Management of the Terrestrial Small Mammal and Lizard Communities in the Dune System Of
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Management of the terrestrial small mammal and lizard communities in the dune system of Sturt National Park, Australia: Historic and contemporary effects of pastoralism and fox predation Ulrike Sabine Klöcker (Dipl. – Biol., Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität Bonn, Germany) Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia 2009 Abstract This thesis addressed three issues related to the management and conservation of small terrestrial vertebrates in the arid zone. The study site was an amalgamation of pastoral properties forming the now protected area of Sturt National Park in far-western New South Wales, Australia. Thus firstly, it assessed recovery from disturbance accrued through more than a century of Sheep grazing. Vegetation parameters, Fox, Cat and Rabbit abundance, and the small vertebrate communities were compared, with distance to watering points used as a surrogate for grazing intensity. Secondly, the impacts of small-scale but intensive combined Fox and Rabbit control on small vertebrates were investigated. Thirdly, the ecology of the rare Dusky Hopping Mouse (Notomys fuscus) was used as an exemplar to illustrate and discuss some of the complexities related to the conservation of small terrestrial vertebrates, with a particular focus on desert rodents. Thirty-five years after the removal of livestock and the closure of watering points, areas that were historically heavily disturbed are now nearly indistinguishable from nearby relatively undisturbed areas, despite uncontrolled native herbivore (kangaroo) abundance. Rainfall patterns, rather than grazing history, were responsible for the observed variation between individual sites and may overlay potential residual grazing effects. In this study reduction of Fox activity was successful, whereas the reduction of Rabbit activity was not. The treatment had no evident effect on the small vertebrate community, total abundance or species richness and the majority of individual species. There was strong indication however that the House Mouse (Mus musculus) increased in abundance as a consequence of reduced Fox activity. Cat abundance also increased following Fox reduction but low sample size prevented analysis and discrimination between treatment or rainfall related effects. New insights were gained on the ecology of the Dusky Hopping Mouse, including temporal and spatial distribution, diet, home-range, density and population structure. A key result was the identification of the seeds of the Sandhill Wattle (Acacia ligulata) as a major food resource, which significantly influenced the mice’s movements, habitat use, distribution and density. The new information allows a more accurate assessment of threats, the identification of critical habitat and refuge areas and ultimately a focus for conservation actions for the species. I Acknowledgements First and foremost I would like to thank Dr. David Croft and Dr. Ingrid Witte. Without either of them my candidature and this project would never have eventuated. David, my supervisor, I greatly thank for his continued support in all conceptual, analytical and other varied aspects of the project. Ingrid, the Area Manager of Sturt National Park, I greatly thank for making funding for the project available and for the never-ending support, herself and her staff readily provided in the day to day running of the project. Also I would like to thank my co-supervisor Dr. Peter Banks for initial advice on study design. I am grateful for all the varied assistance the National Parks staff provided. In particular I would like to thank Johnny Illies for his genuine interest in the doings of the ‘crazy mouse-catcher’, for his diligent care for my vehicle (s) and for the manufacture of various pieces of equipment exactly to my wishes; Dan Hough for his assistance with all aspects of the control of introduced animals; Billy Thomas for ensuring I got back from the field safely and in one piece and the odd emergency car repair; Errol Nye and Lisa Montgomery without whom I would have never been able to dig all those pitfall holes, John Jackson for providing support and assistance whenever needed and Stephen Naven for various help with GIS related issues. I sincerely thank the many volunteers for their assistance and enthusiasm in the field. To Christiane and Tony I owe particular thanks for their great contribution to the radio-tracking of the hopping mice. To my friend Ingrid and her ever changing (generally increasing) entourage of two and four-legged creatures, I am indebted beyond words. Her support and the distraction, love and joy the furred and beaked faces provided were invaluable in overcoming the challenges posed by a PhD candidature and life in general. I wish to heartedly thank my friends the ‘Tiffies’ and the Bonner Clique as well as my relatives back home for letting the distance between Germany and Australia seem insignificant through the frequent email and phone communication and for understanding (well, trying to understand) my love for the life in the Australian outback. To Alexandra Ley and Anke Frank I am forever grateful for their never failing enthusiasm, constructive criticism and encouraging words. Anke and her flatmate Yvonne I also like to thank her for their hospitality during my repeated stays in Sydney. For the countless times I was welcomed in their home in Broken Hill I sincerely thank Beris and Andy Jenkins and Chris and Paul Adams. A shared problem is a problem halved and so I am grateful to have had Isabelle Wolf as a ‘Leidensgenossin’ to discuss, whinge and whine about the bureaucracy involved with being an international PhD student, ill-behaving software, problematic vehicles ect. Naomi Callen, Jaz Lawes and my sister, I thank for reading and commenting on chapter drafts and Alexandra Ley for proof-reading the final draft. It goes without saying that I lovingly thank my parents and my siblings for letting me embark on and supporting me during the endeavour that is and was my PhD candidature. I am immensely grateful to my sisters partner Markus, my aunt Heidi and her partner Lothar, my cousin Claudia and her husband Kai and many other relatives and friends for holding things together at home during times of familial hardship. This project was funded by DECC-Wildlife Division Tibooburra area and an Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship. The project was approved by the Animal Care & Ethics committee (ACEC) with the University of New South Wales (ACEC 06/14B) and the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water (Scientific Licence No S12358). I This thesis is dedicated to my family. IV Table of Contents Chapter 1: General Introduction and Study Rationale_____ - 1 - 1.1 The decline of native fauna in Australia since European settlement __ - 1 - 1.1.1 Declines in mammal and lizard diversity in the arid and semi-arid zones ____________________________________________________ - 2 - 1.2 Key threats to small native vertebrates in the arid and semi-arid zones _____________________________________________________ - 4 - 1.2.1 Habitat modification and disturbance through pastoral activity_______ - 4 - 1.2.2 Non-native fauna __________________________________________ - 6 - 1.2.3 Climate change ____________________________________________ - 7 - 1.3 Conservation management____________________________________ - 7 - 1.3.1 Legislation _______________________________________________ - 7 - 1.3.2 Natural heritage versus cultural heritage and visitor recreation _______ - 8 - 1.3.3 Science in conservation _____________________________________ - 8 - 1.3.4 Research and conservation in the arid zone ______________________ - 8 - 1.3.5 Focus of conservation actions_________________________________ - 9 - 1.4 Study rationale ____________________________________________ - 10 - 1.5 Thesis structure ____________________________________________ - 11 - Chapter 2: Study Area and General Methods ___________ - 12 - 2.1 Study area ________________________________________________ - 12 - 2.1.1 Description of topography, landforms and vegetation _____________ - 12 - 2.1.2 Climate _________________________________________________ - 13 - 2.1.3 Rainfall prior to and during study period _______________________ - 14 - 2.2 Reasons for selecting the study area ___________________________ - 14 - 2.3 Sampling sites _____________________________________________ - 15 - 2.4 General methods ___________________________________________ - 16 - 2.4.1 Timeline ________________________________________________ - 16 - 2.4.2 Weather recording ________________________________________ - 18 - 2.4.3 Data manipulation and analysis ______________________________ - 18 - Chapter 3: Review of the Effects of Grazing and Artificial Watering Points in the Australian Rangelands - 20 - 3.1 History of pastoralism in the rangelands _______________________ - 20 - 3.2 Overview of impacts of livestock grazing and artificial watering points ___________________________________________________ - 21 - 3.2.1 Direct and indirect effects of artificial watering points ____________ - 21 - 3.3 Impacts on the edaphic environment __________________________ - 23 - 3.4 Impacts on vegetation _______________________________________ - 24 - 3.5 Impacts on fauna___________________________________________ - 25 - 3.5.1 Impacts resulting from grazing activities _______________________ - 25 - 3.5.2 Impacts related to artificial watering