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Cooloola nat park burnt out?

To: Peter Ewin <>
Subject: Cooloola nat park burnt out?
From: L&L Knight <>
Date: Thu, 3 Dec 2009 18:21:05 +1000
Is there any plan to translocate family groups from the densely populated areas to the unpopulated but apparently suitable areas as an insurance policy?

LK

On 03/12/2009, at 5:57 PM, Peter Ewin wrote:


Hi Ross,
Not certain if they are completely gone from Ngarkat. I think there is a lot of active management to protect the few small populations that are left (mainly in areas that have escaped the fires). The other mystery is the apparent paucity of records from Murray Sunset which would appear to have suitable habitat but very low densities (compared to Hattah-Kulkyne). However, I agree with your sentiment about the fires at Hattah (which have had some fires but thankfully not in the highest densities). Fire is a part of the landscape, but when the landscape has been fragmented and isolated through other activities protecting the areas that are left becomes vitally important.
Cheers,
Peter

From: 
To: ; 
Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Cooloola nat park burnt out?
Date: Thu, 3 Dec 2009 17:48:51 +1100

It's a good point, & the mallee emu-wren is a case in point. After a fire in Ngarkat CP in SA some years ago, the population disappeared from that area,
leaving the bird with just one stronghold, in Murray-Sunset and
Hattah-Kulkyne NPs straddling the Calder Highway. Sarah Brown's work has shown that while the local population is healthy (in the 10s of thousands from memory), they are sedentary and have poor dispersal; in other words once they're lost from an area it's very hard for them to recolonise it.

Gone from Ngarkat. Gone from Annuello FFR. Gone from all other known
previous habitats.

One big fire in the in Murray-Sunset / Hattah triodia country, & the species
could be extinct.

And it's not the only species in that boat; not by a long chalk...

Ross Macfarlane




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