Australian Mammalogy 

About: Australian Mammalogy is an academic journal published by CSIRO Publishing. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Population & Biology. It has an ISSN identifier of 0310-0049. Over the lifetime, 1072 publications have been published receiving 11080 citations.

Life Underground: The Biology Of Subterranean Rodents

Abstract: SUBTERRANEAN rodents are intriguing subjects for research. On the one hand they display extreme variability in social organisation and life history, and exhibit a range of unique adaptations in morphology and physiology that allow exploitation of different habitats. On the other hand, field studies of subterranean rodents are exceptionally challenging as the animals are seldom observed. Subterranean rodents are also widely distributed, occurring on all continents except Australia and Antarctica. Life underground: The biology of subterranean rodents provides an excellent summary of what we know (and what we do not know) about this cryptic group of mammals, and also succeeds in conveying the joys and frustrations of studying them.

The pitfalls of wildlife camera trapping as a survey tool in Australia

Abstract: This paper provides an historical review of the technological evolution of camera trapping as a zoological survey tool in Australia. Camera trapping in Australia began in the 1950s when purpose-built remotely placed cameras were used in attempts to rediscover the thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus). However, camera traps did not appear in Australian research papers and Australasian conference proceedings until 1989-91, and usage became common only after 2008, with an exponential increase in usage since 2010. Initially, Australian publications under-reported camera trapping methods, often failing to provide fundamental details about deployment and use. However, rigour in reporting of key methods has increased during the recent widespread adoption of camera trapping. Our analysis also reveals a change in camera trap use in Australia, from simple presence-absence studies, to more theoretical and experimental approaches related to population ecology, behavioural ecology, conservation biology and wildlife management. Practitioners require further research to refine and standardise camera trap methods to ensure that unbiased and scientifically rigorous data are obtained from quantitative research. The recent change in emphasis of camera trapping research use is reflected in the decreasing range of camera trap models being used in Australian research. Practitioners are moving away from less effective models that have slow reaction times between detection and image capture, and inherent bias in detectability of fauna, to more expensive brands that offer faster speeds, greater functionality and more reliability. Additional keywords: camera trap, remote camera, Thylacine, trail camera, wildlife research, zoology.

Group Characteristics, Site Fidelity And Seasonal Abundance Of Bottlenosed Dolphins (Tursiops Aduncus) In Jervis Bay And Port Stephens, South-Eastern Australia

Abstract: Social organisation and abundance of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in Jervis Bay (JB) and Port Stephens (PS), NSW, were investigated through behavioural/photo-identification surveys between May 1997 and April 2000. Mean group size was significantly larger at JB (12.3 ± 0.87, n =167) compared to PS (6.8 ± 0.37, n = 218). At both sites, groups were significantly larger when calves were present. Group size varied with activity, being smallest when feeding and largest when socialising. While mean group size of feeding dolphins did not vary between sites, travelling and socialising groups were significantly larger in JB. Site fidelity was assigned based on sighting rates and presence across seasons. Sighting rates varied significantly between areas, but the proportion of dolphins categorised as residents, occasional visitors and transients did not. Minimum abundance by season, based on mark-resighting of recognisable individuals, ranged from 61 ± 3.2 to 108 ± 7.1 in JB and 143 ± 8.1 to 160 ± 8.1 in PS. Differences in group size at the two sites may relate to social factors and/or human impacts, while differences in abundance may be associated with habitat size and complexity. The lack of dolphin matches between areas suggests that they represent distinct populations.

Seven considerations about dingoes as biodiversity engineers: the socioecological niches of dogs in Australia

Abstract: Australian dingoes have recently been suggested as a tool to aid biodiversity conservation through the reversal or prevention of trophic cascades and mesopredator release. However, at least seven ecological and sociological considerations must be addressed before dog populations are positively managed. Domestication and feralisation of dingoes have resulted in behavioural changes that continue to expose a broad range of native and introduced fauna to predation. Dingoes and other dogs are classic mesopredators, while humans are the apex predator and primary ecosystem engineers in Australia. Anthropogenic landscape changes could prevent modern dingoes from fulfilling their pre-European roles. Dingoes are known to exploit many of the same species they are often presumed to ‘protect’, predisposing them to present direct risks to many threatened species. The assertion that contemporary dog control facilitates the release of mesopredators disregards the realities of effective dog control, which simultaneously reduces fox and dog abundance and is unlikely to enable increases in fox abundance. The processes affecting threatened fauna are likely a combination of both top-down and bottom-up effects, which will not be solved or reversed by concentrating efforts on managing only predator effects. Most importantly, human social and economic niches are highly variable across the ecosystems where dingoes are present or proposed. Human perceptions will ultimately determine acceptance of positive dingo management. Outside of an adaptive management framework, positively managing dingoes while ignoring these seven considerations is unlikely to succeed in conserving native faunal biodiversity but is likely to have negative effects on ecological, social and economic values.

The Evolutionary History and Diversity of Australian Mammals

Abstract: Palaeodiversity and relationships of all groups of Australian mammals are reviewed. The fossil record spanning this time is of variable quality. 'Dark Ages' about which nothing is known in terms of Australian mammal evolution include the late Triassic to late Jurassic, late Cretaceous to late Paleocene and middle Eocene to middle Oligocene. Very little is known about the early Cretaceous and late Miocene. The late Oligocene to middle Miocene record documents the highest levels of biodiversity known for the continent, comparable to that which characterises the lowland rainforests of Borneo and Brazil. Order Monotremata spans at least the last 110 million years and includes four families. The enigmatic Ausktribosphenos from 115 million-year-old sediments in Victoria may represent an archaic monotreme, specialised peramurid or previously undocumented order of mammals but is unlikely to represent a placental as suggested in the initial description. Order Microbiotheria is represented in the early Eocene (~55 mya) by two genera similar in morphology to early Eocene taxa from Argentina. Order Peramelemorphia spans the early Eocene to Holocene and includes at least five families. Order Dasyuromorphia spans at least the late Oligocene to Holocene and includes at least three families. Other dasyuromorphian-like marsupials are indeterminate in terms of family-level affinities. Order Notoryctemorphia spans the early Miocene to Holocene with one family. Order Yalkaparidontia spans the late Oligocene to middle Miocene with one genus. Order Diprotodontia spans the late Oligocene to Holocene, represented throughout by three major groups: Phalangerida (eight families), Vombatomorphia (seven families) and Macropodoidea (at least three families). A possible placental condylarth (Tingamarra) has been recorded from the early Eocene. An archaeonycteridid bat (Australonycteris) is known from the early Eocene. Among bats, the late Oligocene to middle Miocene is dominated by rhinolophoids, many of which have European, Asian and African affinities. Mystacinids, megadermatids, hipposiderids and molossids are well-represented in the Oligocene to Miocene deposits. Vespertilionids are uncommon in the Oligocene to Miocene but become more diverse in the Pliocene to Holocene. Emballonurids and rhinolophids appear for the first time in the Plio-Pleistocene. Pteropodids are unknown prior to the Holocene. Murids span the early Pliocene to Holocene. In the oldest assemblage at Riversleigh, one undescribed lineage resembles archaic forms otherwise only known from the fossil records of Africa and Eurasia.