1
|
Shaw RE, James AI, Tuft K, Legge S, Cary GJ, Peakall R, Banks SC. Unburnt habitat patches are critical for survival and in situ population recovery in a small mammal after fire. J Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robyn E. Shaw
- Research School of Biology The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Alex I. James
- Australian Wildlife ConservancyMornington Sanctuary Derby WA Australia
| | | | - Sarah Legge
- Threatened Species Recovery Hub National Environmental Science Program Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science The University of Queensland St Lucia Qld Australia
- The Fenner School of Environment & Society The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Geoffrey J. Cary
- The Fenner School of Environment & Society The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Rod Peakall
- Research School of Biology The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Sam C. Banks
- The Fenner School of Environment & Society The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
MacGregor CI, Blanchard W, Stein JA, Lindenmayer DB. Factors influencing the occurrence of the Southern Long‐nosed Bandicoot (
Perameles nasuta
Geoffroy) during a population irruption and decline. AUSTRAL ECOL 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/aec.12930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christopher I. MacGregor
- Fenner School of Environment and Society The Australian National University Canberra Australian Capital Territory2601 Australia
- Threatened Species Recovery Hub National Environmental Science Program Fenner School of Environment and Society The Australian National University Canberra Australian Capital Territory2601 Australia
| | - Wade Blanchard
- Fenner School of Environment and Society The Australian National University Canberra Australian Capital Territory2601 Australia
| | - John A. Stein
- Fenner School of Environment and Society The Australian National University Canberra Australian Capital Territory2601 Australia
| | - David B. Lindenmayer
- Fenner School of Environment and Society The Australian National University Canberra Australian Capital Territory2601 Australia
- Threatened Species Recovery Hub National Environmental Science Program Fenner School of Environment and Society The Australian National University Canberra Australian Capital Territory2601 Australia
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Hradsky BA. Conserving Australia’s threatened native mammals in predator-invaded, fire-prone landscapes. WILDLIFE RESEARCH 2020. [DOI: 10.1071/wr19027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Inappropriate fire regimes and predation by introduced species each pose a major threat to Australia’s native mammals. They also potentially interact, an issue that is likely to be contributing to the ongoing collapse of native mammal communities across Australia. In the present review, I first describe the mechanisms through which fire could create predation pinch points, exacerbating the impacts of predators, including red foxes, Vulpes vulpes, and feral cats, Felis catus, on their native mammalian prey. These mechanisms include a localised increase in predator activity (a numerically mediated pathway) and higher predator hunting success after fire (a functionally moderated pathway), which could both increase native mammal mortality and limit population recovery in fire-affected landscapes. Evidence for such interactions is growing, although largely based on unreplicated experiments. Improving native mammal resilience to fire in predator-invaded landscapes requires addressing two key questions: how can the impacts of introduced predators on native mammals in fire-affected areas be reduced; and, does a reduction in predation by introduced species result in higher native mammal survival and population recovery after fire? I then examine potential management options for reducing predator impacts post-fire. The most feasible are landscape-scale predator control and the manipulation of fire regimes to create patchy fire scars. However, robust field experiments with adequate statistical power are required to assess the effectiveness of these approaches and preclude null (e.g. compensatory mortality) or adverse (e.g. mesopredator or competitor release) outcomes. Ongoing predator management and prescribed burning programs provide an opportunity to learn through replicated natural experiments as well as experimental manipulations. Standardised reporting protocols and cross-jurisdiction monitoring programs would help achieve necessary spatial and environmental replication, while multi-trophic, spatially explicit simulation models could help synthesise findings from disparate study designs, predict management outcomes and generate new hypotheses. Such approaches will be key to improving management of the complex mechanisms that drive threatened native mammal populations in Australia’s predator-invaded, fire-prone landscapes.
Collapse
|
4
|
Hradsky BA, Penman TD, Ababei D, Hanea A, Ritchie EG, York A, Di Stefano J. Bayesian networks elucidate interactions between fire and other drivers of terrestrial fauna distributions. Ecosphere 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.1926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Bronwyn A. Hradsky
- School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences; University of Melbourne; 4 Water Street Creswick Victoria 3363 Australia
| | - Trent D. Penman
- School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences; University of Melbourne; 4 Water Street Creswick Victoria 3363 Australia
| | - Dan Ababei
- School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences; University of Melbourne; 4 Water Street Creswick Victoria 3363 Australia
- Light Twist Software; 115 Falconer Street Fitzroy North Victoria 3068 Australia
| | - Anca Hanea
- Centre of Excellence for Biosecurity Risk Analysis; School of BioSciences; University of Melbourne; Parkville Victoria 3010 Australia
| | - Euan G. Ritchie
- Centre for Integrative Ecology; School of Life and Environmental Sciences; Deakin University; 221 Burwood Highway Burwood Victoria 3125 Australia
| | - Alan York
- School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences; University of Melbourne; 4 Water Street Creswick Victoria 3363 Australia
| | - Julian Di Stefano
- School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences; University of Melbourne; 4 Water Street Creswick Victoria 3363 Australia
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Leahy L, Legge SM, Tuft K, McGregor HW, Barmuta LA, Jones ME, Johnson CN. Amplified predation after fire suppresses rodent populations in Australia’s tropical savannas. WILDLIFE RESEARCH 2015. [DOI: 10.1071/wr15011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Context
Changes in abundance following fire are commonly reported for vertebrate species, but the mechanisms causing these changes are rarely tested. Currently, many species of small mammals are declining in the savannas of northern Australia. These declines have been linked to intense and frequent fires in the late dry season; however, why such fires cause declines of small mammals is unknown.
Aims
We aimed to discover the mechanisms causing decline in abundance of two species of small mammals, the pale field rat, Rattus tunneyi, and the western chestnut mouse, Pseudomys nanus, in response to fire. Candidate mechanisms were (1) direct mortality because of fire itself, (2) mortality after fire because of removal of food by fire, (3) reduced reproductive success, (4) emigration, and (5) increased mortality because of predation following fire.
Methods
We used live trapping to monitor populations of these two species under the following three experimental fire treatments: high-intensity fire that removed all ground vegetation, low-intensity fire that produced a patchy burn, and an unburnt control. We also radio-tracked 38 R. tunneyi individuals to discover the fates of individual animals.
Key results
Abundance of both species declined after fire, and especially following the high-intensity burn. There was no support for any of the first four mechanisms of population decline, but mortality owing to predation increased after fire. This was related to loss of ground cover (which was greater in the high-intensity fire treatment), which evidently left animals exposed to predators. Also, local activity of two predators, feral cats and dingoes, increased after the burns, and we found direct evidence of predation by feral cats and snakes.
Conclusions
Fire in the northern savannas has little direct effect on populations of these small mammals, but it causes declines by amplifying the impacts of predators. These effects are most severe for high-intensity burns that remove a high proportion of vegetation cover.
Implications
To prevent further declines in northern Australia, fire should be managed in ways that limit the effects of increased predation. This could be achieved by setting cool fires that produce patchy burns, avoiding hot fires, and minimising the total area burnt.
Collapse
|
6
|
MacGregor CI, Cunningham RB, Lindenmayer DB. Nest-site selection of the long-nosed bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) in a postfire environment. AUST J ZOOL 2015. [DOI: 10.1071/zo15039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Access to nest sites is critical to species survival and habitat suitability for most faunal species worldwide. We report on nest-site selection and use by the long-nosed bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) following a wildfire in late 2003. Thirty-eight bandicoots were tracked to 213 nests. The number of nests, frequency of nest use, nest range, nest size and nest site microhabitat in burnt and unburnt habitat were analysed. The mean number of nests used in burnt areas was 5.9, not significantly different from the number used in non-burnt areas (5.3). However, there were significant fire effects on nest location and frequency of use. Six months after the wildfire, 60% of nests in burnt forest and woodland habitat were in patches of unburnt microhabitat. These nests were significantly larger and were used more frequently than nests located in burnt microhabitat. After fire, P. nasuta typically uses nests under dense grasses and midstorey in unburnt microhabitat in burnt areas. However, the species will also nest in open areas and respond to fire-affected areas by constructing smaller nests. When conducting prescribed fires, the practice of ‘burning out’ should be minimised and patchiness at a microhabitat level be a desired outcome for bandicoot management.
Collapse
|
7
|
Lindenmayer DB, MacGregor C, Dexter N, Fortescue M, Cochrane P. Booderee National Park Management: Connecting science and management. ECOLOGICAL MANAGEMENT & RESTORATION 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/emr.12027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|