'Life's mission': Woman vows to bring justice for brush turkey killed by hit-and-run driver
NOOSA, QUEENSLAND: A resident of Noosa has said that finding the driver who "deliberately swerved" in front of a brush turkey on the afternoon of February 28 will be her life's work. The woman, identified as Amy Woodward, claims that the car "sped up" and veered at the turkey, hitting it and leaving it for dead. She is requesting dashcam footage and working with local authorities to establish the license plate from the car.
When the tragedy happened, she was traveling down a congested main road. "My children witnessed it and we pulled up immediately to help," she wrote on Facebook, recalling the terrible scene. The animal didn't survive despite being wrapped in a shirt they had on hand and being rushed to the neighborhood wildlife hospital. "It died in my arms within five minutes," she shared.
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The woman makes it her life's mission to find the driver
Woodward has taken it upon herself to find the driver after the family's traumatic experience in the hopes that they will be penalized for their 'cruel' acts. In an effort to track down the driver of the vehicle, she is certain she would recognize, the local resident has made contact with a neighboring hotel as well as stores and businesses in Bay Village.
"I will make this my life mission," she said among hundreds of comments on the post. Other locals responded to condemn the motorist's actions. "That’s absolutely disgusting and unnecessary behaviour," one man wrote. "That is so sad, how can anyone deliberately kill a bird or an animal," another asked.
More education required to safeguard animals
After a cherished albino brush turkey affectionately known as "Albie" was struck and killed by a car the previous year, the Noosa community became especially protective of these unique species. Brush turkeys are protected as native creatures and are viewed as essential to the conservation of the species, according to Australian legislation. Incidences like this with people going out of their way to cause hurt "happen more often than gets reported" according to Claire Smith from Wildlife Rescue Sunshine Coast.
Ms Smith thinks greater education is required to help safeguard the animals we share our environment with. Snakes, kangaroos, and even emus are frequently targeted in these premeditated "attack and kill" acts. "For people who are caught and convicted of acts of cruelty against wildlife, I personally would like them to pay back to society by undertaking training in wildlife care," she told Yahoo News Australia. "People very often change their beliefs once they have a one-on-one experience with a vulnerable animal," she continued.
The RSPCA works relentlessly to defend animals and inform the public about humane treatment, and violators who deliberately injure animals face severe penalties under the Animal Care and Protection Act. The charges for wildlife cruelty offenses vary, but the maximum punishment for a general offense is $275,700 in fines or three years in prison, according to the evidence in each case.