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When
we sent you our last newsletter two of our reserve management staff,
Joss Bentley and Nathan Males, were
at Carnarvon Station. In this edition you'll find reports of their
visit and some of their findings about the birds and animals present
on the Station. With them was photographer Wayne Lawler, more of
whose magnificent photos of Carnarvon are also featured.
| First Survey at Carnarvon Station | |
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Last
October we undertook the first species surveys of Carnarvon Station.
Unfortunately the two year old drought decided to break while we
were there, turning the black soils to a sticky mess and making
it hard to get around. Despite being confined to our camping area
for a number of days, we found a great diversity of fauna; 93 bird
species, 16 native mammal species, six frogs and eight reptiles,
quite remarkable for such a short survey.
|
 Wayne Lawler at work. Photo: Nathan Males |
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In the last newsletter I mentioned that Queensland's woodlands are the remaining stronghold for many of the species which are in severe decline in southern Australia. At current rates of clearing it may be expected that many of these species will start to decline in Queensland as well. The bush stone-curlew is a good example of this. This species is scarce and decreasing in southern Australia and is listed as Vulnerable in NSW. Evidence is now emerging that its numbers are also decreasing in south eastern and central Queensland. We regularly recorded this species on Carnarvon, and every indication is that Carnarvon supports a substantial population.
Large protection areas, such as Carnarvon and the adjacent national parks, are essential to maintaining these species. A number of other bird and mammal species in the same situation were recorded on Carnarvon. We expect the bird list for Carnarvon to grow substantially over the coming years, particularly with some winter surveys as this is the season of highest bird abundance and diversity in Queensland due to the large influx of migratory species form southern Australia Fauna Fest One of the striking things about Carnarvon is the sheer abundance of medium-sized mammals. So much so that when I visited the woodlands of southern NSW on my return, I found them strangely empty and lifeless by comparison. We recorded nine species of macropod and five species of arboreal marsupial (greater, sugar and feathertail gliders, brushtail and ringtail possums). It also seems likely that rare yellow-bellied gliders are present, as there was evidence of their distinctive feeding scars. We also heard the distinctive calls of the koalas. As heavy rainfall prevented trapping for small mammals, we'll have to wait until the next trip before we find out more about that part of the mammal community.
The results of this preliminary survey indicate that Carnarvon supports rich and diverse fauna, and we can expect to find many more species over the coming years.
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