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Australasian Wildlife Management Society 24th Annual Conference CLEAR FIELD Whenever the identity is used, a clear field must surround it to ensure its visibility and impact. No graphic element of any kind should intrude in the clear field. The minimum size of the clear field is determined by the X measurement. X equals the square space of the letter A in Advanced. Citigate Mount Panorama Bathurst, New South Wales ONE-COLOR 29 November - 1 December 2011 GREY PMS 357 50% PMS 357 BLACK & WHITE REVE BLACK PM LOGO + CONTACT PMS 357 MINIMUM SIZE For the greatest impact and readability, a minimum identity size has been established. The smallest size at which the identity should ever be reproduced is 1 inch width. Smaller verions are difficult to read. The minimum size of the identity is based on the total width of the logo 3 This publication should be cited as: P. Fleming, T. Cox and A. Bengsen ( Eds) Abstracts of the Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference, Bathurst, New South Wales, 29 November – 1 December, 2011 Copy available on the AWMS website: http//www.awms.org.au DISCLAIMER This volume is a pre-conference compilation of abstracts. The contents have not been peer-reviewed and abstracts have been printed as received from submitting authors except for minor editing. In many cases the contents contain preliminary results only. Any advice provided in this publication is intended as a source of information only. Please check with the authors before using information. The Australasian Wildlife Management Society does not guarantee that the publication is without flaw of any kind or is wholly appropriate for your purpose and therefore disclaims liability for any error, loss or other consequence which may arise from persons relying on any information in this publication. For information about the Australasian Wildlife Management Society see http://www.awms.org.au Proceedings Production: On Q Conference Support, PO Box 3711, Weston ACT 2611 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CONTENTS Social Program...........................................................................................6 The Venue Floorplan................................................................................6 Welcome from the President................................................................7 THE CONFERENCE PROGRAM...............................................................8 ABSTRACTS IN ORDER OF PROGRAM (Speakers index at rear) when does wild dog predation upon native species move from natural to a threatening process? observations from wild dog control programs and the potential impacts on koala populations from western and south east queensland............................................................43 urban foxes: ecology and management. ......................................................44 rats in the ranks; demographic responses of an invasive species, rattus rattus, to pest control in urban bush land remnants...................45 reflecting on forty years of wildlife management and research in the roost choice and behaviour by rainbow lorikeets, trichoglossus managing for wildlife: moving beyond a top-down approach. .................14 synurbanization of the pacific black duck in south east queensland: central west of new south wales. ...............................................................13 wanggaali project - engaging coastal communities in reducing haematodus: assessing functional explanations. .......................................46 the ecological implications of feeding ducks. ............................................47 the predation threat to long-nosed potoroos by monthly what we do, don’t and need to know about urban dingoes/wild dogs...48 1080 fox baiting............................................................................................15 factors influencing the uptake of fox baits by tasmanian devils. .............49 southern yorke peninsula fox baiting for biodiversity...............................16 hopstop® as a euthansing agent for cane toads........................................50 cruel to be kind? the conundrum of killing wild dogs to evaluation of baiting with pigout® in a sub-alpine forested integrating science into management of ecosystems in the broad-scale viability assessment of an endangered raptor: the defining the problem: kangaroo management on mount panorama, monitoring rare mycophagous mammals: detecting the presence a collaborative approach to feral pig management in the scat happens: separating the good from the bad uses of dingo holistic wildlife management: concept plan for an monitoring the effectiveness of feral cat culling: a case study characteristics of blue mountains heath favoured by honeyeaters..........22 not taking the bait – remote camera monitoring of species conserve koalas. ............................................................................................17 blue mountains. ..............................................................................................18 bathurst, nsw. ................................................................................................19 macquarie marshes.........................................................................................20 ecosystem zoological park............................................................................21 capertee valley regent honeyeater recovery project: a case study of community involvement in wildlife management....................................23 national park..................................................................................................51 bonelli’s eagle in western europe.................................................................52 of potoroos via foraging-dig surveys. ........................................................53 scat data. ........................................................................................................54 from tasmania. ...............................................................................................55 uptake of 1080 baits in southwest wa forests...........................................56 the impacts of sambar on forest understoreys in the breeding endangered species for local reintroductions. ..........................24 yarra ranges national park, australia.........................................................57 pestsmart toolkit for best practice pest management................................25 the australian wildlife health network and the protection pestsmart toolkit for managing the impacts of foxes................................26 pestsmart toolkit for managing the impacts of wild dogs........................27 pestsmart toolkit for management of feral pigs........................................28 pestsmart toolkit for management of european rabbits............................29 . .........................................30 pestsmart toolkit for management of carp. ...............................................31 pestsmart toolkit for managing pest rodents of biodiversity.................................................................................................58 wildlife health surveillance victoria...........................................................59 controlling rabies in semi-wild dog populations – lessons from indonesia. ..............................................................................................60 wildlife disease dynamics: a study of salmonella in feral pigs (sus scrofa)....................................................................................61 hydatid disease, caused by the canine tapeworm echinococcus collars and ear tags do not affect the behaviour of granulosus, is widespread in native wildlife, and may be contributing eastern grey kangaroos................................................................................32 to the decline of some endangered small macropodid populations.........62 applying remote audio technology to western australia’s on strategic aspects of wildlife management.............................................63 starling eradication campaign. .....................................................................33 predator faecal odours as successful repellents for australian vertebrate pests...........................................................................34 smell you later. lessons in olfaction, from multiple-predator systems, and their application to management. .........................................................35 scaling up pest control strategies: from small community-led blocks to landscape scales...........................................................................64 the community baiting program model: a truly cross-tenure approach to effective canid control in far east gippsland, victoria........65 strategies for managing wild canids: passive adaptive co-management can restored bauxite mining areas in the southwest jarrah forest by communities in north eastern nsw...........................................................66 of western australia provide suitable habitat for a threatened strategic aerial application of baits provides economic and wide-ranging carnivore (the western quoll)?............................................36 detecting and preventing new incursions of exotic animals in environmental benefits. .................................................................................67 the role of mhc in mate choice within the tasmanian devil australia.........................................................................................................37 (sarcophilus harrisii) insurance population................................................68 preliminary evaluation of a spring-loaded captive bolt gun to preliminary results of investigations into rabbit populations across stun/kill in-pouch kangaroo joeys during commercial harvesting..........38 human dimensions of the management of australian white ibis (threskiornis molucca) on the gold coast, queensland............................39 an iconic species at the centre of public debate: contemporary issues in koala management. .........................................................................40 can we manage the persistence of koalas in road-dominated landscapes?........................................................................41 drought-driven change in wildlife distribution and numbers: a case study of koalas in south west queensland.................................................42 australia.........................................................................................................69 analysis of camera trap data for population monitoring..........................70 feral goats in western nsw: how many and rates of increase...................71 exploring the capacity of nrm organisations to support invasive animal management now and into the future.............................................72 monitoring malleefowl (leipoa ocellata) activity using camera traps: predator interactions and trap success in the goonoo forest, new south wales. ...........................................................................................73 feralscan pest animal mapping website – a resource for communities, landholders, and local government – www.feralscan.org.au . .............74 5 Welcome It gives me great pleasure to extend an invitation to you for the 24th Conference and Annual General meeting of the Australasian Wildlife Management Society. This conference will focus on the very important aspect of community and wildlife management and the venue is perfectly placed for such a forum where the opening address will be by Professor David Goldney who resides in the area. The famous Mt Panorama motor racing circuit is iconic for the “rev heads” of the Australian community and many may wonder what the connection is between motor racing and wildlife management. If kangaroos could talk they would tell us! Mt Panorama is home to a population of Eastern Grey kangaroos which pose considerable management challenges for the local council, race organisers, conservation groups and animal welfare organisations. Dr Anne Kerle will speak on this issue which is but one example of the many community and wildlife management issues that keynote speakers from Australia, New Zealand and other Pacific Rim countries will present for information, discussion and learning over the three days of the conference. A total of eight symposia will focus on urban, peri-urban and rural contemporary wildlife management issues while students will compete for the highly sought after prizes of best spoken paper and best poster presentation. For those with an interest of things long past a trip to the Sommerville Fossil Museum in Bathurst will be a highlight at the end of day one. This museum holds one of the best fossil and mineral collections in the world, including the only complete skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex in Australia. Students attending the conference will be hosted by the committee at a subsidised student dinner on night one of the conference. Lucy Bridgeman has done an excellent job in promoting student issues and will be sorely missed upon leaving the important position of student representative on the committee. I invite you to take advantage of the vast knowledge and experience available at the Bathurst conference by attending this community focused event. It may help clarify who is the real problem – humans or the wildlife! I look forward to meeting you over the three days. Terry Korn PSM President 2011 6 Social Program Conference Icebreaker Post-Conference Tour Monday 28 November 2011, 5pm-7pm National Motor Racing Museum, Murray’s Corner, Bathurst. Thursday 1 December 2011, 12.30pm-6pm Delegates will depart Citigate Mount Panorama immediately after the session at 12.30pm, travelling to the Jenolan Caves. A BBQ lunch is organised on arrival at the Jenolan Caves and this will be followed by a guided walk about the brushtail rock wallaby breeding colony, starting at the Grand Arch, through the Devils Coach House cave and up to the breeding colony enclosure. Delegates registered for this function have the opportunity to view the Museum while enjoying food and drink and networking with colleagues. The National Motor Racing Museum has ever changing displays that highlight the history of motor racing in Australia and overseas. Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum Tour After the guided talk, delegates will have the opportunity to explore the area further, or hang around the breeding enclosure for a chance to see the rock wallabies. Tuesday 29 November 2011, 5.30pm-7pm The bus will return delegates to Citigate Mount Panorama by 6pm. If you enjoy fossils and/or minerals you will certainly enjoy this visit to the world famous Somerville collection at the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum (with the only complete Tyrannosaurus rex in Australia). If you wish to join colleagues for the post-conference tour, please ensure you indicate your interest with the Registration desk no later than midday Wednesday 30 November. A bus will shuttle delegates to the Museum from the front of the Citigate Mount Panorama hotel from 5.30pm. This is a registered function so please ensure you have a ticket in the sleeve of your nametag. Items to take with you include: comfortable walking shoes, a hat, sunscreen and insect repellant. If you have no ticket but wish to go, please ask at the Registration desk. The ‘Aussie Icon’ Conference Dinner Wednesday 30 November 2011, 7pm-11.30pm Ballroom, Citigate Mount Panorama Dress up as your favourite ‘Aussie Icon’. If you haven’t come pre-prepared, there’s no doubt you’ll find something in Bathurst that will help you. Perhaps you could come dressed as a person… Dame Edna, Warwick Capper, Greg Norman, Merv Hughes? Perhaps you could come as an animal…a white pointer, a quoll, a Tassie devil or, you could come as a place or a thing…Uluru, a Hills Hoist or a Victa lawn mower! It really is up to you! Let your imagination take over. This is a registered function even though it is included in the conference registration. We need to know numbers for catering. If you do not have a ticket in the sleeve of your nametag, but do wish to attend, please ask at the Registration desk. 7 AWMS Conference Program 2011 DAY 1 Tuesday 29 November 2011 830-845 Open, Welcome and Housekeeping Terry Korn, AWMS President Symposium 1 Putting science into practice to make wildlife management work Chair: Jessica Marsh 8:45-9:15 Reflecting on forty years of wildlife management and research in the central west of New South Wales - Goldney D 9:15-9:30 Managing for wildlife: Moving beyond a top-down approach - Kasbarian A, Ramsay G 9:30-9:45 Wanggaali project - Engaging coastal communities in reducing the predation threat to long-nosed potoroos by monthly 1080 fox baiting - Gouvernet J, Forge O, Thomas C 9:45-10:00 Southern Yorke Peninsula fox baiting for biodiversity - Rudd K 10:00-10:15 Cruel to be kind? The conundrum of killing wild dogs to conserve koalas - Tabart D 10:15-10:45 MORNING TEA Symposium 2 Putting science into practice in local communities Blue mountains & Central West Chair: Rosalie Chapple 10:45-11:00 Integrating science into management of ecosystems in the Blue Mountains - Chapple R, Mulley R, Fleming P, Kingsford R, Bradstock R 11:00-11:15 Defining the problem: Kangaroo management on Mt Panorama, Bathurst, NSW - Kerle A 11:15-11:30 A collaborative approach to feral pig management in the Macquarie Marshes Holcombe P 11:30-11:45 Holistic wildlife management: Concept plan for an ecosystem zoological park - Bolam A 11:45-12:00 Characteristics of Blue Mountain heath favoured by honeyeaters - Franklin M, Morris C, Major R 8 12:00-12:15 Capertee Valley Regent Honeyeater Recovery Project- case study of community involvement in wildlife management Paterson I 12:15-12:30 Breeding endangered species for local reintroductions - Evans T 12:30-1:30LUNCH Symposium 3 Communicating science with managers of invasive animals: The IACRC PestSmart Roadshow Chair: Keryn Lapidge 13:30-13:45 PestSmart Toolkit for best practice pest management - Braysher M 13:45-14:00 PestSmart Toolkit for managing the impacts of foxes - Saunders G 14:00-14:15 PestSmart Toolkit for management of wild dogs - Mifsud G 14:15- 14:30 PestSmart Toolkit for management of feral pigs - Lapidge S 14:30-15:00 AFTERNOON TEA 15:00-15:15 PestSmart Toolkit for management of European rabbits - Cooke B 15:15-15:30 PestSmart Toolkit for managing rodents Staples L, Atyeo M 15:30-15:45 PestSmart Toolkit for management of carp Fulton W, Hall K 15:45-16:15 Discussion session 16:15 AWMS Annual General Meeting 17:30 Social function - Bus departs for Fossil Museum _______________________________ DAY 2 Wednesday 30 November 2011 Symposium 4 Animal behaviour and managing wildlife Chair: Tarnya Cox 8:30-8:45 Collars and ear tags do not affect the behaviour of eastern grey kangaroos - Sofo K, Coulson G AWMS Conference Program 2011 8:45-9:00 Applying remote audio technology to Western Australia’s starling eradication campaign - Campbell S, Parr R, Gray G, Martin G, Woolnough A 9:00-9:15 Predator faecal odours as successful repellents for Australian vertebrate pests Cox T, Murray P, Hall G, Li X, Tribe A 9:15-9:30 Smell you later. Lessons in olfaction, from multiple-predator systems, and their application to management. - Ballard G, Fleming P, Meek P, Doak S, Lamb M Open Session 1 Chair: Tarnya Cox 11:45-12:00 When does wild dog predation upon native species move from natural to a threatening process? Observations from wild dog control programs and the potential impacts on koala populations from western and south east Queensland - Mifsud G, Tabart D 12:00-1:00LUNCH Symposium 6 Managing impacts of wildlife and pest species in urban and periurban environments Chair: Ricky Spencer 13:00-13:15 Urban foxes: Ecology and management Spencer R 9:30-9:45 Can restored bauxite mining areas in the southwest Jarrah Forest of Western Australia provide suitable habitat for a threatened wide ranging carnivore (the western quoll)? McGregor R, Stokes V, Craig M 13:15-13:30 Rats in the ranks: Demographic responses of an invasive species, rattus rattus, to pest control in urban bush land remnants Hansen N, Hughes N, Banks P 9:45-10:00 Detecting and preventing new incursions of exotic animals in Australia - Henderson W, Bomford M, Cassey P 13:30-13:45 Roost choice and behaviour by rainbow lorikeets, Trichoglossus haematodus: Assessing functional explanations - DaoudOpit S, Jones D 10:00-10:30 MORNING TEA Symposium 5 Contemporary issues in wildlife management: Managing wildlife at the centre of the public debate Chair: Steve McLeod / Trudy Sharp 10:30-10:45 Preliminary evaluation of a spring-loaded captive bolt gun to stun/kill in-pouch kangaroo joeys during commercial harvesting - Sharp T, McLeod S, Cantrill L 10:45-11:00 Human dimensions of the management of Australian white ibis (Threskiornis molucca) on the Gold Coast, Queensland - Varvaro K, Arunachalam D, McLean K 11:00-11:15 An iconic species at the centre of public debate: Contemporary issues in koala management - Lunney D, Stalenberg E, Ross K, Crowther M 11:15-11:30 Can we manage the persistence of koalas in road-dominated landscapes? - Jones D 11:30-11:45 Drought-driven change in wildlife distribution and numbers: A case study of koalas in south west Queensland - Baxter G, Seabrook L, McAlpine C, Rhodes J, Bradley A 13:45-14:00 Synurbanization of the Pacific black duck in south east Queensland: The ecological implications of feeding ducks - Chapman R, Jones D 14:00-14:15 What we do, don’t and need to know about urban dingoes/wild dogs - Allen B Open Session 2 Chair: John Tracey 14:15-14:30 Factors influencing the uptake of fox baits by Tasmanian devils - Hughes C, Gaffney R, Dickman CR 14:30-14:45 HopStop® as a euthansing agent for cane toads - Dall D 14:45-15:00 Evaluation of baiting with Pigout® in a subalpine, forested national park. - Fletcher D, MacDonald T 15:00-15:30 AFTERNOON TEA 15:30-15:45 Broad-scale viability assessment of an endangered raptor: The Bonelli’s eagle in Western Europe - Real J, Hernandez-Matias A 9 15:45-1600 Monitoring rare mycophagous mammals: detecting the presence of potoroos via foraging-dig surveys - Reed R, Handasyde K 16:00-16:15 Scat happens: Separating the good from the bad uses of dingo scat data - Allen B 16:15-16:30 Monitoring the effectiveness of feral cat culling: A case study from Tasmania Lazenby B, Dickman C, Mooney N 16:30-16:45 Not taking the bait – Remote camera monitoring of species uptake of 1080 baits in southwest WA forests - Dundas S, Adams P, Fleming P 16:45-17:00 The impacts of sambar on forest understoreys in the Yarra Ranges National Park, Australia - Bennett A, Coulson G 19:00 AWMS Conference Dinner _______________________________ DAY 3 Thursday 1 December 2011 Symposium 7 Diseases of wildlife: interactions with human values and biodiversity Chair: Peter Fleming 9:00-9:15 The Australian Wildlife Health Network and the protection of biodiversity - Woods R, Post L 9:15-930 Wildlife Health Surveillance Victoria Whiteley P, Beveridge I, Vizard A 9:30-9:45 Controlling rabies in semi-wild dog populations – Lessons from Indonesia Scott-Orr H, Gunata K, Madha C, Nany S, Siko M, Putra A 9:45-10:00 Wildlife disease dynamics: A study of salmonella in feral pigs (Sus scrofa) - Negus K, Cowled B, Galea F, Garner G, Laffan S, Marsh I, Sarre S, Woolnough A, Ward MP 10:00-10:15 Hydatid disease, caused by the canine tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus, is widespread in native wildlife, and may be contributing to the decline of some endangered small macropodid populations - Jenkins D, Barnes T 10:15-10:45 MORNING TEA 10 Symposium 8 Pest control strategies: Are they more important than silver bullets? Chair: Bruce Warburton 10:45-11:00 On strategic aspects of wildlife management - Hone J 11:00-11:15 Scaling up pest control strategies: From small community-led blocks to landscape scales - Byrom A, Glen A, Pech R 11:15-11:30 The Community Baiting Program model: A truly cross-tenure approach to effective canid control in Far East Gippsland, Victoria - Murray A 11:30-11:45 Strategies for managing wild canids: Passive adaptive co-management by communities in north eastern NSW - Fleming P, Ballard G 11:45-12:00 Strategic aerial application of baits provides economic and environmental benefits Warburton B, Latham D, Nugent G 12:00 Student prize announcements 12:30 Conference close _______________________________ Posters 1. The role of MHC in mate choice within the Tasmanian Devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) insurance population - Russell T, Belov K, Ujvari B, Lane A, Spindler R 2. Preliminary results of investigations into rabbit populations across Australia - Cox T, Liu J, Strive T, Saunders G 3. Analysis of camera trap data for population monitoring - Bengsen A 4. Feral goats in western NSW: How many and rates of increase - Fleming P et al 5. Exploring the capacity of NRM organisations to support invasive animal management now and into the future - Marsh J 6. Monitoring mallee fowl (Leipoa ocellata) activity using camera traps: Predator interactions and trap success in the Goonoo forest, New South Wales Brown A 7. FeralScan pest animal mapping website – A resource for communities, landholders, and local government – www.feralscan.org.au - West P, Marsh J, Lane C ABSTRACTS (in order of program) Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 12 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 REFLECTING ON FORTY YEARS OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH IN THE CENTRAL WEST OF NEW SOUTH WALES David Goldney Cenwest Ennvironmental Services Email: [email protected] Over a forty year period I have been privileged to have been involved in a wide range of wildlife studies: as an individual scientist, working with honours and post graduate students at two regional universities, and also from time to time as a member of a specialist team. Individual species studies have focused on the wombat (Vombatus ursinus), koala (Phascolarctus cinereus), the brush-tail rock wallaby (Petrogale penicillata) and a number of bird species, and longer term studies on platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) population dynamics on the Duckmaloi Weir, and small mammal population dynamics within a fragmented landscape at Yetholme. Other studies have focused on the distribution and status of vertebrate species in the Central West of NSW, the quality and nature of remnant native vegetation patches, describing the freshwater ecology of selected streams, investigating willow ecology in the upper Macquarie River, determining optimal environmental flows in managed streams, developing environmental education products for landholders, involvement in a number of landscape restoration programs, researching the status of birds in the Bathurst landscape and examining the attitudes of landholders to environmental issues. Over the last ten years I have focused my attention on applied ecological problems as a specialist consultant working with all tiers of government, landholders and mining companies on a range of programs as diverse as urban park invasion by flying foxes (Pteropus spp.), urban stream assessments, assessing the impacts of long wall mining on upland swamps, developing model offset proposals, environmental impact assessment, and developing strategies for pest management control. In this talk I will draw from this experience to focus on what I consider to be six important matters for all wildlife managers and researchers to consider and to illustrate each with examples from projects that I have been involved with. These are: 1. Value long term research; 2. Maintain personal integrity under difficult circumstances; 3. Understand that healthy landscape function underwrites vertebrate species conservation; 4. Understand that we are living in the ‘Age of Restoration’ where we are seeking to create a sustainable cultural landscape for humans and wildlife; 5. Understand that landholders are likely the most important players in landscape restoration and in species conservation, and 6. Make time to educate your organisation and the general public about wildlife matters. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 13 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 MANAGING FOR WILDLIFE: MOVING BEYOND A TOP-DOWN APPROACH Alicia Kasbarian, Gavin Ramsay University of Western Sydney Email: [email protected] Traditionally wildlife has been managed from a scientific viewpoint, without consideration of the social dimensions and the complexity surrounding the often multiple stakeholders involved. Research carried out in Western Sydney has demonstrated that current wildlife management approaches come from the perspectives of senior management, usually without consultation with other levels of staff, other organisations, or the wider community of stakeholders. In addition, the current study revealed a number of compounding issues that present following the use of such approaches; examples include: stakeholder sense of detachment and dissatisfaction with the current situation, conflict, and lack of coordinating processes and structures to mange pertinent issues. The research has clearly demonstrated the need for improved community engagement, collaboration amongst stakeholders (beyond current funding frameworks), and uptake and sharing of local knowledge. This paper focuses on a process to move towards a more consultative approach and outlines a mechanism for the development of a wildlife management system. In doing so, the paper illustrates the development of an ideal management model that draws on stakeholders’ knowledge and experience through use of an interactive planning model. The paper also critically evaluates the process from the inception of the model and how stakeholder input was used as a tool to validate the model developed including its practicality. That evaluation will be from multiple perspectives including those of stakeholders and researchers. More specifically, the evaluation considers the application of systems ideas and their value as an innovative tool in this process. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 14 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 WANGGAALI PROJECT - ENGAGING COASTAL COMMUNITIES IN REDUCING THE PREDATION THREAT TO LONG-NOSED POTOROOS BY MONTHLY 1080 FOX BAITING Justin Gouvernet1, Olivia Forge1, Cathy Thomas2 1 Southern Rivers Catchment Management Authority, 2 National Parks and Wildlife Service NSW Email: [email protected] This six year project has taught many of us a lot of lessons. It is a story of what we learnt was necessary to engage people in controlling foxes (Vulpes vulpes) for long-nosed potoroo (Potorous tridactylus) conservation. Forty landholders in two coastal communities have been engaged in controlling foxes that are a threat to the vulnerable long-nosed potoroo and other critical weight range native animals. The Tanja–Wapengo area covers 12,000 ha, National Park, State Forest and 3000 ha of private land. Wallaga Lake-Tliba area covers 6000 ha of National Park and 2500 ha of private land. This presentation describes how we engaged people in potoroo and fox management using the indigenous cultural significance of the potoroo, and using landscape scale monitoring of fox and potoroo populations. We describe how we located potoroo populations, how we helped some people over the barrier of using 1080 poison on their property, and how we worked together across Southern Rivers Catchment Management Authority, National Parks and Wildlife Service, Livestock Health and Pest Authority, State Forests and Eurobodalla Shire Council. The results at Tanja-Wapengo show that the fox control program has resulted in an increase in bandicoots with a corresponding increase in the slower breading potoroos expected to follow. Wallaga Lake control program has just begun with spring monitoring hopefully showing favourable results. We show how we are increasing the resilience of the Potoroo populations through fox control by focusing on the myriad of needs of people on the land, and how we are using the same basic strategy to engage people in frogs and quoll management. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 15 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 SOUTHERN YORKE PENINSULA FOX BAITING FOR BIODIVERSITY Ken Rudd, Hannah Short, Rob Lincoln and Fabienne Dee Northern and Yorke Natural Resources Management Board, SA Email: [email protected] Southern Yorke Peninsula Fox Baiting for Biodiversity is a large scale fox (Vulpes vulpes) baiting project being undertaken to protect endangered species on Southern Yorke Peninsula, including malleefowl (Leipoa ocellata) western whipbird (Psophodes nigrogularis), Hooded plover (Thinornis rubricollis), sand goanna (Varanus gouldii), little penguin (Eudyptula minor) and tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii). The project began in February 2008 to complement baiting being undertaken by the Department of Environment and Heritage on Innes National Park as part of the tammar wallaby re-introduction program. Innes National Park also has one of the few stable malleefowl populations in Australia. We now work together to complement each others project. We have established 500 permanent bait stations across 35,000 ha on Southern Yorke Peninsula, over 26 rural holdings and four parks. Baiting is carried out over two 8-week baiting periods in February/March and September/October each year. We used several remote cameras to monitor bait stations, and observed that after three years of using commercially prepared 1080 fox bait we were getting some bait shyness. In February 2011 we switched to kangaroo meat injected with 1080 and achieved a big increase in bait uptake. We are in the process of preparing tuna chunks injected with 1080 for our February 2012 round of baiting. We also use the remote cameras to monitor malleefowl nests, and observed that no foxes visited the monitored malleefowl nest during the incubating period. Other observations are the sightings of three echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus) when they were thought to be extinct on Yorke Peninsula. There has also been a bush stone-curlew (Burhinus grallarius) sighting, which has not occurred in Innes for many years. There have also been several sightings of heath goannas (Varanus rosenbergi) which are listed as endangered in the region. The project highlights what can be achieved over a large scale area and the importance of ongoing monitoring and evaluation and the need to modify techniques to achieve the best results. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 16 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CRUEL TO BE KIND? THE CONUNDRUM OF KILLING WILD DOGS TO CONSERVE KOALAS Deborah Tabart OAM Australian Koala Foundation Email: [email protected] This presentation discusses the complexities of killing wild dogs (Canis lupus dingo, C. l. familiaris and hybrids) to conserve koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus). On one hand, there are “greenies”, who cannot bear the thought of wild dogs being killed because it seems cruel and on the other side, landholders who witness, first hand, the cruelty imposed both on domestic and herd animals by packs of wild dogs. The presentation traces my understanding of this issue, from helping to lay 1080 baits in Port Stephens in 1994 to a recent wake-up call that perhaps the thousands of koalas that have been killed, particularly in the peri-urban landscape, may have been the victims of wild dog packs. I highlight the need for further education of the community by both sides of the argument and as always, will highlight that the koala is a great flagship to bring about greater understanding of how our landscape is, should, and could be, managed with sensible common sense approaches to an issue of this nature. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 17 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 INTEGRATING SCIENCE INTO MANAGEMENT OF ECOSYSTEMS IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS Rosalie Chapple1, Robert Mulley2, Peter Fleming3, Richard Kingsford4, Ross Bradstock 5, John Merson 4, Tony Auld 6 and Daniel Ramp4 1 Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute, 2 University of Western Sydney,, 3 Department of Primary Industries, 4 University of NSW, 5 University of Wollongong, 6 NSW Office of Environment & Heritage Email: [email protected] A recent study has identified key barriers to effective uptake of science into management of ecosystems in the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. The study focused on fire and wild dogs and demonstrated how inadequate linking between the scientific and policy-making and management communities hamper effective decision-making. More effective linking (e.g. collaboration and information flow) between research and management were found to depend upon: (1) shared comprehensive problem definition; (2) clearly defined management objectives to guide research directions and uptake; (3) the role of scientists and their information being transparent and understood by all stakeholders and scientific information made more understandable and accessible, and (4) an adaptive framework for integrating research into management. The paper highlights the distinction between a “conventional” and more “adaptive” management approach, noting the failure of conventional management that is based on a ‘‘command and control’’ approach, to address complex management problems where there are multiple objectives and tradeoffs. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 18 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 DEFINING THE PROBLEM: KANGAROO MANAGEMENT ON MOUNT PANORAMA, BATHURST, NSW Anne Kerle Central West CMA, NSW Email: [email protected] Interactions between wildlife and humans, especially in urban environments, can be both positive and negative. Social pressures in this paradigm vary from a wildlife protection perspective to financial and emotional costs resulting from damage that may be caused by wildlife and the potential for human tragedy resulting from a collision with racing cars. The image of a panicked kangaroo narrowly avoiding a car being driven at about 200 km/hr on the Mount Panorama race track is not for the faint hearted. In response to this and the need to manage macropod populations sustainably on the Mount, Bathurst Regional Council has commissioned the development of a fauna management strategy. This is to be based on accurate population surveys and the local and regional dynamics of these populations and to include community values. Surveys of kangaroo numbers on Mount Panorama have been carried out for several years but there is no clear understanding of the distribution of macropods across the Mount Panorama precinct or of the movement patterns of the resident animals. In order to develop a robust management strategy we have established a baseline index of abundance and density using fixed-width strip transects located across the precinct and a record of movement patterns. An indication of the distribution of macropods in the surrounding landscape in relation to Mount Panorama was obtained using a driven transect around a broader study area and a helicopter transect survey. This data will form the basis of the management strategy which will also incorporate the concerns of private landholders and the broader community. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 19 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO FERAL PIG MANAGEMENT IN THE MACQUARIE MARSHES Peta Holcombe Central West Catchment Management Authority Email: [email protected] The Macquarie Marshes covers approximately 200,000 ha and are located approximately 100 km north of Warren and 30 km west of Quambone. Almost 20,000 ha of this area are listed as a Ramsar site. The Macquarie Marshes are one of the largest remaining inland, semi permanent wetlands in south-east Australia and is home to several species of threatened plants and birds. Feral pigs (Sus scrofa) have been identified as one of the key threats to the health of the Macquarie Marshes and their management is imperative to its ecological character. In 2010 Central West Catchment Management Authority (CMA) successfully obtained three years funding from the Caring for our Country program to address the issue of key threats to the ecological character of the Macquarie Marshes and surroundings. These threats include feral pigs, carp (Cyprinus carpio), lippia (Phyla canescens) and other sleeper or emergent weed species. Under this program Central West CMA has collaborated with numerous stakeholders including North West Livestock Health and Pest Authority (LHPA), Central West LHPA, National Parks and Wildlife Service, Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre (IA CRC) and local landholders, to prioritise areas and use best practice in the integrated management and monitoring of feral pigs. The feral pig control program is run by a steering committee with representatives from all stakeholder groups. This steering committee is responsible for the planning, implementation and review of the pig control program, including ground baiting, ground and aerial shooting, and monitoring. The IA CRC is also developing a best practice program for the Macquarie Marshes. This collaborative approach has resulted in an integrated control program, with Central West and North West LHPAs undertaking their aerial shoot at the same time as National Parks and Wildlife Service. Local landholders, IA CRC and both LHPAs are also having an effect by ground baiting and shooting at optimum times. Although preliminary outcomes have been affected by the large populations of pigs in response to good conditions, and an abundance of food and habitat, Central West CMA expects to see that this approach will be effective in reducing pig numbers and managing the threat they pose over the long-term. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 20 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 HOLISTIC WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT: CONCEPT PLAN FOR AN ECOSYSTEM ZOOLOGICAL PARK Andrew Bolam Clonturkle Forest Sanctuary, NSW Email: [email protected] The wildlife conservation and tourism sector is broadly polarized between urbanised intensive captive wildlife population management (zoos) and protected natural area management for free range wildlife metacommunities (e.g. national parks). The underdeveloped middle ground between these poles is explored in concept planning for an innovative 250 ha ecosystem zoological park proposal situated between the Blue Mountains and the Central West of NSW. This ‘eco zoo’ concept represents the integration of three fields within a single enterprise - captive vertebrate management, ecosystem habitat management and in situ wildlife assemblage management and reintroduction. The ‘eco zoo’ concept offers distinct challenges and opportunities for innovation in holistic wildlife management as well as for advancing a sustainable role for the private sector in wildlife conservation. These issues are considered in the case of Gulguma Eco Zoo, including collection principles, ecological and genetic conservation models for integrated ex-situ and in-situ management, elements in the visitor experience, and design principles. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 21 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CHARACTERISTICS OF BLUE MOUNTAINS HEATH FAVOURED BY HONEYEATERS Michael Franklin1, Charles Morris1 and Richard Major2 1 University of Western Sydney, 2 Australian Museum Email: [email protected] Blue Mountains NPWS staff involved in fire management have asked whether relationships exist between time-since-fire and honeyeaters in Blue Mountains heath. This study was conducted to answer this question using a study area on the western escarpment of the Blue Mountains, NSW. The primary hypotheses tested were that the number of honeyeater species and their abundance would vary seasonally and be influenced by time-since-fire, inflorescence abundance, slope angle and elevation. Twelve study sites across a range of time since fire of 2–39 years were sampled in cool and warm seasons. Regression analysis was used to test for relationships between variables. In the cool season, total honeyeater abundance was not associated with time since fire. At this time New Holland honeyeater (Phylidonyris-novaehollandiae) abundance was significantly related to time-since-fire and the abundance of Heath-leaved Banksia (Banksia ericifolia) inflorescences. In the warm season total honeyeater and New Holland honeyeater abundance showed saturation relationships with time-since-fire. The steep rate of increase in abundance plateaued after 10 years since fire in both cases. The number of honeyeater species and total honeyeater abundance were associated with inflorescence abundance in the warm season. Eastern spinebill (Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris) abundance was related to both inflorescence abundance and elevation in the warm season, with few spinebills or inflorescences recorded at higher elevation sites. This study showed that honeyeaters used Blue Mountains heath across a broad range of post-fire intervals greater than 10 years, partly because nectar resources and habitat structure were restored by this time. Much of the distribution of Blue Mountains heath has been impacted by wildfires in the last 10 years so fire management and planning should aim to increase the area of heath with longer fire intervals throughout this landscape if an important management objective is to provide resources for honeyeaters. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 22 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CAPERTEE VALLEY REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PROJECT: A Case Study of Community Involvement in Wildlife Management Iain Paterson Capertee Valley Alliance Inc Email: [email protected] The Capertee Valley, on the western margin of the Blue Mountains, NSW, is the most important of the three major regularly used breeding areas for the nationally endangered regent honeyeater (Anthochaera phrygia). However, much of the suitable box–ironbark woodland habitat within the valley has been cleared for agriculture, and what remains is fragmented and generally degraded. In 1993, the Southern NSW and ACT Regional Group of Birds Australia (BASNA) initiated a volunteer-based project to contribute to the recovery of the regent honeyeater by enhancing and protecting habitat, monitoring, undertaking strategic research, and promoting community awareness and involvement in recovery of the species. The project objectives are aligned with priority actions that have been identified in the National Regent Honeyeater Recovery Plan. The project has operated with the guidance and support of the Recovery Team, and the national coordinator appointed to assist with its implementation. Effective working relationships developed with other stakeholders have also been important factors in the project’s success. Habitat management actions have been dependent on the support of local landowners and managers. Volunteer support has also been critical to achieving the project’s objectives. Financial support has been provided from a variety of sources including: NSW Environmental Trusts, Natural Heritage Trust, and Caring for Our Country. Research and monitoring has included: a monthly survey over four years to identify habitat preferences; a breeding biology study (over three breeding seasons); population monitoring (2001–present) and vegetation mapping. Data from these studies have assisted in identifying important areas of habitat within the valley and in planning on-ground conservation and monitoring activities as well as contributing to the recovery effort at a national level. Revegetation has been a major element of the project. With the exception of two years, two tree-planting weekends have been held annually, in autumn and spring, since 1994. To date, more than 98,000 trees and shrubs, of local provenance, have been planted by volunteers, on 65 sites on 37 properties. In addition, two areas of remnant woodland have been fenced-off. Planting sites are selected primarily on the basis of their potential to provide habitat for regent honeyeaters and other declining woodland birds. They also provide an opportunity to work with landowners and managers to address environmental issues of common interest such as erosion, salinity and habitat loss. Plant survival rates on project sites are monitored regularly and follow-up maintenance action taken where required. A survey of 28 planted sites was undertaken in 2008 to assess bird species composition and richness. Although no regent honeyeaters were recorded on the surveyed sites, a total of 82 bird species, including eight threatened species, were recorded. The project has been highly effective in engaging with the local community and in raising awareness of the status of the regent honeyeater and the recovery program. This has been reflected in a high level of goodwill towards the project and increased interest and participation by landowners in habitat management to achieve conservation outcomes. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 23 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 BREEDING ENDANGERED SPECIES FOR LOCAL REINTRODUCTIONS Trevor Evans Australian Ecosystems Foundation Inc. NSW Email: [email protected] The current text book methodologies for saving endangered species comes under question with species still disappearing and at ever-increasing risk. The Australian Ecosystems Foundation Inc (AEFI) breed 10 endangered species at Secret Creek in Lithgow NSW and are currently a part of the Mountain Pygmy Possum breeding programme. AEFI advocates feral proof fencing, feral animal control and habitat reconstruction. In reintroductions, the protection and management of founder populations is paramount for successful dispersal back into the wild. AEFI are working on a number of species reintroductions including Eastern Quolls (Dasyurus viverrinus) into NSW after 50 years. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 24 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR BEST PRACTICE PEST MANAGEMENT Mike Braysher University of Canberra Email: [email protected] For a long time it was thought that if we tried hard enough, we could get rid of our pests. We now know that we cannot eradicate established pests from the mainland (i.e. remove every last individual). Eradication is only possible on some islands, or when pest populations are very small and isolated. The new approach to managing pests is set out in the Australian Pest Animal Strategy. Rather than trying to kill as many pests as possible, the aim is to reduce the damage that pests cause, down to an acceptable level. This talk sets out the strategic approach which consists of the following steps: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Why pest management is required – what is the trigger to take action? Who is responsible and will develop and own the program? What is the problem in terms of the desired production/conservation/social result? Where is the problem and what are the causes? What information is required to deal with the problem? Develop the locally owned and implemented program. Ensure that there is an appropriate Monitoring and Evaluation strategy. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 25 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR MANAGING THE IMPACTS OF FOXES Glen Saunders Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, Primary Industries NSW and Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Email: [email protected] Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) became established in Australia in the 1870’s and now occupy some 5.8 milionl km2 of the continent. They impact on populations of many prey species, and as such, are the target of widespread management programs. Estimates of economic losses through fox predation are highly variable with most tangible losses experienced by the lamb industry. Current research is not only investigating new fox control tools, but also ways to improve the effectiveness of landscape management practices. The Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre (IA CRC) has primarily concentrated on the development and registration of Para-aminopropiophenone (PAPP), an antidote (Bluehealer) and a carrier bait (Foxecute) to supplement the use of 1080 in broad-scale control programs. The IA CRC has also been involved with developing additional tools to assist in fox control including the toxin ejector (M44), lethal trap devices for attachment to leg-hold traps, and DNA fox detection technology to assist in the Tasmanian eradication program. Training DVDs have been developed for land managers to enhance their skills in trapping, den fumigation, bait application and monitoring outcomes. An interactive website for the entering of data on national fox distribution (FoxScan) has allowed the general public to become involved in, and aware of, fox impacts and control. A revised Code of Practice and Standard Operating Procedures to address animal welfare issues involving fox control have also been produced. Because of their invasive nature we have long known that isolated or individual control programs have only short lasting effects in reducing fox impacts. Recent collaborative research has now clearly demonstrated the benefits of landscape-scaled fox management programs, incorporating a high level of group participation, to reduce the impact on vulnerable species. Finally, numerous PestSmart fact sheets and case studies on fox management programs from around Australia will soon be available on the feral.org.au website. The IA CRC will present their latest results, products and management recommendations at AWMS and the PestSmart Roadshows in 2012. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 26 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR MANAGING THE IMPACTS OF WILD DOGS Greg Mifsud Biosecurity Queensland and Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Email: [email protected] Wild dogs (Canis lupus dingo, C. l. familiaris and hybrids), including dingoes, wild living domestic dogs and their hybrids were introduced to Australia more than 4,000 years ago. The species occupies much of the Australian mainland, where it has an important role as an apex predator regulating herbivore populations. This, unfortunately, includes livestock. Wild dogs are reported to cause $50M in economic impact annually on livestock, although more recent estimates are $67M in Queensland alone. Such impacts have devastating effects on landholders and rural communities resulting in the decline of the sheep and wool industry and loss of income and employment in many rural communities across the country. The Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre (IA CRC) has been developing products and strategies aimed at lessening this impact by 10% per annum. The key projects have involved; the development of para-aminopropiophenone (PAPP), an anitodote (Bluehealer®) and a carrier bait (DOGABATE®) to supplement the use of 1080 in broad-scale control programs, trialling mechanical ejectors (M44), developing the lethal trap device, development of best-practice guidelines for wild dog management, understanding the molecular ecology of wild dogs in Australia, examining the role of wild dogs in the spread of Neospora, developing guidelines for use of guardian dogs, and demonstrating the strategic approach to integrated wild canid management for agricultural and environmental benefit at the IA CRC’s New England demonstration site. Importantly, the appointment of a National Wild Dog Facilitator has ensured information flow from the IA CRC to the community, and built capacity in developing and implementing wild dog management programs. The suite of new products and information have or will be released in the form of PestSmart Toolkit fact sheets, glove-box guides and DVDs (trapping DVD already out), and will be detailed at AWMS, and the PestSmart Roadshows in 2012. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 27 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR MANAGEMENT OF FERAL PIGS Steven Lapidge Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Email: [email protected] Feral pigs (Sus srofa) were introduced into Australia with the First Fleet. Since then there have been many subsequent introductions of European and Asian swine to the wild. The species now occupies at least 40% of the Australian mainland, with potentially >20M feral pigs occupying Australia following favourable conditions. The economic impacts of feral pigs was estimated at $100 million p.a. in the 1980s, equivalent to over $300 million today, although this only relates to the agricultural impact in favourable times, as social costs and benefits, and environmental costs cannot be calculated accurately. An objective of the IA CRC was to deliver a benefit of $16 million p.a. by reducing feral pig damage by 15%. PIGOUT® (1080 active), the HogHopper™, and a better understanding of feral pig management units based on molecular ecology has already been delivered. Additionally, HOGGONE® (nitrite active), HOGGONE® Econobait and a nitrite concentrate will ensure that the delivery of this objective is exceeded. All products have been extensively tested throughout many different habitats in Australia, including the Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre’s (IA CRC) Kangaroo Island (SA) and Daintree National Park (QLD) demonstrations sites. The latest suite of nitrite-based products has been independently verified to deliver humane, highly target-specific (particularly with the HogHopper™) and environmentally safe alternatives for feral pig management in Australia. Numerous PestSmart Toolkit fact sheets, case studies, and personal interviews will shortly be available to document these developments, and their potential for improved feral pig management. The IA CRC will present their latest results, products and management recommendations at AWMS and the IA CRC PestSmart Roadshows in 2012. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 28 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR MANAGEMENT OF EUROPEAN RABBITS Brian Cooke Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Email: [email protected] Introduced wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) colonized two-thirds of the Australian continent in little more than 70 years causing huge economic, environmental and social impacts. The introduction of myxoma virus (MV) in 1950 did much to resolve the problem, but on-going research into biological control, including the release of rabbit fleas as MV vectors, and the release of Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease Virus (RHDV) has been necessary to maintain those benefits. The release of RHDV also stimulated efforts to clear rabbits from areas and set up rabbit, fox and cat-free areas suited for introducing endangered native fauna (e.g. Arid Recovery Project). Current residual economic impact of rabbits remains stubbornly stuck at about $200 million (2011 $) annually and environmental impacts are just being realized as a result of growing interest in that area: overgrazing native pastures causing plant biodiversity loss, competing with native herbivores and omnivores, inhibiting the regeneration of native shrubs and trees, promoting invasive weeds and supporting high numbers of introduced predators. Rabbits only partly substitute for displaced native species in wider ecosystem processes. The Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre’s portfolio for managing rabbits therefore includes constant review of the management of biocontrol agents (e.g. the evolution of rabbit resistance to RHDV infection, and RCV-A1 which limits disease impact) but also includes critical economic and environmental reviews to argue the case for future research. We also collaborate with scientists in Italy, France, Germany and Spain to build expertise. Projects plans include the implementation of RHD-Boost, a project to select more effective RHDV strains, as well as a watching brief overseas for completely new biological control agents. To address immediate rabbit problems, PestSmart tool kit literature provides examples of successful control initiatives for others to follow. These have dealt mainly with the efficient application of poisoning, warren ripping and the benefits of ‘integrated control’ but have also included new products such as the development of freeze-dried RHDV for bait application and a carbon monoxide fumigator. Nonetheless, ensuring that land-managers understand the benefits of rabbit control is also essential if all our research and extension efforts are to be fully implemented. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 29 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR Managing PEST RodentS Linton Staples and Marion Atyeo Animal Control Technologies (Australia) Pty Ltd Email: [email protected] Invasive rodents are believed to have been introduced into Australia with the First Fleet. Current reports detail colonisation by four invasive species of rodent (Mus domesticus, Rattus rattus, R. norvegicus, and R. tanezumi) although R. exulance has also been reported on several islands in Australian territory. R. tanezumi was recently identified in the Adelaide Museum by researchers from specimens collected in the Adelaide Hills. The spread of R. norvegicus since invasion has not been extensive, remaining largely restricted to areas with regular water supplies (ports and modified landscapes around coastal regions). Similarly, Melomys burtoni and R. sordidus, both native species, have adapted well to human modifications to the landscape and sporadically erupt causing massive economic damage (i.e. the sugar cane industry). M. domesticus and R. rattus are serious pests in domestic, agricultural and industrial situations. M. domesticus in particular, frequently gives rise to plague situations where damage is not limited to crop loss, but also associated with disruptions to supply chains, markets and communities. Controlling pest rodents across a landscape is difficult. Often a species-specific method is required. In the past, agricultural mouse control has involved a number of chemicals, although many have been discontinued due to public concern on the grounds of humaneness, environmental contamination, non-target and secondary poisonings, and commodity contamination (with the implied threat to export markets). The need for a target-species rodenticide with no residue or contamination issues led to the development of MOUSEOFF® Zinc Phosphide Bait – a target specific product, with no environmental residues and when used as directed, has negligible non-target and secondary poisoning risks. This technology then lead to the further development of RATTOFF® Zinc Phosphide Bait Sachets to tackle the increasing issue of crop damage by R. sordidus and M. burtoni in sugarcane, and proved to be highly successful. Animal Control Technologies Australia has conducted further testing against R. rattus and M. domesticus in other horticultural and industrial situations. Results have been mixed; although it is clear the development of different actives and delivery methods to target R. rattus is required (and is underway), as this species has consistently found zinc phosphide an unpalatable toxin. A number of these projects have lead to the submission for registration of several block formulations, as well as planned submissions for extending the current MOUSEOFF® and RATOFF® labels into horticultural situations. Rodents are highly skilled at adapting to the controls placed upon them. Understanding rodent ecology is anticipated to be the key to developing a suite of control options, including bait products and extension material, to combat what appears to be a significantly growing threat to Australian, and global, production. Trial work conducted assessed plague dynamics in rural areas specifically assessing rodent translocation over time, foraging behaviour, and efficacy of baiting practices. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 30 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PESTSMART TOOLKIT FOR MANAGEMENT OF CARP Wayne Fulton and Kylie Hall Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Email: [email protected] Carp (Cyprinus carpio) are native to Asia and Eastern Europe. They were first introduced to Australia in 1859 and a number of other introductions were also made in the early 1900s. Carp were widespread but not particularly common in the Murray-Darling Basin (M-DB) by 1960. Recent genetic studies have confirmed the presence of at least four main strains of carp in Australia, probably resulting from separate introductions. The rapid expansion of numbers throughout the M-DB coincided with the release of one of these strains (Boolara strain) into the Basin around 1965. Heavy flooding in the Basin in 1974–5, and again in 1993, assisted the spread and proliferation of carp throughout the system. Carp have been linked to environmental degradation in many ways, mainly due to their capacity to multiply prolifically when conditions are suitable, as well as their particular feeding habits. They are a long-lived species that responds very quickly to suitable spawning conditions such as flooded marshes. The 2010 floods across the Basin provided perfect breeding conditions and massive breeding events have occurred. Their feeding habits involve taking mouthfuls of mud from the bottom and filtering food items from it before expelling the sediments back into the water. This can result in very turbid water with a variety of effects on water quality and clarity, resulting in a reduced numbers of invertebrates. Aquatic plants may also be dislodged in the process. The huge numbers of carp could also have a competitive impact on other species, although they are not primarily a direct predator of other species. The environmental impacts result in reduction in recreational fishing value, whilst poor water quality reduces aesthetic appeal; both of these have consequent social impacts. With recreational fishing being an important industry, particularly for many regional communities, this impact from carp can also be significant. The Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Freshwater Program has undertaken a range of research projects looking to address various issues associated with carp management and control. Projects have looked at prevention and detection, population biology, control technologies, education, and policy support. The results will be made available in a number of forms with all information available on the PestSmart website, including approximately 30 fact sheets and case studies summarising the work. Approximately 125 reports and publications are also available. Management implications and opportunities are also presented. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 31 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 COLLARS AND EAR TAGS DO NOT AFFECT THE BEHAVIOUR OF EASTERN GREY KANGAROOS Ms Katrina Sofo1, 2 and Graeme Coulson1 1 The University of Melbourne, 2 Melbourne Resource Group, Biosis Research Email: [email protected] The population of eastern grey kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) in the coastal town of Anglesea, Victoria, has been the subject of an ongoing research program since 2005. Many of these kangaroos have been marked with collars and ear tags for identification purposes, raising concerns about potential effects on behaviour and animal welfare. We conducted focal sampling observations of marked and unmarked kangaroos at Anglesea Golf Club to determine if the collars and tags influenced the proportions of time spent in different behavioural states (e.g. foraging, resting, alert, grooming) during active (foraging) and inactive (resting) periods. There was no difference between marked and unmarked kangaroos in the proportion of time spent foraging during their active period or in resting during their inactive period. Kangaroos shook their heads more often during the inactive period, but there was no significant difference between marked and unmarked kangaroos in the rate of head shakes observed. We conclude that the use of ear tags and collars does not alter the behaviour of kangaroos at Anglesea, so the use of these markers is appropriate for research into the behavioural ecology of this population. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 32 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 APPLYING REMOTE AUDIO TECHNOLOGY TO WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S STARLING ERADICATION CAMPAIGN Susan Campbell1, Rob Parr1, Garry Gray1, Gary Martin1, Andrew Woolnough2 and Malcolm Kennedy1 1 Department of Agriculture and Food, WA, 2 Department of Primary Industries, VIC Email: [email protected] The process of locating and removing remaining individuals can often be the most expensive and time consuming component for any established pest control campaign. Remote detection technology can help reduce these costs by providing relatively cheap, ongoing surveillance to help locate otherwise hard to find individuals. The Western Australian (WA) government has proactively managed one of the world’s worst invasive species, the common starling (Sturnus vulgaris) since it was first detected at the border in the early 1970s. Consequently, the density of starlings in WA is low, however remaining birds are wary, cryptic and notoriously difficult to locate. Research and development has played an important role in the control campaign against starlings in WA and our current work aims to provide a cost-effective operational tool that increases starling surveillance both spatially and temporally. Forty-nine Song Meter-2 Terrestrial Packages (SM2-TP; Wildlife Acoustics, Massachusetts) were placed at strategic locations throughout the South Coast region of WA in June 2010. The SM2-TP units were spread over 12 sites, the majority being swamps with a known history of starling occupation. Each unit has a detection radius of approximately 200 – 300 meters, and between one to nine units are present at each site. Daily sampling is focussed around dawn and dusk but also includes 10 min samples every hour. We have compiled a comprehensive reference library of starling calls, predominantly from individuals in South Australia. Amongst much variable, yet skilful mimicry, we have identified two distinctive ‘starling call signatures’. Colleagues in New Zealand will use these distinctive call components to develop an automated starling recogniser using Markov modelling techniques that will be capable of processing large volumes of field recordings. In combination with effective communication between research and field staff, remote detection technology has the potential to become an important tool in WA’s starling control campaign, ensuring we detect and respond early to any future starling incursions. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 33 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PREDATOR FAECAL ODOURS AS SUCCESSFUL REPELLENTS FOR AUSTRALIAN VERTEBRATE PESTS Tarnya Cox1, 2, Peter Murray1, Graham Hall1, Xiuhua Li1 and AndrewTribe1 1 School of Agriculture and Food Science, University of Queensland, 2 Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] Recent research has trialled tiger and lion faecal odours as area deterrents for goats (Capra hircus) and kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) in rural south eastern Queensland. Kangaroos shifted resting locations in response to the presence of lion (Panthera leo) faecal odour and were deterred from highly palatable feed. Tiger (P. tigris) faecal odour was successful at modifying goat grazing patterns (away from the area of repellent) (P = 0.01), and both tiger (P = 0.03) and lion (P = 0.03) faecal odours resulted in goats moving their resting locations away from the test odours. Video footage of kangaroos and GPS tracking of goats revealed that animals approached and investigated the odours. Previous research also highlights that the behaviour of individuals of gregarious species can affect whole-group responses to predator odours. The success of the use of predator odours to deter grazing pests is dependant on ensuring that the application of the odour is done is such a way as to maximise their effect. Repellents based on predator odours, which rely on a fear response in the target species, are most effective when used in situations where the risk outweighs the benefit. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 34 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 SMELL YOU LATER. LESSONS IN OLFACTION, FROM MULTIPLE-PREDATOR SYSTEMS, AND THEIR APPLICATION TO MANAGEMENT Guy Ballard1, Peter Fleming1, Paul Meek2, Sam Doak3, Mark Lamb4, Bernard Whitehead 5, and Col Wilke6 1 Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries, 2 Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre, Coffs Harbour, 3 NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, 4 Mount McKenzie Wild Dog Control Association, 5 Saltair Flora and Fauna Control, Crescent Head, 6 Rural Wild Dog and Wildlife Control, Bonny Hills Email: [email protected] Olfaction is vital to interactions within and between species. Many animals rely on scent, for example, to communicate key information such as identity or reproductive status to conspecifics. Equally, such olfactory cues will be detected and used by other species; predators, competitors or prey. Using data gathered from ongoing leg-hold trapping and camera monitoring programs, we present examples of olfaction-influenced, predator-predator and predator-prey interactions from systems where feral dogs (Canis lupus dingo, C. l. familiaris and hybrids), foxes (Vulpes vulpes), cats (Felis catus) and quolls (Dasyurus maculatus) are sympatric. We contrast our observations with popular assumptions about predator behaviour and discuss options for future research and management. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 35 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CAN RESTORED BAUXITE MINING AREAS IN THE SOUTHWEST JARRAH FOREST OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA PROVIDE SUITABLE HABITAT FOR A THREATENED WIDE RANGING CARNIVORE (THE WESTERN QUOLL)? Rodney McGregor 1, 2, Vicki Stokes 1 and Michael Craig 2 1 Alcoa of Australia Ltd, 2 Murdoch University Email: [email protected] The loss of suitable macro- and microhabitat can significantly impact on an animal’s ability to colonise and exist in an area, ultimately leading to the decline and contraction of a species’ range. The western quoll (Dasyurus geoffroii) or chuditch, is a medium sized, terrestrial marsupial that has suffered catastrophic rates of local extinction and range contraction since European settlement in Australia, largely attributed to landscape fragmentation. Bauxite mining in the jarrah forest of south-west Western Australia, where western quoll currently exist, disturbs and fragments large areas of the landscape, and potentially makes disturbed areas less attractive as a habitat for western quoll. This study was conducted within Alcoa World Alumina Australia’s mining lease and used a variety of techniques including trapping, radio-tracking, and spool and line tracking, to examine the ecology and behaviour of western quoll in areas containing bauxite mine restoration. Western quoll were found to use areas of restoration of varying age for establishing home ranges and denning, indicating that restored areas were not a significant barrier to movement or recolonisation. Den sites used in restoration were most commonly found in rock piles and subterranean burrows, whereas in unmined forest, logs and stumps were the substrate most frequently utilised. Logs were an important microhabitat feature, with quolls frequently using them to traverse unmined forest. Individuals were also observed using trees for den sites (in hollows), and for foraging (by climbing), and suitable trees may also be an important feature of good western quoll habitat. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 36 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 DETECTING AND PREVENTING NEW INCURSIONS OF EXOTIC ANIMALS IN AUSTRALIA Wendy Henderson1, Mary Bomford1 and Phillip Cassey2 1 Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre, 2 University of Adelaide Email: [email protected] Of the 81 species or more of exotic vertebrates already established in Australia, over 30 are considered pests. The accidental or illegal import, and the illegal keeping, of live exotic animals pose risks of introducing more pests in the future. Environmental releases also hasten the spread of already established exotic populations, increasing the risk of threats to native species, domestic animals and people. Preventing such incursions is by far the most cost-effective approach, and clearly of significant benefit to Australia. Records of environmental incursions and interceptions (seized, surrendered, stolen, smuggled and stowaway animals) have been collected for exotic vertebrates on a national scale for 1999–2010. Issues with reporting by different agencies, and the range and numbers of species that have been reported will be presented. Assessments of species’ establishment and pest potential will be discussed. Continued vigilance and improved communication (between agencies and also targeted towards the public) will be critical to preventing further incursions and minimising the chances of new pest species establishing. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 37 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 Preliminary evaluation of a spring-loaded captive bolt gun to stun/kill in-pouch kangaroo joeys during commercial harvesting Trudy Sharp and Steve McLeod Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] A captive bolt gun uses either a blank cartridge, compressed air, or a spring mechanism to propel a bolt into/against the skull. When used correctly they cause rapid insensibility without pain. Penetrative captive bolts guns cause irreversible damage to the brain and therefore death, whereas non-penetrative captive bolts often only stun the animal and must be immediately followed by a second method (e.g. exsanguination) to ensure death. Although mostly used during the slaughter of larger animals such as sheep (Ovis aries) and cattle (Bos spp.), captive bolt guns have also been developed for use on smaller animals including poultry, dogs (Canis lupus spp.) and rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). The aim of this project is to trial the efficacy and practicality of a commercially available captive bolt gun, propelled by a spring mechanism and developed for use on rabbit-sized animals, to stun joeys while they are still in the pouch. The methods currently used for euthanasing in-pouch joeys are likely to cause a short but intense period of distress when joeys are removed from the pouch. This distress could arise from loss of physical contact with the pouch, increased visual and auditory stimuli and, with younger animals, forceful removal from the teat which results in vocalisation and mouth damage. If effective, spring-loaded captive bolt guns have the potential to reduce or eliminate any suffering experienced by joeys during euthanasia. This paper presents the results of initial trials of the captive bolt gun on heads from dead joeys. We found that that the captive bolt delivers sufficient force to cause significant damage to the skull and brain and is thus likely to result in immediate insensibility without pain. We will now proceed to testing the device on live animals in controlled conditions under the supervision of a veterinarian. Field testing of the device with the assistance of harvesters will commence once we are satisfied that animals are rendered immediately insensible without pain. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 38 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 HUMAN DIMENSIONS OF THE MANAGEMENT OF AUSTRALIAN WHITE IBIS (THRESKIORNIS MOLUCCA) ON THE GOLD COAST, QUEENSLAND Kathleen Varvaro1, Georgette Leah Burns1, Darryl Jones1, Dharma Arunachalam2, and Kirsten McLean2 2 1 Environmental Futures Centre, Griffith University School of Political and Social Inquiry, Monash University Email: [email protected] While the utility of human dimensions information to wildlife management has long been established, it has not been widely implemented in Australia. The management of the Australian white ibis (Threskiornis molucca) on the Gold Coast, Queensland, is used to convey the value obtaining information regarding attitudes toward the species and public acceptance of a range of management techniques. Cross-cultural attitudes towards ibis are considered, particularly in relation to the impact they may have on tourism within the study area. The findings of this investigation are presented along with a brief introduction to continuing research in the area of human dimensions of wildlife management in Australia. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 39 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 AN ICONIC SPECIES AT THE CENTRE OF PUBLIC DEBATE: CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN KOALA MANAGEMENT Dan Lunney1, Elly Stalenberg1, Karen Ross1 and Mathew Crowther2 1 Office of Environment and Heritage, 2 University of Sydney Email: [email protected] The current senate enquiry on the health and status of koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) in Australia places this already iconic species at the centre of national concern. When you read the submissions to the enquiry and the Hansard of the public hearings, it becomes abundantly clear that there is enormous public concern for its welfare and future. The most important contemporary issue in managing koala populations is the human dimension, which has been recognised in the National Koala Conservation Management Strategy and state-based formal plans. On the one hand is the concern by wildlife rehabilitators for individual koala care. On the other is the political necessity to manage koalas at a population level on land that has high value for other uses, such as housing, mining, farming and forestry. These issues are being compounded by climate change. In our view, effective resolution of the public debate will depend upon interdisciplinary research underpinning koala management actions. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 40 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CAN WE MANAGE THE PERSISTENCE OF KOALAS IN ROAD-DOMINATED LANDSCAPES? Darryl Jones Environmental Futures Centre, Griffith University Email: [email protected] Roads and other linear infrastructure often form a major barrier to the movements of animals, especially those that move along the ground. The impact and influence of road networks and the traffic they carry, is now recognised as one of the most profound aspects of urbanisation. Recently, various structures have been constructed over and under roads to allow the safe passage of vulnerable species. One of the most significantly impacted species in many parts of eastern Australia is the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), which occurs in a number of major urban areas where populations are under serious threat. To address this challenge the Queensland Department of Transport of Main Roads has constructed safe passages in a series of sites among major roads in South East Queensland. Using GPS monitoring and remote detection technologies, my research group has been following the movements and activities of many koalas in the vicinity of these structures. Here I report on our findings and provide suggestions for future such projects. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 41 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 DROUGHT-DRIVEN CHANGE IN WILDLIFE DISTRIBUTION AND NUMBERS: A CASE STUDY OF KOALAS IN SOUTH WEST QUEENSLAND Leonie Seabrook 1, Clive McAlpine 1, 2, Greg Baxter 1, 2, Jonathan Rhodes 1, 2, Adrian Bradley 3 and Daniel Lunney 4 1 School of Geography, Planning & Environmental Management, The University of Queensland 2 The Ecology Centre, The University of Queensland 3 School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland 4 Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water NSW Email: [email protected] In many parts of the world global climate change will lead to increased climate variability, including more frequent drought and heat waves. This will affect the distribution and numbers of wildlife populations. In south-west Queensland anecdotal reports indicated that a low density but significant koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) population had been impacted by drought from 2001–2009, in accord with the predicted effects of climate change. In this study we tested that notion by comparing koala distribution and numbers in south west Queensland in 2009 with pre-drought estimates from 1995–97. Community surveys and faecal pellet surveys were used to assess distribution. Population densities were estimated using the Faecal Standing Crop Method. From these densities, koala numbers in ten habitat units were interpolated across the study region. Bootstrapping was used to estimate standard error. We examined climate and land clearing as possible explanations for changes in koala distribution and numbers. Although there was only a minor change in distribution, there was an 80% decline in koala numbers across the study region, from a mean population of 59,000 in 1995 to 11,600 in 2009. Most summers between 2002 and 2007 were hotter and drier than average. Vegetation clearance was greatest in the eastern third of the study region, with the majority of clearing in mixed eucalypt/acacia ecosystems and vegetation on elevated residuals. Changes in the area of occupancy and numbers of koalas allow us to conclude that drought significantly reduced koala populations and they contracted to critical riparian habitats. Land clearing in the eastern part of the region may reduce the ability of koalas to move between habitats. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 42 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 WHEN DOES WILD DOG PREDATION UPON NATIVE SPECIES MOVE FROM NATURAL TO A THREATENING PROCESS? OBSERVATIONS FROM WILD DOG CONTROL PROGRAMS AND THE POTENTIAL IMPACTS ON KOALA POPULATIONS FROM WESTERN AND SOUTH EAST QUEENSLAND Greg Mifsud 1, 2 and Deborah Tabart OAM3 1 Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre, 2 Biosicurity Queensland, 3 Australian Koala Foundation Email: [email protected] Since European settlement, the dingo (Canis lupus dingo) has been exposed to domestic dogs (C.l. familiaris) with the resulting hybrid wild dogs now occupying much of the landscape. Habitat modification (e.g. increased permanent water in arid areas, thus providing water and prey during droughts) and increased prey availability after European settlement have contributed to increases in canid populations throughout Australia. This increase suggests that predation pressure from canids in some areas is higher than prior to European settlement. Wild dogs can exert a high intensity of predation pressure on native fauna, especially medium to large macropods. Even low densities of wild dogs may place additional pressure on species already suffering population declines. As a consequence, predation from wild dogs has been identified as a key threatening process to the existence of a range of rare and threatened species, and could be so for Australia’s iconic koala (Phascolarctos cinereus). Despite this, significant debate exists regarding the necessity to manage wild dogs for biodiversity. Failure to manage wild dogs may result in an increase in predation upon rare and threatened species. We will discuss the potential of wild dogs to significantly impact koala populations in western and south-eastern Queensland using information on wild dog density collected from control programs developed through the IA CRC project “Facilitating a strategic approach to wild dog management throughout Australia”. The paper will pose questions about whether wild dog densities have caused declines in koala populations, or whether it was due to drought, disease, habitat loss or a combination of all these factors. Our first study area is around Charleville in semi-arid Queensland, and we will use information on koalas collected during an ARC research project, while comparing dog control data collected by Murweh Shire Council. The second example will be from south-east Queensland where information on wild dog attacks and control have been collected from local government areas north of Brisbane. These data will be overlaid on the Australian Koala Foundation’s Koala Habitat Atlas and spatial analysis of the data will be used to help identify management solutions should the following questions can be answered: To what degree do koalas use the same habitats as wild dogs? What role does habitat fragmentation play in increased predation of koalas by wild dogs? At what density of wild dogs does the rate of predation exceed what could be considered ‘natural’ to become a threatening process? What are the management implications for controlling wild dogs for biodiversity? And the most important question of all: Did these dogs cause the decline of koala populations in these regions? _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 43 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 URBAN FOXES: ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT Ricky Spencer Water and Wildlife Ecology Group, Native and Pest Animal Unit, School of Natural Sciences, University of Western Sydney Email: [email protected] Invasive species close to human habitation present significant and unique risks that are associated with their management and epidemiology. Adaptability is often the key to their success as an invasive species. Their ability to integrate and adjust to urbanisation means increased interactions with humans or pets, and common methods of control (poisons) are not available in populated areas. Rabies is not currently present in Australia, but it is common throughout south-east Asia, North America and Europe. Other Lyssaviruses and morbilliviruses have caused human deaths in Australia over the last 15 years, with flying foxes (family Pteropodidae) being the major vector. Foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are important vectors of rabies in Europe and North America, accounting for over 50% of diagnosed cases in initial outbreaks. This study looks at the 12 month movement patterns and behaviours of foxes on the outskirts of Melbourne, as well as reviews their role in disease spread throughout the world. I also review and present empirical data on the use of ‘new’ techniques to control foxes in urban areas. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 44 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 RATS IN THE RANKS; DEMOGRAPHIC RESPONSES OF AN INVASIVE SPECIES, RATTUS RATTUS, TO PEST CONTROL IN URBAN BUSH LAND REMNANTS Nicole Hansen1, Nelika Hughes2, Peter Banks3 Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales 2 Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) NSW 3 Behavioural Ecology and Conservation Research Group, School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney 1 Email: [email protected] Effective wildlife management requires an understanding of how populations are affected by management actions such as pest control, especially how populations respond and recover. Rates of population recovery after pest control have been well studied, but the mechanisms influencing such recovery have received little attention. It is generally unclear which individuals (e.g. adults vs. dispersing juveniles) move in to fill the gaps created by pest control and whether the presence or demographics of remaining animals affects this reinvasion process. Here, we report on the demographic changes, movements and activity patterns associated with reinvasion of the feral black rat (Rattus rattus) using gradients of localised pest control in urban bush land remnants within Sydney, Australia. In doing so, we test three main theories of the mechanisms of reinvasion: ‘The Founding effect’, the ‘Trickle effect’ and the ‘Vacuum effect’. Firstly, we examined the demographic and reproductive responses of two populations of black rats within two successive control scenarios: an imposed controlled population (subjected to localised regular removal associated with management) and an untreated population (no previous rat removal). Rats were dissected to estimate body condition, size, age (via eye lens weight) and breeding activity. Individuals captured within the removal population had similar reproductive activity to those in the untreated population. However, no juveniles were captured in the removal sites, suggesting that harvesting disrupted reproductive success with consequences for long-term population dynamics of black rats. These results also suggest that the stable social system in the non-harvested population is more conducive to juvenile survivorship. We then examined the potential short- and long-term recovery responses by experimentally removing individuals from 1 ha plots and monitoring reinvasion success and the types of subsequent re-invaders. Mixed responses were observed from the differing gradients of removal. There was no net influx of individuals four weeks after the initial targeted removal (from half the grid), possibly due to social blocking of reinvasion by residual animals. However, a larger scale removal (all animals on the grid) led to gradual reinvasion, with observed increases in population density and demographic changes led by resident female re-invaders. Radio telemetry showed rats had stable core ranges with exploratory forays, and were not influenced by the removal of rats or nearby conspecifics with territorial overlap between individuals. Thus, we conclude that effective rodent management requires a species specific understanding of population dynamics, an assessment of reinvasion potential before control implementation, and incorporation of an area larger than 1.58 ha (even at low densities) to prevent reinvasion. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 45 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 ROOST CHOICE AND BEHAVIOUR BY RAINBOW LORIKEETS, TRICHOGLOSSUS HAEMATODUS: ASSESSING FUNCTIONAL EXPLANATIONS Savannah Daoud-Opit and Darryl Jones Environmental Futures Centre, Griffith University Email: [email protected] Urbanisation is increasing around the world, encroaching on natural habitats and impacting plant and animal species. Traditionally, urban ecology research has focused on the negative influences associated with habitat destruction and fragmentation. However, the urban environment may also provide significant opportunities for some species, by creating new ecosystems within which these species can thrive, either by exploiting, or adapting to, these changed conditions. The success of the rainbow lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus) in cities throughout Australia over recent years suggests that this native species has been especially adept at this transition. A conspicuous trait of this species is the many large, semi-permanent communal roosts they create, often in highly disturbed urban areas. Communal roosting is a common aggregation phenomenon within animal species, and there are a multitude of hypotheses as to the function of communal roosting, primarily in regard to predation risk, thermoregulation demands and foraging efficiency. This paper investigated this successful native Australian bird species in urban environments in south-east Queensland and assesses the function of the communal roosting aspect of their life history, as well as key characteristics of their roosting behaviour. This paper increases theoretical understanding of gregarious behaviours and urban ecology. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 46 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 SYNURBANIZATION OF THE PACIFIC BLACK DUCK IN SOUTH EAST QUEENSLAND: THE ECOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF FEEDING DUCKS Renee Chapman and Darryl Jones Griffith University Email: [email protected] Urbanisation in Australia is removing and modifying natural environments as well as leading to the formation of novel habitats. While this has proven to be catastrophic for most species, it is also creating opportunities for species able to exploit these environments. The Pacific black duck (Anas superciliosa), an abundant duck using urban parklands throughout Australia, is one such species. The concept of synurbisation is concerned with understanding the adaptations of animal populations to anthropogenic environments and anthropogenic influences. This paper investigated the influence of supplementary feeding on the foraging ecology of the Pacific black duck in urban lakes in south-east Queensland. We suggest that the common and popular pastime of supplementary feeding has resulted in new foraging behaviours and patterns within urban populations of this species. These findings have implications for urban wildlife management and the co-existence of people and animals in urban environments. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 47 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 What we do, don’t and need to know about urban dingoes/wild dogs Benjamin Allen Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Department of Primary Industries, Broken Hill NSW 2880 Email: [email protected] Dingoes and other wild dogs of unknown genetic integrity (lupus dingo, C.l. familiaris and hybrids) are present in almost all major cities and towns within their extended range, though little is known of their ecology. The status of the urban wild dog issue is slowly gaining traction, but is hampered by a lack of information. From scattered reports we know that urban wild dogs are indeed present in some suburbs of Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Alice Springs, and Darwin, that they provide a diverse array of impacts, such as attacks on humans, pets and livestock, transmission of multiple zoonoses, and localized declines of threatened species etc. Some information on their genetics is available, indicating that both purebreds and hybrids exist in some urban areas. We also know a little bit about their spatial habits, which appear more reflective of urban foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and coyotes (Canis latrans) and less reflective of rural wild dogs or international populations of feral domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). There are no published reports on their diet, densities, social interactions, pack composition, breeding capabilities, population connectivity, or factors affecting natality and mortality, though it is currently thought that they live in high densities, have generalist diets, exhibit very loose social structures, breed only once annually, and are limited by available habitat/food resources. While each aspect of urban wild dog ecology remains critically understudied, the management of urban wild dogs will be advanced most rapidly by knowledge of their densities and spatial ecology, with particular reference to how far individuals can roam and how connected each population is. Information on their genetics and environmental impacts (e.g. their risks to koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) and other threatened species) will likely raise the profile of urban wild dogs with the public. To manage urban wild dogs for any purpose (positive or negative), the development of control tools more amenable to use in urban areas is paramount. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 48 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 FACTORS INFLUENCING THE UPTAKE OF FOX BAITS BY TASMANIAN DEVILS Channing Hughes 1, Robbie Gaffney 2, Christopher Dickman 1 1 University of Sydney, 2 Fox Eradication Branch, Department of Primary Industries, Tasmania Email: [email protected] The recent introduction of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) to Australia’s island state of Tasmania represents a major threat to native fauna. In response, the Tasmanian government has begun a fox eradication program using Foxoff®; bait containing the poison sodium monofluoroacetate (commonly known as 1080). The bait is potentially attractive to native Tasmanian carnivores as well as to foxes. Of particular concern is the endangered Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii), which is already at risk from an emergent infectious disease, Devil Facial Tumor Disease. In both a captive and a field study using nontoxic Foxoff bait, we assessed bait palatability and possible effects of demographics, hunger level, bait age, and bait burial method on the likelihood of bait uptake by Tasmanian devils. Captive devils showed varying interest in the bait, but wild devils appeared to find it uniformly palatable. In the captive study, males and younger, captive-born animals were more likely to excavate and remove bait. Subterranean burial at 15 cm was the most effective deterrent to bait excavation; effectiveness decreased at shallower depths and with surface-level bait buried beneath soil mounds. Our findings suggest that the current fox-baiting campaign may negatively impact individual devils. More extensive study is necessary to assess potential risk at the population level. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 49 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 HOPSTOP® AS A EUTHANSING AGENT FOR CANE TOADS David Dall Pestat Pty Ltd Email: [email protected] The cane toad (Rhinella [Bufo] marinus) is an invasive pest that is common in urban environments in tropical and subtropical Australia. Cane toads produce potent poisons in their skin and body, so that animals that eat – or even mouth – a toad are frequently killed. As well as the impact on urban wildlife, many domestic pets – particularly dogs – are poisoned by cane toads each year. HopStop® was developed by Pestat Pty Ltd to provide a safe, effective, humane and convenient method for householders to kill cane toads, and is the only product registered in Australia for the purpose. We have previously described its use and efficacy for control of toads on an individual basis. Our recent further work has shown that the product can be used with high efficiency to simultaneously euthanase multiple toads held in confined conditions. This work extends the potential for use of the product to situations where large numbers of toads need to be controlled, such as urban parks, gardens and reserves, and events where large numbers of toads are collected as part of community pest awareness programs. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________ 50 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 EVALUATION OF BAITING WITH PIGOUT® IN A SUB-ALPINE FORESTED NATIONAL PARK Don Fletcher and Trish MacDonald ACT Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate Email: [email protected] This project evaluated baiting programs using the new commercially-available bait known as PigOut®, for its potential to reduce the density of feral pig (Sus scofa) populations. New methods of vertebrate pest control have often been evaluated against abundant populations of naive animals, but control methods face a much tougher test in reality – repeated deployment in maintenance operations against populations reduced to low density by previous control. Namadgi National Park is an appropriate place for realistic evaluations of pig control programs, having conducted feral pig control programs annually since 1985, using Warfarintreated wheat. Baiting with PigOut® was assessed in two sites within Namadgi National Park for its ability to reduce the pig population sufficiently to offset a potential 52% annual population increase, and to maintain pig density at a level likely to be associated with a low level of environmental damage. Previous evaluations of Pigout® have been conducted either in the very different environment of the rangelands, or when conducted in Namadgi, only the percentage of pigs on roads which consumed baits that they had approached was recorded. Our study estimated the reduction in feral pig density using methods independent of the pig control methods, thereby helping fill a knowledge gap about the effect of pig control on pig abundance. We indexed pig density before and after baiting on both sites. Density was assumed to be proportional to the percentage of previously inspected plots that had been freshly rooted by pigs, and the percentage of previously cleared plots that contained fresh pig dung. A trial was also carried out to reduce non-target uptake of the baits, particularly by the red fox (Vulpes vulpes). A successful method was to cover the toxic baits with a plastic storage box, pegged firmly to the ground so that only the pigs’ strength could dislodge it. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 51 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 BROAD-SCALE VIABILITY ASSESSMENT OF AN ENDANGERED RAPTOR: THE BONELLI’S EAGLE IN WESTERN EUROPE Joan Real and Antonio Hernandez-Matias Conservation Biology Group, Department of Animal Biology, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona Email: [email protected] We performed a population viability analysis of the Western European metapopulation of Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata) and estimated key vital rates from 12 subpopulations (1990–2009). We evaluated model uncertainty by comparing observed and predicted growth rates in the past. Our results support that all subpopulations from Western Europe belong to the same metapopulation, which behaves in a source-sink dynamics fashion. The predicted viability varied according with our assumptions on dispersal behavior: the more constrained dispersal the more pessimistic predictions. Parameter uncertainty markedly increased the risk of metapopulation decline. Finally, sensitivity analyses indicated that survival is the chief vital rate regulating these populations. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 52 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 MONITORING RARE MYCOPHAGOUS MAMMALS: DETECTING THE PRESENCE OF POTOROOS VIA FORAGING-DIG SURVEYS Robert Reed and Kath Handasyde University of Melbourne Email: [email protected] Basic knowledge of a species’ distribution and abundance is crucial for conservation management planning but directly monitoring rare and cryptic species directly can be problematic, requiring large amounts of time and funding. Therefore, other census methods, using secondary signs, are often required. This study aimed to establish a rapid and relatively inexpensive method to survey for the presence of long-nosed potoroos (Potorous tridactylus), a mycophagous macropod important for promoting long-term ecosystem health. Foraging-dig surveys, live trapping and hair-tubing were used to detect the presence of potoroos at various sites in the French Island National Park, Victoria. There was a positive correlation between density of foraging-digs, potoroo density and hair-tube ‘hits’, with foraging-dig surveys being more reliable in detecting potoroos at low population densities. Potoroo foraging-dig densities showed a seasonal pattern, with more digs present during winter and spring. Foraging-digs were also more common in wetter vegetation communities. Foraging-dig surveys are a low-cost census method that can be used at multiple sites over a short period and should be used as the first indication of presence, and changes in distribution and abundance, of this and similar species. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 53 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 SCAT HAPPENS: SEPARATING THE GOOD FROM THE BAD USES OF DINGO SCAT DATA Benjamin Allen Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] Dingo (Canis lupus dingo and hybrids) scats can be so much more than just crooked and stinky lumps of hair, bone, and brown. In this paper, I discuss what dingo scats can provide evidence for and what dingo scats can’t reveal. Using data from over 4,200 scats collected from paired baited and unbaited treatment areas at five sites over 2–4 years in northern South Australia, I demonstrate that scats can indicate the presence of dingoes, the presence of some of the prey they eat, and the frequency with which dingoes ate them, but scats alone could not indicate how many dingoes were there, how often dingoes deposited scats, what else dingoes do or could eat, whether or not the prey items were killed or scavenged, what the social status of the dingoes were, the functional roles of dingoes on mesopredators and prey, or the influence of dingo control on these factors. The representativeness of scats collected from resource points is unknown, and the usefulness of scats largely depends on the study design. Hence, scats can be useful for a variety of investigations, but their true potential is only realized when they’re systematically collected, combined with additional sampling and survey techniques, and analysed in reliable ways. These findings have implications for previous studies that may have seen more in a scat than what was really there, and they should assist future studies in designing projects to maximize the value of hat-full of scats. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 54 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 MONITORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF FERAL CAT CULLING: A CASE STUDY FROM TASMANIA Billie Lazenby1, Christopher Dickman1 and Nick Mooney 1 Institute of Wildlife Research, School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney Email: [email protected] Feral cats (Felis catus) are recognised as a key threat to Australia’s biodiversity, but effective methods of reducing the impacts of widespread, well established populations remain generally elusive. Culling feral cats in order to reduce their population size is one management option, especially on islands or in other discrete geographical areas and/or areas where there are high value assets to protect. Until the recent widespread availability of automatically triggered digital cameras, monitoring programs aimed at measuring the effectiveness of culling operations were generally limited to indexes of cat activity such as those arising from spotlight and footprint counts. We used individual-specific coat patterns on feral cats to estimate abundance using capture-recapture techniques at four sites in southern Tasmania. We then enacted feral cat culling operations at two of the sites using standard live-trapping methods and monitored feral cat numbers at all four sites for the following two years. Our results indicated that overall cat activity or abundance did not decrease as a consequence of the culling program. We discuss the reasons and also the implications of our findings for cat management more generally. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 55 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 NOT TAKING THE BAIT – REMOTE CAMERA MONITORING OF SPECIES UPTAKE OF 1080 BAITS IN SOUTHWEST WA FORESTS Shannon Dundas, Peter Adams and Patricia Fleming School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, Murdoch University Email: [email protected] Under ‘Western Shield’, the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation have aerially deployed 1080 meat baits seasonally over the last 15 years, covering almost 3.5 million ha. Supplementary hand baiting is also carried out at high conservation significance sites (e.g. swamps harbouring threatened quokka (Setonix brachyurus) populations). Previous bait uptake studies have predominantly focussed on unbaited areas, with foxes (Vulpes vulpes) taking a large percentages of baits. Few studies have investigated bait uptake under established baiting programs. We monitored 1080 bait uptake at seven monthly hand-baited sites (baited over 14 years to protect known quokka populations). Our study shows that very few baits are taken by target pest species (i.e. < 10% of baits were taken by foxes, cats or feral pigs), with non-target species, including quokkas (~ 45% of baits monitored), western grey kangaroos (Macropus fuliginosis), bandicoots (Isoodon obesulus), brush tail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula), and mardo (Antechinus flavipes), frequently consuming baits. Baits were out for an average of four days after deployment; the longest duration monitored was 30 days. This study indicates that only a small proportion of baits are being taken by target feral species. The large uptake by non-target species, particularly native species that are already of conservation importance, suggests that greater focus needs to be placed on bait delivery mechanisms. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 56 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 THE IMPACTS OF SAMBAR ON FOREST UNDERSTOREYS IN THE YARRA RANGES NATIONAL PARK, AUSTRALIA Ami Bennett and Graeme Coulson Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne Email: [email protected] Sambar deer (Cervus unicolor) were introduced to Australia in the mid 1800s, and have become established throughout eastern Victoria. This study is located in the Yarra Ranges National Park, 100 km north east of Melbourne, and primarily consists of three protected water catchments. This study was conducted between 2005 and 2008 in the Upper Yarra and O’Shannassy catchments. Exclusion plots (10 × 10 m) were established in units consisting of three plot types: a total plot that excludes all herbivores, a partial plot that excludes sambar but allows access to native herbivores via a gap at the base, and an open plot (no fence) that allows access to all herbivores. The selective exclosures allowed differentiation of sambar and native herbivore browsing on forest understoreys. In total, 46 exclusion units were established, stratified by sambar density and vegetation type. Browsing by sambar in high densities inhibited the vertical growth of plants in the understorey, with branches above 60 cm in height most frequently and intensely browsed, and plant biomass was also significantly reduced. These findings show sambar can alter the structure, and potentially the composition, of forest understoreys, which has significant implications for the future management of this species in Australia. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 57 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 THE AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE HEALTH NETWORK AND THE PROTECTION OF BIODIVERSITY Rupert Woods1 and Lyndel Post2 1 Australian Wildlife Health Network, 2 Australian Government Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry Email: [email protected] Australia has one of the best biosecurity systems in the world. Identifying priorities for surveillance and coordination across jurisdictions can, however, be challenging especially in a federated system. This is especially so in the wildlife sector, where activities not only require coordination across jurisdictions, but also across multiple agencies, organizations and industries. The Australian Wildlife Health Network (AWHN) is an initiative of the Australian government comprising a network of stakeholders across Australia with an interest in wildlife health. The core business activity is coordination of wildlife health surveillance information into a national database that can be used to improve decision making, management, and policy development to protect Australia’s trade, human health, livestock health and biodiversity. Core funding comes from agriculture (Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry - DAFF) through the Wildlife Exotic Disease Preparedness Program (WEDPP). The framework built by AWHN primarily supports Australia’s agricultural trade interests; however diseases with wildlife as part of their ecology also significantly impact upon human health (e.g. bird flu, psittacosis, SARS) and biodiversity (e.g. Tasmanian Devil Facial Tumour Disease, Beak and Feather Disease, Chytridiomycosis). This paper discusses wildlife disease in Australia and concludes that though many good research and policy initiatives are occurring, Australia needs to continue to integrate wildlife health surveillance activities into national frameworks, better coordinate activities between agencies, and recognise the mutual need for sustained direction and focus. An expansion of AWHN activities to support those agencies with carriage of the problems relating to environment and health offers Australia an effective and coordinated way to provide the information needed to make better decisions regarding the management of diseases with wildlife as part of their ecology. Utilisation of this system by these agencies will assist in limiting the deleterious impact of wildlife disease on natural ecosystems and human health and provide improved ecological, economic and social benefits to Australia. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 58 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 WILDLIFE HEALTH SURVEILLANCE VICTORIA Pam Whiteley1, Ian Beveridge2 and Andrew Vizard2 1 Wildlife Health Surveillance Victoria, 2 Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne Email: [email protected] Wildlife Health Surveillance Victoria (WHSV) was established at the Faculty of Veterinary Science of The University of Melbourne in 2008. WHSV aims to improve knowledge of the baseline health of free ranging wildlife populations in Victoria, detect changes in health patterns, and help identify the drivers or risk factors involved. WHSV is a cooperative and collaborative project involving governmental and non-governmental organisations, as well as individuals reporting morbidity and mortality events for investigation. Expertise in pathology, parasitology, epidemiology, microbiology and virology at the Faculty of Veterinary Science and other institutions contributes to investigations. Feedback is provided and data reported to key stakeholders and the Australian Wildlife Health Network (surveillance data) and the Australian Registry of Wildlife Health (ABIN WildHealth, pathology data). Communication is undertaken by telephone, email, regular newsletters and meetings, and talks to agency and community groups. An overview of the project and some outcomes will be presented. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 59 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 CONTROLLING RABIES IN SEMI-WILD DOG POPULATIONS – LESSONS FROM INDONESIA Helen Scott-Orr1, Ketut Gunata2, Christoffel Madha3, Simon Nany4, Margaretha Siko5, and Agung Putra6 4 1 NSW Primary Industries, 2 Badung District Livestock Services, 3 Ngada District Livestock Services, East Flores Livestock Services, 5 Sikka District Livestock Services, 6Disease Investigation Centre, Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia Email: [email protected] Rabies has been spreading slowly eastwards in Indonesia, reaching Flores in 1997, Maluku in 2003, North Maluku in 2005 and Bali in 2008. Attempts to control and eradicate it island-by-island through mass dog vaccination and dog population control have been confounded by the very large proportions of stray, semi-wild dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) in each location. Attempts have been further hampered by the cultural differences across the islands which affect the interactions between communities and dog populations, as well as by significant resource constraints. So far rabies has not been eradicated from any major Indonesian island where it has occurred. An ACIAR project, “Improving veterinary service delivery in a decentralized Indonesia” has supported applied research leading to better control strategies for rabies in Flores and Bali, including five local Masters and two PhD studies. These studies have demonstrated the critical importance of understanding dog/human ecology in different locations so that appropriate rabies control strategies can be devised. Effective rabies control by achieving and maintaining dog vaccination coverage of 70% requires wildlife population estimation methods to supplement traditional census techniques to determine dog populations. To increase community awareness and support the chosen rabies control strategy, a good understanding of the reasons why people keep dogs and their opinion of different control methods is also required. This paper will summarise some of the field research findings, including differences between areas in dog population structure and density, varying reasons for keeping dogs, dog home ranges, and dogs’ access to feed. Options for using oral rabies vaccine to supplement injectible vaccine and the relative roles of vaccination and dog population control will also be discussed. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 60 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 WILDLIFE DISEASE DYNAMICS: A STUDY OF SALMONELLA IN FERAL PIGS (SUS SCROFA) Katherine Negus1, Brendan Cowled1, Francesca Galea2, Graeme Garner3, Shawn Laffan4, Ian Marsh2, Stephen Sarre5, Andrew Woolnough6 and Michael Ward1 1 Faculty of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute, NSW Primary Industries 3 Office of the Chief Veterinary Officer, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry, Canberra 4 The School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, The University of New South Wales 5 Institute for Applied Ecology, University of Canberra 6 Department of Primary Industries, VIC 2 Email: [email protected] Although wildlife populations have been involved in many recent significant emergency disease outbreaks world-wide, e.g. Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome , Avian Influenza, Classical Swine Fever, and Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), current understanding of how disease spreads in these populations is limited. This restricts effective disease prevention or control in such populations. Feral pigs (Sus scrofa), in particular, are a widespread wildlife species in Australia that constitute a major biosecurity threat. This study is part of a wider project which aims to improve understanding of infection dynamics of emergency diseases in wildlife by using feral pigs in the Kimberley, Western Australia, as a case study. As a first step to understanding disease dynamics in feral pigs, the spread of an endemic disease, Salmonella, is being investigated utilising molecular epidemiological methods. This data will be combined with feral pig demographic, geospatial and remotely sensed environmental data to examine the presence and risk factors for disease. In the future, these findings will be augmented with detailed information on the feral pig population structure from genetic analyses to better understand transmission of infectious agents in the feral pig population. This data will be used to inform and parameterise computer simulation models of important trans-boundary diseases, such as FMD, to help determine the potential role of feral pigs in an outbreak of such a disease under local conditions. These models can also be used to test appropriate surveillance and mitigation strategies. Salmonella transmission in feral pigs has been investigated by sampling 651 animals at geo-referenced locations in a 20,000 km2 study area based on the Fitzroy River in the Kimberley, WA. Demographic data were collected for all pigs, and mesenteric lymph nodes (MLNs) and faeces taken for Salmonella culture and serotyping. Salmonella was cultured from a total of 240 animals; 33% (95% CI 29–36%) had positive faecal samples, with 38 different serovars from 221 isolates. Salmonella was cultured from 14% (95% CI 11–17%) of MLNs, yielding 24 serovars from 69 isolates. Overall, 39 different serovars were isolated in the study. The most common serovar isolated from both faecal samples and MLNs was Salmonella Anatum − 20% and 16%, respectively. The agreement between isolation of Salmonella (any serovar) from faecal samples and MLNs − measured by the kappa statistic − was low (κ 0.15). Only 42 animals cultured Salmonella from both faecal and MLN samples and the same serovars were isolated in 16 of these (38%). Salmonella serovars are being further characterised using pulsed field gel electrophoresis and analyses undertaken to investigate risk factors for disease status and disease spatial structuring. Further results will be presented, but preliminary findings highlight the potential of feral pigs to act as a reservoir of Salmonella for domestic livestock and humans. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 61 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 HYDATID DISEASE, CAUSED BY THE CANINE TAPEWORM ECHINOCOCCUS GRANULOSUS, IS WIDESPREAD IN NATIVE WILDLIFE, AND MAY BE CONTRIBUTING TO THE DECLINE OF SOME ENDANGERED SMALL MACROPODID POPULATIONS David Jenkins1 and Tamsin Barnes2 1 Charles Sturt University, 2 University of Queensland Email: [email protected] Echinococcus granulosus is transmitted in a predator/prey relationship between canids and a range of herbivore species, usually domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) and sheep (Ovis aries), but the transmission pattern may also include wildlife species. The importance of E. granulosus is its potential to also infect humans, causing major morbidity and occasionally death. Approximately 80 new human cases are diagnosed annually in Australia. E. granulosus was introduced into Australia during settlement with domestic livestock and dogs. Since Australian native wildlife evolved without this parasite, E. granulosus spread easily into wild populations of macropodid marsupials and dingoes in eastern Australia, and is now widespread and prevalent. Hydatid cysts develop more rapidly in wallabies than in sheep, leading to major negative health impacts and death, as demonstrated in captive Tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii) studies and in studies on wild populations of brush-tailed rock wallabies (Petrogale penicillata). Infected wallabies are more susceptible to predation by dingoes/wild dogs (Canis lupus dingo, C. l. familiaris and hybrids.). The rapid rate of cyst development in macropodids, together with the heavy tapeworm infections seen in dingoes/wild dogs, contribute to the higher rate of transmission of E granulosus occurring in Australian wildlife when compared to domestic hosts. Incursions of E. granulosus-infected dingoes/wild dogs into urban areas of coastal Queensland, and recent hydatid disease data from Tasmania, will be discussed in relation to the potentially important public health issues identified by these new data. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 62 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 ON STRATEGIC ASPECTS OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT Jim Hone Institute for Applied Ecology, University of Canberra Email: [email protected] Wildlife management can involve choosing how to conserve species and control pests and their effects. The description of the effects of any manipulation of pest density by lethal or non-lethal methods relies on there being relationships between “yield”, damage, pest abundance and control efforts. If there are no such relationships then prediction of the effects of pest control is impossible unless pests are eradicated. The relationships can be viewed as a statistical pattern or as the outcome of an ecological process. Examples of the relationships are described for: sheep (Ovis aries) and rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus); cereal crops and house mouse (Mus musculus), and ground disturbance and feral pigs (Sus scrofa). Issues of pattern and process will be examined and the strategic implications examined for wildlife management. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 63 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 SCALING UP PEST CONTROL STRATEGIES: FROM SMALL COMMUNITY-LED BLOCKS TO LANDSCAPE SCALES Andrea Byrom, Al Glen and Roger Pech Landcare Research, Lincoln, New Zealand Email: [email protected] Invasive species management is usually targeted at selected areas (patches) deemed to be of high importance, with little or no management in the surrounding landscape. This may lead to persistence of some native biota only in areas where invasive animals are controlled, with occasional dispersal between protected patches. This spatial array of patches across a landscape is known in ecological theory as a metapopulation. How can we apply metapopulation concepts to improve outcomes of invasive species management for native biodiversity? Increasingly, community conservation initiatives in New Zealand and Australia are involved in preserving, restoring and even re-introducing native biota, often in small patches in their ‘backyard’. Therefore, one of the most obvious practical means of adopting a metapopulation paradigm is to use such community-protected blocks as source areas or stepping stones, in order to manage invasive species and native biota at a landscape scale. This means that both large and small sites, from small community-led initiatives to large-scale agency-funded pest control operations, all have the potential to contribute to survival of indigenous metapopulations, with immigrants from neighbouring patches providing a ‘rescue effect’ in the event of local extinctions. The resilience of the metapopulation is therefore much greater than that of a single, isolated population. With the aid of several practical examples, we show that in New Zealand and Australia smarter use of existing control tools can allow us to think beyond short term crisis management, and that we can establish integrated networks of pest management zones that facilitate long term persistence of native species across landscapes. (Conversely, landscapebased pest control programmes can be designed to reduce connectivity and enhance suppression of invasive species.) The goal is to improve the timing and location of pest control to promote metapopulations of native species, re-establish large-scale ecosystem processes, and hence provide greater overall benefits for biodiversity. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 64 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 THE COMMUNITY BAITING PROGRAM MODEL: A TRULY CROSS-TENURE APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE CANID CONTROL IN FAR EAST GIPPSLAND, VICTORIA Andrew Murray Department of Sustainability & Environment Email: [email protected] Effective fox (Vulpes vulpes) control across any area of land can be compromised if a significant percentage of land within the area of operation is not subject to the control method being applied. In Far East Gippsland, Victoria, the Southern Ark project has been effectively controlling foxes across 900,000 ha of forested public land that makes up the East Gippsland Forest Management Area (EGFMA). While this includes 90% of the EGFMA, there are several areas of freehold land that exist as large inliers within the area of operation that collectively make up approximately 100,000 ha. From the 1st of January 2008, the Victorian Department of Primary Industries ceased to be the agency responsible for selling 1080 baits to landholders; from that date onward landholders were only able to purchase baits from accredited retailers or licensed perishable bait manufacturers. This change was accompanied by the requirement for landholders who wished to use 1080 baits to complete a half-day training course and obtain a 1080 endorsement to the Agricultural Chemical Users Permit, which is the permit required to use Schedule 7 toxins. There were also changes in the paperwork that landholders who wished to bait had to complete. The result of these collective changes was that the majority of private landholders in Far East Gippsland ceased to carry out any canid control programs on their own properties, and there was definitely no coordinated community approach to canid control for several years. The fact that landholders were not baiting, especially in the Deddick, Tubbut and Bendoc areas of Far East Gippsland, had three very important consequences. Firstly, because wild dogs (Canis lupus dingo, C.l. familiaris and hybrids) were not being effectively targeted on freehold land, local landholders were suffering significant stock losses. Secondly, the large inliers of freehold land continued to support robust populations of foxes which continued to compromise the work of the Southern Ark team working on public land. The final consequence could be termed the deterioration in the social and psychological fabric of the community; landholders were sleep-deprived and subject to elevated levels of stress, and the personal relationships between landholders and government agency staff had deteriorated to an all-time low. This paper will discuss how the Southern Ark team and their agency partners developed the Community Baiting Program model and how we worked with landholders to address this dire situation. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 65 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING WILD CANIDS: PASSIVE ADAPTIVE CO-MANAGEMENT BY COMMUNITIES IN NORTH EASTERN NSW Peter Fleming and Guy Ballard Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] The management of wild dogs (Canis lupus dingo, C. l. familiaris and hybrids) and foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are inextricably linked because available technologies (silver and lead bullets) target both species. This has advantages and disadvantages, depending on the goal of management. We have the technologies to substantially reduce wild canid populations but their application at landscape scales sufficient to achieve program objectives is often wanting or subject to competing values. Where the impetus for management is livestock predation, some action is likely but will be less effective than a unified approach across tenures. Limited budgets result in inertia and ineffective or no action, with active wildlife management being the first casualty. A passive adaptive co-management process can accommodate most asset protection objectives for managing wild canids at the landscape scale. The Invasive Animals Cooperative Reseach Centre wild canid management demonstration site has facilitated community co-management of wild canids in north eastern NSW using the strategic approach. The objectives of our community include protection of predation-affected wildlife, livestock and pets from predation, while providing protection for dingoes where appropriate. Here we outline and recommend our revised strategic approach, with a cross-tenure strategy to promote community co-management of wild canids for biodiversity and production gains, and present interim results of program monitoring and associated applied research that has informed management strategies. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 66 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 STRATEGIC AERIAL APPLICATION OF BAITS PROVIDES ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS Bruce Warburton, David Latham and Graham Nugent Landcare Research, New Zealand Email: [email protected] Aerial control of vertebrate pests in New Zealand (possums (Trichosurus vulpecula), rats (Rattus spp.), rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) has evolved over the last 3–4 decades with current best practice based on a desire to achieve a uniform application of baits across the landscape inhabited by the target pest, and enough bait to obtain the 90+% kills required. However when the amount of bait used per hectare is examined in the context of how many target pests are present, there is an obvious disjunction between what seems obvious, and best practice. For example, best practice for possum control requires 2–3 kg of 12 g bait to be sown/ha (i.e. 250 baits) for a maximum of 10 possums/ha. Similarly for rabbits, 25–30 kg of carrot bait is sown (i.e. 6000 baits) for a maximum of perhaps 100 rabbits/ha. So why is best practice applying such high, and on the face of it, unnecessary sowing rates? Recent field studies indicate that the high sowing rates have been used as a solution to overcome poor bait quality. Because it is operationally difficult to deliver perfect baits (i.e. each bait having a lethal dose), most pests have to encounter and eat multiple baits to ingest a lethal dose. We will present some recent field trial data that shows high kills of possums and rabbits can be achieved with significant reductions in bait sowing rates, and that examining the problem in a framework of a time-constrained functional response can explain the problem and the solution. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 67 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 THE ROLE OF MHC IN MATE CHOICE WITHIN THE TASMANIAN DEVIL (Sarcophilus harrisii) INSURANCE POPULATION Tracey Russell1, Rebecca Spindler2, Beata Ujvari1, Amanda Lane1, Catherine Herbert1, Kathy Belov1 1 Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Sydney, 2 Taronga Zoo, NSW Email: [email protected] Devil Facial Tumour Disease, a transmittable and fatal cancer has decimated the wild population of Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) to the point where they are now threatened with extinction and listed on the IUCN red list. This disease, which originated in the north east of Tasmania, has now spread throughout ~80% of the devil’s range. The cancer is caused by a clonal cell line which originated in a single devil and is spread from animal to animal by biting. Due to a paucity of genetic diversity, especially amongst the genes of the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC), the Tasmanian devil’s immune system does not recognise the tumour as non-self and does not mount an immune response. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of MHC in mate choice within the Tasmanian devil insurance population, housed in zoos and conservation parks across Australia. As well as a key role in immune response, MHC genes are also thought to play an important role in mate choice with animals preferring to breed with mates that differ at their MHC to maximise the immunological fitness of their offspring. The hypothesis to be tested is whether breeding success correlates with MHC dissimilarity. My research project will track microsatellite diversity at both neutral and MHC linked loci. Preliminary analyses show variation within breeding pairs at the MHC linked loci, along with high levels of heterozygosity amongst the insurance population. The next phase of the project will be to explore the role of MHC and mate choice within this captive insurance population. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 68 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF INVESTIGATIONS INTO RABBIT POPULATIONS ACROSS AUSTRALIA Tarnya Cox1, June Liu2, Tanja Strive2 and Glen Saunders1 1 Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries, 2 CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, Canberra Email: [email protected] After the escape of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) off Wardang Island, South Australia in 1995, a number of intensive and broad-scale monitoring sites were established around Australia. These sites monitored the impact of RHDV on rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) populations across the country. After the initial success of RHDV, its effectiveness appears to have waned. As part of the RHD-boost project to improve the biocontrol of rabbits, seven of the original 11 intensive monitoring sites have been revisited and rabbit populations assessed. Preliminary results will be presented including rabbit density and the serological status (with respects to RCV-A1) of the populations. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 69 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 ANALYSIS OF CAMERA TRAP DATA FOR POPULATION MONITORING Andrew Bengsen Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] Animal-triggered cameras (camera traps) are increasingly being used to monitor changes in wildlife or pest population parameters such as abundance or density. However, many monitoring programs are not as effective as they could be because they produce only simple counts of animal observations, which are not amenable to statistical interpretation. Here, we use survey data from manipulated pest animal populations to investigate two approaches to the analysis of data derived from camera trap surveys: relative abundance indexing and capture-recapture abundance estimation. A modification of the widely-used passive tracking index model applied to camera trap observations identified detectable decreases in feral pig (Sus scrofa) and cat (Felis catus) populations after trapping programs. The ability to identify individual cats from unique coat patterns also allowed the use of robust design capture-recapture models, which detected the decrease in local cat abundance resulting from population manipulation. In addition to the ability to detect changes in population abundance, observations in both studies indicated short-term population recovery through immigration. These results show that the value of monitoring programs using camera traps, which often report only simple counts of animal observations, can be greatly improved with application of statistical methods that are appropriate to the species and monitoring objectives. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 70 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 Feral goats in western NSW: how many and rates of increase Peter Fleming1, Guy Ballard1, Nicole Payne2, Peter West1, Gavin Melville1 and Udai Pradhan1 Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Kangaroo Management Program, NSW Office of Environment and Heritage 1 2 Email: [email protected] Feral goats (Capra hircus) are contentious animals because they are simultaneously regarded as a resource and a pest. To enable strategic management of feral goats in western NSW, their density and distribution and rates of change in these factors are required. The NSW Office of Environment and Heritage’s Kangaroo Management Program (KMP) also counts goats during its annual kangaroo aerial surveys. However, these goat data have not been analysed since 1992 because no correction factor was available. We first determined detection models and detection probabilities for 100 m and 200 m strip transects and applied resultant correction factors to KMP goat data from 1993–2011. These population estimates were then used to describe the distribution of goats during the period and to estimate rates of increase. Although goat numbers declined gradually from 1992 ( = 795,000) to 1999 ( = 528, 500), a steep increase in abundance was evident thereafter. In 2011 estimated abundance reached 2,998,700. Exponential rates of increase averaged 0.07 per annum and ranged from -0.242 in 1995/1996 to 0.517 in 1999/2000. From 2000 on, the average exponential rate of increase was 0.111. These high rates of increase were in the context of linearly increasing harvest rates. The consequences for management are discussed. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 71 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 EXPLORING THE CAPACITY OF NRM ORGANISATIONS TO SUPPORT INVASIVE ANIMAL MANAGEMENT NOW AND INTO THE FUTURE Jessica Marsh Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre and Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] Across Australia, there are 56 natural resource management regions (NRMs). The regions are based on physical catchments or bioregions and were established from 2000 to 2004 by the Commonwealth and State/Territory governments. Each NRM organisation has the ability to play a critical role in invasive species management, education and awareness, as all land across Australia falls within one of the 56 specified regions. Each NRM region has been reviewed with regard to their invasive animal management history, current targets, designated staff, resources, and future plans to tackle their individual invasive species issues. Understandably, each NRM agency has a different suite of issues to deal with including extreme weather events, complicated mixes of pest species and environments, varied land tenure, peri-urban issues, high staff turnover, and competing priorities. The workings of NRM agencies are explored and issues that play a role in both decreasing and increasing regional NRM agency capacity, especially in the invasive species management field, are revealed. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 72 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 MONITORING MALLEEFOWL (Leipoa ocellata) ACTIVITY USING CAMERA TRAPS: PREDATOR INTERACTIONS AND TRAP SUCCESS IN THE GOONOO FOREST, NEW SOUTH WALES Annette Brown University of Sydney and Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, NSW Primary Industries Email: [email protected] Camera-trapping has become a popular tool for monitoring wildlife and is particularly useful for detecting cryptic species and predation events. Images capture a true record of species’ presence along with critical data such as date, time and temperature, which can be valuable for conservation planning and evaluation. The plight of malleefowl (Leipoa ocellata) in Australia is that of several native ground-dwelling species, which have been significantly affected by habitat loss and fragmentation, and the introduced fox (Vulpes vulpes). Malleefowl are elusive and solitary by nature, which presents a challenge to those seeking to plan and promote recovery of the species. This study demonstrates how the difficult task of monitoring malleefowl and their potential predators may be overcome by the use of camera traps. Camera traps were set at 15 mounds across the Goonoo forest in central New South Wales during late winter. Of the mounds surveyed, malleefowl were recorded at three and foxes at eight, including two of three mounds where malleefowl were present. Several other species were also recorded however there was no significant association between their presence and that of foxes. To assess camera efficiency among camera types, three different camera trap systems were subsequently deployed at each of the three ‘active’ malleefowl mounds. The mean number of visits detected by each of the camera systems was not significantly different as assessed by repeated-measures analysis of variance however the mean visits differed between days. No further fox presence was detected; however lace monitor (Varanus varius) activity was substantial, signifying a key shift in predator dynamics. Although there are a range of practical limitations associated with the use of camera traps, the technique facilitates the collection of important data, which may assist the malleefowl recovery process. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 73 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 FeralScan pest animal mapping website – A resource for communities, landholders, and local government – www.feralscan.org.au Peter West, Jessica Marsh and Chris Lane NSW Primary Industries and Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre Email: [email protected] The FeralScan collaborative project builds on the popular RabbitScan citizen science project coordinated in 2009, and provides a community space for recording data on nationally significant pest animals across Australia. Citizen science projects are becoming more popular and offer a unique opportunity to better engage with key audiences, deliver educational material and tools direct to land managers, and gather vital data to support better research, management and investment. Participating in FeralScan is easy. Community groups, land managers and landholders are encouraged to record sightings, damage data and control activities in their local area onto the FeralScan website (www.feralscan.org.au). FeralScan uses a Google mapping application to provide a user-friendly mapping system. Recorded data can then be used to help design and implement local scale control programs, and offers both a regional and national perspective on pest animal problems. The FeralScan project currently hosts websites for mapping rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), foxes (Vulpes vulpes), feral camels (Camelus dromedarius), feral pigs (Sus scrofa), cane toads (Rhinella [Bufo] marinus) and common mynas (also called Indian mynas, Acridotheres tristis). The next species will include feral goats (Capra hircus), pest fish, wild dogs and feral deer. Each species website contains information on the species, control techniques, a photo gallery, links to other pest animal websites (such as www.feral.org.au), and new resources (such as PestSmart from the Invasive Animals CRC). FeralScan will also soon offer a facility for recording new and emerging species, and emerging pest animal problems. FeralScan promotes accessibility to real-time data, and builds on previously known information for pest animal distribution, abundance, damage and control activities by individual/groups. By targeting landholders, community groups, Landcare groups, NRM regional bodies and local government, FeralScan aims to build community interest and participation in local pest animal management activities. FeralScan is primarily funded through the Australian Pest Animal Research Program and Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre. It provides a unique partnership between government, industry, business, landholders and community. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 74 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 A E, F Ada P .......................................56 Li L ............................................34 Ross K ......................................40 Evans T ....................................24 Lincoln R ................................16 Rudd K ....................................16 Allen B ..............................48, 54 Fleming P ...18, 35, 56, 55, 71 Liu J ..........................................69 Russell T .................................68 Arunachalam D ...................39 Fletcher D ..............................51 Lunney D ........................40, 42 Forge O ...................................15 M S Atyeo M ..................................30 Auld T ......................................18 Franklin M .............................22 MacDonald T ........................51 Saunders G .....................26, 69 B Fulton W .................................31 Madha C .................................60 Scott-Orr H ............................60 Ballard G ...................35, 66, 71 G Major R ...................................22 Seabrook L ............................42 Banks P ...................................45 Gaffney R ...............................49 Marsh I ....................................61 Sharp T ....................................38 Barnes T ..................................62 Galea F ....................................61 Marsh J ............................72, 74 Short H ...................................16 Baxter G ..................................42 Garner G .................................61 Martin G .................................33 Siko M .....................................60 Belov K ....................................68 Glen A .....................................64 McAlpine C ............................42 Sofo K ......................................32 Bengsen A .............................70 Goldney D .............................13 McGregor R ...........................36 Spencer R ..............................44 Bennett A ..............................57 Gouvernet J ..........................15 McLean K ...............................39 Spindler R ..............................68 Beveridge I ............................59 Gray G .....................................33 McLeod S ...............................38 Stalenberg E .........................40 Bolam A ..................................21 Gunata K ................................60 Meek P ....................................35 Staples L .................................30 Bomford M ............................37 H, I Melville G ...............................71 Stokes V ..................................36 Merson J .................................18 Strive T ....................................69 Mifsud G ..........................27, 43 T, U Bradley A ...............................42 Bradstock R ...........................18 Braysher M ............................25 Brown A .................................73 Burns G ...................................39 Byrom A .................................64 C Hall G .......................................34 Hall K .......................................31 Handasyde K ........................53 Hansen N ...............................45 Henderson W .......................37 Hernandez-Matias A ..........52 Holcombe P ..........................20 Mooney N ..............................55 Morris C ..................................22 Mulley R .................................18 Murray A ................................65 Murray P .................................34 Campbell S ............................33 Hone J .....................................63 N, O Cassey P .................................37 Hughes C ...............................49 Nany S .....................................60 Chapman R ...........................47 Hughes N ...............................45 Negus K ..................................61 J, K Nugent G ...............................67 Chapple R ..............................18 Cooke B ..................................29 Coulson G .......................32, 57 Cowled B ................................61 Cox T .................................34, 69 Craig M ...................................36 Crowther M ...........................40 D Dall D ......................................50 Daoud-Opit S .......................46 Dee F .......................................16 Dickman C ......................49, 55 Doak S .....................................35 Dundas S ................................56 Sarre S .....................................61 Tabart OAM D ...............17, 43 Thomas C ...............................15 Tribe A ....................................34 Ujvari B ...................................68 V, W, X, Y, Z Varvaro K ...............................39 Vizard A ..................................59 Warburton B .........................67 Ward M ...................................61 Jenkins D ...............................62 P, Q Jones D ..............39, 41, 46, 47 Parr R .......................................33 Whitehead B .........................35 Kasbarian A ...........................14 Paterson I ...............................23 Whiteley P .............................59 Kennedy M ............................33 Payne N ..................................71 Wilke C ....................................35 Kerle A ....................................19 Pech R .....................................64 Woods R .................................58 Kingsford R ............................18 Post L .......................................58 Woolnough A ................33, 61 L Pradhan U ..............................71 Laffan S ...................................61 West P ..............................71, 74 Putra A ....................................60 Lamb M ..................................35 R Lane A .....................................68 Ramp D ..................................18 Lane C .....................................74 Ramsay G ...............................14 Lapidge S ...............................28 Real J .......................................52 Latham D ...............................67 Reed R .....................................53 Lazenby B ..............................55 Rhodes J .................................42 75 Australasian Wildlife Management Society Conference 2011 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