The Vertebrate Fauna of Jenolan Karst Conservation Reserve: Final

9.1 CAVE INVESTIGATIONS
Investigation of the vertebrate fauna that use Jenolan Caves was a priority of the current survey. The
cave system at Jenolan is one of the most extensive in Australia, with over 320 known cave entrances
– far more than could ever be visited in a single survey. For this reason, the work undertaken for this
project had to be highly prioritised. Before the survey, experts on the Jenolan Caves were canvassed
as to what caves should be targeted for investigations of vertebrate fauna. This information was used
to develop the survey plan. Caves that were a particular target were those that were known to house
significant bat populations, i.e. Mammoth and Paradox Caves, and these caves were visited on
numerous occasions over several months in order to build up an accurate picture of their usage. A full
summary of the caves that were visited, the date, time and the species found is given in Appendix B,
along with a summary of caves where vertebrate fauna had been reported but were not able to be
visited for this survey. Appendix B can be used to gauge how much effort delivered the results and to
target any future surveys of the area.
9.2 SPECIES THAT USE THE CAVES
9.2.1 Introduction
Many vertebrate fauna species can be found using caves. Some species are obligate cave users
(troglophiles) – these species require caves to complete their life cycles. Examples of troglophiles at
JKCR are the eastern horseshoe bat, the eastern bentwing-bat and the large-eared pied bat. Other
species opportunistically take advantage of the habitat provided by caves, but do not necessarily
require caves to complete their lifecycles (trogloxenes). Examples of trogloxenes at JKCR include the
sooty owl, brush-tailed rock-wallaby, spotted-tailed quoll, bush rat and rockwarbler. Below is an overall
account of the species that use the caves, sourced both from the current survey and from the
literature. It includes discussion of both obligate cave-users and species that use the caves
occasionally. Otherwise, many species that are not typically cave-dwelling (such as wombats) will
occasionally wander into caves, sometimes making use of them, and sometimes dying in them. This
discussion is limited to those species for which the cave system is integral to their persistence at
JKCR.
9.2.2 Historic reports of fauna at Jenolan Caves
Jenolan Caves was a popular destination for the more adventurous traveller of the late 19 th Century
and many glittering accounts still exist of the beauty of the cave formations and the wild landscape
surrounding the caves. Relatively few travellers reported on the wildlife that they encountered,
however more than one mentioned the rock-wallabies, which were obviously a feature even in the
earliest of times. One of the earliest examples is from a letter to the Editor of The Bathurst Advocate
from a visitor from 1848 who wrote: “We soon came near the mouth of one of these large caverns, the
appearance of which is awfully grand and sublime, and when we entered its yawning jaws, our
persons appeared dwarfish and insignificant. On one side of the cave is a large skylight making an
abrupt ascent to the top of the mountain, through which the cave runs, and down the irregular and
scraggy sides of this skylight we perceived several wallabys running and peeping at us as if they
would enquire our business, and why we disturbed their domicile.” (The Bathurst Advocate 1848).
Other historic sources mention the fauna in the bushland around the caves, including species that
remain a feature of the area, such as parrots and lyrebirds (Cook 1889) as well those that have since
demised, such as the dingo (The Mercury 1898). Unfortunately, there is almost no mention by any of
the earliest visitors of the bat fauna, and the pre-European usage of the caves by microbats remains
largely unknown.
One visitor who took more interest than most in the fauna of the area was Samuel Cook who visited
the caves in the 1880s and wrote the book ‘Jenolan Caves: An Excursion in Australian Wonderland’
(Cook 1889). Although he didn’t actually see any rock-wallabies (they may have already been in
decline (Eldridge et al. 2004)), he noted polished rocks in the Grand Arch from wallaby traverses, and
the accumulation of wallaby ‘dust’ in this same area. He also mentions seeing bat and ‘native cat’
(either spotted-tailed quoll or eastern quoll) bones in the Devil’s Coach House and accumulations of
bat, native dog (dingo) and bird bones in Fossil Cave.
Importantly, Cook did make some notes on cave-dwelling bats. He reports seeing clusters of them in
Lucas Cave, and bats hanging like a ‘swarm of bees’ within Nettle Cave. He noted that their ‘favourite
place’ appeared to be the aisle of the Cathedral heading towards the Music Hall. He was referring to
eastern bentwing-bats which are now rarely seen in these locations, and never in the ‘swarms’ that he
describes. Further evidence that Lucas Cave was once an important bat roost comes from an old
photograph that is titled ‘Bat Cave or Proscenium, Lucas Cave’ (SLNSW 2011).
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The Vertebrate Fauna of Jenolan Karst Conservation Reserve