animals may have been down to the development of Mount Panorama, which is being cleared for a major international motor racing circuit.
However, it emerged as 100 per cent of New South Wales was declared a drought zone on Wednesday.
The state and federal governments have provided £330m in emergency relief funding, as farmers report mass failing crops, severe water shortages and livestock going unfed.
Against such a backdrop, kangaroos have been competing with farmers for increasingly scarce resources and moving into areas they might normally avoid.
In response, the state government has relaxed laws around culling, allowing farmers to apply online or over the phone for licenses to shoot the native creatures.
Niall Blair, the primary industries minister of New South Wales, said the animal's population had reached in “plague proportions” across the state.
“The NSW Government has cut red tape and given more power to our drought-stricken farmers in order to help manage the damage caused by kangaroos,” he said.
The university did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
