The Fauna of King Island A guide to identification and conservation management Edited by Richard Donaghey 2003 The Fauna of King Island A guide to identification and conservation management Edited by Richard Donaghey 2003 Published by: King Island Natural Resource Management Group Inc KIRDO Building, George Street, Currie, King Island PO Box 293, King Island 7256 Ph (03) 6462 1709 or 6462 1825 Fax (03) 6462 1726 ISBN 0-9581887-1-8 © Copyright 2003, Reprinted 2013 Cite as: Donaghey, R.H. (ed.) (2003). The Fauna of King Island. A guide to identification and conservation management. King Island Natural Resource Management Group, Currie, King Island. Apart from fair dealing for purposes of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any means without the permission of the authors and the King Island Natural Resource Management Group. The views and opinions expressed in this document are not necessarily those of the Commonwealth of Australia. Contributors: Dr Richard W. Barnes, Nature Conservation Branch, Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment, GPO Box 44, Hobart, Tasmania 7001. Katie Brown, 6 Dangali Court, Golden Grove SA 5125. Former Waterwatch Coordinator of King Island Natural Resource Management Group Inc. Laurie Cook, Freshwater Systems, 82 Waimea Avenue, Sandy Bay, Tasmania 7005 Dr Peter E. Davies, Freshwater Systems, 82 Waimea Avenue, Sandy Bay, Tasmania 7005 and Research Fellow, School of Zoology, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 5, Hobart, Tasmania 7001. Dr Richard Donaghey, 80 Sawards Road, Myalla, Tasmania 7325. Wyn Jones, PO Box 60, Blackheath, New South Wales 2785. Sarah Lloyd, 999 Denmans Road, Birralee, Tasmania 7303. Dr Peter McQuillan, Centre for Environmental Studies, School of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 78, Hobart, Tasmania 7001. Jim Nelson, 68 Dynans Bridge Road, Weegena, Tasmania 7304. Rodney Walker, Native Fish Conservation, Inland Fisheries Service, PO Box 288, Moonah, Tasmania 7009. Photos: Richard Barnes, Rob Blakers, Peter Brown, Sally Bryant, Richard Donaghey, Inland Fisheries Service, Jean Jackson, B. Mawbey, Peter McQuillan, Nick Mooney, Jim Napier, Nature Conservation Branch, Mike Thomas, Donald Trounson, Trevor Waite, Bill Wakefield, Dave Watts, and Allison Woolley. Cover: Eastern pygmy possum and orange-bellied parrot (Dave Watts), green and golden frog (Peter Brown). Design and desktop production: Fine Print, PO Box 3112, West Hobart, Tasmania 7000. Funded by: The Federal Government’s Natural Heritage Trust Program and the King Island community. ii Contents Preface vii Acknowledgments ix Chapter 1 Introduction 1 Location 1 Climate 1 Landforms 1 Geology 2 Pre-European vegetation 2 Early history and exploration 3 Settlement and development 3 Extinctions of birds on King Island 4 Extinctions of mammals on King Island 4 References 4 Chapter 2 Vegetation on King Island 5 King Island wet eucalypt forest 5 King Island dry eucalypt forest and woodland 7 Swamp forests 8 Coastal grasslands 9 King Island sedge-heath-scrub 10 Coastal heath and scrub 11 Muttonbird rookeries 11 Dry scrub 12 Wet scrub 12 Saltmarsh 13 Wetlands 13 Coastal shores 14 Improved pasture14 Regenerating cleared land 14 Plantations and shelterbelts 15 References 15 iii Chapter 3 The aquatic fauna of King Island’s streams and wetlands 17 Introduction 17 The streams 19 Wetlands 20 Fish 21 Crayfish 21 Macroinvertebrates in the streams 21 Macroinvertebrates of the wetlands 23 Identification of freshwater fish 30 Identification of macroinvertebrates 30 References 30 Chapter 4 Invertebrates on King Island 33 Introduction 33 Historical aspects 33 Immigrant insects 34 Invertebrates in pastures 34 Invertebrates in forests 35 Invertebrates in heathland 36 Invertebrates in sand dunes 36 Invertebrates on sandy coastline 37 Carcasses 37 Conservation status of the invertebrate fauna 38 Habitat requirements for key invertebrates 38 Management and restoration of forests for invertebrates and forest function 38 References 39 Recommended reading 39 Chapter 5 Biogeography and ecology of the vertebrate fauna of King Island 43 Freshwater fish of King Island 43 Amphibians: frogs 43 Reptiles: snakes and lizards 44 Birds 45 Mammals 46 References 48 Appendix 1 Vertebrate fauna of King Island 49 Chapter 6 Fauna of old growth eucalypt forests of King Island 57 Introduction 57 Features of old growth forests 57 The forest canopy 58 Bark 58 Limbs and branches 58 iv Understorey layers of trees, shrubs and tree ferns 59 Hollows and crevices 61 Logs and fallen branches 62 Ground layer litter and vegetation 63 References 63 Chapter 7 Ecology, conservation and management of birds and recovery of threatened species 67 Introduction 67 Birds as indicators 67 The bird indicator project on King Island 68 Numbers, status, population trends and habitat of King Island forest birds 68 Twenty most common forest bird species on the surveys 69 Uncommon, rare and threatened birds on the surveys 75 Birds nesting in tree hollows and bank tunnels 75 Birds nesting in large trees 75 Understorey-nesting birds 75 Monitoring waterbirds and forest birds 76 General action to recover uncommon, rare and threatened birds on King Island 76 Recovery of locally extinct birds 77 Management of habitat for fauna with special emphasis on birds 77 General principles of reserve design 78 Ten sustainability guidelines for birds on farms 79 Guidelines for protecting and restoring landscape linkages 79 Revegetation and habitat restoration 79 Conclusion 80 References 81 Appendix 1 List of rare and threatened species and species of high conservation significance on King Island 82 Appendix 2 Action to recover rare and threatened species and species with high conservation significance 83 Chapter 8 Species accounts of King Island vertebrate fauna 89 Freshwater fish 89 Amphibians 97 Reptiles – snakes 100 – lizards 103 Birds 106 Mammals 134 References 137 v Colour plates Plate numbers Page King Island vegetation 2.1 – 2.12 17 Fish 3.1 – 3.8 31 Invertebrates 4.1 – 4.16 41 Frogs 5.1 – 5.7 53 Reptiles 5.8 – 5.12 54 Mammals 5.11 – 5.23 55 Hole-nesting birds 6.1 – 6.8 65 Nationally threatened bird species and endemic subspecies 7.1 – 7.7 87 Tasmanian endemic common to uncommon forest birds 7.8 – 7.13 88 Rare King Island land birds 8.1 – 8.8 139 Uncommon King Island land birds 8.9 – 8.14 140 Common King Island land birds 8.15 – 8.34 141 Shorebirds, gulls and terns 8.35 –8.50 144 Waterbirds and quail of King Island 8.51 – 8.58 147 vi Preface he idea of a book for land managers on invertebrate and vertebrate fauna of Tasmania Twas conceived more than five years ago but languished through lack of a publisher. The King Island Natural Resource Management Group provided the opportunity and funding to turn a dream into reality at least for the fauna of King Island. This book provides information on the ecology and conservation management of invertebrate and vertebrate fauna of terrestrial and freshwater habitats of King Island. It is a companion volume to The Native Vegetation of King Island, Bass Strait and the King Island Flora – a field guide, as well as the Field Guide to Tasmanian Birds. We intended to write a book that served as a guide to fauna identification and management and distribute it to all land owners and managers of King Island and land management agencies, so it had to be written in a readable style. Most of the chapters are written by scientists, and it soon became apparent that with limited time and budget it was difficult to write both a field guide and a technical book to suit everyone. The main aims of the book are: to synthesise published information and recent survey data on the fauna of King Island; to provide guidelines for conservation management of fauna; and to encourage land managers to identify vertebrate fauna and fill in the gaps on the distribution and abundance of fauna. Chapter 1, the Introduction, provides a brief summary of the island’s location, climate, geology, soils and land use history. Chapter 2 outlines the main native vegetation communities and Chapter 3 describes streams and wetlands of King Island and their macroin- vertebrates based on recent surveys of the freshwater systems. Chapter 4 describes the ecology of terrestrial invertebrates of pastures and various types of native vegetation, and highlights their habitat requirements and management. Chapter 5 summarises the ecology and biogeography of the vertebrate fauna: freshwater fish, frogs, reptiles, birds and mammals. Chapter 6 highlights the role and habitat needs of the fauna of old growth eucalypt forests with a focus on birds and insects. Chapter 7 presents and interprets recent survey data on forest birds, identifies threatened and declining birds and their habitats, provides guidelines on habitat management for fauna and specifies action to recover threatened and declining species. Chapter 8 serves as a field guide to the vertebrates of King Island and gives accounts of all the species of freshwater fish, frogs, reptiles, mammals and most of the resident and regular visiting birds, with cross-references to the plates. vii Animals have co-evolved with plants, and together they form an interconnected web of life. The health of native vegetation depends on many different fauna. This book will be useful to any land managers and advisors with a desire to discover King Island’s fauna and their habitat needs, and manage native vegetation for fauna. The book does not pretend to be a complete fauna guide, but it does provide a foundation for present and future action to protect the biodiversity of King Island. There is an urgent need on King Island to continue fauna surveys and monitoring, and to recover threatened and declining species, especially birds. Little is known of the invertebrates of King Island, so we hope that this book, especially the invertebrate chapter, references and websites, will stimulate islanders and others to collect, identify and document the invertebrates of King Island.