Are there conservation implications for kangaroos feeding on sea birds?

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
Michael Hughes ◽  
Valériane Bérengier
Keyword(s):  
Introduced Species ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
National Park ◽  
Research Note ◽  
South Coast ◽  
Conservation Implications ◽  
Sea Birds ◽  
Published Evidence ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo

This research note documents an observation of a wild western grey kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus) feeding on a dead silver gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae) at Lucky Bay in the Cape Le Grand National Park on the south coast of Western Australia. Published evidence suggests that this behaviour is not unique and could be widespread in Western Australia and further afield. We consider why the kangaroo may be feeding on the dead gull and possible implications for conservation programs relying on poison meat baits to control introduced species.

Movement patterns of honey possums, Tarsipes rostratus, in the Fitzgerald River National Park, Western Australia

2000 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 179 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. A. M. Garavanta ◽  
R. D. Wooller ◽  
K. C. Richardson
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
National Park ◽  
Movement Patterns ◽  
South Coast ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Detailed Knowledge ◽  
Pitfall Traps ◽  
Mark Recapture ◽  
Nectar Sources ◽  
Mating Opportunities

The movements of marked honey possums,Tarsipes rostratus, were studied using mark–recapture with pitfall traps in heathland on the south coast of Western Australia. Most individuals moved less than 30 m even over several months, with no evidence of marked dispersal. We suggest that this lack of mobility is associated with a detailed knowledge of the locations of those plants that supply all the species’ food. Males moved slightly further than females, possibly to search for mating opportunities and possibly because females exclude males from rich nectar sources. In consequence, the home ranges of males (1277 m2) were significantly larger, on average, than those of females (701 m2).

The Influence of population density and habitat on grouping in the western grey kangaroo, Macropus fuliginosus

1993 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 151 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Coulson
Keyword(s):  
Population Density ◽  
National Park ◽  
Habitat Structure ◽  
Group Formation ◽  
Lower Range ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
The Social ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Victoria ◽  
North Western

Population density and habitat structure have been identified as influencing grouping patterns in kangaroos, but the separate contributions of each factor have rarely been distinguished. Grouping was examined in the western grey kangaroo, Macropus fuliginosus, at Hattah-Kulkyne National Park, north-western Victoria, where the population exhibits marked changes in density throughout habitats that provide a range of cover. Group size and population density in each habitat were surveyed at two times of day and at roughly 2-monthly intervals from March 1983 until December 1985. Of the four major habitats, mallee and woodland offered moderate cover, whereas grassland and lake bed gave sparse cover. Visibility of kangaroo groups was highest in the sparse habitats, and was positively related to the size of the group, at least in the lower range of group sizes. At densities up to 40km-2, groups that formed in the sparse habitats were larger than the groups in the two habitats that offered moderate cover. Three habitats (lake bed, grassland and woodland) had more smaller and more larger groups than expected if group formation was a random process. Large males were seen alone more often than expected by chance in lake bed, and less often in moderate cover; females with young-atfoot were over-represented as singletons in all four habitats. The size and composition of groups recorded in this study suggest that the basic components of the social organisation of kangaroos are best discerned in habitats that carry a low population density, but that also provide the most cover.

Aspects of the Demography of the Western Grey-Kangaroo, Macropus-Fuliginosus-Melanops, in Semiarid Northwest Victoria

1988 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 257 ◽  
Author(s):  
GL Norbury ◽  
GM Coulson ◽  
BL Walters
Keyword(s):  
Sex Ratio ◽  
National Park ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Energy Costs ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
North West ◽  
Adult Age ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo

The study was carried out at Hattah-Kulkyne National Park in semiarid north-west Victoria, during 3 years immediately following a severe drought. A sample of animals which died as a result of the drought (n= 196) and a shot sample (n=546) were examined to determine patterns of breeding, mortality and age structure. Births were concentrated in spring and summer, with a peak in November. Only 46% of mature females bred during the drought, whereas 100% bred two seasons later. The sex ratio of pouch young was not significantly different from parity, but showed a slight male-bias, however, the sex ratio of the adult population was markedly female-biased (1:3). Projected population growth was not realised in the years following the drought because of high mortality. There was evidence of male-biased mortality which was apparently accentuated during the drought. This biased mortality appeared similar in all adult age classes, and may have been a consequence of the disparate energy costs imposed by sex differences in body size and in mobility.

Use of heterogeneous habitat by the western grey kangaroo, Macropus fuliginosus

1993 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 137 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Coulson
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
Early Morning ◽  
Line Transect ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Heterogeneous Habitat ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Victoria ◽  
North Western ◽  
Temporal Overlap

The western grey kangaroo, Macropus fuliginosus, typically occurs at highest population densities in areas of greatest habitat heterogeneity. Hattah-Kulkyne National Park, in semiarid north-western Victoria, supports a relatively high density of this species, and has a mosaic of four major vegetation associations: mallee, woodland, lake bed and grassland. The patterns of habitat use by western grey kangaroos at Hattah-Kulkyne were examined from March 1983 until May 1985 using line-transect surveys to estimate population density in each habitat, and radio-tracking to estimate home range. The population was not dispersed randomly, but generally exhibited either positive or negative preferences for each of the four habitats in early morning and at midday, and on different bimonthly surveys. These preferences often reversed between times of day and between surveys. Home ranges of individuals ranged from 221 to 459 ha (asymptotic MAP[O.95] estimates), each encompassing three or four habitat types, and there was extensive spatial and temporal overlap between individuals. Kangaroos at Hattah-Kulkyne thus alternated between adjacent habitats that offered a range of forage conditions and shelter.

The Distribution and Abundance of Kangaroos in relation to Environment in Western Australia

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 435 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Short ◽  
G Caughley ◽  
D Grice ◽  
B Brown
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
The State ◽  
Winter Rainfall ◽  
The North ◽  
Red Kangaroo ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Almost All

Red and western grey kangaroos were surveyed from the air in Western Australia during the winter of 1981. The area covered, 1 528 000 km2 or 61% of the State, excluded only the Kimberleys in the north and the Gibson and Great Sandy Deserts of the interior. Hence almost all kangaroo range within the State was surveyed, to provide an estimate of 980 000 reds and 436 000 greys. Densities were much lower than those of the eastern States. Red kangaroos were most abundant in mulga shrubland, chenopod shrubland and tussock grassland, and least abundant in hummock grassland. Densities were associated strongly with land-use categories, being high in areas used for extensive sheep grazing and low in vacant Crown Land and arable land. In contrast to reds the western grey kangaroos were confined to the south and west of the state, their distribution being related more directly to climate than to vegetation or land use. They live in the winter rainfall zone. We suggest that their restricted breeding season results in peak nutritional demands associated with lactation, and hence energy requirements, being synchronized with the spring flush of pasture following winter rains. Approximately 14% of the red kangaroo and 8% of the western grey kangaroo populations in Western Australia were harvested legally in 1981.

scholarly journals Small mammals of the Addo Elephant National Park

Koedoe ◽  
1975 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Swanepoel
Keyword(s):  
Introduced Species ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
National Park ◽  
Sex Ratios ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Reproductive Activity ◽  
Body Measurements ◽  
Suricata Suricatta ◽  
Rhabdomys Pumilio ◽  
Mus Minutoides

A survey of the small mammals of the Addo Elephant National Park resulted in a checklist, as well as information on relative numbers, distribution within the Park, reproductive activity, sex ratios, and body measurements. Forty mammals species occur in the Park, while three re-introduced species probably do not occur any longer. Of the 40 species 28 are considered small mammals comprising 13 rodent, eight carnivore, two shrew, two bat, one primate and one lagomorph species, as well as the aardvark: Crociduraflavescens, C. cyanea infumata, Rousettus aegyptiacus, Eptesicus capensis, Cercopithecus pygerythrus, Canis mesomelas, Ictonyx striatus, Poecilogale albinucha, Genetta sp., Herpestes pulverulentus, Suricata suricatta, Proteles cristatus, Felis caracal, Orycteropus afer, Lepus saxatilis, Cryptomys hottentotus, Hystrix africae-australis, Pedetes capensis, Graphiurus murinus, Aethomys namaquensis, Praomys natalensis, Rhabdomys pumilio, Mus minutoides, Rattus rattus, Saccostomys campestris, Desmodillus auricularis, Otomys irroratus and 0. unisulcatus.

scholarly journals Which age group spends the most in a national park?

Koedoe ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Cini ◽  
Melville Saayman
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Older People ◽  
National Park ◽  
Economic Importance ◽  
Early Age ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Expenditure Patterns ◽  
Conservation Implications ◽  
Table Mountain ◽  
The Right

Age (and its changing structure amongst the wider population) is one of the most relevant aspects required to better understand and forecast the needs, interests and associated consumption behaviours of tourists. This research used age to investigate the expenditure patterns amongst a sample of visitors to the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP), South Africa. In March 2010, visitors to the TMNP were found to differ significantly from those at other parks, as they were younger and most of them were foreigners. This study found that younger visitors (18–29 years) were higher spenders when compared to those aged 30–49 years. As parks are generally visited by older people, this study showed the economic importance of the younger market. The research also made clear implications and recommendations for park management as to how to address these findings. Conservation implications: Conservation is dependent on funding. One of the main sources of income is tourism and tourism related activities. This research can assist marketers and managers to target the right markets in order to be more sustainable. This research also shows the importance of environmental education at an early age in order to grow awareness and to target the right markets.

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