How To Get Rid Of Bandicoots In The Garden | Proven Safe Tips

Bandicoots are native, nocturnal diggers that leave neat cone-shaped pits across lawns and beds. Those little craters come from snuffling for beetle grubs, worms, and fungi. If you’re waking up to fresh holes and scrappy turf, you’re after calm, legal fixes that stop the digging without breaking wildlife laws. This guide gives you clear steps that work, plus the exact specs for exclusion so you can keep plants intact while staying on the right side of the rules.

Spotting Bandicoot Signs Before You Act

Good ID saves time. Bandicoot digs are tidy, 2–5 cm wide, and usually scattered rather than ploughed in lines. You might also find small droppings near cover, and narrow runways along fences or dense shrubs. Night activity peaks after rain when soil is soft. If the pits look ragged or the turf is scalped, you may be dealing with birds, possums, or dogs instead. Confirm the visitor, then match the fix.

Quick Diagnostics And Likely Fixes

How To Get Rid Of Bandicoots In The Garden Without Breaking The Law

Across Australian states, bandicoots are native and protected. That means no trapping, relocating, or harming them without a licence. New South Wales, for instance, protects native animals under the Biodiversity Conservation Act; control work needs approval in set cases. You can read the state’s guidance on protected species. Councils and wildlife groups also publish clear notes that say trapping or killing bandicoots is illegal and that yard changes and barriers are the right path. A common council fact sheet spells that out in plain terms and encourages pet care at night and garden design tweaks to reduce visits.

What “Legal And Humane” Looks Like

• Block access to high-value zones with low fencing and mesh skirts.
• Cut back ground-level hideouts next to veggies, while leaving a separate corner that’s better suited to wildlife.
• Bring pet food indoors; shut compost; store seed and pellets in sealed bins.
• Keep pets inside at night in bandicoot-active areas.
• Use grub controls safely; avoid poisons that can harm native mammals.

Getting Bandicoots Out Of Your Garden Safely: Rules And Methods

Here’s the big picture. You remove the drawcards (food, water, shelter), then stop access to the spots you care about most. If the visitor keeps returning, you tighten the barrier spec. This staged plan fits wildlife laws and matches state advice.

Stage 1: Shrink The Appeal In One Weekend

1. Food: Skip night watering for a week; many lawn grubs rise after dusk in moist soil. Rake out thatch so beetles lay fewer eggs. If lawns are full of curl grubs, spot-treat that zone and water in as directed on the label.
2. Hiding places: Lift the lower skirt of dense shrubs near veggies. Clear fallen fruit. Tie up ground-level litter near beds. Leave a separate pile of sticks and leaves in a far corner if you want to keep wildlife benefits away from produce.
3. Pet management: Feed pets indoors. Lock pet doors at night during peak activity. This single change cuts visits in many homes.
4. Compost and bins: Use latched lids and rodent-proof storage. If rodents disappear, bandicoots lose a scent trail too.

Stage 2: Exclude Cleanly With A Low Fence

State wildlife notes in Western Australia recommend a simple, low barrier: galvanised mesh with holes no larger than 2 cm, buried 15 cm deep and standing 50 cm above ground. That setup keeps bandicoots out of a patch while avoiding harm or stress. Use aviary wire or welded mesh; bend a 90-degree “L” underground to stop nose-pushing at the edge.

Build Steps

1. Map the zone (veggie beds, new turf, seedling rows). Plan straight runs to reduce gaps.
2. Dig a trench 15–20 cm deep around the zone.
3. Set 50 cm high mesh so 35 cm sits above ground and 15 cm drops in. For sandy soil, add a peg every 50–60 cm.
4. Bend the buried section outward in an “L” facing wildlife approaches.
5. Fix mesh to timber stakes or steel pins; keep the lower edge tight to the soil.
6. Close gaps under gates with a timber threshold or a strip of mesh folded under.

Stage 3: Cover Beds And Single Plants

For lettuce rows or new transplants, bed nets or cloches shine. Choose small-aperture netting held taut over hoops, or drop stiff wire guards over seedlings until they root. Peg edges so noses can’t nudge under. This is quick to set and easy to move for weeding.

Stage 4: Balance Your Yard

Many homes thrive with a split plan: protected food beds and a separate patch that suits bandicoots. Groups in WA even promote “quenda-friendly” corners with dense understorey and leaf litter. If you steer wildlife to the back corner with cover and no pet activity, digging usually shifts away from your lawn.

Why Bandicoots Dig—and How That Helps You Win

They’re insect hunters. They sniff grubs and break the surface with a neat scoop. The same action can aerate soil and recycle nutrients, which is why you often see greener tufts where pits healed. Knowing this helps you aim grub control and watering timing at the right moments, so the yard stops being a buffet.

Legal Notes You Should Know

Australia lists several bandicoot taxa as threatened at national or regional levels. The southern brown bandicoot has formal conservation advice under the EPBC Act, and some local populations (such as North Head long-nosed bandicoots) carry extra protections. That’s why relocation and lethal controls are off the table for householders. If you live near listed habitats, stick to habitat tweaks and fencing, and seek guidance before any action that could disturb dens.

For a plain-English council summary of what is and isn’t allowed, see a NSW fact sheet that spells out that trapping or killing bandicoots without a licence is illegal and that pet care at night helps reduce incidents.

Exact Specs For Exclusion That Work

Here are barrier numbers that match state advice and field use. They keep access down while letting rain, bees, and breezes through. Where you need more strength, go up a gauge, but keep the opening size tight.

Mesh specs above draw from WA wildlife guidance that recommends ≤2 cm openings, with 15 cm buried and 50 cm above ground.

Step-By-Step Weekend Plan

Day 1 Morning: Prep

• Walk the fence line and chalk gaps under gates or panels.
• List zones to protect first: new turf, seed beds, berries, root crops.
• Buy welded mesh or aviary wire rated at ≤2 cm openings, plus stakes, pegs, and ties.

Day 1 Afternoon: Install The Low Fence

• Trench the outline 15–20 cm deep.
• Set mesh with a buried “L” skirt; keep tension even.
• Pin edges and seal gate gaps.

Day 2 Morning: Remove Drawcards

• Shift pet bowls inside at dusk from now on.
• Prune dense skirts of shrubs right next to produce beds.
• Latch compost; move fallen fruit to the green bin.

Day 2 Afternoon: Cover High-Value Beds

• Hoop-net lettuce and brassicas with fine mesh.
• Drop wire guards over single seedlings.
• Water early evening only on newly planted areas, then pause night watering mid-week.

Safety, Pets, And Poisons

People sometimes mistake quenda (a southern brown bandicoot in WA) for rats and reach for rodent bait. Wildlife groups warn that common baits can be toxic to bandicoots. If you’re handling rodents, choose lockable stations and methods that avoid risk to native mammals.

Ticks on bandicoots worry many households. Wildlife carers say ticks on a bandicoot aren’t lying in wait for you; the animal often grooms them off over time. Keep pets treated for parasites, and keep them indoors at night to avoid scuffles.

When To Ask For Help

Call a local wildlife group or council if you find an injured bandicoot, a nest (grass dome made from leaves), or a juvenile. In listed habitat zones or near known colonies, get site-specific advice before major earthworks. Threat listings and conservation advice under the EPBC Act confirm how sensitive some populations are, so it pays to check.

Where To Place Your Two External Checks

Two links you may want handy as you work through this plan:

• NSW protected species rules for a plain summary of licensing and controls.
• WA quenda fencing guidance with the ≤2 cm mesh, 15 cm buried, 50 cm high spec.

FAQ-Style Temptations To Skip

No need for a long Q&A. The steps above give you everything you need: ID, legality, quick wins, fence specs, and safety. If you follow the weekend plan and the exclusion specs, fresh digs should drop off fast.

Use The Main Phrase Correctly (For Readers Who Searched It)

Plenty of people type “how to get rid of bandicoots in the garden” when they want relief, fast. The plan above delivers that result while keeping native wildlife safe and you compliant. If a neighbour asks about how to get rid of bandicoots in the garden at your place, point them to the low fence with buried mesh and the pet routine—those two steps do the heavy lifting.

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