Journal article
How many mature microhabitats does a slow-recolonising reptile require? Implications for restoration of bauxite minesites in south-western Australia
Australian Journal of Zoology, Vol.59(1), pp.9-17
2011
Abstract
If we are to accelerate the recolonisation of restored areas by slow-recolonising species, we must provide suitable microhabitats at appropriate densities. Previous research in south-western Australia has shown that Napoleon’s skink (Egernia napoleonis) rarely recolonises restored areas. We trapped Napoleon’s skink in restoration and unmined forest to confirm the species was late successional. We also radio-tracked six skinks in unmined forest, to determine types and characteristics of used microhabitats, and estimated home ranges to determine required microhabitat densities, with the aim of accelerating skink recolonisation of restored areas. All tracked skinks used logs and hollow-bearing trees. Used logs were larger, and used trees were larger and taller than random samples, probably because large logs and trees were more likely to contain cracks and hollows that provide a refuge from predators. Extrapolations from home-range estimates indicated that a minimum of four logs ha–1 are required in restored areas to facilitate recolonisation by skinks, with skink densities likely to increase with log densities. Our study demonstrated that not all fauna will naturally recolonise restored areas and management of these areas is required to provide suitable habitat for late-successional species. Our approach could potentially be applied to other ecosystems or species.
Details
- Title
- How many mature microhabitats does a slow-recolonising reptile require? Implications for restoration of bauxite minesites in south-western Australia
- Authors/Creators
- M.D Craig (Author/Creator) - Murdoch UniversityA.M. Benkovic (Author/Creator) - Murdoch UniversityA.H. Grigg (Author/Creator) - Alcoa (Australia)G.E.St.J. Hardy (Author/Creator) - Murdoch UniversityP.A. Fleming (Author/Creator) - Murdoch UniversityR.J. Hobbs (Author/Creator) - The University of Western Australia
- Publication Details
- Australian Journal of Zoology, Vol.59(1), pp.9-17
- Publisher
- CSIRO Publishing
- Identifiers
- 991005541441907891
- Copyright
- © CSIRO
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology; School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:
Source: InCites
Metrics
37 Record Views
InCites Highlights
These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output
- Collaboration types
- Industry collaboration
- Domestic collaboration
- Citation topics
- 3 Agriculture, Environment & Ecology
- 3.35 Zoology & Animal Ecology
- 3.35.683 Reptile Ecology
- Web Of Science research areas
- Zoology
- ESI research areas
- Plant & Animal Science