BUSH HERITAGE In this issue 3 Rock‑wallabies unveiled on Yourka 4 Around your reserves 6 Falling for the Fitz‑Stirling NEWS 8 From the CEO Summer 2013 · www.bushheritage.org.au Charting the change Cockatiels bathing at a waterhole on Charles Darwin Reserve, WA. Photograph by Dale Fuller Your Charles Darwin Reserve in Western In a landscape with three times the Under current climate models, the region Australia is situated at the junction of biodiversity of Australia’s tropical rainforests, where the reserve is located is predicted two major bioregions, in a landscape of the animals found in the traps are many and to become rapidly hotter (particularly its extraordinary biodiversity. Its location makes varied, ranging from spiders, to centipedes, summer minimum temperatures) and drier it ideal for a long‑term study into how climate small mammals like dunnarts, geckos and – with an increasing proportion of its rainfall change is impacting native plants and animals. even the occasional brown snake. occurring in the summer months. As the morning sun sheds its first light across Within one of Australia’s only two a subtle landscape of undulating sandplains, internationally recognised biodiversity “It’s at these sort of contact dense mulga scrub and shimmering salt hotspots, Charles Darwin Reserve provides points where you’re going to lakes, Bush Heritage staff and volunteers essential habitat and vital insights into the are already up and on the go on your conservation of thousands of plant and first see the changing ecology Charles Darwin Reserve. animal species. of plants and animals due to At dawn, each of the strategically placed pitfall It’s also ideally located for gathering the effects of climate change.” traps needs to be checked, and the overnight information about the long‑term effects Dr Nic Dunlop, Project Leader, catch recorded and released as quickly of climate change in such a biodiverse area. Climate Change Observatory Project, as possible. Charles Darwin Reserve Right: Sunset over Charles Darwin Reserve. Photograph by Jiri Lochman/Lochman Transparencies Below: White-striped freetail bat on Charles Darwin Reserve. Photograph by Kurt and Andrea Tschirner The Climate Change Observatory “The unfragmented nature of the landscape “For instance, we didn’t see the Gilbert’s Project, based on the reserve, will provide means that we can observe animals on the dunnart for the first four years, but as soon essential monitoring of a range of climate move and in fact entire communities in a as we had some decent rain it became the change‑sensitive plants and animals over a state of flux. Some species at the edge of dominant dunnart species.” 30‑year period. This information will be shared their distribution will probably disappear So the big question is, where are these with scientists, parks and other conservation (and probably already have) and others will climate‑sensitive animals retreating to when organisations across Australia, so they can be added from the adjoining bioregion.” conditions are too hot and dry? “From a adapt their future management techniques. Retreating species long‑term conservation point of view, this is vitally important because these are the places A climate change ‘tension zone’ The project team has chosen 10 key ecological that so many of the most vulnerable animal Dr Nic Dunlop is with the Conservation indicators to monitor the impacts of climate species are going to become increasingly Council of Western Australia – the peak body change over three decades. Continuous dependent on,” says Nic. in the state for conservation groups. As well climate data is also being collected from a as running the organisation’s Citizen Science purpose‑built meteorological station located With 25 years still to run on the Climate Program, which gives volunteers the chance on the reserve. Change Observatory Project, Bush Heritage to get involved with scientific research and is committed to supporting this important “We’re looking at a range of plants and animals, monitoring, Nic has been Project Leader on research work – not just for the benefits it will including bats, ants and dunnarts. Bats are the Climate Change Observatory Project bring to the protection of your reserves, but important indicators of climate change since its launch in 2008. also for the contribution it will make to the because unlike other small vertebrates they preservation of our nation’s biodiversity. He says that the location of Charles Darwin can fly, which means they can redistribute Reserve in a climate change ‘tension zone’ relatively easily. But they’re also extremely provides a unique opportunity to gain sensitive to changes in temperature valuable long‑term data. and humidity.” Help support a decade “Charles Darwin Reserve and the adjoining In fact, the data collected on bats over the of achievement on land that’s also managed for conservation last five or six years is so far providing the Charles Darwin Reserve provide a very large continuous block of most conclusive evidence of the effect that In the 10 years that Bush Heritage has native vegetation – around 300,000 hectares climate change is having on some animals. owned and managed Charles Darwin – bounding a region of mid‑west Western Studies have shown that the southern forest Reserve, it has kept revealing new and Australia that’s largely cleared.” bat has retreated south towards wetter areas, exciting species, including 21 that are and is being replaced by two arid zone species Charles Darwin Reserve also straddles the entirely new to science. To protect this from the north, the inland forest bat and meeting point of two bioregions, with the natural treasure trove, we need your Finlayson’s cave bat. semi‑arid Avon Wheatbelt bioregion to the support with ongoing management south‑west and the arid Yalgoo bioregion A wealth of knowledge work like feral animal control, scientific to the north. monitoring and fire management. In its first five years, the project has published Please help us reach our target of “So you have a junction between these two two scientific papers and is, according to $325,000 by donating now at: distinct bioregions,” says Nic. “It’s at these Nic, starting to turn up some real surprises. www.bushheritage.org.au/donate sort of contact points where you’re going to “We’re seeing some animals completely first see the changing ecology of plants and disappear from the landscape during animals due to the effects of climate change. droughts and then reappear in the few years when we’ve had average rainfall. 2 Bush Heritage News | Summer 2013 Left: Mareeba rock-wallaby. Photograph by Wayne Lawler/Ecopix Below: Photograph captured by remote monitoring camera at Yourka Reserve. Rock-wallabies unveiled on Yourka Bush Heritage Director of Science, Cameras were then deployed at three “Until that first almost Jim Radford, shares his excitement over locations. To date, two of those – Tiger other‑worldly image appeared confirmation of the long‑suspected Mountain and ‘The Falls’ – have captured presence on Yourka Reserve of the elusive rock‑wallabies on camera. Given that these on the screen, nothing was rock‑wallaby. areas are around six kilometres apart, we can taken for granted.” now confidently say that rock‑wallabies are “You little beauty!” and a muted fist‑pump Dr Jim Radford, Bush Heritage present at two sites on Yourka. greeted the first image of a rock‑wallaby that Director of Science flashed across fauna consultant Terry Reis’ While DNA analysis of hair samples is computer screen. Terry had just downloaded needed to absolutely determine which species the images from the six cameras he had set up of rock‑wallaby is present, the most likely, five days earlier on Tiger Mountain, near the based on known species distributions and The vital role you play in southern boundary of Yourka Reserve. distinguishing features discernible from the protecting biodiversity photos, is the Mareeba rock‑wallaby Petrogale This was, at last, irrefutable evidence of Purchased in 2007 through mareeba. This is great news for Bush Heritage rock‑wallabies on Yourka, confirming once the generosity of Bush Heritage supporters as the Mareeba rock‑wallaby is and for all they are present on the reserve – supporters like you, Yourka Reserve Near Threatened under the Queensland and re‑affirming that fleeting glimpses during in Far North Queensland is a Nature Conservation Act, and has found initial property assessments were indeed conservation stronghold for 39 safe refuge on Yourka Reserve. rock‑wallabies. regional ecosystems – some of which The Tiger Mountain group appears secure are not protected anywhere else. We had seen rock‑wallaby scats when as only extreme fire events could threaten installing and collecting the cameras so we Nestled up against Queensland’s them. The group at The Falls is surrounded were confident of ‘capturing’ one on camera. Wet Tropics World Heritage area, its by lantana that could pose a potential threat But until that first almost other‑worldly rich animal life includes the nationally during a large bushfire. To improve their image appeared on the screen, nothing was vulnerable masked owl (northern) and long‑term security, thinning of the lantana taken for granted. a suite of mammals including gliders, and other fire management work is scheduled possums, bettongs and bandicoots. After all, this was the culmination of a for later in the season. week’s worth of scrambling and climbing The confirmation of the presence of Our next steps are to determine the size amongst the rocky outcrops, creeklines the elusive rock‑wallaby on the reserve of the rock‑wallaby groups and the level of and rugged hilltops of Yourka looking for only underlines the importance of the interaction between them. But, after six years, suitable rock‑wallaby habitat. role played by you and other Bush the primary aim of confirming their presence Heritage supporters in protecting Terry, Murray Haseler (Bush Heritage on Yourka Reserve has been achieved! the region’s biodiversity.