Tasmania’s Threatened Fauna Handbook What, Where and How to Protect Tasmania’s Threatened Animals Prepared by Sally Bryant and Jean Jackson Threatened Species Unit Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania 1999 ISBN: 0724 6622 35 Cite as: Bryant, S. L. and Jackson, J. (1999). Tasmania’s Threatened Fauna Handbook: what, where and how to protect Tasmania’s threatened animals. Threatened Species Unit, Parks and Wildlife Service, Hobart. Layout and Design: Sean Mennitz, Printing Authority of Tasmania This Handbook has been prepared as part of the Tasmanian Vegetation Management Strategy and Threatened Species Unit conservation programs. Copyright: Apart from fair dealing for the purposes of education, private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part of this document may be reproduced by any means without the What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals permission of the Threatened Species Unit, Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Primary Industries, Water and What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals Environment, Tasmania. © 1999 Disclaimer: Neither the Authors, State Government or Commonwealth Agencies accept any liability for the accuracy, any inclusion, advice given, or for omissions from this Handbook. Grid location information is extracted from databases maintained by the Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment and Forestry Tasmania as well as specialists reports freely available. Site information given does not infer right to access. Permission must always be sought. Tasmania’s Threatened Fauna Handbook What, Where and How to Protect Tasmania’s Threatened Animals Prepared by Sally Bryant and Jean Jackson Threatened Species Unit Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania 1999 Natural Heritage Trust Threatened Species Unit What, Where and How to Protect Tasmania’s Threatened Animals CONTENTS PAGE INTRODUCTION 1 Fauna Conservation 1 About this Handbook 2 Animals Included 2 How to use the Handbook 2 Legislative Protection 3 Site Access Not Allowed 3 Conservation Categories 3 How to Nominate a Species 3 Useful Internet Sites and Addresses 4 We Need to Know More 4 Disclaimer 4 Acknowledgements and Specialists Providing Advice 5 SECTION I: LOCATIONS Statewide Guide to Map Sheets 8 Explanatory Notes 8 1:25 000 Map Sheets (in alphabetical order) of locations of threatened 12 species and habitat type SECTION II: ANIMAL PROFILES 185 VERTEBRATES MAMMALS Quoll (2 species) 186 Thylacine 191 Eastern Barred Bandicoot 194 What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals Bass Strait Wombat 198 New Holland Mouse 201 Seals (9 species) 204 Whales (5 species) 209 BIRDS Emu (2 species) 213 Great Crested Grebe 216 Macquarie Island Birds (21 species) 220 Grey Goshawk 224 Eagles (2 species) 228 Coastal Birds (26 species) 232 CONTENTS PAGE Swift Parrot 245 Orange-bellied Parrot 250 King Island Brown Thornbill 254 Forty-spotted Pardalote 257 REPTILES Marine Turtles (4 species) 261 Pedra Branca Skink 264 AMPHIBIANS Green and Gold Frog 267 FISH Clarence Galaxias 272 Dwarf Galaxiid 278 Pedder Galaxias 279 Saddled Galaxias 282 Swan Galaxias 285 Australian Grayling 289 Spotted Handfish 293 INVERTEBRATES EARTHWORMS Lake Pedder Earthworm 296 VELVET WORMS (Onychophora, 3 species) 298 What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals SPIDERS (3 species) Trapdoor Spiders (2 species) 303 Cascade Funnel-web Spider 303 CRUSTACEA Freshwater Lobsters ‘tayatea’ (3 species) 307 Burrowing Crayfish (4 species) 313 Salt Lake Slater 319 Hickman’s Pygmy Mountain Shrimp 321 BUTTERFLIES / MOTHS Chaostola Skipper Butterfly 324 Ptunarra Brown Butterfly 327 Broad-striped Ghost Moth 331 CONTENTS PAGE Pencil Pine Moth 334 Saltmarsh Moths (2 species) 337 Tunbridge Looper Moth 340 GRASSHOPPERS Schayer’s Grasshopper 342 CADDISFLIES (17 species) 344 BEETLES Miena Jewel Beetle 349 Catadromus Carabid Beetle 351 Southeast Stag Beetles (2 species) 353 Northeast Stag Beetles (3 species) 357 SNAILS (Land and Freshwater) Land Burgundy Snail 361 Keeled Snail 364 Mt Wellington Snail 367 Northeast Forest Snail 369 Jungermans Snail 372 Southern Hairy Red Snail 374 Stanley Snail 376 ‘Skemps’ Snail 379 Freshwater Freshwater (Hydrobiid) Snails (42 species) 382 What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals SOUTHEAST SEASTARS (3 species) 387 ECOSYSTEMS CAVE ECOSYSTEMS (26 species) 391 GREAT LAKE ECOSYSTEM (16 species) 397 SECTION III: HABITAT OVERVIEW 401 A guide to broad habitat types and some animals they may contain Alpine 402 Rainforest 402 Wet Eucalypt Forest 403 Dry Sclerophyll Forest 404 CONTENTS PAGE Grassland and Grassy Woodland 404 Wetlands 405 Saltmarsh 407 Karst, Caves and Cliffs 407 Moorland, Heathland, Peatland and Sphagnum 408 Freshwater and Riparian 409 Coastal 411 Near Islands and Marine 413 Macquarie Island 414 APPENDIX List of Tasmania’s threatened animals 418 What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals Introduction Fauna Conservation Tasmania’s vertebrate and invertebrate fauna have received national and international recognition for their uniqueness and visual splendour. The variety of forms reflects Tasmania’s diversity of habitats and topography, over 10 000 years of island separation, and our Gondwanan origins. Tasmania has a large complement of endemic species ranging from the Tasmanian devil, native hen and mountain skink to the giant velvet worm and burrowing crayfish; all of which are important elements in our national and global biodiversity. The State’s comparatively large tracts of undisturbed land and the absence of exotic predators like the European fox and stoat has meant that many species now extinct or under threat on mainland Australia continue to survive and flourish in relative abundance. For example, the eastern quoll and Tasmanian bettong are now extinct on the mainland while the spotted-tail quoll, eastern barred bandicoot and ground parrot retain a stronghold in this State. Tasmania’s coastline and offshore islands are important breeding sites for many species such as the Pedra Branca skink, New Zealand fur seal, little tern, and internationally recognised albatross species. The range of the New Holland mouse, orange- bellied parrot, forty-spotted pardalote and swift parrot are also coastal and centre around important elements in the landscape like old growth forest or coastal heath. Our marine species like the spotted handfish, Port Davey skate and tiny seastars of the tidal zone are only now being recognised as essential elements of Tasmania’s unique biodiversity. The task of assessing the conservation status of our invertebrate fauna is enormous considering there are an estimated 35 000 non-marine species alone. Approximately one third of all invertebrates known in Tasmania are endemic and some groups such as the stag beetles (Lucanidae), geometrid moths (Lepidoptera) and primitive syncarid crustaceans (Allanaspides) are of immense biological significance because of their ancient origins and evolutionary links. Many of the freshwater snails Hydrobiidae and cave invertebrates like harvestmen Hickmanoxyomma display high local endemicity and occur only in one stream or one cave site. The giant freshwater lobster Astacopsis gouldi occurs only in rivers across northern Tasmania. Having the distinction of being the largest freshwater invertebrate in the world, this creature is threatened by pollution of waterways, loss of stream vegetation, and recreational fishing. Tasmania’s has much to protect in terms of natural heritage. Despite Tasmania’s extensive national park and reserved land system our State is no different to other parts of Australia in having a long list of species declining due to human impact and other threatening activities. Ongoing clearance, degradation and conversion of native vegetation are recognised as major threats to the long-term survival of many of our unique and common animal species. Other impacts such as pollution of waterways, commercial and industrial practices, inappropriate recreational activities, persecution, and even feral and exotic pests which are not confined to map boundaries, collectively threaten our native wildlife. In some cases it is our own lack of knowledge which prevents us from better understanding and managing declining species. STATUS OF ANIMALS ON THE TASMANIAN ACT GROUP ENDANGERED VULNERABLE RARE EXTINCT TOTAL What, Where and How to Protect Threatened Tasmania’s Animals Mammals 3 1 2 1 7 Birds 5 11 5 4 25 Reptiles 1 4 - - 5 Amphibians - 1 - - 1 Fish 3 2 1 - 6 Invertebrates 10 19 83 6 118 Total 22389111162 (2 mammals, 2 birds and 1 fish are listed on the National Act but not the Tasmanian Act) Tasmania’s reputation for the extinction of the world’s largest carnivorous marsupial, the thylacine, overshadows the fact that many other species are also officially extinct in this State. The Tasmanian emu, King Island emu, Macquarie Island rail and Macquarie Island parakeet all became extinct in the early 19th century either from hunting by early settlers or predation by feral pests. The Miena jewel beetle, known only on flowering shrubs in the Central Highlands, has not been collected since the 1920s despite active searching. A story lies behind every one of our most recent extinctions and the mistakes made continue to be repeated. Persecution of the wedge-tailed eagle today is little different to that of the thylacine. Tasmania’s Threatened Fauna Handbook 1 While it is an enormous task to address these activities often simple actions or minor changes are all that are