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Threatened Shark Bay Marsupials Recovery Plan

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Threatened Shark Bay Marsupials Recovery Plan WESTERN BARRED BANDICOOT Perameles bougainville, BURROWING BETTONG Bettongia lesueur and BANDED HARE- WALLABY Lagostrophus fasciatus RECOVERY PLAN 2007 - 2011. Wildlife Management Program No. 49 WESTERN BARRED BANDICOOT, BURROWING BETTONG AND BANDED HARE-WALLABY RECOVERY PLAN 2007 –2011 Prepared by Dr Jacqueline D. Richards For the Western Barred Bandicoot, Burrowing Bettong and Banded Hare-wallaby Recovery Team, Department of Environment and Conservation (Western Australia), and the Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. December 2007 © Department of Environment and Conservation (Western Australia) 2007 Species and Communities Unit Locked Bag 104 Bentley Delivery Centre Western Australia 6983 Copyright protects this publication. Except for purposes permitted by the Copyright Act, reproduction by whatever means is prohibited without the prior written consent of the author and the Department of Environment and Conservation (Western Australia). Cover illustration of the western barred bandicoot drawn by Lisa York. Reproduction is prohibited without the prior written permission of the author of this Recovery Plan. i FOREWORD Recovery Plans are developed within the framework laid down in Department of Conservation and Land Management (CALM) Policy Statements Nos 44 and 50, and the Australian Government Department for the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts Revised Recovery Plan Guidelines for Nationally Threatened Species and Ecological Communities (Environment Australia 2002). Recovery Plans delineate, justify and schedule management actions necessary to support the recovery of threatened species and ecological communities. The attainment of objectives and the provision of funds necessary to implement actions are subject to budgetary and other constraints affecting the parties involved, as well as the need to address other priorities. Recovery Plans do not necessarily represent the views or the official position of individuals or organisations represented on the Recovery Team. A multi-species approach to recovery planning is supported by the Department for the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) (Revised Recovery Plan Guidelines for Nationally Threatened Species and Ecological Communities 2002), where species occur in the same area and have closely related requirements based on their habitats, threats or recovery actions. This Recovery Plan was approved by the Department of Environment and Conservation, Western Australia. Approved Recovery Plans are subject to modification as dictated by new findings, changes in status of the taxon or ecological community and the completion of recovery actions. The provision of funds identified in this Recovery Plan is dependent on budgetary and other constraints affecting the Department, as well as the need to address other priorities. Information in this Recovery Plan was accurate at February 2007. ii CONTENTS 1. Background ............................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Taxonomy and description of species ................................................................. 1 1.2 Distribution and habitat ....................................................................................... 3 1.3 Conservation status ........................................................................................... 12 1.4 Biology and ecology relevant to threatening processes .................................... 12 1.6 International obligations ................................................................................... 17 1.7 Affected interests .............................................................................................. 18 1.8 Role and interests of indigenous people ........................................................... 23 1.9 Benefits to other species ................................................................................... 24 1.10 Social and economic impacts .......................................................................... 25 2. Habitat critical to the survival of the species .......................................................... 27 2.1 Mapping of habitat critical to the survival of the species ................................. 28 2.2 Important populations ....................................................................................... 29 3. Known and potential threats ................................................................................... 31 3.1 Identification of threats ..................................................................................... 31 3.2 Populations under threat ................................................................................... 38 4. Recovery objectives and criteria ............................................................................. 39 4.1 Prior conservation measures ............................................................................. 39 4.2 Recovery objectives and performance criteria .................................................. 46 5. Recovery Actions .................................................................................................... 48 5.1 Protect the wild populations and their habitat ................................................... 48 5.2 Maintain captive populations ............................................................................ 50 5.3 Investigate the disease status of captive and wild western barred bandicoot populations and develop a strategy for disease control ........................................... 51 5.4 Maintain existing reintroduced populations ...................................................... 53 5.5 Reintroduce western barred bandicoots, burrowing bettongs and banded hare- wallabies to additional mainland and island sites .................................................... 55 5.6 Review the taxonomic status and genetic structure of western barred bandicoots and burrowing bettongs and BHW ........................................................ 57 5.7 Use population viability analysis (PVA) to compare the viability of wild and current and potential reintroduced populations ........................................................ 59 5.8 Enhance community participation and education in the recovery of western barred bandicoots, burrowing bettongs and banded hare-wallabies ........................ 59 5.9 Secure ongoing funding for the implementation of the national Recovery Plan for the western barred bandicoot, burrowing bettong and banded hare-wallaby. .... 61 5.10 Enhance linkages between projects involved in the recovery of western barred bandicoots, burrowing bettongs and banded hare-wallabies. .................................. 62 6. TOOLS TO ASSIST IMPLEMENTATION .......................................................... 63 6.1 Estimated costs of the recovery program .......................................................... 63 6.2 Implementation table ........................................................................................ 63 7. Acknowledgements ................................................................................................. 65 8. References ............................................................................................................... 66 iii SUMMARY Perameles bougainville bougainville, western barred bandicoot (Shark Bay island subspecies). Family: Peramelidae Common name: Marl DEC Region: Midwest DEC District: Shark Bay Shire: Shark Bay Current status of taxa: Endangered Habitat requirements: Open habitat with some ground cover Bettongia lesueur lesueur, burrowing bettong (Shark Bay island subspecies). Bettongia lesueur unnamed subspecies, burrowing bettong (Barrow Island subspecies). Family: Macropodidae Common name: Boodie DEC Region: Midwest, Pilbara DEC District: Shark Bay, Pilbara Shire: Shark Bay, Ashburton Current status of taxa: B. l. lesueur Vulnerable, B. l. unnamed subspecies Vulnerable Habitat requirements: Open habitat with some ground cover and soil suitable for the construction of warrens Lagostrophus fasciatus fasciatus, banded hare-wallaby (Shark Bay island subspecies). Family: Macropodidae Common name: Merrnine or Munning DEC Region: Midwest DEC District: Shark Bay Shire: Shark Bay Current status of taxa: Vulnerable Habitat requirements: Areas of dense heath and shrub thickets Recovery Team: Shark Bay Marsupials Recovery Team Overall objective: Ensure the survival and improve the status of the Shark Bay island subspecies of the western barred bandicoot (currently 'Endangered' under the EPBC Act and the IUCN Red List 2000) within 20 years to a level that will enable downlisting to ‘Vulnerable’, based on the IUCN (1994) criteria of extent of occurrence. Ensure the survival and maintain the status (currently 'Vulnerable' under the EPBC Act and the IUCN Red List 2000) of the Bernier and Dorre Island subspecies of the iv burrowing bettong and banded hare-wallaby and Barrow Island subspecies of the burrowing bettong. Recovery Plan criteria This Recovery Plan will be deemed successful if: • The estimated total number of individuals known to be alive on Bernier, Dorre, Barrow and Boodie Islands does not decline to levels below that of natural population fluctuations (natural population fluctuations to be defined as part of this process); and • The number of individuals known to be alive in captivity does not decline, other than through the sourcing of translocated populations. This Recovery Plan will be deemed
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