Threatened species Flashcards

1
Q

What are the 3 levels of listing for threatened species?

A
  1. International: International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

2.National – Australia: Environment Protection and

  1. Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
    State – Queensland: Nature Conservation Act

communicate with people, consistency
legal
working in consulting

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2
Q

What are the redlist categories

A

Critically endangered (CR)
Endangered (SN)/ threatened in US
Vulnerable (VU)

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3
Q

What’s the difference between extinct and extinct in the wild?

A

There are no populations in the wild but may be populations in captivity

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4
Q

What is the environment protection and biodiversity concervsation act 1999?

A

Australian Government’s central piece
of environmental legislation.

Provides a legal framework to protect
and manage nationally and
internationally important flora, fauna,
ecological communities and heritage
places — defined in the Act as matters
of national environmental significance (anything migrates)

Subspecies are given equal weight to
species under the EPBC Act.

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5
Q

What is the nature conservation act?

A

Queensland’s state legislation
governing threatened species

Protected areas
National parks (yes, state managed!)
State forests & timber reserves
Indigenous joint management areas
Special wildlife reserves
Nature reserves

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6
Q

What is the criteria for

A
  1. Change in number - rate of change, if rapid, can be devastating - reduction in population size
  2. geographic range - how much do they have, if small range, and one specific area at higher risk.
  3. population size at a threshold and declining
  4. population size at a lower threshold
  5. Quantitative analysis showing probability of extinction in the wild meets certain criteria
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7
Q

Could you think of a reason it could be useful to have a different species with a different listing status in a different area?

A

the species may be common in one state and not in the other

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8
Q

How many species in Australia are extinct?

A

One of the worst records for
extinctions globally  90 spp
– 39 mammals
– 22 birds
– 4 frogs
– 1 reptile
– 1 invertebrate (probably more)

3 vertebrates since 2009

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9
Q

What are the frog that have gone extinct?

A

Southern gastric-brooding frog (Rheobatrachus silus), last seen in 1981

Northern gastric-brooding frog (Rheobatrachus vitellinus) 1985

Sharp-snouted day frog (Taudactylus acutirostris) 1997

Southern day frog (Taudactylus diurnus) 1979

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10
Q

What was the causes for extinction in Gastric brooding Frog?

A

Logging of the catchment, pigs, weeds, altered flow & water quality could have all impacted the species

Two of the first extinctions in Australia caused by the chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis)[Bd] —> the main cause
of extinction and decline in Australian frogs

rainforest creeks

  • Both species lived in rainforest creeks 350-1,400 m ASL
  • Females swallow embryos, which develop in her stomach
  • Young fully developed when regurgitated; could be up to 25!
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11
Q

What is an example of birds that is extinct? and what are the causes of extinction?

A

Extinct: Paradise parrot (Psephotus pulcherrimus)

Aus only mainland bird extinction

Formerly occurred in central and southern QLD
Already concerned for its decline, surveys in 1918-1927 found few.
Last recorded in 1927

Required termite mounds for breeding – were destroyed for flooring & tennis courts

Habitat cleared for agriculture, fire regimes interrupted, habitat grazed, drought

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12
Q

What reptile is extinct?

A

Christmas Island Forest Skink (Emoia nativitatis)

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13
Q

What are the primary causes of decline of australias terrestrial mammals?

A

introduced predators

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14
Q

What are two examples of extinct mammals in australian

A

Christmas island Pipistrelle and Bramble cay melomys

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15
Q

Why are Christmas island pipistrelles extinct?

A
  • Endemic to Christmas Island (Australian territory)
  • Surveys from 1994 – 2005 showed steep decline, disappearing from parts of the island
    Actual threats unknown, but
    believed to be invasive species:
  • Yellow crazy ants
  • Common wolf snake
  • Black rats
  • Feral cats
  • Giant centipedes

Habitat loss
The last individual was recorded on 26th August 2009

Despite numerous warnings, Aust Govt did not take sufficient action until too late

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16
Q

Why is the Bramble cay melomys extinct?

A

Occurred on 1 small (4 ha) coral cay in torres strait: Bramble Cay/ Maizab Kaur

Max elevation 3 m - small patch of island for the animal

Last detected in 2004
Searches 2011 & 2014 = 0
Phosphatic rock eroded 1.3 m/yr
Vegetation 1.1 ha  0.065 ha
Evidence of inundation events

vegetation decrease, not sufficient action was taken, climate change

17
Q

what taxonomic group most represented on this list?

A

red-finned blue eye

18
Q

What are the most imperilled birds?

A
  1. King island brown thornbill

lost 67% of habitat is cleared
they presumed extinct - surveyed in 2019

  1. orange bellied parrot - the most threats including agriculture, wind turbines, genetic introgression, human intrusion
19
Q

Why are sugar gliders a problems for orange-bellied parrots?

A

Eating the eggs, babies and adult parrots
breed in old trees - sugar gliders may have been introduced to tasmania.

females incubate the eggs and SG eats the females - more males now than females. competitive breeding

20
Q

How many species have declined from north and eastern australia?

A

1 extinct - paradise parrot
4 endangered finches and parrots
Night parrot
golden shouldered parrot
gouldian finish
crimson finch
star finch

3 vulnerable pigeons - squatter partridge
southern black throated finch

21
Q

What is the status of the southern black throated finch? and what is impacting their population?

A

southern black throated finch - endangered

habitat overlapped with thermal coal mines and affected by solar farms - habitats are clearing and no funding for implementation.

would have occured NSW, declared extinct but still in north queensland.

habitat degradation and fragmentation - habitat loss continuum. Fire, farming, weeds, water points - less grains for the finch to consume.

22
Q

What is one of Australias most imperilled frogs?

A
  1. Armoured mist frog (Litoria lorica)
    Believed to have gone extinct during chytridiomycosis outbreaks 1980s &1990s.

2008 surveys of high-elevation dry sclerophyll forest discovered a previously unknown population of L. lorica & Waterfall frog (Litoria nannotis).

Critically endangered frogs are all high elevation chytridsusceptible

  1. Kroombit Tops in central QLD has 2 CR frogs:

Kroombit Tinker Frog (Taudactylus pleione)
<150 individuals remain & declining
Associated with Piccabeen Palm rainforest & boulder screes
Very little is known about their breeding

Kroombit Treefrog (Litoria kroombitensis)
Rainforest & wet sclerophyll, stream-breeding
Both have tiny distributions – vulnerable to wildfire, pigs, disease

23
Q

Why does QLD have the most threatened frogs

A

we have a higher diversity/ species of frog (greater population)

24
Q

What is two examples of the most imperilled reptile in QLD?

A
  1. Nangur Spiny Skink (Nangura spinosa)
    Only occurs in 2 locations – west of Gympie
    Population estimated to be 183, most at one site
    Occurs in pine plantations & semi-evergreen vine thicket 
    Endangered Ecological Community (EPBC Act)

Condamine earless dragon (Tympanocryptis condaminensis)

Endangered
Very restricted distribution
Almost entirely on cropping land
Threatened by agricultural
intensification

grasslands - lowest barrier for development or for crops (completely cleared)

25
Q

How are threats categorised?

A
  1. Timing (past, ongoing, future)
  2. Scope (proportion of the total population affected)
  3. severity

timing option
- only in the past unlikely to return
- in the past but now suspended and likely to return
- ongoing
- only in the future
- unknown

Scope
- affects the whole population
- affect majority of the population
- affect the minority of the population
- unknown

Severity
- rapid declines, how badly is it occurs

26
Q

Why do you want to know relative impact of different threats

A

we know which ones to concentrate on -
address things sooner.

27
Q

What are causes for the habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and degradation?

A

urban developments
agriculture - habitat clearing (mostly this)

28
Q

What are the threats for animals in australia?

A
  1. habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation
  2. invasive species and diseases
  3. fire
  4. climate change