ORCID Profile
0000-0001-9425-8296
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Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2021
DOI: 10.1071/WR20042
Abstract: Abstract ContextFeral goats (Capra hircus) are a significant pest species throughout southern Australia. They threaten rare plants, contribute to soil erosion, compete with domestic stock, and are implicated in the decline of several native herbivores. Feral goats are a declared pest and control is often implemented. AimsWe fitted feral goats with GPS collars in semiarid South Australia to determine whether they could provide valuable information for regional management. MethodsNineteen feral goats (6 males and 13 females) were fitted with GPS collars between 2009 and 2018. Kernel-density estimates (KDE) were used to estimate annual and seasonal home range and core areas and habitat selection. The effect of monthly rainfall, daily maximum temperatures, and watering points on movement patterns was investigated. Key resultsStock watering points and rock holes were used by some radio-tracked goats intermittently when available however, goats survived and reproduced without the use of these water sources. The use of the radio-collared goats as Judas goats helped facilitate the removal of 9725 goats from a 50000-ha area over 8 years. There was no significant difference between male and female annual or seasonal home ranges, with 95% MCP annual ranges of 11533ha and 15996ha for males and females respectively. Summer ranges were smaller than winter ranges. There was no difference in daily distance moved between sexes (average 3.4km), but goats moved further in low-rainfall periods. Goats spent most of their time in mallee woodlands, the dominant habitat type available, but preferred shrubland of & -m height and used less mallee woodland and shrubland of & -m height than was expected from availability. During hotter periods, these habitat preferences became more distinct. ConclusionsTo reduce goat abundance on a property, active control and waterpoint closure need to extend more than 15km from property boundaries, and shrubland habitat of & -m height should be targeted for control after rainfall events when goats move less. Radio-collared goats provided important habitat-preference information to inform priority areas for goat control remote from water sources. ImplicationsClosing artificial watering point and regular trapping and mustering at remaining waters is insufficient to remove residual goat herds without additional targeted control in preferred habitat.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 27-11-2017
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-07-2016
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 23-03-2020
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-03-2020
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12865
Abstract: Sympatric species can minimise interspecific competition by spatial avoidance or by altering their temporal activity to reduce encounter rates. The Tasmanian devil ( Sarcophilus harrisii ), the largest carnivorous marsupial, coexists with the smaller spotted‐tailed quoll ( Dasyurus maculatus ) in Tasmania, Australia. Quolls may be susceptible to interspecific competition from devils, because they utilise similar habitats, consume similar prey species and are displaced by devils at food sources. Such competition might cause quolls to spatially or temporally avoid devils. To investigate whether spatial or temporal avoidance occurred, we deployed GPS collars on sympatric devils and quolls and conducted a camera survey at a site in northwest Tasmania where the devil population was not affected by devil facial tumour disease. GPS tracking coincided with the lactation period when devils and quolls had young in dens and continued until weaning occurred. We found little spatial segregation of home range and core area placement between devils and quolls and among devils. Quolls showed more spatial segregation within the sexes than between them. Devils had larger home ranges than quolls. Male devils had larger home ranges than females, but there was no difference in home range size between the sexes of quolls. Females of both species travelled significantly further per night than did males. There was moderate temporal partitioning between the two species: devil activity peaked after dusk and devils remained active until the early morning, while quoll activity showed distinct peaks around dusk and dawn. In conclusion, quolls did not spatially avoid devils but moderate temporal partitioning occurred. It is plausible that quolls are active at different times of the diel cycle to reduce encountering devils, but further studies are needed to resolve the cause of this temporal partitioning.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-09-2017
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-017-11454-Z
Abstract: Many carnivores are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation. These changes create linear features and habitat edges that can facilitate foraging and/or travel. To understand the significance of anthropogenic linear features in the ecology of carnivores, fine-scaled studies are needed. We studied two medium-sized carnivores: the endangered Tasmanian devil ( Sarcophilus harrisii ) and the near threatened spotted-tailed quoll ( Dasyurus maculatus ), in a mixed landscape of conservation and agricultural land. Using GPS tracking, we investigated their use of intact habitat versus linear features such as roads, fences and the pasture/cover interface. Both species showed a positive selection for anthropogenic linear features, using the pasture/cover interface for foraging and roads for movement and foraging. Devils travelled along fence lines, while quolls showed little preference for them. Otherwise, both species foraged in forest and travelled through pasture. While devils and quolls can utilise anthropogenic linear features, we suggest that their continued survival in these habitats may depend on the intensity of other threats, e.g. persecution, and providing that sufficient intact habitat remains to sustain their ecological needs. We suggest that the management of both species and probably many other species of carnivores should focus on controlling mortality factors associated with human use of landscapes.
No related grants have been discovered for Georgina Andersen.