You folks need to meet some kangaroos.
They munch on grass. Lot of grass on an airport.
They're nocturnal animals. They wake up and start grazing near dusk and stay out all night. If they're standing still, which they usually are, they're almost impossible to see unless you're looking right at them.
They're usually not even remotely intimidated by airplanes. If you do a low pass over a kangaroo, it'll watch you and give you a look that says, "What do you think you're doing in my sky, Junior?"
They can jump a 9' fence like it's not even there, so it's almost impossible to secure the airport perimeter from them. And besides, airport operators don't need to build fences to keep them out anyway, as long as they publish "WILDLIFE HAZARD EXISTS" in the chart supplement.
https://www.bartier.com.au/insights...-runway-an-obvious-risk-rules-court-of-appeal
They're made out of muscle, bone and gristle, and can weigh upwards of 180 pounds. If you hit one, your airplane will be leaving the airport on the back of a truck.
Their numbers depend on the ebb and flow of seasonal food supplies. Some years they're rare. Some years they have massive die-offs. Some years they're so thick on the ground that outback towns have signage warning you against driving at night.
I think about my relative helplessness against kangaroos during every night approach.
Haven't hit one yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQucLolnFeI
- mark