The Use of Selfie Camera Traps to Estimate Home Range and Movement Patterns of Small Mammals in a Fragmented Landscape

The use of camera traps to track individual mammals to estimate home range and movement patterns, has not been previously applied to small mammal species. Our aim was to evaluate the use of camera trapping, using the selfie trap method, to record movements of small mammals within and between fragments of habitat. In a fragmented landscape, 164 cameras were set up across four survey areas, with cameras left to record continuously for 28 nights. Live trapping was performed prior to ear mark animals to facilitate individual identification on camera. Four small mammal species (sugar glider; Petaurus breviceps; brown antechinus; Antechinus stuartii, bush rat; Rattus fuscipes, and brown rat; Rattus norvigecus) were recorded on camera (N = 284 individuals). The maximum distance travelled by an individual sugar glider was 14.66 km, antechinus 4.24 km; bush rat 1.90 km and brown rat 1.28 km. Movements of both female and male sugar gliders in linear fragments were recorded at much higher rates than in larger patches of forest sampled in grids. Short term core homes ranges (50% KDE) of 34 sugar gliders ranged from 0.3 ha to 4.2 ha. Sugar glider core home ranges were on average 1.2 ha (±0.17) for females and 2.4 ha (±0.28) for males. The selfie trap is an efficient camera trapping method for estimating home ranges and movements due to its ability to obtain high recapture rates for multiple species and individuals. In our study landscape, linear strips of habitat were readily utilised by all small mammals, highlighting their importance as wildlife corridors in a fragmented landscape.

Do feathertail gliders show a preference for nest box design?

Although nest boxes have considerable application in the research and management of hollow-using arboreal marsupials, few studies have assessed whether species show a preference for particular nest box designs. This study aimed to determine whether the feathertail glider (Acrobates pygmaeus) showed a preference when offered four different designs, each of which had been used in earlier studies. We established one of each design in 45 plots across five locations, spanning north-east New South Wales and south-east Queensland. Feathertail gliders used 34 nest boxes at four locations but avoided a medium-sized rear-entry box with a 45-mm-diameter entrance. No clear preference was shown for three designs with narrow (≤25 mm) entrances. Feathertail gliders used 15 small rear-entry boxes, 10 large slit-entrance boxes and 9 wedge-shaped bat boxes. A slight preference was shown by breeding groups to occur in the non-wedge boxes compared with the wedge boxes. Squirrel gliders (Petaurus norfolcensis) used 51% of medium rear-entry boxes at four locations. This may account for the avoidance of this box design by feathertail gliders at these locations. Breeding and prolonged use of nest boxes by resident feathertail gliders and squirrel gliders at two locations in eucalypt plantations suggest that nest boxes can support local populations of arboreal marsupials where tree hollows are absent or scarce.

The value of nest boxes in the research and management of Australian hollow-using arboreal marsupials

Nest boxes have been recognised as research and management tools for arboreal marsupials in Australia for over 20 years. We review the published literature with the aim of describing the scope of studies conducted in Australia thus far and providing guidance to future research. We recognise three types of application in research: (1) detection of species, (2) study of a species’ ecology, and (3) investigation of box designs preferred by different species. Several species of arboreal marsupial may be detected more readily in nest boxes than by conventional survey techniques, allowing description of key aspects of their ecology; e.g. feathertail glider (Acrobates pygmaeus), eastern pygmy possum (Cercartetus nanus) and brush-tailed phascogale (Phascogale tapoatafa). Identifying the most favoured nest-box design for any species has implications for detection and management uses of nest boxes. More research is needed but preliminary findings suggest that species prefer narrow entrance holes, while height of the nest box above 3 m may be inconsequential. We recognise three types of management application: (1) species introduction, (2) support of populations of endangered species, and (3) strategic placement such as to enhance habitat connectivity. Currently there have been few attempts to use nest boxes to manage arboreal marsupials but further research is needed to realise their potential as a management tool.