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Science
for saving species
ISSN 2652-1334
Winter 2020
Issue 16
Prioritising
action after the
2019–20 fires
Fire and
biodiversity
Post-fire priorities
for flora, fauna
and ecological
communities
Cultural fire
Fire and feral
predators
Lessons from
Booderee
Protecting
monsoon vine
thickets
Desert fire
Top End small
mammal declines
Oliver Costello
IMAGE: JAANA DIELENBERG
Magazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub
Editorial...
From the ashes:
The 2019–20 wildfires and
biodiversity loss and recovery
Fire is a complex, important and pervasive ingredient in the ecology of Australia. It destroys life but brings renewal. It can operate
within or beyond our control. Individual fires, and the historic patterning of fires, can have severe impacts on many threatened
species and ecological communities. And fire can compound the impacts of many other threats. Professor John Woinarski
of Charles Darwin University discusses the catastrophic losses of the 2019–20 fires, and how we can move on from mourning
to action that can limit such future devastation.
IMAGE: NICOLAS RAKOTOPARE
Although fire is an inextricable component Awareness of the catastrophic scale of the Future responses
of most Australian ecosystems, the 2019–20 environmental loss was seared in community Unfortunately, government, community
wildfires of eastern and southern Australia perception by images of badly burned koalas, and conservation systems were not well
were way beyond normal. Catalysed by the charred corpses of kangaroos and vast prepared for these fires. We need to reduce
extensive drought and unusually high blackened landscapes, and by the stories the likelihood of such future fires; ensure
temperatures, these fires were exceptionally told by those dealing with injured wildlife, that key biodiversity values are better
extensive, long-lasting and severe. More than or scarred by witnessing such loss of nature.
protected in fire planning and suppression;
12 million hectares were burnt over the period The responses by governments, conservation
and be capable of responding even more
August 2019 to March 2020, across forests, NGOs, landholders and the Australian and
rapidly and cohesively in the aftermath of any
heathlands and farmlands from south-eastern international public were extraordinary, and
future fires. Building such resilience will be
Queensland to eastern Victoria, on Kangaroo heartening. Much support was mobilised;
contingent on the manner in which we deal
Island and in south-western Australia. many injured animals were rescued; some
with the fundamental underlying cause of
threatened species (such as the Wollemi pine)
mega-fires – climate change. Unless global
Conservation setback were expertly protected from imminent fires;
emissions are curtailed, it is inexorable that
These fires killed residents and firefighters, and many agencies undertook emergency
post-fire responses. the dystopia we witnessed in the 2019–20
destroyed infrastructure and had severe
wildfires will recur, with increasing frequency
impacts on many regional communities. These were critical and timely actions, but and extent, and with diminishing chances
Major conservation values were affected, there will be a long and arduous road to of environmental recovery.
including many national parks, World Heritage recovery for many species and ecosystems.
areas, wetlands of international significance, The on-ground actions will need to be Along with the conservation and research
and threatened species and ecological complemented by overhauls of management, programs of many other groups, many of our
communities. In some cases, the gains made planning and policy informed by lessons projects were affected by these fires. These
from years of painstaking conservation effort learned from these fires. To help frame project impacts have since been compounded
were destroyed or significantly set back. such a strategic response, the Threatened by the travel restrictions imposed in response
Most likely, no other event in our lifetimes Species Recovery Hub (with inputs from other to COVID-19: many of us can’t yet access
has had such a sudden and drastic effect researchers) rapidly developed a blueprint for the fire-affected sites critical for our
on wildlife conservation in Australia. recovery of biodiversity – see Further reading. research and management.
ABOVE: Green shoots emerge after an early season burn on the Tiwi Islands.
Inside the Winter 2020 issue of Science for Saving Species
Editorial byJohn Woinarski.......................................... 2 Fire, cats, foxes and land management.................16
Threatened Species Commissioner’s update....... 4 Lessons from long-term monitoring.....................18
Cultural fire....................................................................... 5 Threatened wattle translocation............................19
Flora priorities after the fires...................................... 6 Fire management for monsoon vine thickets..... 20
Fauna priorities after the fires.................................... 8 Pirra Warlu (desert fire)...............................................21
Fire and post-fire impacts on wildlife groups....10 Small mammal declines in the Top End................22
Invertebrate priorities after the fires.....................12 Pre-fire forest condition influences recovery.....23
Post-fire threatened species listing........................13 Profile: Oliver Costello.................................................24
Threatened woodland trajectories........................14
2 Science for saving species #16
The fires also present important research examples, especially from the Stirling Range Our challenge is to go beyond mourning that
opportunities. There is much that we need in south-western Australia, and from Kangaroo loss, to instead work even harder and more
to learn about immediate and longer-term Island. But even species with vast ranges strategically for recovery; to help shape a
impacts and about what recovery actions are (such as the yellow-bellied glider) were better future for us and our environments –
most effective. Major knowledge gaps have substantially affected by these fires, a future that is more resilient, and less likely
hindered our remedial management responses leaving large formerly occupied areas now to experience another such catastrophe.
this time; and we should aim to have uninhabitable (at least for a time) and
Further reading
greater preparedness for any next time. severely fragmenting surviving populations. https://theconversation.com/a-season-in-hell-
Monitoring is a notable example: As a consequence of these wildfires, there bushfires-push-at-least-20-threatened-species-
notwithstanding many calls to remedy the will be an urgent need to assess or re- closer-to-extinction-129533
deficiency, Australia lacks a comprehensive assess the conservation status of hundreds https://theconversation.com/after-the-bushfires-
national biodiversity monitoring program. of species, to give those most fire-affected we-helped-choose-the-animals-and-plants-in-
most-need-heres-how-we-did-it-138736
That lack renders it especially difficult to species more legal protection and a profile for
assess the extent of biodiversity loss due conservation management. Many threatened https://www.nespthreatenedspecies.edu.
to these fires and reduces the capacity to au/_images/Projects/After%20the%20
species are now far more imperilled, and
catastrophe%20report_V5.pdf
measure the extent and rate of recovery many species we formerly considered secure
and the effectiveness of recovery actions. can no longer be presumed safe. The 2019–20 Further information
Likewise, there is limited distributional wildfires caused a loss of extraordinary John Woinarski
information for many species, making it magnitude to Australian biodiversity. John.Woinarski@cdu.edu.au
challenging to assess the proportional loss
in fires for many species, or to identify key MAP: Geospatial and Information Analytics (ERIN), Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment,
strongholds that may have escaped the fire. May 2020
Australian Government responds
The Australian Government rapidly committed
$50 million to urgent post-fire conservation
actions, with a subsequent $150 million for
ongoing strategic responses. Recognising the
urgent need to assess the impact of these fires
on biodiversity, and that more evidence was
needed to help design and prioritise recovery
actions, the Minister for the Environment
directed $2 million to the hub to undertake a
set of priority fire-related research projects.
These projects include development of
monitoring guidelines; more detailed
assessments of wildlife mortality and of the
impacts of the 2019–20 fires on invertebrates
and frogs; Indigenous involvement in bushfire
recovery; development of conservation
strategies for fire-affected threatened
ecological communities; and many others.
With membership including several hub
researchers, an expert advisory panel was
established by the Australian Government to
assess, at national scale, the national impacts
of the 2019–20 wildfires on biodiversity
and to help guide allocation of substantial
Australian Government funding for urgent and
longer-term recovery management actions.
Assessments coordinated by that panel
have identified 471 plant, 213 invertebrate
and 92 vertebrate species that have been
most severely affected by these fires.
In most cases, more than 50% of the
distributions of these species was burnt; in
many cases over 80% of the distribution was
burnt; and the entire extent of the known
distribution of some species was exposed to
high-intensity fire. It may be that the fires
have caused the extinction of some of these
species, but the evidence is not yet available
to demonstrate such an unwanted outcome.
Many of the most affected species were
highly restricted (narrow range endemics):
there are many such invertebrate and plant
3
Magazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub
Rapid action
to save species The Australian Government’s Threatened
Species Commissioner Dr Sally Box talking to
Pat Hodgens (left) and Heidi Groffen (right) from
after the fires
Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife about shelter
tunnels for the Kangaroo Island dunnart.
IMAGE: NICOLAS RAKOTOPARE
The Australian Government’s Threatened Species Commissioner and Chair of the Wildlife and Threatened Species
Bushfire Recovery Expert Panel Dr Sally Box talks about the support for long-term recovery of species and ecological
communities devastated by the 2019–20 fires.
In January, at the height of the fires, the collaborate and develop shared responses exclosure and installation of shelter tunnels
Australian Government appointed a Wildlife to the emergency. to allow the dunnarts to safely move around.
and Threatened Species Bushfire Recovery The Australian Government’s initial Greening Australia has identified native
Expert Panel, which worked rapidly to identify $50 million supported quick emergency seed supply needs and is producing the
the species and ecological communities intervention early on and, with the additional seedlings needed for landscape restoration
most in need of assistance, and the $150 million investment announced in May, and a sustainable, long-term native plant
urgent management actions required. we are now able to focus on longer-term and seed sector.
This was a massive, collaborative task recovery plans and actions. The Expert
Panel’s scientific advice on priority species Taronga Zoo is establishing an insurance
involving the Australian, state and territory
and actions has informed the government’s colony of the northern corroboree frog from
governments and a wide range of relevant
investments to date and will continue to the Fiery Ranges, where 70% of remaining
experts, including many from the Threatened
guide our response. The panel’s close populations were impacted by the bushfires.
Species Recovery Hub, to collate and analyse
collaboration with the Threatened Species A new breeding facility for this species is
fire extent mapping, species distribution
Recovery Hub and its bushfire recovery being established and the first 100 eggs
data and species traits information.
research program will continue to be have been collected from the wild.
In parallel to this work, wildlife organisations, vitally important as we move forward. There are many other stories, and time will
zoos, local community groups and government
reveal a clearer picture of the impacts of
agencies took action on the ground – salvaging Stories of hope
the fires and what is needed for our species’
plant and animal species, providing emergency There’s great work underway across the
food drops for native animals, protecting long-term recovery. But to date, a combined
country, despite COVID-19 presenting some
unburnt areas, and controlling feral pests and and passionate effort has resulted in rapid
challenges. In the World Heritage-listed Blue
weeds. The shared goal was and still is to give assessments and action for species we
Mountains, work continues to support the
our precious wildlife, habitats and unique are most worried about.
recovery of the brush-tailed rock-wallaby
places the best possible chance of recovery. and Wollemi pines, and to return koalas Further information
In January and February, the Minister for the rescued from the fires back to the wild. Sally Box
Environment the Hon Sussan Ley MP hosted ThreatenedSpeciesCommissioner@
There are signs of hope in even the most
a series of roundtables with stakeholders severely burnt landscapes. Kangaroo Island environment.gov.au
to inform the Australian Government’s dunnarts have been sighted in small areas of Wildlife and Threatened Species Bushfire
response to the bushfires for the environment. unburned habitat. Actions to protect these Recovery Expert Panel
More than 200 experts from the government, precious remaining animals include control http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/
NGO, industry and business sectors met to of feral cats, construction of a new fenced bushfire-recovery/expert-panel
4 Science for saving species #16
Cultural
fire:
Listening to
and caring
for Country
with fire
RIGHT: Jacob Morris, an emerging cultural fire
practitioner from the Gumea-Dharrawal clan of the
Yuin Nation. Jacob was a workshop facilitator at the IMAGE: VERA HONG
Bundanon National Indigenous Fire Workshop in 2018.
Cultural fire management is the way that Indigenous people have used fire to care for Country for thousands of years, and it
continues today. The devastation wreaked by the 2019–20 bushfires across millions of hectares was a wake-up call for Australia and
the world. Oliver Costello from the Firesticks Alliance explains how the fires demonstrated the need to listen to and care for Country.
For tens of thousands of years our ancestors These indicators are specific to landscapes, There are also some landscapes that are
of this land, Australia’s First Peoples, managed ecosystems, places, species, vegetation, soils, suffering from a lack of fire. Fire is important
Country with fire effectively to reduce climate and weather conditions. They relate to stimulate the germination of many plant
bushfires and improve livelihoods. European to people’s identity, knowledge, practices, species and without it some plant populations
colonisation led to a rapid suppression of heritage, resources, society, environment, can age and die without the recruitment
Indigenous people’s rights and access to land economy and spiritual beliefs. of new plants.
and resources. In recent decades, land rights,
native title and Indigenous cultural and natural Burning for resilience Sharing cultural fire knowledge
resource management have created strong and Cultural fire management will protect, Cultural burning can better maintain healthy
growing opportunities for collaboration and maintain, heal and enhance ecosystems and species dynamics, and reduce opportunities
changes in how science and land management cultural values, as it has done for thousands for invasive species to dominate. Cultural
interact with Indigenous communities. of years, while also reducing fuel loads that fire for ecosystems is a dynamic practice
help to lessen negative impacts of bushfire in that can be continued or re-established to
Cultural values and identity multiple ways. Cultural burning often involves achieve many benefits. These have been
One of the most significant cultural land more patchy, frequent and low-intensity fire well demonstrated through Indigenous-led
management movements is Indigenous regimes, which reduce inappropriate outcomes programs such as the Firesticks Alliance.
cultural fire management, knowledge and of fire for species and habitats. Cultural The Firesticks Alliance provides leadership,
practice. Cultural fire management listens burning may not reduce as much fuel during advocacy and action to protect and enhance
to country and draws on Indigenous each fire event compared to some hazard cultural and natural values of people and
Traditional Ecological Knowledge and reduction or back-burning; however, over time, Country through cultural fire and land
the fundamental cultural responsibilities the cumulative effect of cultural burning can management practices. Firesticks values
of Indigenous communities. Cultural fire lead to longer-term fuel reduction and more
and respects Country, local knowledge
management is based on people’s cultural resilient ecosystems and communities. and the protocols of Elders and ancestors.
connections and authority to care for Country.
High-intensity fires have significant immediate We are committed to providing a supportive
Fire is important in managing the kinship
and long-lasting impacts on the presence, Indigenous-led community of practice
between people, species and places.
distribution and abundance of species. to maintain and share cultural fire
Fire management practices respond to
Inappropriate fire regimes can often promote knowledge and practice on Country.
cultural values and indicators of the
dysfunctional ecosystems, contributing to
Country types (cultural ecosystems). Further information
their longer-term decline and, often, an
Oliver Costello
Cultural values and indicators reflect the accumulation of fuel. This vegetation
workshops@firesticks.org.au
cultural and natural features of a community’s regrowth can lead to more frequent and
relationships to a particular Country. intense fires, due to its type and structure.
IMAGE: VERA HONG
Bundanon night fire, National Firesticks Workshop, 2018.
5
Magazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub New shoots start the long road to recovery.
Plants in
the ashes:
Prioritising Australian
flora after the fires IMAGE: ANNE KERLE
Australia has one of the highest rates of plant endemism of any country globally. After the catastrophic fire season
of 2019–20, Dr Rachael Gallagher and Professor David Keith are leading two teams to find out which species
and ecological communities are most in need of immediate recovery.
During the 2019–20 bushfire season, over on-ground actions and legislative protections Threats affecting fire recovery
12 million hectares of Australia burned. to ensure their survival. in plants
Many thousands of species were affected, For many species, the bushfires were an
A national prioritisation exercise is providing
and much focus has been on the rescue and additional stressor that worsened the effects
an evidence base for decision-making to
care of Australia’s animals. Yet Australia is of other threats affecting plant recruitment,
inform the work of the Wildlife and Threatened
home to around 25,000 native plant species, growth and survival. In recognition of
Species Bushfire Recovery Expert Panel chaired
most of which are endemic and many that this, several of the 11 criteria concern the
by the Threatened Species Commissioner.
had more than 90% of their range burnt. interacting effects on species of threats like
The prioritisation is based on 11 criteria
While many Australian plants are adapted developed by Dr Tony Auld and colleagues drought, disease, grazing, weed invasion
to fire and thrive through resprouting and within the New South Wales Department of and changing temperatures. For instance,
fire-induced seed germination, the fires have Planning, Infrastructure and Environment to plants that have lost carbohydrate reserves
compounded the effects of other threats such identify species suffering the greatest likely because of prolonged drought conditions may
as drought, grazing, disease or flooding, or impacts. The criteria first ask how much of the struggle to resprout after fire, particularly
made many plants more susceptible to those distribution of each species or community fell if their storage or regenerative organs have
threats. This may significantly increase the within the area burnt by the 2019–20 fires. been damaged. Pre-fire drought can also slow
risks of local, and even global, extinction. For the 19,004 plants so far assessed, up down reproduction, reducing the size of the
Australia’s plant communities face similar to 11,887 likely have some part of their seed bank available for post-fire recruitment.
issues and there is an urgent need for range burnt, and 76–136 more than 90% To assess this risk, we coupled plant and
burnt. These estimates are based on three ecological community distribution data to
IMAGE: BRETT SUMMERELL complementary lines of evidence about species’ estimates of the accumulated severity of
ranges: herbarium occurrence data; modelled drought in the year before the fire season
distributions based on climates and soils; (see Figures A and B). Accumulated drought
or – for species listed under the EPBC Act – severity was based on the Standardised
regulatory maps. Using multiple sources to Precipitation Index, which measures
estimate species’ ranges helps to prevent the variation in precipitation relative
over- or underestimating where plants occur to the average.
in the landscape. Although knowing how Of the species we examined so far for the
much of the species range may have been prioritisation, we considered 176 to be at
burnt is crucial, it is just part of the puzzle high risk from pre-fire drought interacting
for understanding the impacts. with the impact of fire.
LEFT: Boronia imlayensis.
6 Science for saving species #16
IMAGE: BRETT SUMMERELL
Figure A Figure B Figure C
A) Accumulated severity of drought conditions in December 2019 over the previous 12-month period. More negative values correspond to more severe drought;
(B) Classification of areas of significant pre-fire drought conditions used to assess against Criterion A – Interactive effects of fire and drought;
(C) Boronia imlayensis had more than 95% of its range burned amid existing threats from prolonged drought conditions.
The ability of these species, such as the shrub Cooperation across borders IMAGE: ANNE KERLE
Boronia imlayensis, to resprout after the fires The national prioritisation for plants and TECs
may be seriously compromised by pre-fire involves cooperation across jurisdictions, with
drought. The Mount Imlay Boronia (Figure C) – many agency staff from fire-affected states
which is currently not listed as threatened – and territories providing data and knowledge,
has a highly restricted range, at least 96% alongside the Australian Government
of which was burnt. Unless its populations Department of Agriculture, Water and the
recover adequately, this species is now Environment. For instance, agencies have
at risk of extinction. shared and integrated data on plant traits and
Other interacting threats may limit the fire extent to provide a more comprehensive
capacity of species to recover, such as picture of impact, while also helping to identify
high fire frequency (Criteria B and K), key gaps in our knowledge. The process has
browsing and grazing of regenerating highlighted the need for rapid delivery of fire-
shoots (Criterion C) and the impact of mapping products and standardised national
diseases, such as myrtle rust and data about how plants respond to fire.
Phytophthora root rot, on regenerating Assessing extinction risk against IUCN Red
plants (Criterion D). List criteria for fire-affected plants and
For instance, the Eastern Stirling Range ecosystems will also require collaboration, The resprouting and germination currently
with experts contributing their knowledge underway may be jeopardised by the cascading
Montane Heath and Thicket Threatened
and data. We have already prioritised 471 effects of post-fire drought, grazing, weed
Ecological Community (TEC) is currently invasion or disease.
listed as Endangered in the EPBC Act and plant species and 19 TECs for the $12 million
was entirely burnt. Importantly, most of the Wildlife and Habitat Bushfire Recovery
Program. Many of these species need on- A combination of boots on the ground, fingers
TEC had also been burnt 18 months earlier,
ground research to gather evidence about on the laptops and minds on the analysis of
leaving little time for adequate recovery.
population size, threats and decline for listing data will be crucial to recovering Australian
Further, it is faced with significant risk from
under the EPBC Act or state legislation. vegetation for the future.
root rot disease, which seems to have even
greater impacts on plant survival post-fire. Although ex-situ collection of seed material Further information
may be necessary in rare cases, the seed banks Rachael Gallagher
Ongoing analyses are showing that some of the affected species should be allowed to Rachael.gallagher@mq.edu.au
locations in New South Wales and Western replenish after the fires. This means avoiding
Australia have intervals between fires that are David Keith
follow-up fires for the next few years and
likely too short for recovery of the vegetation. David.keith@unsw.edu.au
preventing over-harvest of flowers and seed.
Species in these areas are likely to become Further reading
locally extinct and replaced by species Given the richness of the Australian flora
https://www.environment.gov.au/
with short generation times or non-woody and the vast area of the continent, a
biodiversity/bushfire-recovery/priority-plants
underground root stalks, unless there collaborative approach to ecological
are no further fires in the near future. research has never been more important.
Regenerating cycads on the south coast of New South Wales.
IMAGE: ANNE KERLE
7
Magazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub
About three-quarters of the habitat of
Kangaroo Island’s Endangered glossy
black-cockatoo population burned
in the January 2020 bushfires.
Prioritising action
for animal species
after the fires IMAGE: NICOLAS RAKOTOPARE
The 2019–20 bushfires burnt over 12 million hectares of south-eastern and south-western Australia, causing abrupt losses
of biodiversity at a scale never seen before. Over a billion animals were estimated to have died, but the figure is likely much
higher. The Australian Government’s Wildlife and Threatened Species Bushfire Recovery Expert Panel is guiding the work of
prioritising species and ecological communities for emergency interventions and determining what those actions should
be. Hub Deputy Director and Expert Panel member Professor Sarah Legge takes us though the hows and whys of this
prioritisation, and some of its challenges.
Conservation scientists and managers have State, territory and Commonwealth been so heavily impacted that they also now
never experienced anything like these governments rapidly developed strategic face extinction risks. We assessed all listed
wildfires before, and no precedent existed responses, to which many non-government species with distributions that overlapped
for designing and implementing a response. and community groups aligned. with fire by at least 10% and all unlisted
The crisis elicited extraordinary and immediate species whose distributions overlapped
In mid-January, the Threatened Species
cooperation among governments, NGOs, with fire by at least 30%. This resulted
Commissioner convened an Expert Panel
community groups, universities and carer in an assessment list of over 220 species.
to guide the national response to fire-affected
groups, aiming to reduce post-fire mortality
species, ecological communities, natural assets To assess relative impacts across these
and suffering, and support population recovery.
and their Indigenous cultural values. The panel species, we considered three questions:
BELOW: Between 50 and 80% of the range produced the first priority list three weeks
1. How threatened was the species before
of the Hastings River mouse (Pseudomys oralis) later, after an assessment of all fire-affected
the bushfires? Species that already faced a
was affected by fire. vertebrates, nationally listed terrestrial
high risk of extinction may have been brought
invertebrates and spiny crayfish (with
to the brink. As a proxy to identify these
these two invertebrate groups included
species, we used threatened species lists
because information was readily available).
from Australia’s Environment Protection and
Expert Panel members, who include hub
Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 as well
members, collaborated with many other
as the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
experts, Birdlife Australia and staff from the
Australian Government to develop this list. 2. How much of the species’ distribution
was burnt? The more of a species’ range
How to make a priority list of species that was burnt, the greater the risks. Staff
In assessing vertebrates and spiny crayfish, from the Department of Agriculture, Water
we considered all species, not just those and the Environment and BirdLife Australia
already listed as threatened. This was used national fire maps, and combinations of
because while the fires have worsened the distribution models, distribution maps and
predicament for some threatened species, observation records to generate figures. The
IMAGE: DOUG BECKERS CC BY-SA 2.0 WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
others that were previously secure may have task was especially tricky for fish, which can
8 Science for saving species #16
be affected by ash and sediment from fires
many kilometres upstream. To account for
this, we considered the incidence of fire in
catchments upstream of each species, as well
as the fire overlap with their distribution.
3. Does the species have physical,
behavioural or other characteristics that
make it more susceptible to impacts during
or after fire? Not all species are affected
by fire in the same way. For example, highly
mobile species like white-throated needletails
are more able to flee a fire front than most
ground-living animals. Wombats sheltering
in deep burrows are more likely to survive
a fire event than long-footed potoroos
sheltering under vegetation.
Animals that survive the fire itself can still IMAGE: BENJAMINT444 CC BY-SA 3.0 WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
die in the fire aftermath, from starvation,
The Endangered Macquarie perch is one of the priority fish species identified as having over 50% of
predation and exposure, and some
its range affected by fire or post-fire sedimentation events.
characteristics make species more or less
vulnerable to these fates. For example, species
post-fire habitat degradation by introduced data for many species is scattered across
with specialised diets like the Kangaroo Island
herbivores (e.g., the northern corroboree databases, and is of variable and sometimes
glossy black-cockatoo are more likely to starve
frog), often need actions to remove pests like poor quality. A key task will be identifying the
post-fire than less fussy eaters. We gathered
goats, deer and horses. Fish species with small impediments to an effective rapid response
information on characteristics that affect
distributions, like stocky galaxias, which could so that we can quickly and confidently
the risk of fire and post-fire mortality from
die from sediment slugs coming down their respond to future natural disasters.
the literature and experts to rank species
waterways in the days or weeks after fire,
within taxonomic groups according to Assessments were led by Sarah Legge, John Woinarski,
were collected and brought into captivity. An Stephen Garnett, Dale Nimmo, Ben Scheele, Mark
their relative susceptibility to fire.
insurance population of eastern bristlebirds Lintermans, Nicki Mitchell, Nick Whiterod and Glen
Our assessment identified 119 species was flown out of Mallacoota by helicopter as Ehmke, with contributions from many species experts
(23 reptiles, 16 frogs, 17 birds, 20 mammals, flames approached the town. For very rare and state/territory agency representatives. Staff
5 invertebrates, 22 crayfish and 16 fish) as species that are prone to post-fire predation from the Department of Agriculture, Water and the
highest priority for management intervention. (e.g., the western ground parrot), controlling Environment (especially the Environmental Resources
Species that were highly threatened before introduced predators becomes critical. Information Network (Geospatial and Information
Analytics Branch), the Protected Species and
the fire, and have distributions that were
These initial prioritisations can and will Communities Branch and the Office of the Threatened
substantially burnt, were ranked high
be further refined and updated, as we Species Commissioner) and Expert Panel members
priority regardless of their trait assessment. also made significant contributions.
understand more about the variation in fire
But for other species that were either less
severity across the burnt areas, and as field Further information
threatened before the fire, and/or whose
data on population survival begins to come Sarah Legge
distributions were less impacted by fires,
in. Hopefully, some species have done better sarahmarialegge@gmail.com
the trait assessments came into play.
than expected, and we will understand why,
For example, unlisted species including
which will help shape our responses in the Further reading
pilotbirds and red-browed treecreepers
future. Alternatively, and less happily, further https://www.environment.gov.au/
were prioritised ahead of the nationally
information may indicate that some species biodiversity/bushfire-recovery/priority-
Vulnerable white-throated needletail, partly
have been more affected than our initial animals
because the latter has traits that make it
assessment has indicated. https://theconversation.com/after-the-
much less susceptible to fire impacts.
In the effort to respond rapidly to the bushfires, bushfires-we-helped-choose-the-animals-
A roadmap for the future shortcomings in fundamental data have and-plants-in-most-need-heres-how-we-
The assessment of species characteristics become apparent. For example, compiling a did-it-138736
also flagged the emergency actions that national map of burnt areas was difficult work
could help priority species. For example, and had to draw on several data sources; and
herbivorous species or species sensitive to both distribution information and monitoring
The Vulnerable three-toed snake-tooth skink (Coeranoscincus reticulatus)
lost 10–30% of its habitat in the 2019–20 fires. IMAGE: BERNARD DUPONT CC BY-SA 2.0 FLICKR 9
Magazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub A western grey kangaroo (Kangaroo Island subspecies) on
Kangaroo Island in February 2020. The 2019–20 wildfires have
severely impacted the wildlife in many regions.
Fire and post-fire impacts
on wildlife groups, and priority
conservation responses IMAGE: NICOLAS RAKOTOPARE
The 2019–20 wildfires have severely impacted animals of all major species groups. Here, national experts on mammals,
birds, reptiles, frogs and freshwater fish and crayfish present some of the key challenges for each group and how these
will influence management and research priorities in the aftermath of the fires.
Mammals Specialised resource needs are another Birds
Impacts to koalas were very visible in media vulnerability: the golden-tipped bat roosts
IMAGE: RON KNIGHT CC BY 2.0 FLICKR
coverage of the bushfires, but some other mainly in the domed nests of a few bird
mammal species were even harder hit, such as species in the understorey, which are
the Kangaroo Island dunnart with an estimated not likely to reappear for several years.
95% of its known distribution burnt. Many mammals require tree hollows
for breeding and denning. Fire reduces
Some characteristics mark the mammal the number of hollows, and post-fire
species most affected. Those with small regrowth may not provide suitable
distributional ranges (such as the silver- hollows for at least 100 years.
headed antechinus and long-footed potoroo)
Many, like the smoky mouse, are likely Mallee emu-wren.
may readily lose much of their population to
to be killed by introduced predators after
single catastrophic events. Even species with
fire; while others, like broad-toothed rats, That birds have wings should mean they
large home ranges, such as spotted-tailed
need unburnt vegetation, but this may can readily escape fires. And some do,
quolls, can be very affected when unburnt
be degraded by introduced herbivores. even species that are not strong fliers. Following
patches are too small for survivors to be able the fires on Kangaroo Island, a survey team
to repopulate. Many Australian mammals, Given these susceptibilities, a variety of
found extraordinary densities of emu-wrens
such as greater gliders, also have very low management responses is needed, depending
and western whipbirds in tiny pockets of habitat
reproductive rates, so recovery may not upon the species and landscape setting.
spared by the fire, refugees from the scorched
Control of introduced predators (cats and
happen before the next large fire. woodland. Unfortunately, successful refugees
foxes) and herbivores will be critical, as
are the minority given the heat and extent of
IMAGE: JODY GATES will enhancement of habitat, for example,
last summer’s intense fires. While mobility
by establishing nest boxes, safeguarding
helps some birds, the characteristics affecting
unburnt patches and carefully nurturing
recovery of species will include the number of
recovery of burnt vegetation.
offspring they raise per year, whether they nest
Professor John Woinarski in tree hollows (as there may be a shortage of
Charles Darwin University these), how far young birds disperse (as that
john.woinarski@cdu.edu.au affects how quickly they can fill recovering
Professor Sarah Legge habitat), and the sensitivity of the habitat the
The Australian National University birds need to fire (were plants killed or is
Kangaroo Island dunnart. sarahmarialegge@gmail.com fire-damaged vegetation resprouting?).
10 Science for saving species #16Post-fire research and management will Frogs more vulnerable to predators (other fish and
focus on recovery. While in a few places Australia has around 240 frog species, birds) and to increased water temperatures.
marked birds will allow estimates of individual with most found along the east coast and After intense rainfall, ash and sediment move
survival, most research will be about the speed ranges. Although rarely seen, frogs are vital rapidly, and have been documented causing
and circumstances under which populations to many ecosystems. The 16 frog species fish mortality for up to 80 km downstream.
return to their previous densities. How quickly found to be most impacted by the fires Many fish were already suffering reduced
do birds identify recovering habitat as suitable? occupy diverse habitats: rainforest, snow populations and distributions from the
What features make it so – habitat structure, country, woodlands and dry forest. prolonged drought. Already threatened
food availability or nesting opportunities?
IMAGE: BEN SCHEELE
species with any of the following features
Where have the recovering populations come
have an increased risk from fire impacts:
from – close by or far away? What is necessary
very restricted distributions; lay eggs on
for recovering habitat – nest hollow erection,
the base of the stream; depend on insects
predator control or active management of
falling into the waterways from overhanging
vegetation features? Most management is likely
vegetation for food; are short-lived; or
to be passive – with the fires an opportunity
breed only annually.
to assess recovery – but it will provide a
basis for the inevitable next time. Most threatened fish cannot simply
move away from fire-affected areas,
Professor Stephen Garnett
so monitoring the impacts of fires and
Charles Darwin University A northern corroboree frog on recently burnt
recovery of populations and habitat is
stephen.garnett@cdu.edu.au sphagnum moss.
critical. No knowledge exists of captive-
The most severely impacted frog species share breeding requirements for most fish
Reptiles
two key characteristics. First, all but one was “rescued” during fires. Such investigation
The Kaputar skink occurs across 11,000
already listed as threatened (IUCN Red List) – into breeding requirements will be
hectares of the Nandewar Ranges of New
with disease, habitat loss and climate change essential to post-fire recovery.
South Wales, and nowhere else. As the ranges
all drivers of decline. Due to their pre-existing
burned, destroying more than 60% of its Associate Professor Mark Lintermans
small population size, any reduction in survival
known habitat, fears grew for it. Likewise for University of Canberra
is likely to reduce population viability. Second
Kate’s leaf tail gecko, known only from a few mark.lintermans@canberra.edu.au
was small ranges. For example, several of the
sites in northern New South Wales, all of which
mountain frogs (genus Philoria) are restricted Freshwater crayfish
burned. The Blue Mountains water skink drew
to remnant rainforest patches on mountain
attention because populations were already
tops. For these species, the fires are likely to
in marked decline before the fires and the
have affected a high proportion of their range.
fires would further exacerbate this.
We now have an opportunity to study frog
responses to fire and close gaps in our
knowledge. Also integral to management
will be resolving taxonomic uncertainty.
For example, several of the assessed species
are thought to contain populations that
IMAGE: ROB MCCORMACK
may be separate species.
The undescribed but already highly threatened
Dr Ben Scheele arte spiny crayfish (Euastacus sp.1).
The Australian National University
IMAGE: SARSHAG7 CC BY SA 4.0 WIKIMEDIA ben.scheele@anu.edu.au Freshwater crayfish are inconspicuous
casualties of the bushfires. Their aquatic
The Endangered Blue Mountains water skink,
Eulamprus leuraensis. Freshwater fish environments and burrows are deceptively
unsafe; post-fire impacts can be severe
The reptiles considered most likely to be nearing for days, months and even years. As with
extinction and requiring urgent management freshwater fish, rainfall events soon after fire
intervention due to the fires are often, like can be perilous. Additionally, many freshwater
these three, narrowly distributed and, in many crayfish, including those from the Euastacus
cases, already imperilled. However, fire does not genus of spiny crayfish, are already threatened
affect all species equally. Some can survive fires, and possess distinctive traits – small home
for instance, smaller lizards sheltering in tiny ranges, limited dispersal, slow growth and low
crevices, while species occurring in vegetation egg production – that make them inherently
types that burn more often probably have IMAGE: H. ALLAN ill-equipped to recover. Twenty-two Euastacus
adaptations to fire. In the immediate and more species (almost 40% of all known members
Stocky galaxias, one of the fish species rescued
barren post-fire landscape, species that generally of the genus) are considered to need urgent
during the fires.
use the shelter of leaf litter or vegetation are management intervention following the
Freshwater fish are largely protected from
likely to be at greater risk from predators, while bushfires. This includes gathering knowledge
flames and radiant heat, although in very
reptiles that dwell under rocks or in burrows about ranges, identifying remnant populations
small, shallow streams they can be impacted.
might be better able to persist. Interventions and assessing the feasibility of conservation
However, fish are severely affected by post-fire
to stave off extinction for reptiles post-fire will translocations. Without such actions, many
rainfall. Fire removes vegetative ground cover
vary depending on the species, but often include spiny crayfish species will be pushed closer
so that subsequent rainfall can wash ash and
control of invasive predators and herbivores. to extinction, and some may be lost.
sediment into streams. This clogs fish gills
Dr Dale Nimmo and smothers food, spawning and refuge sites, Dr Nick Whiterod
Charles Sturt University and can rapidly fill pools. Combined with the Aquasave-Nature Glenelg Trust
dnimmo@csu.edu.au loss of overhanging vegetation this leaves fish nick.whiterod@aquasave.com.au
11Magazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub
The little
things
count too:
Prioritising
recovery
efforts for
fire-affected
invertebrates Green carpenter bee. IMAGE: ROBERT WHYTE
Professor John Woinarski of Charles Darwin University discusses the importance of averting extinctions of less charismatic animals.
Much media reporting on the impacts of few publicly accessible distributional records. plant species in Western Australia’s Stirling
the 2019–20 fires on wildlife focused on Little or no monitoring information exists for Range, all of which were consumed by the fires.
searing images of burnt koalas and kangaroos. most invertebrate species, so pre-fire baseline
Our priority list is likely to be a vast
These images brought home to the community abundance and trends are mostly unknown.
underestimate. Building on this initial
the loss of biodiversity and galvanised the Also, for many species little is known about
assessment, the Threatened Species Recovery
response of concerned governments, but the ecological traits and life histories and how
Hub is undertaking a more comprehensive
impacts were far more pervasive than just these would influence susceptibility to fire.
analysis of fire-affected invertebrates. This
on those animals most familiar to us.
Furthermore, many invertebrates lead project will also help to identify those species
Attracting far less attention was the impact complicated lives, and even a single species that should now be listed as threatened; and
of these fires on invertebrates. However, if can be affected by fire very differently at to prioritise management responses to aid
extinctions occurred due to these fires, it was different life stages. For example, a fire recovery of the most-affected species.
most likely to have happened to invertebrate may be inconsequential to a cicada if at
Invertebrates do not have a high profile in our
species. Mostly this is because there are so the time of the fire most of its population
community, and some may see little point in
many invertebrate species (about 320,000 was in underground life stages.
worrying about losses of obscure invertebrate
in Australia, about 1000 times the number
The path to recovery species. But losses of any species diminish our
of Australian mammal species), and many
nature; and the legal and policy framework
of these have very small ranges, readily Notwithstanding these challenges, we
developed a list of nearly 200 invertebrate in which we live provides clear recognition
encompassed by a single fire.
species for which the available information of the need to try to prevent extinction.
Difficulties of the poorly known suggests severe fire impacts. Almost all of these Furthermore, invertebrates play critical roles
With contributions from many experts, species have had more than 50% of their range in ecological function and many of these roles,
the Australian Government’s expert advisory burnt; many have had more than 80% burnt; such as pollination, may be necessary for the
panel coordinated an assessment to identify and some have had all of their range burnt. recovery of ecosystems after fire. We should
priority fire-affected invertebrate species be concerned about the fate of little things.
The list of fire-affected invertebrates includes a
most in need of remedial conservation Further reading
very wide variety of species, including spiders,
management. This proved a particularly https://www.environment.gov.au/
land snails, dragonflies, beetles, grasshoppers,
challenging exercise because limited relevant biodiversity/bushfire-recovery/priority-
moths and butterflies. Most of these species
information is available to inform assessments. invertebrates
have very small distributions, unhappily
Many Australian invertebrate species have coinciding with these fires. One such example Further information
not yet been formally described. Even when is the Banksia montana mealybug, a tiny scale John Woinarksi
a species has been described there are often insect that existed only in a few bushes of one John.Woinarski@cdu.edu.au
12 Science for saving species #16IMAGE: JJ HARRISON CC BY-SA 4.0 WIKIMEDIA COMMONS Fire consumed over half the habitat
of the only bird species endemic to
New South Wales, the rock warbler.
Protecting persistence:
Listing species after the fires
Professor Stephen Garnett of Charles Darwin University walks us through how listing works to afford legal protection
to species newly at risk of extinction.
Such was the scale of the 2019–20 fires that Other IUCN criteria are for species with small unprecedented conflagrations of heavy fuel
many species thought secure suddenly lost ranges (occupyingMagazine of the Threatened Species Recovery Hub IMAGE: DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, WATER AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Box gum grassy woodland on the private ‘Gillinghall’
property near Wellington, New South Wales.
Post-fire recovery
of Australia’s
threatened woodlands:
Avoiding uncharted trajectories
The 2019–20 bushfires burnt some of Australia’s most threatened woodland communities. Researchers from The University of
Melbourne have been building a State and Transition Model based on expert knowledge to help inform recovery planning for
Australia’s threatened woodland communities. Here, Dr Megan Good and Dr Libby Rumpff demonstrate how their framework
could inform post-fire monitoring and management to avoid negative outcomes for threatened woodland ecosystems.
Threatened woodland communities Post-fire regional analysis has so far Experts identified a series of common
devastated highlighted at least eight woodland “states” of woodland condition found
Australian woodlands occupy 12% of the communities as priorities for recovery across southern Australia, as well as both
continent (91.5 million ha) and have declined action in at least one Natural Resorce positive drivers and threats that can push
more than any other major vegetation group Management region. the condition state of woodlands in different
since European occupation – currently over 30 directions. Degraded states are more
woodland communities are listed as threatened Recovery planning for woodlands common, and without intervention negative
under the Environment Protection and There are many threatened woodland transitions (towards degraded states) are
Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). communities, but few have recovery plans to more likely than positive transitions (towards
guide management, although other simpler better condition states). This highlights
The catastrophic bushfires of the 2019–20 documentation such as a Conservation Advice the importance of preventative threat
summer significantly impacted almost half is published at the time of listing. Our project management in these woodland systems.
of these woodland communities and affected began in 2017, with the aim of determining
their component plants and animals general principles to increase the information Pre-fire condition and post-fire
over thousands of hectares. available to support fast and effective recovery trajectories
planning and other management interventions We know that many vegetation communities
IMAGE: MEGAN GOOD
and planning. To this end, we have been will recover well from fire, and some need fire
working with woodland experts from across to maintain ecosystem health and biodiversity.
southern Australia to synthesise knowledge However, listed threatened communities have
from a broad range of eucalypt woodlands. other pre-existing and ongoing threats that can
reduce their resilience to fire, such as severe
At the heart of this project is a State
drought, fragmentation, soil disturbance,
and Transition Model (STM). STMs help
grazing and invasive species. Woodland
conservation managers better understand
communities facing multiple post-fire threats
how woodlands function and respond to
will almost certainly need assistance to
management actions. Managers can use
recover through management interventions.
them to decide on the start and end points
for restoration, identify the key threats to Understanding the pre-fire condition of
recovery, and explore which interventions a burnt woodland can tell us a lot about
might best target those threats. the probable post-fire trajectory.
LEFT: Research assistant on the “Woodland recovery planning” project Freja Butler
14 Science for saving species #16 in the field north-east of Shepparton, on land of the Taungurung people.Landscape context and fragmentation are when our starting points and management Figure 1A
similarly important, as they might indicate interventions differ. Where resources are
the abundance of native or weedy species limited, we can use this framework to
that are likely to act as a seed source for prioritise effort and investment.
regenerating woodlands. Small patches of
woodland surrounded by cropping or sown Decisions! Decisions!
pastures will have different requirements for After these unprecedented fires, management
post-fire management than larger patches, decisions should be made quickly with
or patches surrounded by native species. whatever information is available. Ongoing
For example, the Critically Endangered monitoring is also critical to ensure that
Lowland Grassy Woodland in the South East negative trajectories are identified early,
Corner Bioregion, which has 30–50% of its while we can still intervene.
distribution in fire-affected areas, is one of A major aim of this project was to generalise
Australia’s most at-risk ecological communities and transfer understanding from one system
following the fires. Pre-fire condition would to another to aid effective conservation
have varied across the burnt area, and this
management, without losing critical aspects
makes a difference. For instance, some of that
of what defines each distinct woodland type.
land may have been in poor condition, like
Experts helped to construct a generalised
grazed pasture (“Simplified 4” state in our
model to speed up the decision-making
model – see Figure 1). The general advice from
process about what works best and where,
our expert model, if the aim were to shift to an
and for the examples provided above, our
improved condition state (e.g. “Simplified 1” –
recommendations align well with and
like a high-quality roadside reserve) would
supplement the official conservation advice
be to remove stock, actively control weeds,
(EPBC Act 1999) for listed woodlands.
and replant trees and shrubs or encourage
This demonstrates the value of providing
and protect any passive tree recruitment.
structured guidance for managing ongoing
Indeed, a fire may provide an opportunity to
threats and large-scale disturbances
improve the condition of the site by removing
weeds, but only if active management is such as fires as we continue to work
implemented before weeds recolonise. towards woodland recovery.
Acknowledgement
In contrast, some of the area might have been This article was prepared with contributions from Figure 1B
in a better condition state, like a roadside Mark Bourne and Matthew White of the Australian
reserve with a relatively intact understorey Government Department of Agriculture, Water and
(“Simplified 2”). In general, it is much easier the Environment.
to encourage a return to the pre-fire state This work is based on an expert elicitation project
than to increase the condition of that state, led by Hannah Fraser with assistance from Elliot
but active management is still required. Gould and Peter Vesk. The woodland experts
Protecting a regenerating understorey would consulted for this project were: Matt Appleby,
be wise. In this case, our general model Mark Bourne, David Duncan, Carl Gosper,
suggests removing stock and managing Chris Jones, Rebecca Jordan, Suzanne Prober,
grazing pressure (closing water holes), Stephanie Pulsford, Anna Richards, Dan Rogers,
Steve Sinclair, Ayesha Tulloch and John Wright.
and proactive weed management.
Here, we considered two pre-fire condition Further information
states of a single woodland community. Megan Good
A decision tree, like those developed in goodm@unimelb.edu.au
our project (Figures 1A and 1B), can Libby Rumpff
clarify which outcomes we might expect lrumpff@unimelb.edu.au
IMAGE: LIBBY RUMPFF The best remnants of many threatened
woodlands occur in road corridors.
Figure 1. Example decision trees extracted from our
general State and Transition Models for southern
Australian woodlands. These can be used to guide
management decisions for woodlands in different
pre-fire condition states. Figure 1A shows the types
of decisions that might guide the recovery of a
woodland in a grazed pasture state (Simplified 4)
towards an improved state (Simplified 1). In contrast,
Figure 1B shows how a relatively high-quality site
could be managed. 15You can also read
