Long1term$Monitoring$Plan$Of$Squirrel$Glider$ Populations$In$Thurgoona1wirlinga:$Final$ Report.$ ! Kylie!Soanes!And!Rodney!Van!Der!Ree!
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22nd$December$2016$$$ Long1term$monitoring$plan$of$Squirrel$Glider$ populations$in$Thurgoona1Wirlinga:$Final$ Report.$ ! Kylie!Soanes!and!Rodney!van!der!Ree! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 22!December!2016! Long0term!monitoring!plan!of!Squirrel!Glider!populations!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! rbg.vic.gov.au!! Royal!Botanic!Gardens!Victoria! 1! ! Contents$ List$of$figures$ 2! Executive$summary$ 3! Introduction$and$scope$ 5! Section$1:$Background$ 6! 1.1!Monitoring!programs!to!guide!conservation!efforts! 6! 1.2!Squirrel!Glider!management!in!human0modified!landscapes! 6! Box!1:!Squirrel!Glider!ecology! 7! 1.3!Squirrel!Glider!conservation!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! 8! ! 11! 2.1!A!monitoring!program!to!guide!conservation!efforts!for!the!Squirrel!Glider!in! Thurgoona0Wirlinga! 12! 2.2!Proposed!monitoring!methods!for!Squirrel!Gliders!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! 14! 2.3!Project!costs! 20! 2.4!Practical!considerations! 21! Appendix$1$–$Summary$of$existing$knowledge1base$of$Squirrel$Gliders$ in$Thurgoona1Wirlinga$ 23! Appendix$2$–$Potential$complementary$works$ 26! Resource(use(in(urban(areas! 26! Identify(sources(of(mortality! 26! Wildlife(crossing(structures(and(corridors! 26! Appendix$3$–$Summary$of$potential$monitoring$methods$for$Squirrel$ Gliders$ 28! $ ! List$of$figures$ Figure$1.$The$Squirrel$Glider,$and$in$mid$glide$after$being$released$from$ trap$(right).$Images$courtesy$of$Lochman$Transparencies$(left)$and$ Kylie$Soanes$(right).$ 7! Figure$2a.$Map$of$Thurgoona1Wirlinga$showing$existing$woodland$ cover,$major$roads$and$residential$areas.$ 9! Figure$2b.$Map$of$Thurgoona1Wirlinga$showing$current$broad$land1use$ planning$zones:$B1$Business,$E1$Environment,$IN1$Industrial,$R1$ Residential,$RE1$Recreation,$RU1$Rural,$SP1$Special,$W1$Waterways.$ 10! Figure$3.$Distribution$of$Squirrel$Glider$surveys$and$records$across$ Thurgoona1Wirlinga$(red$boundary)$from$2003$to$2013,$showing$the$ locations$where$animals$have$been$detected$(dots)$and$those$where$no$ gliders$have$been$detected$(crossed$circles).$ 11! Figure$4.$The$survey$grid$for$Squirrel$Glider$monitoring$across$ Thurgoona1Wirlinga$based$on$a$12km$x$12km$grid$with$sites$at$1$km$ intervals.$Each$intersection$represents$a$site$and$camera$location.$ Sites$that$fall$in$unsuitable$areas$can$be$relocated$to$the$nearest$ potential$habitat$(within$~100$–$200$m),$or$removed$from$the$sampling$ grid.$The$grid$can$be$expanded$to$include$more$survey$points$as$ required.$$The$planning$zones$are$defined$in$Figure$2b.$ 18! $ ! 22!December!2016! Long0term!monitoring!plan!of!Squirrel!Glider!populations!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! rbg.vic.gov.au!! Royal!Botanic!Gardens!Victoria! 2! ! Executive$summary$ Squirrel!Gliders!are!widely!distributed!across!Thurgoona0Wirlinga,!occurring!in! patches!and!linear!strips!of!woodland!along!roads!and!streams,!within!relatively! young!environmental!plantings!and!scattered!trees.!Several!studies!and!numerous! surveys!have!been!conducted!on!Squirrel!Gliders!within!the!region,!including!those! commissioned!by!the!Albury!Conservation!Company,!community!groups!and! government!monitoring!programs,!impact!assessments!and!university!research! projects.!While!these!have!all!been!informative!in!their!own!right,!a!coordinated! approach!is!needed!to!better!understand!the!impacts!of!future!urbanisation!and!the! effectiveness!of!management!actions!on!Squirrel!Glider!populations.! The!Albury!Conservation!Company!recognised!the!need!for!a!long0term!monitoring! program!to!better!understand!the!current!and!future!status!and!distribution!of! Squirrel!Glider!populations!across!Thurgoona0Wirlinga,!and!help!management!best! respond!to!future!landscape!change.!Key!aims!include:! •! Determine!the!current$distribution!of!Squirrel!Gliders!in!the!study!area! •! Track!changes$in$the$presence$and$distribution!of!Squirrel!Gliders! across!the!landscape!over$time! •! Provide!information!on!the!important$habitat$features!influencing!the! presence!of!Squirrel!Gliders! •! Engage$the$community!in!the!protection!and!enhancement!of!Squirrel! Glider!populations!by!providing!avenues!to!participate!in!monitoring!and! restoration!works! •! Maintain!a!strong!base!program!with!potential!to!incorporate$ complementary!research$projects!as!funding!and!opportunities!become! available.!! We!recommend!that!a!simple,!baseline!program!be!established!to!detect!changes! in!the!occupancy,!distribution!and!abundance!of!Squirrel!Gliders!across!the! Thurgoona0Wirlinga.!The!recommended!monitoring!program!consists!of:! •! Camera!traps!being!the!primary!survey!method!to!determine!occupancy! and!distribution!of!Squirrel!Gliders!at!sampling!sites.!! •! Other!survey!techniques,!such!as!stagwatching,!nest0box!surveys!and! spotlighting!are!complimentary!techniques!but!are!not!recommended!as! the!core!survey!method.!A!summary!of!the!pros!and!cons!of!different! survey!techniques!is!given!in!Appendix!3.!! •! Squirrel!Gliders!are!to!be!surveyed!at!80–100!sites!with!existing!trees!or! sites!to!be!revegetated!with!trees!set!at!approximately!1!km!intervals!in!a! grid!across!the!landscape.!The!grid!locations!ensure!an!unbiased!and! random!sample!of!sites!across!the!study!area.!However,!if!necessary,!the! grid!points!can!be!adjusted!slightly!to!avoid!cleared!areas!or!an!over0 representation!of!certain!site!types!(e.g.!roadsides,!waterways,!large!or! small!patches!etc).!! •! The!actual!selection!of!sites!will!occur!during!the!implementation!stage!of! the!program!when!site!visits!are!conducted!and!the!number!of!sites!of! different!types!can!be!assessed.!! •! Sites!should!include!a!range!of!patch!siZes,!qualities!and!surrounding! landscape!uses!! •! One!camera!will!be!set!per!site!for!a!minimum!of!seven!nights,!preferably! twice!per!year!(Spring!and!Autumn).!If!two!surveys!per!year!cannot!be! conducted,!the!Autumn!survey!should!remain.! •! Conduct!detailed!habitat!assessments!at!each!site!during!the!first!round!of! surveys!to!determine!site!type,!vegetation!type,!habitat!quality!and!nature! 22!December!2016! Long0term!monitoring!plan!of!Squirrel!Glider!populations!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! rbg.vic.gov.au!! Royal!Botanic!Gardens!Victoria! 3! ! of!the!surrounding!landscape.!Detailed!habitat!assessments!should!be! repeated!at!five0yearly!intervals,!with!rapid!(<!5!min)!assessments! conducted!at!each!survey.! •! The!implementation!of!the!monitoring!plan!is!to!be!co0ordinated!and!guided! by!a!Project!Ecologist/s,!and!implemented!in!partnership!with!the!local! community!as!‘citizen!scientists’.!! •! CitiZen0scientists!to!inspect!camera!footage!through!an!online!platform! (e.g.!Zooniverse).!! •! The!monitoring!plan!has!been!developed!to!be!responsive!and!adaptive!in! order!take!advantage!of!funding!opportunities,!student!research!projects! and!other!events!as!they!arise.!However,!by!stipulating!a!set!of!consistent! methods,!the!long0term!reliability!of!the!monitoring!data!can!be!maintained.! We!recommend!that!ACC!appoint!a!project!ecologist!to!implement!the! monitoiring!program,!including:!selection!of!sites!and!ensuring!all!site!types!are! representedc!arranging!site!accessc!seeking!funds!to!support!the!programc! setting!up!survey!image!storage/identification!protocolsc!and!commencing! recruitment!of!volunteer!citiZen!scientists.!!Importantly,!the!project!ecologist!will! also!be!responsible!for!co0ordinating!and!running!the!field!surveys.! ! $ $ 22!December!2016! Long0term!monitoring!plan!of!Squirrel!Glider!populations!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! rbg.vic.gov.au!! Royal!Botanic!Gardens!Victoria! 4! ! Introduction$and$scope$ The!Australian!Research!Centre!for!Urban!Ecology!was!commissioned!by!the! Albury!Conservation!Company!(ACC)!to!develop!a!long0term!monitoring!program! for!Squirrel!Gliders!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga.!This!document!outlines!the!monitoring! plan!(hereafter!“the!plan”)!that!has!been!developed!following!an!initial!discussion! paper!and!consultation!with!the!Albury!Conservation!Company!and!stakeholder! workshop!in!August!2016.! The!plan!consists!of!two!sections.!Section!1!provides!background!information!on! the!Thurgoona0Wirlinga!region,!the!ecology!and!conservation!status!of!Squirrel! Gliders,!and!the!factors!that!spurred!the!need!for!a!coordinated!monitoring! program.!In!Section!2,!we!detail!the!goals!and!methods!of!the!monitoring!program.!! As!well!as!the!monitoring!plan,!we!have!also!created!a!Squirrel!Glider!‘knowledge! base’.!The!knowledge!base!aims!to!capture!the!extent!of!the!current!understanding! of!Squirrel!Gliders!across!Thurgoona0Wirlinga,!and!collate!information!from!the! numerous!surveys,!research!programs!and!conservation!efforts!that!have!occurred! within!the!region.!This!will!include!a!summary!report,!as!well!as!a!GIS!database,! detailing!the!location!and!effort!of!surveys!to!date,!the!distribution!and!abundance! of!the!Squirrel!Glider!population!and!any!existing!conservation!actions!for!the! species!within!the!region,!and!the!extent!of!proposed!urban!developments.!We! have!included!a!summary!of!the!existing!data!in!Appendix!1.!! ! $ $ 22!December!2016! Long0term!monitoring!plan!of!Squirrel!Glider!populations!in!Thurgoona0Wirlinga! rbg.vic.gov.au!! Royal!Botanic!Gardens!Victoria! 5! ! Section$1:$Background$ 1.1$Monitoring$programs$to$guide$conservation$efforts$ Conserving!wildlife!within!human0dominated!landscapes!is!a!key!goal!of!many! conservation!management!programs!globally.!These!landscapes!often!consist!of! islands!of!habitat!in!a!‘matrix’!of!human!activity.!The!matrix!that!surrounds!patches! can!change!dramatically!over!time,!with!potentially!profound!effects!on!the! persistence!of!species!and!communities!across!the!landscape!(Driscoll!et!al.!