A Review of The Distribution, Status and Conservation of Rock-wallabies in Western Australia.

1996 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 137
Author(s):  
D.J. Pearson ◽  
J.E. Kinnear
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
National Park ◽  
Field Surveys ◽  
Chromosomal Races ◽  
South West ◽  
Diverse Species ◽  
Field Identification ◽  
The Status ◽  
Taxonomic Research ◽  
The Impact

Western Australia has five species of rock-wallabies. Petrogale brachyotis, Petrogale burbidgei and Petrogale concinna occur in wet-dry tropical habitats in the Kimberley region. Petrogale rothschildi is a Pilbara region endemic, while Petrogale lateralis has the largest distribution, extending from the south-west Kimberley to islands off the southern coastline. There have been few collections of the three species restricted to the Kimberley. Their small size, secretive disposition and variable pelage have hampered field identification, and thus, understanding of their distribution and status. The populations of all three are currently believed to be stable and their status is considered secure. Petrogale rothschildi is known from the Hamersley and Chichester Ranges, the east Pilbara, the Burrup Peninsula and four islands in the Dampier Archipelago. It is abundant on three of these islands but has declined on Dolphin island. The status of the mainland populations is uncertain. Petrogale lateralis is a diverse species, with two subspecies and two chromosomal races occurring in WA. Petrogale lateralis hacketti is restricted to three islands in the Archipelago of the Recherche. Petrogale lateralis lateralis has declined throughout its mainland range, with extant populations known from six localities in the Wheatbelt; Cape Range; the Calvert Range; and Barrow and Salisbury Islands. It may still be extant in Kalbarri National Park. Petrogale lateralis West Kimberley race has a restricted distribution but appears secure, while P. lateralis MacDonnell Ranges race has declined markedly in recent years. Fox predation has been implicated in the decline of some populations of P. lateralis and P. rothschildi. The impact of factors such as competition from introduced grazers (stock, rabbits, goats), fire and habitat clearing have not been examined. Increased control of exotic predators, taxonomic research to clarify the identity of unsampled populations and field surveys are needed to improve the conservation outlook for WA rock-wallabies.

scholarly journals Bilkis gazelle in Yemen – status and taxonomic relationships

Oryx ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 239-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnaud Greth ◽  
Douglas Williamson ◽  
Colin Groves ◽  
Georg Schwede ◽  
Marc Vassart
Keyword(s):  
Arabian Peninsula ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Field Surveys ◽  
General Lack ◽  
South West ◽  
Conservation Measures ◽  
New Information ◽  
The Status ◽  
Taxonomic Research ◽  
Systematic Field

Bilkis gazelle Gazella bilkis was first described in 1985 from material collected in Yemen in 1951. No new information about the species has been forthcoming since then and the animal's current status is uncertain in two respects. First, it is difficult to establish the taxonomic relationship between G. bilkis and a possible subspecies of the Arabian gazelle, G. gazella erlangeri, which also occurs in the south-west Arabian peninsula. Secondly, uncontrolled hunting and the general lack of conservation measures in Yemen mean that, if it does still survive, its continued existence is far from assured. Systematic field surveys and taxonomic research are urgently needed to clarify the status of this animal and draw up conservation measures.

Changes in the status and distribution of four species of parrot in the south of Western Australia during 1970-90

1995 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter R. Mawson ◽  
John L. Long
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
Common Species ◽  
Winter Rainfall ◽  
Mail Surveys ◽  
Dietary Preferences ◽  
Ecological Requirements ◽  
South West ◽  
The Status

Mail surveys were sent to field staff of the Agriculture Protection Board of Western Australia to assess the distribution and status of four species of parrot in the agricultural region of south-west Western Australia in 1970, 1980 and 1990. The surveys indicated that the populations of the Regent Parrot (Polytelis anthopeplus) and the Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis) have declined in range considerably since 1970. The populations of the Red-capped Parrot (Purpureicephalus spurius) and the Port Lincoln Ringneck (Barnardius zonarius) have suffered little or not at all during the same period. Factors which appear to have contributed to the observed changes in distribution and status include clearing for agriculture, dietary preferences, physiology, habitat requirements, altered fire regimes, grazing by exotic herbivores and reduced winter rainfall. These surveys have shown that species which were formerly considered common and widespread have declined with little comment having been made of these changes. The implications of this are serious, both for these formerly common species and for rarer bird species which have similar ecological requirements. The technique of mail surveys has considerable merit for quickly assessing the status of some species of birds, but will be limited by the expertise of the respondents and the degree to which the species in question can be observed.

Quantification of the susceptibility of the native flora of the South-West Botanical Province, Western Australia, to Phytophthora cinnamomi

2004 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 435 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. L. Shearer ◽  
C. E. Crane ◽  
A. Cochrane
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
National Park ◽  
Phytophthora Cinnamomi ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
The South ◽  
Irreversible Damage ◽  
Eucalyptus Marginata ◽  
Native Flora ◽  
South West ◽  
Wide Range

This study compares, for the first time, variation in estimates of susceptibility of native flora to Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands among four databases and proposes an estimate of the proportion of the flora of the South-West Botanical Province of Western Australia that is susceptible to the pathogen. Estimates of the susceptibility of south-western native flora to P. cinnamomi infection were obtained from databases for Banksia woodland of the Swan Coastal Plain, jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata Donn. ex Smith) forest, the Stirling Range National Park and Rare and Threatened Flora of Western Australia. For the woodland, forest and national park databases, hosts were naturally infected in uncontrolled diverse natural environments. In contrast, threatened flora were artificially inoculated in a shadehouse environment. Considerable variation occurred within taxonomic units, making occurrence within family and genus poor predictors of species susceptibility. Identification of intra-specific resistance suggests that P. cinnamomi could be having a strong selection pressure on some threatened flora at infested sites and the populations could shift to more resistant types. Similar estimates of the proportion of species susceptible to P. cinnamomi among the databases from the wide range of environments suggests that a realistic estimate of species susceptibility to P. cinnamomi infection in the south-western region has been obtained. The mean of 40% susceptible and 14% highly susceptible equates to 2284 and 800 species of the 5710 described plant species in the South-West Botanical Province susceptible and highly susceptible to P. cinnamomi, respectively. Such estimates are important for determining the cost of disease to conservation values and for prioritising disease importance and research priorities. P. cinnamomi in south-western Australia is an unparalleled example of an introduced pathogen with a wide host range causing immense irreversible damage to unique, diverse but mainly susceptible plant communities.

The status of taxonomy in Canada and the impact of DNA barcodingThe present review is one of a series of occasional review articles that have been invited by the Editors and will feature the broad range of disciplines and expertise represented in our Editorial Advisory Board.

2009 ◽  
Vol 87 (12) ◽  
pp. 1097-1110 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Packer ◽  
J. C. Grixti ◽  
R. E. Roughley ◽  
R. Hanner
Keyword(s):  
Dna Barcoding ◽  
Highly Qualified ◽  
Future Health ◽  
Engineering Research ◽  
Qualified Personnel ◽  
Dramatic Decline ◽  
The Status ◽  
Taxonomic Research ◽  
Grant Size ◽  
The Impact

To assess the recent history of taxonomy in Canada and the impact of DNA barcoding upon the field, we performed a survey of various indicators of taxonomic research over the past 30 years and also assessed the current direct impact of funds made available for taxonomy through the DNA barcoding NSERC (Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada) network grant. Based on results from surveys of three Canadian journals, we find that between 1980 and 2000 there was a 74% decline in the number of new species described and a 70% reduction in the number of revisionary studies published by researchers based in Canada, but there was no similar decline for non-Canadian-authored research in the same journals. Between 1991 and 2007 there was a 55% decline in the total amount of inflation-corrected funds spent upon taxonomic research by NSERC’s GSC18 (Grant Selection Committee 18); this was a result of both a decrease in the number of funded taxonomists and a decrease in mean grant size. Similarly, by 2000, the number of entomologists employed at the Canadian National Collection (CNC) had decreased to almost half their 1980 complement. There was also a significant reduction in the number of active arthropod taxonomists in universities across the country between 1989 and 1996. If these declines had continued unabated, it seems possible that taxonomy would have ceased to exist in Canada by the year 2020. While slight increases in personnel have occurred recently at the CNC, the decline in financial assistance for taxonomists has been largely reversed through funds associated with DNA barcoding. These moneys have increased the financial resources available for taxonomy overall to somewhere close to NSERC’s 1980 expenditures and have also substantially increased the number of HQP (highly qualified personnel) currently being trained in taxonomy. We conclude that the criticism “DNA barcoding has taken funds away from traditional approaches to taxonomy” is false and that, in Canada at least, the advent of DNA barcoding has reversed the dramatic decline in taxonomy. We provide recommendations on how to foster the future health of taxonomy in Canada.

scholarly journals The status and conservation of hornbills in Cambodia

2004 ◽  
Vol 14 (S1) ◽  
pp. S5-S11
Author(s):  
TAN SETHA
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
Biological Surveys ◽  
South West ◽  
The Status ◽  
The 1960S

Internal security problems from the 1960s up until 1998 prevented any fieldwork in Cambodia. Since then, the situation has improved greatly and the Royal Government of Cambodia, in collaboration with international conservation NGOs, has been conducting general biological surveys across the country. Survey reports were used to investigate current occurrence of hornbills. Historically, three hornbill species — Great Hornbill Buceros bicornis, Wreathed Hornbill Aceros undulatus and Oriental Pied Hornbill Anthracoceros albirostris — were known from Cambodia. Recent surveys show that populations of Great and Wreathed Hornbills have declined significantly since the 1960s, while Oriental Pied is still common. A fourth hornbill species, Brown Hornbill Anorrhinus tickelli, was reported in 1998 in Kirirom National Park spanning the border of Koh Kong and Kompong Speu provinces in south-west Cambodia. Conservation priorities and priorities for future surveys are being developed.

scholarly journals Protecting the innocent: studying short-range endemic taxa enhances conservation outcomes

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark S. Harvey ◽  
Michael G. Rix ◽  
Volker W. Framenau ◽  
Zoë R. Hamilton ◽  
Michael S. Johnson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Short Range ◽  
Habitat Degradation ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Biological Surveys ◽  
Biodiversity Crisis ◽  
Major Development ◽  
The Status ◽  
Taxonomic Research

A major challenge confronting many contemporary systematists is how to integrate standard taxonomic research with conservation outcomes. With a biodiversity crisis looming and ongoing impediments to taxonomy, how can systematic research continue to document species and infer the ‘Tree of Life’, and still maintain its significance to conservation science and to protecting the very species it strives to understand? Here we advocate a systematic research program dedicated to documenting short-range endemic taxa, which are species with naturally small distributions and, by their very nature, most likely to be threatened by habitat loss, habitat degradation and climate change. This research can dovetail with the needs of industry and government to obtain high-quality data to inform the assessment of impacts of major development projects that affect landscapes and their biological heritage. We highlight how these projects are assessed using criteria mandated by Western Australian legislation and informed by guidance statements issued by the Environmental Protection Authority (Western Australia). To illustrate slightly different biological scenarios, we also provide three case studies from the Pilbara region of Western Australia, which include examples demonstrating a rapid rise in the collection and documentation of diverse and previously unknown subterranean and surface faunas, as well as how biological surveys can clarify the status of species thought to be rare or potentially threatened. We argue that ‘whole of biota’ surveys (that include all invertebrates) are rarely fundable and are logistically impossible, and that concentrated research on some of the most vulnerable elements in the landscape – short-range endemics, including troglofauna and stygofauna – can help to enhance conservation and research outcomes.

The status of non-volant mammals along a rainfall gradient in the south-west Kimberley, Western Australia

2012 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 36 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. N. Start ◽  
A. A. Burbidge ◽  
M. C. McDowell ◽  
N. L. McKenzie
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Common Species ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Rainfall Gradient ◽  
Terrestrial Mammals ◽  
South West ◽  
The Status ◽  
High Level

To assess the current status of mammals in relation to mean annual rainfall and to improve knowledge of the original mammalian assemblages in tropical Western Australia, extant terrestrial mammals and subfossil mammalian remains were sought along a rainfall gradient in two parallel ranges in the Kimberley, Western Australia. As expected, extant mammal species richness decreased with decreasing rainfall. Data from other studies in higher-rainfall areas complemented this conclusion and a parallel decline in trap success implied an overall decline in abundance, although numbers of two rodents (Rattus tunneyi and Zyzomys argurus) were highly variable. Small rodents were rare. Subfossil deposits were biased by accumulation processes, with most attributable to tytonid owls. They largely consisted of rodent and, to a lesser extent, small dasyurid bones and there was a high level of consistency in the proportional composition of many common species across the rainfall gradient. Most deposits appear to predate the introduction of stock in the 1880s and some may be much older. All species persist in the study area except two Notomys spp. and three Pseudomys spp. Both the Notomys and one Pseudomys are apparently undescribed, extinct species. However, there were marked ratio differences between subfossil and modern assemblages. Although specimens of species larger than those taken by tytonid owls were scarce, their occurrences were broadly consistent with the modern understanding of distributions.

Groundwater levels under climate change in the Gnangara system, Western Australia

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian H. Gallardo
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Table ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Good Correspondence ◽  
Groundwater Levels ◽  
Aquifer Systems ◽  
The Status ◽  
Rainfall Reduction ◽  
The Impact

The Gnangara system is the main source of freshwater for Perth, Western Australia. However, aquifers in the region are under severe stress due to a drying climate, intensive pumping and changes in land use. The aim of this study is to apply the mean rainfall cumulative deviation and Mann-Kendall analyses at 77 monitoring bores to investigate the response of the water table to key recharge components. This information is critical for setting new allocation limits and reviewing current policies in the region. Results show that overall there is a good correspondence between water levels and rainfall fluctuations. Areas of groundwater recharge are highly sensitive to climate change and have been severely affected by reduction in rainfall rates in recent years. Further, removal of pine plantations correlated well with a rise in groundwater levels although the effect seems to be temporary. The impact of pumping is mainly observed in vicinities of public-supply borefields. Elsewhere, water table trends show a relative stabilisation indicating that storage still exceeds the influence of rainfall reduction in areas dominated by through flow or groundwater discharge. The study contributes to update the status of the Gnangara groundwater resource, and provides new insights for the sustainable management of one of the main aquifer systems in Australia.

scholarly journals The Status of the Bald Eagle and Osprey in Grand Teton National Park and Vicinity

1978 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 25-30
Author(s):  
Robert Eng ◽  
Kurt Alt
Keyword(s):  
National Parks ◽  
National Park ◽  
Baseline Data ◽  
Bald Eagle ◽  
Haliaeetus Leucocephalus ◽  
Pandion Haliaetus ◽  
Grand Teton National Park ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Future Management

With the accelerated use of our national parks there is growing concern over the impact this increased visitation might have on their flora and fauna. For this reason it is important to gather baseline data on the biota for future management and interpretive programs. Two species of concern in Grand Teton National Park are the bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and osprey (Pandion haliaetus).

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