Australian Species ThreatenedMountain Pygmy-possum parvus

CONSERVATION STATUS

COMMONWEALTH: Endangered (Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999) : Endangered (and listed under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988)

WHAT DOES IT WHAT DO THEY EAT? The Mountain Pygmy-possum scurries LOOK LIKE? about at night during the short alpine The Mountain Pygmy-possum is the spring and summer months, building up largest of ’s five species of fat reserves by feeding mostly on rich pygmy-possum, yet it only weighs 45 Bogong moths (Agrotis infusa). At other grams and could easily fit in the palm of times of the year it is more opportunistic, your hand. Its mouse-like body is covered supplementing this diet with and in thick greyish , it has a long tail, agile fruit of plants like the Mountain Plum front feet designed for gathering food, and pine, Rambling Bramble and Snow strong back feet for gripping. It also has Beard-heath. During hibernation in the Photo: WWF/Frédy Mercay enlarged front teeth for cracking seeds. snow season, between April and October, the possum feeds from a hidden cache of stored seeds and nuts. WHERE DOES IT LIVE? DID YOU KNOW... The Mountain Pygmy-possum is found • It was thought to be extinct until only in Australia’s snow-covered alpine discovered in 1966 in a ski chalet and sub-alpine region above 1400 metres at Mt Higginbotham in Victoria in Victoria and (NSW). • It is the longest-living small terrestrial It lives among rock crevices and boulder- known (females can reach an fields associated with the Mountain Plum age of more than 12 years!) Pine (). In Victoria • The possum is one of the world’s populations occur on the Bogong High only hibernating Plains, at Mt Bogong and between • During hibernation the possum’s Mt Loch and Mt Higginbotham and metabolic rate is reduced by about 98 distribution includes parts of the Falls per cent. At the beginning of winter Creek, Mt Buller and Mt Hotham ski hibernation might last for several days resorts. In NSW the possum occurs only before the hungry possum wakes to within the . dine from its food cache – a storage The possum’s entire range, which largely facility rare among marsupials. coincides with Australia’s ski resorts, is This period is extended as the winter thought to cover just 10 square kilometres. progresses, lasting as long as three weeks during the coldest months. BLACKBERRY: A MAJOR THREAT!

change. Because the Pygmy-possum WHY IS BLACKBERRY needs a snow depth of at least 1 metre HOW YOU CAN HELP to provide adequate insulation during its • Visitors can reduce the spread of A PROBLEM IN winter hibernation, it is threatened by any blackberry by making sure clothing that fragments or thins and camping equipment do not AUSTRALIA? the snow cover and exposes it to cold carry seeds, and by avoiding moving The impact of the fast spreading and temperatures. soil from blackberry and other adaptable perennial blackberry ( weed-infested areas fruticosus L. aggregate) is felt across • Drive with care in alpine areas 8.8 million hectares of temperate • Carefully dispose of rubbish so as not Australia, where it has invaded the banks WHAT’S BEING DONE? to encourage foxes and cats of watercourses, roadsides, agricultural A variety of blackberry control measures • Be a responsible pet owner: abide by properties, forests and bushland. Not – including burning, slashing, grazing, regulations that prohibit cats and dogs only does it reduce pasture production, grubbing, chemical spraying, revegetation on the skifields it restricts access to water and land, and biological controls – continue to • When staying on the snow learn to engulfs native plants, increases the fire be used, often together. The best hope distinguish the possum from rats and threat, and provides food and shelter of controlling large, often inaccessible house mice, and report any sightings for introduced pests like foxes. It has infestations is thought to be biological to the resort environmental officer. been declared a noxious weed in all control, using the leaf rust (Phragmidium states and territories except the violaceum). This disease has been Northern Territory. shown in southern Australia to slow the blackberry’s spread. WHY IS IT A THREAT A National Coordinator for Blackberry is helping coordinate strategic management TO MOUNTAIN PYGMY- for the weed across Australia. The Australian Government also recently POSSUMS? launched its new four-year, $40 million Although occasionally known to out- Defeating the Weeds Menace program, compete the native Mountain Plum Pine which takes a national approach to Treated blackberry thickets. Photo: Gill Earl (on which the possum relies for shelter tackling our most significant weeds. and food) at the snowline, blackberry alone is not a major threat to the The Victorian and NSW Governments Mountain Pygmy-possum. But coupled are working with alpine resort managers, with climate factors its impact can be far Parks Victoria and the NSW National greater. As our world warms, blackberry Parks and Wildlife Service to monitor CONTACT AND REFERENCES is expected to have an advantage at Mountain Pygmy-possum populations Julie Kirkwood higher altitudes, where it is feared the and their habitats. The impacts of the VIC Coordinator weed will invade further on native plants 2003 bushfires on possum populations Threatened Species Network and possibly cause the possum to lose its between Mt Hotham and Mt Bogong are Ph: (03) 9341 6507 competitive advantage over other small also being assessed. Management plans Email: [email protected] like the Bush Rat. Other weeds, for the resorts have or are currently being Visit: www.wwf.org.au/tsn including English broom, and hunting by developed to identify known possum You can also find out more information about foxes and cats may also pose a threat. areas and NSW and Victoria have their own state-based recovery plans. Australia’s threatened species by visiting www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened or Of more immediate concern is the contacting the Department of the Environment destruction and fragmentation of the In addition, some vital possum habitat and Heritage Community Information Unit on Pygmy-possum’s habitat from human is being protected through national free-call 1800 803 772. activities associated with skiing and alpine park boundary extensions, artificial resort development, fox and cat predation corridors and tunnels linking fragmented • Recovery plan for the mountain pygmy-possum: http://www. populations, and other weed control work. nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/PDFs/recoveryplan_mountain_ and the broader impacts of climate pygmy-possum.pdf#search= Regular fox and cat control programs and ’The%20Mountain%20PygmyPossum’ public awareness campaigns are also • Department of the Environment and Heritage threatened conducted in alpine resorts. species web site: www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened • Mansergh, I. and Broome, L. (1994) The Mountain Pygmy- possum, New South Wales University Press, Sydney • Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Action Statement No 2. - the Mountain Pygmy-possum (Burramys parvus) www. dse.vic.gov.au The Threatened Species Network is a community-based program of the Australian Government & WWF-Australia.