Regent Honeyeater Recovery Plan 1994 - 1998
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REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN i 1994 1998 prepared by Peter Menkhorst ! REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN 1994 - 1998 prepared by Peter Menkhorst Flora and Fauna Branch Department of Natural Resources and Environment in conjunction with the Regent Honeyeater Recovery Team January 1997 © Crown (State of Victoria) 1997 Published by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment 240 Victoria Parade, East Melbourne 3002 This publication is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for private study, research, criuci;m or review allowed under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying or other, without the prior permission of the copyright holder. Citation Menkhorst, P.W. (1997) Regent Honeyeater Recovery Plan 1994 - 1998. Department of Natural Resources and Environment: Melbourne. Cover illustration by Alexis Beckett Designed and produced by the Flora and Fauna Branch Department of Natural Resources and Environment Printed on recycled paper to help conserve our natural environment CONTENTS . :• Acknowledgments ....................•......................................................... iv Summary .............................................................................................. v INTRODUCTION ............................................................................... 1 Description ........................................................................ 1 Distribution................................................................ ........ 1 Abundance ......................................................................... 1 Habitat ...............................................................................2 Life History ........................................................................ 3 Conservation Status .......................................................... 3 Existing Conservation Measures ......................................4 Wider Conservation lssues ................................................ 5 RECOVERY OBJECTIVES AND CRITERIA .................................... 6 Broad Long-term Objectives .............................................6 Specific Objectives ...........................................................6 Assessment Criteria .......................................................... 7 RECOVERY ACTIONS .. , ................................................................... 8 Organisational Arrangements ..........................................8 Active Management .......................................................... 9 Monitoring ....................................................................... 11 Research .......................................................................... 12 Extension ......................................................................... 14 Captive Management ...................................................... 1 5 Review of Progress ......................................................... 1 5 Bibliography ....................................................................................... 16 Appendix: Implementation Schedule.......................................... ....... 18 iv REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN 1994 - 1998 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This plan has evolved over several years following input from numerous individuals and groups. In particular it has benefited from discussions with David Baker-Gabb, Mike Clarke, Eileen Collins, Ian Davidson, Peter Davie, Hugh Ford, Don Franklin, Kris French, Gary King, Andrew Ley, Kim Lowe, Alan Morris, Damon Oliver, Doug Robinson, Natasha Schedvin, Barry Trail, Rick Webster and Beth Williams. All members of the Regent Honeyeater Recovery Team have also helped the plan to evolve through their enthusiastic contributions to team discussions. Many of the recovery actions were first proposed by the steering committee established to supervise the 1988-89 survey by Rick Webster and the present author. As well as these two people, this committee comprised Bill Emison, Joe Forshaw, Kim Lowe, Don Franklin, Rod Kavanagh, Alan Morris and Joy Sloan. REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN 1994 - 1998 v SUMMARY Current Species Status The Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phyrygia) is classified as endangered under the Commonwealth Endangered Species Protection Act 1992, under Queensland's Nature ConservationAct 1992, and under Schedule I, Part 1 of the New South Wales Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995. In Victoria the species has been listed as a threatened taxon in Schedule 2 of the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988. Under the criteria ofBirdLifeInternational, the Regent Honeyeater also ranks as endangered because its population is between 250 and 2500 and it has undergone a major contraction in range. Habitat Requirements and Limiting Factors Regent Honeyeaters occur mainly in box-ironbark open-forests on the inland slopes of the Great Dividing Range. At times significant numbers also occur in coastal forests in NSW and, Jess frequently, in eastern Victoria. Particularly when breeding, Regent Honeyeaters require access to nectar and a few species of Eucalyptus seem to be vital in providing reliable and fairly predictable nectar flows. Lack of access to these dependable nectar flowsat critical times, due to clearanceof the most fertile stands, the poor health of many remnants, and competition fornectar fromother honeyeaters, may be major causes of the decline of this species. Recovery Objectives Short-term • Within the species' range, retain and enhance stands of native open-forest or woodland which contain any of the 'key' treespecies. • Identify and enhance areas and forest types which could be refuges during droughts or other periods when the 'key' species fail to support populations at the regularlyused sites. • Facilitate targeted research into aspects of foraging ecology, social organisation, movement patterns and genetic diversity. Long-term • Ensure that the species persists. • Achieve an improvement in the conservation status fromendangered to vulnerable within 10 years by: (a) ensuring that the existing important habitat areas remain available and, wherever possible, are enhancedand enlarged, and (b) improving habitat at strategic sites throughout the species' former range. vi. REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN 1994 - 1998 Recovery Criteria The following criteria will be used to assess the success of the recovery plan: + Population numbers and patterns of usage at existing sites should at least remain at current levels, and preferablyincrease. + Within 10 years, reporting rates away from currently important sites should increase to 50% of those achieved at the regularly-used sites. Actions Needed 1 Project management Appoint and manage a recovery team and full-time coordinator. 2 Habitat management Survey, map and improve the protection and management of known important habitat patches. Re-assess the management of all public land containing the 'key' tree species, and where practicable enhance their habitat value for the Regent Honeyeater. 3 Population monitoring Initiate a population monitoring program to elucidate distribution patterns, seasonal occurrence and breeding patterns. 4 Ecological research Initiate innovative research into movement patterns and habitat use in relation to landscape features, flowering phenology and nectar availability. 5 Extension Conduct a public education program about the species and its requirements, aimed particularly at developing habitat management partnerships with landowners within the range of the species. 6 Captive management Establi.sh a small captive colony and develop and document captive husbandry techniques. Estimated Cost of Recovery The following table shows the total cost (TC) and Endangered Species Program (ESP) funds required, in $1000s, for Actions 1 to 6 listed above. Other agencies contributing are: + Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria • National Parks and WildlifeService, NSW + State Forests of NSW + Taronga Zoo. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Total Year TC ESP TC ESP TC ESP TC ESP TC ESP TC ESP TC ESP 1994 362 31.5 10.0 - 6.0 5.0 24.0 - 6.5 6.5 10.0 - 92.7 43.0 1995 37.5 32.8 74.0 25.0 6.0 5.0 24.0 - 5.0 5.0 15.0 - 161.5 67.8 1996 38.7 34.0 98.0 31.0 5.0 4.0 101.7 47.7 5.0 5.0 10.0 - 258.4 121.7 1997 40.4 35.7 35.0 - 4.0 3.0 902 602 5.0 5.0 10.0 - 184.6 103.9 1998 42.7 38.0 9.0 - 4.0 3.0 76.7 47.7 5.0 5.0 10.0 - 147.4 93.7 Total 195.5 1720 226.0 46.0 25.0 20.0 316.6 55.6 26.5 26.5 55.0 - 844.6 430.1 Biodiversity Benefits Because of its high profile in recent years, the Regent Honeyeater has become a 'flagship species' for conservation issues in the box-ironbark forest region of Victoria and New South Wales (e.g. Garnett 1992b). Progress towards achieving the major conservation objectives will be entirely compatible with REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN 1994 - 1998 vii the aims of the Conservation Plan for the Box-Ironbark Ecosystem (NRE in prep.). Several other threatened or uncommon species will also benefit from the actions detailed in this plan, including the Brush-tailed Phascogale, Squirrel Glider, Bush Stone-curlew, Swift Parrotand Painted Honeyeater. REGENT HONEYEATER RECOVERY PLAN 1994 - 1998 INTRODUCTION Description The Regent Honeyeater, Xanthomyza phrygia Shaw 1794, is a medium-sized honeyeater (Family Meliphagidae) inhabiting drier open-forests and woodlands in south-eastern Australia. Adults weigh 41 to 46 g. Plumage is predominantly black, with bright yellow edges to the tail and wing feathers.