T. Simmons

Bio: T. Simmons is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Tree-kangaroo & Dendrolagus lumholtzi. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 13 citations.

Conservation strategy for Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo on the Atherton Tablelands.

Abstract: Lumholtz’s tree-kangaroo (Dendrolagus lumholtzi) is a large (10 kg max.) arboreal marsupial endemic to the rainforests of north Queensland, Australia. According to museum records, community surveys and spotlighting data, the species is most abundant in higher elevation rainforests (above 700 – 800 m a.s.l.) on the Atherton Tablelands, particularly on fertile basalt soils (Newell 1999; Kanowski et al. 2001a, b). Clearing has reduced the area of this prime habitat for D. lumholtzi from approximately 66 000 ha to 25 000 ha. Extensive areas of prime habitat are now restricted to the Herberton Range on the western edge of the Tablelands (Fig 1).

Targeted protection and restoration to conserve tropical biodiversity in a warming world

Abstract: Complex landscapes interact with meteorological processes to generate climatically suitable habitat (refuges) in otherwise hostile environments. Locating these refuges has practical importance in tropical montane regions where a high diversity of climatically specialized species is threatened by climate change. Here, we use a combination of weather data and spatial modeling to quantify thermally buffered environments in a regional tropical rainforest. We do this by constructing a spatial surface of maximum air temperature that takes into account important climate-mediating processes. We find a strong attenuating effect of elevation, distance from coast and foliage cover on maximum temperature. The core habitat of a disproportionately high number of endemic species (45%) is encompassed within just 25% of the coolest identified rainforest. We demonstrate how this data can be used to (i) identify important areas of cool habitat for protection and (ii) efficiently guide restoration in degraded landscapes to expand extant networks of critical cool habitat.

Beetle species’ responses suggest that microclimate mediates fragmentation effects in tropical Australian rainforest

Abstract: Despite the enormous contribution of invertebrates to global biodiversity and ecosystem function, the patterns and causes of insect responses to tropical rainforest destruction and fragmentation remain poorly understood We studied the responses of beetles to these factors in a fragmented upland rainforest landscape in north-east Queensland, Australia Beetles were sampled using flight interception traps from six replicate sites in rainforest interior, rainforest edge, small rainforest remnants and pasture, interspersed across about 600 km 2 Beetles from 10 family/subfamily groups were sorted to species There were three major findings First, converting rainforest into pasture has a very strong negative effect on beetle diversity and species composition Very few beetle species were present in pasture and none of the most abundant species was more abundant in pasture than rainforest Second, beetle assemblages appeared to respond to climate Beetle species composition in drier rainforest habitats was different from that of moister rainforest and there were species unique to each rainforest type Third, beetle species composition differed between small remnants and interior rainforest: drier-associated species were more abundant in small remnants, whereas wetter-associated species were more abundant in interiors Edges tended to be intermediate We argue that this pattern can be attributed to a fragmentation effect mediated by differences in microclimate rather than by floristic, structural, or area and isolation effects

Bird use of revegetated sites along a creek connecting rainforest remnants.

Abstract: The success of the Peterson Creek Revegetation Project, near Yungaburra, Queensland, in providing habitat for rainforest-associated birds was monitored for the first seven years of the project from 1999. Regular 20-min area surveys showed that small and large remnants and plantings all differed in their avian communities. Major contributors to these differences were a suite of rainforest-associated birds that were more abundant in the remnants. Ordination showed that avian communities in plantings 4–7 years after their establishment were generally more similar to those in remnants than were the bird communities of younger plantings. Avian communities in the oldest of the planted sites all changed markedly through time and became more similar to the avian communities in the closest remnant sites. Rainforest-associated birds were observed in plantings as early as 1–3 years after their establishment and some rainforest dependent species were observed as early as 3–4 years after establishment. Of the rainforest-associated bird species observed in the remnants, 55% were also recorded in the plantings at some stage during the study. These results suggest that the project will be successful in providing a corridor between formerly isolated forest patches, at least for some species.

Evolutionary Aspects of the Use of Predator Odors in Antipredator Behaviors of Lumholtz’s Tree-Kangaroos (Dendrolagus lumholtzi)

Abstract: In multi-predator systems with different predator ‘archetypes’, prey have an advantage when applying ‘archetype’-specific responses. However, antipredator responses can be lost or modified during times of ‘relaxed predation selection’. As a consequence, prey may become vulnerable when novel predators are introduced into their environments. This study investigates whether the Lumholtz’s tree-kangaroo (LTK) (Dendrolagus lumholtzi), an arboreal folivore marsupial of rainforests in North Queensland, Australia, (1) recognizes odor cues from arboreal and terrestrial predators, (2) exhibits archetype-specific antipredator responses to them, and (3) is able to transmit archetype-specific antipredator responses to novel predators of similar archetype. Five captive LTKs were exposed to lavender oil as neutral odor, fecal material from an extant arboreal predator, the amethystine python (Morelia amethystine), from two novel terrestrial predators, the domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) and the dingo (Canis lupus dingo), and a control odor (water). All subjects showed an increase in durations and frequencies of vigilance, and a decrease in the duration of comfort behaviors when exposed to the fecal material compared to the control odor, but not when the neutral odor was presented. This suggests that the presented fecal material is associated with predatory threats. Subjects increased duration and frequency of their movements in trials with fecal material from a python and a dingo, but not in trials with fecal material from a dog or the neutral odor which indicates that tree-kangaroos do not respond differently to arboreal and terrestrial predators. This conclusion is discussed with respect to the relatively recent descent of tree-kangaroos from rock-wallabies at a time when its ancient terrestrial predators became extinct, and with respect to reported fatalities of tree-kangaroos when encountering domestic dogs or dingoes.