A Chinese couple have been caught on camera illegally fishing for turtles at a lake in suburban Adelaide where immigrants have previously stolen geese and eggs.
The video, filmed at Mawson lakes on Friday, shows the pair using a fishing rod and a net to take a turtle out of one of water while speaking in Mandarin. They also appear to be blaring Chinese music from speakers as they fish.
It was shared on a local Facebook group, and the person filming said they asked the couple to put the turtle back, and that they did so but continued to fish in the same spot.
Chinese couple caught illegally fishing for turtles at Mawson Lakes in Adelaide.
Residents have previously reported immigrants stealing geese and their eggs to eat.
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In April last year locals in the same suburb reported seeing immigrants dubbed “egg bandits”, including a father and a young girl, stealing geese eggs, walking away with geese under their arms, and taking turtles to eat from Shearwater Lake and Mawson Lake.
One resident, who wanted only to be known as Andrew, said he caught two people trying to cook “dinner plate-sized” turtles they had stolen from the lakes, The Advertiser reported at the time.
He said he banged on their door after seeing them fishing and demanded the turtles, forcing the man to collect them from his kitchen.
“Both of them had hooks down their throat I had to try to remove. What would make you want to take a turtle that’s been there for 15 years?” he said.
The video sparked fury when it was posted, with many Aussies saying local wildlife was taking a hit due to illegal poaching.
“The turtle population is dwindling at Roy Amer Reserve in Oakden also and the usual suspects have been informed by regulars they are not to be taken but they don’t listen, understand or care,” one person said.
“These people see the protected wetlands sanctuary as a free food source option,” said another.
“I would have booted them in the lake already if I was there. I have noticed there are much less ducks this year, not sure if the ducks went away or they caught them,” a third wrote.
All native animals and their eggs are protected by law in South Australia, with penalties as high as $100,000 fines and two years’ imprisonment.
Earlier this month New Zealand banned seafood gathering on a long stretch of coastline after busloads of Chinese immigrants nicknamed “bucket people” by locals stripped beaches and rock pools of “everything that lives”.
Similar behaviour sparked nationwide anger in the US in 2024 when Haitian immigrants were caught eating pets and wildlife in Ohio, while foreigners have been caught stealing swans in England, and ibises in Sydney.
Header image: Left, right, the couple catching a turtle (Facebook).
