Tree Kangaroos are hunted for meat and pelt in PNG Photo: wikicommons
Papua New Guineans are being called on to stop hunting the country's native animals.
PNG is considered one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet but its flora and fauna is under threat from logging, settlement encrouachment and hunting.
The general manager of the Port Moresby Nature Park, Michelle McGeorge, said a critical issue was the country's soaring population with more and more people feeding themselves by capturing wild native animals.
She wants a re-think on this to help conserve threatened species.
Ms McGeorge said they were not suggesting people go without meat, but where possible they should consume farmed animals.
"There are a lot of organisations working within Papua New Guinea to teach people how to do fish farming, more commercial chicken farming and more pig farming," she said.
"There are other meat sources, and here locally in Port Moresby we run a number of campaigns, particularly with our school children, that are focussed on - if we have access to a supermarket and farmed meat then we should choose the supermarket farmed meat over native animals."
