EPBC 2011/5965 2020 Report

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

EPBC 2011/5965 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 2020 Report Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Status Effective: [Effective Date] (Office)] Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Version Review: [Planned Review Date] (Office)] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 Table of Contents 1. Introduction 2. Project Milestones 3. Contact Details – 2020 Activities 4. 2020 Activities Undertaken 5. Feed Budget 6. EPBC 2011/5965 Compliance 7. EA EPML00370013 Table K1 Status Appendix A - Meteor Downs/ Mount Kelman 2020 BioCondition Monitoring Report Appendix B - Wildhorse 2020 BioCondition Monitoring Report Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 1 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 1. Introduction The purpose of this report is for Rolleston Open Cut (ROC) to provide the Commonwealth and Queensland Governments with an update of compliance performance to Environment Protection & Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 approval conditions – EPBC 2011/5965 and Schedule K of Environmental Authority EPML00370013 – issued July 2019. Submission of this report to the Department of the Environment and Energy (DoEE) specifically meets Condition 11 as listed in Table 6-1. The primary objective of EPBC 2011/5175 is to ensure ROC is being managed in a way that protects and maintains regional biodiversity and ecological health. This report provides an annual reconciliation of progress against each approval condition and Biodiversity Offset Management Plan (BOMP). To meet the State and Federal Offset requirements, various Biodiversity Offsets have been established and are being managed on properties referred to as Meteor Downs (Lot 9, 10 and 11 RP617702, Lot 12, RP616044, Lot 1 SP164068, Lot 2 RP616045, Lot 2 RP618664), Mount Kelman (Lot 5055 SP276918) and Wildhorse (Lot 3 SP100437). The Meteor Downs and Mount Kelman properties are owned and operated by Glencore. The Management Plans for these offsets were approved in October 2018. Certification by the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy (Qld) of the Meteor Downs and Mount Kelman offset voluntary declarations (VDEC’s) under the Vegetation Management Act 1999 were received in April 2019. The Wildhorse offset VDEC was recived in July 2019. In September 2020, the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (DAWE) approved an administrative admendment to the Meteor Downs/ Mount Kelman and Wildhorse BOMPs. The admended Plans are currently before the Department of Environment and Science for approval. The monthly rainfall for ROC has been below average for the past 12 months, except for slight above average rainfall in January and higher rainfall in February, refer to Figure 1-1. The February rainfall filled the Wildhorse wetland, which was dry throughout 2019. 180.0 Rainfall 2020 - Rolleston Open Cut 160.0 162.4 140.0 120.0 100.0 80.0 107.4 Rainfall (mm) 60.0 40.0 39.4 20.0 23.6 6.6 26.2 0.6 6.2 4.0 6.4 20.0 0.0 0.4 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total Monthly Rainfall Monthly Long Term Average Rainfall (121 years 1889-2010) MTD Figure 1-1 –2020 Rainfall for Rolleston Open Cut Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 2 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 2. Project Milestones May- •Referral of Proposed Actions Submitted to the Department of Environment 11 •Commonwealth Government approval granted Mar- 16 •Managment plans approved by the Qld Environment Depatment. Oct-17 •Action commenced and the Commonwealth Department of Environment notified •Biodiversity Offset Managment Plans for Wildhorse & Meteor Downs/ Mount Kelman submitted to the Dec-17 Commonwealth Department of Environment •Offset Management plans - Wildhorse V.5 & Meteor Downs/ Mount Kelman V.4 Approved by the Oct-18 Queensland & Commonwealth Envionmental Departments •Fences and firebreaks installed for Meteor Downs/ Mount Kelman Offsets. 2018 •Voluntary Decaration (Qld Vegetation Management Act 1999) was certified for the Meteor Downs/ Apr-19 Mount Kelman Offsets. •Voluntary Decaration (Qld Vegetation Management Act 1999) was certified for the Wildhorse Offset. Jul-19 Figure 2-1 – EPBC 2011/5965 Project Milestones 3. Contact Details – 2020 Activities Offset Contact Details Meteor Downs/ Rolleston Open Cut Mount Kelman Ken Dixon, [email protected] Environment & & Wildhorse Community Manager Meteor Downs/ Landline Consulting Mount Kelman Mike Gilbert, [email protected] conducted the Year 3 & Wildhorse monitoring Meteor Downs/ Colinta Holdings Property Robert Graham, [email protected] Mount Kelman Manager Graeme McDonald, [email protected] Wildhorse Property Owners Nick McDonald, [email protected] Table 3-1 – Contact details Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 3 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 Figure 3-1 - Map of Mining Leases 70307, 70415, 70416 & 70458, showing the areas of impact to date on MNES for EPBC 2011/5965 Stage 1. Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 4 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 Figure 3-2 Map of Mining Leases 70307, 70415, 70416 & 70458, showing the areas of impact to date on MSES for EPML00370013 Schedule K (Stage 1). Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 5 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 Figure 3-3 RCEP Stage 1 Offsets Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 6 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 4. 2020 Activities Undertaken Offset Cattle grazing feed budget completed in April (refer to section Meteor 5) Downs/ Completed Year 3 monitoring completed in Mar-20 (refer to Appendix A) Mount Kelman Chemical spraying of weeds Quarterly Inspections Year 3 monitoring completed in Mar-19 (refer to Appendix B) Mechanical control of Parkinsonia (refer to Figure 4-1) Completed Routine inspections Wildhorse Feral animal control May – June (74 Pigs and 2 cats) Works not The last 50m of new stock fences completed Cattle grazing feed budget Satellite imagery has confirmed the SEVT offset on Mount Kelman was not burnt in December-18. Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 7 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 Figure 4-1 Parkinsonia Machinal Weed Control on the Wildhorse Offset Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 8 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 5. Feed Budget Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 9 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 Number: ROLOC-1743501962-47 Status: [Document Effective: [Effective Date] Status (Office)] Page 10 of 20 Owner: [Owner (Office)] Version: [Document Review: [Planned Version (Office)] Review Date] Uncontrolled unless viewed on the intranet Rolleston Open Cut 2020 Report EPBC 2011/5965 6. EPBC 2011/5965 Compliance In accordance with Commonwealth Approval conditions (2011/5965), for the reporting period (2020), ROC has met the full requirements of the following Conditions: Condition Status Rolleston Open Cut Comment 1 Project area Compliant Figure 3-1 illustrates the areas of Matters of National The Person taking the action must not clear outside of the project area shown in Appendix Environmental Significance for the RCEP Stage 1 area A. and the areas cleared on Mining Lease 70307, 70415, 70416, 70418 and 70458. 2 Disturbance limits Compliant a) Brigalow: To date none of the 12ha of Stage 1 To protect EPBC Act listed threatened species and communities within the project area, Brigalow vegetation community has been cleared. the maximum/ whole of project disturbance limits in table 1 apply to the project. The b) Natural Grasslands: To date none of the 67ha of the person taking the action must not exceed these maximum disturbance limits. Stage 1 Natural grasslands vegetation community has Table 1 Project stages and maximum disturbance limits for impacts on habitat for listed been cleared. threatened species and ecological communities
Recommended publications
  • Amphibian Abundance and Detection Trends During a Large Flood in a Semi-Arid Floodplain Wetland
    Herpetological Conservation and Biology 11:408–425. Submitted: 26 January 2016; Accepted: 2 September 2016; Published: 16 December 2016. Amphibian Abundance and Detection Trends During a Large Flood in a Semi-Arid Floodplain Wetland Joanne F. Ocock1,4, Richard T. Kingsford1, Trent D. Penman2, and Jodi J.L. Rowley1,3 1Centre for Ecosystem Science, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, 2052, Australia 2Centre for Environmental Risk Management of Bushfires, Institute of Conservation Biology and Environmental Management, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia 3Australian Museum Research Institute, Australian Museum, 6 College St, Sydney, New South Wales 2010, Australia 4Corresponding author, email: [email protected] Abstract.—Amphibian abundance and occupancy are often reduced in regulated river systems near dams, but com- paratively little is known about how they are affected on floodplain wetlands downstream or the effects of actively managed flows. We assessed frog diversity in the Macquarie Marshes, a semi-arid floodplain wetland of conserva- tion significance, identifying environmental variables that might explain abundances and detection of species. We collected relative abundance data of 15 amphibian species at 30 sites over four months, coinciding with a large natural flood. We observed an average of 39.9 ± (SE) 4.3 (range, 0-246) individuals per site survey, over 47 survey nights. Three non-burrowing, ground-dwelling species were most abundant at temporarily flooded sites with low- growing aquatic vegetation (e.g., Limnodynastes tasmaniensis, Limnodynastes fletcheri, Crinia parinsignifera). Most arboreal species (e.g., Litoria caerulea) were more abundant in wooded habitat, regardless of water permanency.
    [Show full text]
  • ARAZPA YOTF Infopack.Pdf
    ARAZPA 2008 Year of the Frog Campaign Information pack ARAZPA 2008 Year of the Frog Campaign Printing: The ARAZPA 2008 Year of the Frog Campaign pack was generously supported by Madman Printing Phone: +61 3 9244 0100 Email: [email protected] Front cover design: Patrick Crawley, www.creepycrawleycartoons.com Mobile: 0401 316 827 Email: [email protected] Front cover photo: Pseudophryne pengilleyi, Northern Corroboree Frog. Photo courtesy of Lydia Fucsko. Printed on 100% recycled stock 2 ARAZPA 2008 Year of the Frog Campaign Contents Foreword.........................................................................................................................................5 Foreword part II ………………………………………………………………………………………… ...6 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................9 Section 1: Why A Campaign?....................................................................................................11 The Connection Between Man and Nature........................................................................11 Man’s Effect on Nature ......................................................................................................11 Frogs Matter ......................................................................................................................11 The Problem ......................................................................................................................12 The Reason
    [Show full text]
  • Bevezetés És Célkitűzések 2
    AZ IHARKÚTI KÉSŐ-KRÉTA KÉTÉLTŰ FAUNA VIZSGÁLATA TAXONÓMIAI, FUNKCIONÁLIS ANATÓMIAI, PALEOÖKOLÓGIAI ÉS PALEOBIOGEOGRÁFIAI SZEMPONTBÓL SZENTESI ZOLTÁN FÖLDTUDOMÁNYI DOKTORI ISKOLA Dr. Gábris Gyula egyetemi tanár, PhD FÖLDTAN – GEOFIZIKA PROGRAM Prof. Dr. Mindszenty Andrea, PhD Témavezető: Dr. Görög Ágnes, egyetemi docens, PhD Konzulensek: Dr. Venczel Márton, tudományos főkutató, PhD Dr. Ősi Attila, kutatócsoport vezető, PhD EÖTVÖS LORÁND TUDOMÁNYEGYETEM TERMÉSZETTUDOMÁNYI KAR ŐSLÉNYTANI TANSZÉK Tartalomjegyzék Bevezetés és célkitűzések 2. Az iharkúti felső-kréta gerinces lelőhely földrajzi elhelyezkedése és földtani háttere 4. A magyarországi mezozoós gerinces lelőhelyek kutatástörténete 11. A modern kétéltűek (Lissamphibia) kutatásának rövid története 12. A vizsgált anyag és munkamódszerek 20. Az iharkúti kétéltű leletek leírása és összehasonlítása 37. A Bakonybatrachus és a Hungarobatrachus izomzatának és mozgásmódjának rekonstrukciója 71. A leletek értelmezése paleobiológiai szempontból 95. Az iharkúti lelőhelyről előkerült kétéltű csontok tafonómiai jellemzői, és a leletek értelmezése paleoökológiai szempontból 97. A leletek értelmezése paleobiogeográfiai szempontból 102. Összefoglalás 113. Abstract 114. Köszönetnyilvánítás 115. Hivatkozott irodalom 116. 2 Bevezetés és célkitűzések A mikrogerinces lelőhelyek fontos forrásai a paleontológiai információknak, ezért fontos a vizsgált rétegek üledékeinek leiszapolása és az iszapolási maradék gondos átvizsgálása. Nagymennyiségű fosszília nyerhető általa, mely sokkal több információt nyújthat
    [Show full text]
  • Mechanisms Underlying Inhibition of Muscle Disuse Atrophy During Aestivation in the Green-Striped Burrowing Frog, Cyclorana Alboguttata
    Mechanisms underlying inhibition of muscle disuse atrophy during aestivation in the green-striped burrowing frog, Cyclorana alboguttata Beau Daniel Reilly Bachelor of Marine Studies (Hons.) A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2014 School of Biological Sciences Abstract In most mammals, extended inactivity or immobilisation of skeletal muscle (e.g. bed- rest, limb-casting or hindlimb unloading) results in muscle disuse atrophy, a process which is characterised by the loss of skeletal muscle mass and function. In stark contrast, animals that experience natural bouts of prolonged muscle inactivity, such as hibernating mammals and aestivating frogs, consistently exhibit limited or no change in either skeletal muscle size or contractile performance. While many of the factors regulating skeletal muscle mass are known, little information exists as to what mechanisms protect against muscle atrophy in some species. Green-striped burrowing frogs (Cyclorana alboguttata) survive in arid environments by burrowing underground and entering into a deep, prolonged metabolic depression known as aestivation. Throughout aestivation, C. alboguttata is immobilised within a cast-like cocoon of shed skin and ceases feeding and moving. Remarkably, these frogs exhibit very little muscle atrophy despite extended disuse and fasting. The overall aim of the current research study was to gain a better understanding of the physiological, cellular and molecular basis underlying resistance to muscle disuse atrophy in C. alboguttata. The first aim of this study was to develop a genomic resource for C. alboguttata by sequencing and functionally characterising its skeletal muscle transcriptome, and to conduct gene expression profiling to identify transcriptional pathways associated with metabolic depression and maintenance of muscle function in aestivating burrowing frogs.
    [Show full text]
  • Woinarski J. C. Z., Legge S. M., Woolley L. A., Palmer R., Dickman C
    Woinarski J. C. Z., Legge S. M., Woolley L. A., Palmer R., Dickman C. R., Augusteyn J., Doherty T. S., Edwards G., Geyle H., McGregor H., Riley J., Turpin J., Murphy B.P. (2020) Predation by introduced cats Felis catus on Australian frogs: compilation of species records and estimation of numbers killed. Wildlife Research, Vol. 47, Iss. 8, Pp 580-588. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1071/WR19182 1 2 3 Predation by introduced cats Felis catus on Australian frogs: compilation of species’ 4 records and estimation of numbers killed. 5 6 7 J.C.Z. Woinarskia*, S.M. Leggeb, L.A. Woolleya,k, R. Palmerc, C.R. Dickmand, J. Augusteyne, T.S. Dohertyf, 8 G. Edwardsg, H. Geylea, H. McGregorh, J. Rileyi, J. Turpinj, and B.P. Murphya 9 10 a NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, 11 Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT 0909, Australia 12 b NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Research, 13 University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia; AND Fenner School of the Environment and 14 Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2602, Australia 15 c Western Australian Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, Bentley, WA 6983, 16 Australia 17 d NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Desert Ecology Research Group, School of Life and 18 Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia 19 e Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, Red Hill, QLD 4701, Australia 20 f Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences (Burwood campus), Deakin 21 University, Geelong, VIC 3216, Australia 22 g Northern Territory Department of Land Resource Management, PO Box 1120, Alice Springs, NT 0871, 23 Australia 24 h NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, 25 Hobart, TAS 7001, Australia i School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Ave, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom.
    [Show full text]
  • Assessing the Sustainability of Native Fauna in NSW State of the Catchments 2010
    State of the catchments 2010 Native fauna Technical report series Monitoring, evaluation and reporting program Assessing the sustainability of native fauna in NSW State of the catchments 2010 Paul Mahon Scott King Clare O’Brien Candida Barclay Philip Gleeson Allen McIlwee Sandra Penman Martin Schulz Office of Environment and Heritage Monitoring, evaluation and reporting program Technical report series Native vegetation Native fauna Threatened species Invasive species Riverine ecosystems Groundwater Marine waters Wetlands Estuaries and coastal lakes Soil condition Land management within capability Economic sustainability and social well-being Capacity to manage natural resources © 2011 State of NSW and Office of Environment and Heritage The State of NSW and Office of Environment and Heritage are pleased to allow this material to be reproduced in whole or in part for educational and non-commercial use, provided the meaning is unchanged and its source, publisher and authorship are acknowledged. Specific permission is required for the reproduction of photographs. The Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) has compiled this technical report in good faith, exercising all due care and attention. No representation is made about the accuracy, completeness or suitability of the information in this publication for any particular purpose. OEH shall not be liable for any damage which may occur to any person or organisation taking action or not on the basis of this publication. Readers should seek appropriate advice when applying the information to
    [Show full text]
  • J. Arid Environ. 155 (2018): 79-81 DOI: 10.1016/J.Jaridenv.2018.02.003 the Present Pdf Is the Author Version. the Final Paginate
    J. Arid Environ. 155 (2018): 79-81 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaridenv.2018.02.003 Dryness affects burrowing depth in a semi-fossorial amphibian Diana Székelya,b,c, Dan Cogălniceanua,d,e,*, Paul Székelyc,e, Mathieu Denoëlb a Ovidius University Constanța, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Al. Universitatii no.1, Constanța 900470, Romania b Laboratory of Fish and Amphibian Ethology, Behavioural Biology Group, Freshwater and OCeanic science Unit of reSearch (FOCUS), University of Liège, Quai van Beneden 22, Liège 4020, Belgium c Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, San Cayetano Alto, Loja, Ecuador d Universidad Nacional de Loja, CITIAB, Ciudadela Universitaria, La Argelia, Loja 110101, Ecuador eAsociaţia Chelonia, str. Paşcani 5, Bucharest 062082, Romania * Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (D. Székely), [email protected] (D. Cogălniceanu), [email protected] (P. Székely), [email protected] (M. Denoël) ABSTRACT The fossorial life-history emerged as a response to hostile environmental conditions, such as extreme temperatures and dryness. It evolved independently in different lineages of amphibians, which are particularly vulnerable to dehydration and require a continuous level of humidity because of their permeable skin. For the first time, we test the hypothesis that amphibians are able to adapt their fossorial behaviour to substrate humidity, using the Pacific horned frogs (Ceratophrys stolzmanni) from the Ecuadorian dry forest as a model. When exposed to dry substrate, the animals burrowed much deeper than the ones in wet soil. The capacity to excavate was particularly high in this species: frogs from the dry treatment could be found at more than one- meter depth after just a few hours.
    [Show full text]
  • Amphibian Community Response to Flow and Rainfall on a Dryland Floodplain Wetland
    Linking frogs with flow: Amphibian community response to flow and rainfall on a dryland floodplain wetland Joanne Ocock A thesis in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Australian Wetlands, Rivers and Landscapes Centre School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences University of New South Wales, Australia September 2013 …But he’d be sitting by the campfire, trying out a simple conversation, and suddenly people would get upset over nothing at all and drive him off. You didn’t expect people to get nasty just because you’d said something like, ‘My word, when did it last rain here?’ did you? “The Last Continent” by Terry Pratchett i Abstract Floods structure the biota of floodplain wetlands, driving spatial and temporal patterns of vegetation, invertebrates, and waterbirds. Flood pulses trigger ‘booms’ in productivity and biodiversity as aquatic biota respond to abundant freshwater habitat and resources. Water extraction and river regulation have decreased the magnitude, duration and frequency of floods, and reduced floodplain extent. To address this problem, environmental water management aims to restore wetland functioning by mimicking the natural flow regime but this requires knowledge of broad ecological responses and associations to flows. Despite amphibians forming a significant component of wetland foodwebs, their response to river flows is poorly known. My work focused on understanding this response in the Macquarie Marshes, a dryland floodplain wetland in Australia. The Macquarie Marshes are a wetland of international significance, severely affected by river regulation. They currently benefit from significant public environmental water investment initiatives. In this thesis I aimed to: (1) investigate variations in relationships between flooding and responses of amphibian species, and quantify the contribution amphibians make to the flood-pulse derived resource ‘boom’; and (2) assess the threat river regulation poses compared to other known amphibian threats across Australia.
    [Show full text]
  • Terrestrial Habitat Requirements of a Suite of Anuran Species Inhabiting a Semi- Arid Region of South East Queensland
    TERRESTRIAL HABITAT REQUIREMENTS OF A SUITE OF ANURAN SPECIES INHABITING A SEMI- ARID REGION OF SOUTH EAST QUEENSLAND Joanne Chambers B. App.Sc (Hons) Queensland University of Technology A thesis submitted in part fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Queensland University of Technology School of Natural Resource Sciences 2008 Key words: Amphibian, anuran, terrestrial habitat, habitat choice, burrowing frog, evaporative water loss, ground cover, soil pH, Barakula State Forest, frog conservation. i ABSTRACT Hypothesised causes of the observed world-wide decline of amphibian populations are varied and in some cases contentious. Insufficient information relating to the autecology of many amphibian species can cause erroneous speculations regarding critical habitat requirements and hence management programs designed to enhance population viability are often unsuccessful. Most amphibians display a bi-phasic life history that involves occupation of an aquatic breeding habitat and terrestrial habitats that are used for foraging, and shelter from predation and environmental stress. However, the focus of most amphibian research is centred on the breeding habitat, with limited research being conducted into the terrestrial habitat requirements of most amphibian species. Barakula State Forest is a large continuous area of open woodland situated in the semi-arid region of Queensland. The forest supports 21 species of endemic anurans, many of which use ephemeral waterbodies for breeding. This area is, therefore, an ideal location to test the relative importance of terrestrial habitat on the distribution of a suite of frogs that display different morphological and physiological characteristics. On the landscape scale, the attributes of the terrestrial environment at three survey areas within Barakula were similar.
    [Show full text]
  • A Project That Designs and Trials a Pilot Survey to Map the Distribution of Chyridomycosis (Caused by the Amphibian Chytrid Fungus) in Australian Frogs
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by ResearchOnline at James Cook University FINAL REPORT FOR THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND HERITAGE A project that designs and trials a pilot survey to map the distribution of chyridomycosis (caused by the amphibian chytrid fungus) in Australian frogs. Prepared by: Rick Speare1. Lee Skerratt2, Lee Berger1, Harry Hines3, Alex Hyatt4, Diana Mendez1, Keith McDonald5, Jean-Marc Hero6, Gerry Marantelli7, Reinhold Muller1, Ross Alford8, Rupert Woods9 1 School of Public Health, Tropical Medicine and Rehabilitation Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld 4811 2 School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld 4811 3 Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, PO Box 64, Bellbowrie, Qld 4070 4 Australian Animal Health Laboratory, CSIRO, 5 Portarlington Road, Geelong, Vic 3220 5 Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, PO Box 975, Atherton, Qld 4883 6 School of Environmental and Applied Sciences, Griffith University Gold Coast, PMB 50, Gold Coast Mail Centre, Qld 9726 7 Amphibian Research Centre, Western Treatment Plant, New Farm Rd, Werribee, Vic 3030 8 School of Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld 4811 9 Australian Wildlife Health Network, PO Box 20, Mossman, NSW 2088 Cover images: photo of Litoria wilcoxii by D. Hall; distribution map by James Cook University. © Commonwealth of Australia (2005). Published 22 December 2005. Information contained in this publication may be copied or reproduced for study, research, information or educational purposes, subject to inclusion of an acknowledgment of the source. This report should be cited as: Speare R, Skerratt L, Berger L, Hines H, Hyatt AD, Mendez D, McDonald KR, Hero J-M, Marantelli G, Muller R, Alford R, Woods R.
    [Show full text]
  • Report on Biodiversity Value of GBWLS (Final Draft) 2017
    Project Investigators Dr. S.A. Hussain, Scientist-G, WII Dr. B.S. Adhikari, Scientist-F, WII Dr. Gopi G.V, Scientist-E, WII Dr. Gautam Talukdar, Scientist-D, WII Research Personnel Mr. Vivek Ranjan, Project Biologist, WII Mr. Umar Saeed, Project Biologist, WII Mr. Mujahid Ahamad, Project Biologist, WII Citation WII (2017). An Assessment Report on Biodiversity value of Gautam Buddha Wildlife Sanctuary, Bihar and Jharkhand. TR No. 2017/016.78pp. Dehradun, India. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The project team acknowledges help and support received from Dr. V.B. Mathur, Director, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun and Dr. G. S. Rawat, Scientist-G & Dean, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. We are thankful to the Chief Wildlife Warden, of Bihar and Jharkhand, Conservator of Forest Gaya, Divisional Forest Officer, Hazaribagh Wildlife division and Gaya division for facilitating and extending their support to us. We would like to thank the field staff of the Forest Department for helping us during the field work at their respective PA’s. We would like to acknowledge the DFCCIL officers Mr. S.M.J Ehsan, Mr. Neeraj Kumar, Mr. Arvind Kumar and Mr. Baleshwar Singh for extending their support during the study. We would like to thank Dr. Taibanganba Watham, Project Associate, WII and Mr. Anukul Nath, WII for their technical assistance in the report making. We are grateful to our field assistants – Sri. Ramlal Yadav, Sri. Narayan Chaudhary, Sri. Sabeer Yadav and Sri. Ranjit Kumar for their extensive support in the field. CONTENTS 1.Executive Summary 1 2.Introduction 3 2.1.Scope of the project 5 3.Study Area 6 4.Methodology 10 4.1.Birds 11 4.2.Herpetofauna 11 4.3.Mammals 12 4.4.Butterflies 12 4.5.Flora 13 5.Research 14 5.1.
    [Show full text]
  • Frogs Are a Diverse and Largely Carnivorous Group of Short-Bodied, Tailless Amph Ibians Composing the Order Anura (Ancient Greek An-, Without + Oura, Tail)
    Frogs are a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amph ibians composing the order Anura (Ancient Greek an-, without + oura, tail). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" appeared in the early Triassic of Madagascar, but mol ecular clock dating suggests their origins may extend further back to the Permia n, 265 million years ago. Frogs are widely distributed, ranging from the tropics to subarctic regions, but the greatest concentration of species diversity is fo und in tropical rainforests. There are approximately 4,800 recorded species, acc ounting for over 85% of extant amphibian species. They are also one of the five most diverse vertebrate orders. The body plan of an adult frog is generally characterized by a stout body, protr uding eyes, cleft tongue, limbs folded underneath, and the absence of a tail in adults. Besides living in fresh water and on dry land, the adults of some specie s are adapted for living underground or in trees. The skin of the frog is glandu lar, with secretions ranging from distasteful to toxic. Warty species of frog te nd to be called toads but the distinction between frogs and toads is based on in formal naming conventions concentrating on the warts rather than taxonomy or evo lutionary history; some toads are more closely related to frogs than to other to ads. Frogs' skins vary in colour from well-camouflaged dappled brown, grey and g reen to vivid patterns of bright red or yellow and black to advertise toxicity a nd warn off predators. Frogs typically lay their eggs in water.
    [Show full text]