Threatened Species Strategy – Year 3 Priority Species Scorecard (2018) Kangaroo Island Dunnart Sminthopsis fuliginosus aitkeni Key Findings Kangaroo Island Dunnarts are notoriously difficult to monitor, however, the species is likely to have suffered major declines due to historic land clearing on Kangaroo Island. Security against ongoing habitat loss has been provided through conservation reserves and heritage agreements, so declines may have stabilised. There have been increased efforts in recent years to tackle other threats such as feral cats and Phytophthora, while also engaging private land holders in conservation activities. Photo: Jody Gates Significant trajectory change from 2005-15 to 2015-18? No, populations thought to be stable or increasing slightly. Priority future actions • Control feral cats and Phytophthora – especially in known dunnart habitats. • Management of fire to reduce habitat loss. • Establish insurance population, either in captivity or within a large feral cat free fenced reserve. Full assessment information Background information 2018 population trajectory assessment 1. Conservation status and taxonomy 8. Expert elicitation for population trends 2. Conservation history and prospects 9. Immediate priorities from 2019 3. Past and current trends 10. Contributors 4. Key threats 11. Legislative documents 5. Past and current management 12. References 6. Support from the Australian Government 13. Citation 7. Measuring progress towards conservation The primary purpose of this scorecard is to assess progress against the year three targets outlined in the Australian Government’s Threatened Species Strategy, including estimating the change in population trajectory of 20 mammal species. It has been prepared by experts from the National Environmental Science Program’s Threatened Species Recovery Hub, with input from a number of taxon experts, a range of stakeholders and staff from the Office of the Threatened Species Commissioner, for the information of the Australian Government and is non-statutory. It has been informed by statutory planning documents that guide recovery of the species, such as Recovery Plans and/or Conservation Advices (see Section 11). The descriptive information in this scorecard is drawn from the Recovery Plan (Gates 2011), the 2014 mammal action plan (Woinarski et al. 2014), results from recent research, and advice from contributing experts. The background information aims to provide context for estimation of progress in research and management (Section 7) and estimation of population size and trajectories (Section 8). 1 Information current to December 2018 Threatened Species Strategy – Year 3 Priority Species Scorecard (2018) 1. Conservation status and taxonomy Taxonomy: Conservation status 2018 The taxonomy of the species is contested, and it has been listed previously as Sminthopsis aitkeni (Kitchener et al. 1984), and Sminthopsis griseoventer aitkeni EPBC Endangered (Kemper et al. 2011), but has been most recently called Sminthopsis fuliginosus aitkeni following the Endangered SA nomenclature of Jackson and Groves (2015). (as S. aitkeni) 2. Conservation history and prospects The Kangaroo Island Dunnart is currently restricted to the 4405 km2 Kangaroo Island, South Australia, where it now probably occurs only in remnant native vegetation in the western third of the island. The evidence base is meagre, and there is some taxonomic uncertainty, but it may have occurred historically also on nearby mainland South Australia (Kemper et al. 2011). The map below shows the occurrence of Kangaroo Island Dunnart pre- and post- 1990. The Kangaroo Island Dunnart has been notoriously challenging to sample. It is likely to be rare and is difficult to detect using standard sampling techniques. Hence the evidence base on distribution, population size and trajectory, threats, and habitat requirements is limited. As with many other native species on Kangaroo Island, it is likely to have suffered major declines due to historic land clearing, with this habitat loss particularly pronounced in the eastern part of the island. However, much of the western part of Kangaroo Island, from where all recent records occur, is now well protected in conservation reserves and private conservation land, providing security against ongoing habitat loss. Nonetheless, even in protected areas, it may be affected by ongoing predation by feral cats, and habitat degradation due to fire and Phytophthora-associated vegetation dieback. 3. Past and current trends Population trends for the Kangaroo Island Dunnart are poorly resolved. Historical land clearing would have resulted in substantial losses in population size and distributional extent, but more recent trends are not well established. Monitoring (existing programs): There is no established and continuing island-wide monitoring program for the Kangaroo Island Dunnart, in part because of the challenge involved in sampling it. In the last 40 years the Kangaroo Island Dunnart has been detected at twelve sites on western Kangaroo Island. A substantial baseline survey was conducted in 1999-2001 (Gates 2001), complemented by more recent sampling which has helped to develop more cost-effective sampling protocols (Hohnen et al. in press). Levels of site occupancy were similar between the 1999-2001 and the 2017-2018 surveys (26% and 27% respectively), but large confidence intervals associated with the estimates mean the 2017-2018 survey was unable to conclude, with any reasonable confidence, whether there has been a change in site 2 Information current to December 2018 Threatened Species Strategy – Year 3 Priority Species Scorecard (2018) occupancy (or population size) in the last two decades. Certainly, the species is reasonably restricted, being detected at only six of the 44 sites sampled in 1999-2001, and five of the 42 sites sampled in 2017-2018. Hohnen et al. (in press) make recommendations for the design of future monitoring surveys, including the site set up and survey duration required to maximise detectability, and these recommendations provide the best chance of detecting both severe and moderate declines. The Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife Program (KILfW) has undertaken extensive Kangaroo Island Dunnart camera trapping surveys across approximately 3000 hectares in private properties in western Kangaroo Island (2018). The sites being surveyed by KILfW are in areas that have not previously been surveyed. This survey work will be expanded and is ongoing. Attempts will be made to trap the species at key KILfW monitoring sites in 2019. Population trends: Tables 1 and 2 summarise the overall trend and status of the Kangaroo Island Dunnart. The information provided in these tables is derived from the recovery plan and conservation advices with some amendments made by contributing experts based on new information. Table 1. Summary of the available information on Kangaroo Island Dunnart distribution and population size, and (where possible) trend estimates between 2015 and 2018 for each parameter. Population Published 2015 Estimate 2018 Estimate Confidence in estimates parameters (WILD) baseline Extent of Occurrence 160 km2 * 1500 km2 1500 km2 Medium Area of Occupancy 24 km2 ** 64 km2 64 km2 Low Dates of records and As per Mammal Based on results provided by R. Hohnen methods used Action plan No reliable Change in occupancy assessed from estimate available; 1999-2001 baseline survey to 2017-18 re- No. mature individuals <2500 but for this report, ? sampling; but the very few detections estimated from rendered it difficult to assess population MAP as ca. 2000 trajectory Medium. No significant change in Any other measure of occupancy from 1999-2001 to 2017-18. In relative abundance n/a n/a n/a both surveys the species’ distribution was (occupancy) restricted (26% and 27% of sites respectively) Medium. Although there may be some fragmentation of populations and habitat due to historic clearing, all known sites No. of subpopulations 1 1 1 are in generally close proximity and likely to be susceptible to the same factors and threat events Nos. of locations arguable; but here taken No. of locations 1 1 1 as for subpopulations Generation time 1 n/a n/a High (as per MAP) * given value derived from known records (1993-2012) reported in Woinarski et al. (2014), but more realistic EOO is western third of KI; or ca. 1500 km2. ** based on no. of 2 km x 2 km grid cells with records; however recent modelling indicates occurrence in 294 km2 (R. Hohnen unpubl.) 3 Information current to December 2018 Threatened Species Strategy – Year 3 Priority Species Scorecard (2018) Table 2. Estimated recent (2005-2015) and current (2015-2018) population trends for the Kangaroo Island Dunnart. Est. % of Confidence Confidence total 2005- 2015- in in Sub-population pop’n 2015 2018 Details 2005-2015 2015-2018 (pre- trend trend trend trend 2015) The population size of the Kangaroo Whole Island Dunnart has declined historically population 100 n/a n/a due to land clearing. Current population (Kangaroo ? ? trends are not well resolved (Hohnen et Island) al. in press). KEY: Improving Stable Deteriorating Unknown Confidence Description High Trend documented Medium Trend considered likely based on documentation ? Low Trend suspected but evidence indirect or equivocal 4. Key threats The threats listed here are derived from the Recovery Plan (Gates 2011), the 2014 Mammal Action Plan (Woinarski et al. 2014), results from recent research, and advice from contributing experts based on new information. Note that we do