Australia's 5,614 km Dingo Fence

The Dingo Fence is a pest-exclusion barrier in Australia. It stretches 5,614 kilometres across arid land. It protects sheep flocks.

Maintenance crews clear both sides to a 5 metre width. Two-person teams patrol a 300 kilometre section twice weekly.

Mostly the barrier uses 180-centimetre high wire mesh. Some sections in South Australia comprise multi-strand electric fence instead.

Construction began to close a gap in the fence.

Parts are lit at night by 86 millimetre cold cathode fluorescent lamps. Photovoltaic cells charge batteries during the day. Mood lighting for the outback.

At minor and farm crossings, gates allow vehicles through. Where the fence meets major roads, cattle grids permit high-speed traffic.

Laws introduced in 1946 still apply. Wire mesh is apparently sacred.

Ecologists note exclusion reduces biodiversity on the protected side. Fewer native mammals survive where dingoes are absent.