Tasmanian devils are considered nuisance animals and have been considered livestock predators, although these scavengers take most of their large prey in the form of carrion.
Today, the Tasmanian devil is a Tasmanian icon, but they are sometimes considered nuisance animals.
However, the value of Tasmanian devils as important members of functioning ecosystems and as scavengers probably outweighs any negative effect of these animals on humans. Tasmanian devils maintain bush and farm hygiene by cleaning up carcasses. This can help reduce the risk of blowfly strike to sheep by removing food for maggots.
Tasmanian devils have been considered livestock predators, especially on animals such as sheep. Although this is unlikely, they have been known to kill poultry. In reality, these carnivorous marsupials take most of their large prey, such as wombats, wallabies, sheep, and rabbits, in the form of carrion.
• Image | © Zweer de Bruin, Some Rights Reserved, (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
• Sources | (Fahey & Kinder, 2001; Nowak, 1999; Save the Tasmanian Devil Program, April 2018)
