Conserving Biodiversity in Brigalow Regrowth - School of ...

PARTNERS
CONTRIBUTORS
Associate Professor Clive McAlpine
c.mcalpine@uq.edu.au
Clive is a landscape ecologist at The University of Queensland. He
studies the effect of landscape change and climate change on native flora
and fauna, and the feedbacks of landscape change on climate.
Dr Martine Maron
m.maron@uq.edu.au
Martine is a landscape ecologist at The University of Queensland with
a particular interest in biodiversity management in human-dominated
landscapes, bird community dynamics and conservation.
Dr Geoffrey C. Smith
Geoff.Smith@derm.qld.gov.au
Geoffrey is a Principal Zoologist with the Queensland Department of
Environment and Resource Management. His research interests include
the fauna and ecosystems of brigalow landscapes and fire in this system.
Dr Michiala Bowen
michiala.bowen@uqconnect.edu.au
Michiala is a landscape ecologist at The University of Queensland. She
studies the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on brigalow wildlife
and the values of brigalow regrowth for landscape restoration.
Dr Leonie Seabrook
l.seabrook@uq.edu.au
Leonie is a landscape ecologist at The University of Queensland. She
studies the patterns and causes of habitat loss and fragmentation over
time.
Dr John Dwyer
j.dwyer2@uq.edu.au
John is a plant ecologist at the University of Western Australia. His PhD
research was undertaken at The University of Queensland and focused on
the restoration and carbon potential of brigalow regrowth.
Sarah Butler
sarah.butler@uq.edu.au
Sarah is a PhD student in landscape ecology at The University of
Queensland, researching the interactive effects of land use, climate
and biological invasions on the biodiversity of fragmented brigalow
ecosystems.
Cameron Graham
c.graham@uq.edu.au
Cameron is a PhD student at The University of Queensland. He is
currently investigating how feral cats and red foxes are interacting with
agricultural landscape in the Brigalow Belt South.
WILLIAM GOULDING
w.goulding@uq.edu.au
2
Will is a field ecologist with The University of Queensland; he has
extensive experience with fauna surveys in the Australasian region. He
conducted many of the bird and reptile field surveys that contribute to this
booklet and provided many of the photographic images.

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
CONTENTS
Foreword 4
Introduction 5
Brigalow landscapes 6
History: transforming the brigalow 7
Brigalow woodland: why is it important? 9
Threats to Brigalow 10
Climate, variability and change 11
Scales of habitat management 12
How much vegetation? 14
Regrowth is important 15
Managing regrowth: to thin or not to thin? 16
Roadside treelines: are they too narrow? 17
Key habitat features 18
Problem species 19
Iconic species 20
Types of landscapes 23
Fauna species list 24
Quick reference guide 26
Useful contacts and resources 27
Further reading 27
3

Foreword
Times change.
In 1960 when I graduated B. Agr.
Science from the University of
Queensland the prevailing ethos was
that unproductive lands should be
developed, as a priority. The brigalow
lands were at the top of the list.
New methods of clearing using heavy
machinery and aerial spraying with
potent herbicides gave momentum
to the attack. Back then the sheer
immensity of the brigalow lands
made it difficult to conceive of a time
when there would be concern for the
remnants of these once distinctive
landscapes. But within a few decades
less than ten per cent of the original
cover remained. Even this pitiful total
conceals the true picture. Very few
large (>1000 ha.) tracts remain and
even fewer are in reserves.
What is more these do not provide a
representative sample of the original
great diversity of brigalow landscapes.
The best developed brigalow
vegetation on the most productive
sites was targeted early and of this
virtually nothing remains.
Much of what is left, along roads
and in small paddock remnants,
is conservation by default; it was
deemed unavailable or unsuitable
for productive use. The loss of
biodiversity has been incalculable but,
as this booklet affirms, not all is lost.
I have had a life long association and
appreciation of brigalow landscapes.
Firstly, around my grandparents’
property in the Central Highlands
west from Emerald; later in the longsettled
scrublands of the Lockyer and
Fassifern valleys, eastern Darling
Downs and the Burnett Valley in
south-east Queensland. By my late
teens I had traversed most of the
Brigalow Belt Bioregion.
Then in the early 1960s I consider
myself fortunate to have been a
member of the CSIRO teams that
conducted land resource surveys
that preceded the massive clearing
of the Brigalow Lands Development
Scheme in the Fitzroy and Belyando
catchments. These surveys focused
on descriptions of land forms, soils
and vegetation and subsequent
evaluation of the potential for
agricultural, pastoral and forestry
production. Conservation was not
a focus, but attention was drawn
to the need to reserve adequate
representative samples of the
landscapes described, as well as
specific examples of unique, unusual
and restricted areas of vegetation.
The Government of the day
steadfastly ignored this advice and
by the time later Governments took
action, it was too little and too late.
Active brigalow regrowth has been
a scourge for the settler, but it does
provide an opportunity as well as
a challenge. It can provide a basis
for renewal of wildlife habitat, for
enhancing connectivity across
landscapes and for developing a
potentially valuable carbon sink.
Retaining strips of regrowth to
provide shade and shelter from the
hot north-west winds of summer and
the cold south-westerlies of winter
for both crops and livestock can be a
plus. In fact, complete farm redesign
to take account of natural contours
and drainage lines can overcome
the tyranny of the theodolite which
has imposed straight lines on nonlinear
landscapes. As the research
reported in this booklet shows even
young brigalow regrowth has some
value for wildlife, with the number
of species increasing with age.
Retaining but thinning of regrowth
can have benefits and this has been
addressed in this publication.
All those who have tackled
development of brigalow landscapes
have my respect, but I have a deep
sadness for the natural world that has
been lost.
What can be done to stem the loss and
return the landscape to a better balance?
Because much of the remaining brigalow
vegetation is in private ownership, on
farms, ensuring a balance between
production and conservation of flora
and fauna is very much a matter for the
individual landholder.
The years of focused research that are
summarized in this booklet provide
useful guidelines for the planning and
management of remnant brigalow
vegetation. Financial incentives, such
as taxation concessions, may be
necessary for landholders to take up
these recommendations. The irony is
that taxation concessions were used
to stimulate the massive clearance of
brigalow in the first place!
Henry Nix
Henry Nix is an Emeritus Professor at
Australian National University with over
30 years experience studying Australian
landscapes.
4

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
INTRODUCTION
Brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) is a distinctive silver-foliaged
shrub or tree – one of the 980 species of Acacia in Australia.
The brigalow tree is commonly the dominant species of a
range of open forests and woodlands, which are collectively
referred to as brigalow woodlands in this booklet. Brigalow
woodlands are found mostly west of the Great Dividing
Range, stretching north almost to Townsville, south to
Narrabri in New South Wales, and west to Bourke on the
Darling River and Blackall in central western Queensland.
They occur mostly on deep cracking clay soils with a
microrelief pattern referred to as gilgai or melon holes which
intermittently fill with water.
Scientific understanding of brigalow landscapes
and ecosystems lags behind that of many woodland
ecosystems in southern Australia.
Over the past 8 years, a team of University of Queensland
researchers have been conducting field studies in the
Brigalow Belt South.
This booklet summarises the main findings of these studies.
We aim to provide information relevant to farmers and
other natural resource managers looking to manage native
vegetation for wildlife habitat within brigalow production
landscapes.
Although our focus is predominantly on southern Brigalow
Belt landscapes, many of the principles outlined in this
booklet are also relevant for the northern Brigalow Belt.
5

Brigalow Landscapes
The Brigalow Belt is an important region nationally for its agricultural production and for its rich diversity of native
fauna and flora. For most of the 20th century, the focus of government was the agricultural development of the
region.
More recently, as the Australian community has become
more aware of environmental problems, this focus has
shifted to finding a more sustainable balance between
conservation and production.
Brigalow remnant vegetation is now protected in
Queensland and New South Wales and listed as nationally
threatened under the Environment Protection and
Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. However, this alone
is unlikely to ensure the long-term viability of native bird,
reptile and mammal populations, many of which are in
serious decline.
To sustain our native flora and fauna it is important to think
of whole landscapes, rather than just individual patches or
even species. Landscapes are best observed from a light
plane or helicopter and are made up of the mix of remnant
and regrowth woodland patches, paddocks of crops and
pastures and farm dams. Many brigalow landscapes have
less than 10% native vegetation remaining, with patches
often occurring as narrow linear strips left along fencelines
and roadsides.
Nevertheless, brigalow landscapes have one important
advantage: retention of naturally regenerating or regrowth
vegetation that occurs in formerly cleared areas is a lowcost
and highly efficient way to restore habitat.
Although not all regrowth is protected (except under some
provisions in Queensland and Commonwealth legislation),
landholders are increasingly interested in its potential to
contribute to farm income through: a) its value as a carbon
sink, and b) the delivery of ecological services for which
stewardship payments are made.
To successfully manage brigalow landscapes for conservation as well as production, we need
to understand how the region’s fauna are affected by how humans influence the landscape.
This booklet answers a set of the most important questions on how to manage brigalow
vegetation for conserving and restoring wildlife in the region, including:
1. How much vegetation is enough?
2. What are the priority areas to restore?
3. How important are linear patches?
4. How important is connectivity among patches?
5. How important is regrowth of different ages and how can we manage it for
biodiversity?
6. What management actions would help to increase the diversity of animal species and their
abundance?
6
* See page 26 for a quick reference guide with practical answers to these questions.

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
History: Transforming the Brigalow
Brigalow is an aboriginal name adopted by white settlers who pushed north and inland from the Hunter Valley in the
1830s and 1840s.
One of the first references to brigalow was in Ludwig Leichhardt’s journal of his expedition from Moreton Bay to Port
Essington, published in 1847:
“After having past the great plains of the Condamine,
between Coxcens[uncertain?] Station, Fimba and Rupells
Stations we entered into a country, which was alternately
covered with fine open forestland, well grassed and fit
for cattle and horses breeding – and with long stretches
of almost impassable Bricklow scrub, so called from the
Bricklow (a species of acacia) being one of the principal
components.
Open Myalscrub was frequent, particularly along the
Condamine. Though the Bricklow scrubs were frequently of
great length and breadth, I do not think that they ever form
uninterrupted lines of more than 20–30 miles so that they
allways allow to be skirted.
The frequency of these scrubs however would render the
establishment of stations unadviseable, as they not only
allow a secure retreat to hostile blackfellows, but to wild
cattle.”
– (Report of the Expedition of L. Leichhardt Esq. From
Moreton Bay to Port Essington)
Early settlement
The early European settlers of the Darling Downs faced a
multitude of challenges in transforming the land. During the
1860s and 70s, as people initially attempted to clear forests
for pasture and agriculture, they cursed the dense brigalow
woodlands that defied the axe, fencing them off as waste
country.
They quickly realised the ability of brigalow to reappear as
dense sucker regrowth, which was even more difficult to
remove.
A series of droughts affected much of eastern Australia from
the 1880s through to 1902 culminating in the Federation
drought of 1901–02, when up to 90% of livestock on
some properties died and livestock numbers halved in the
southern Brigalow Belt.
During these difficult times, many settlers of brigalow
country abandoned their land and moved to towns to find
work.
7

Between the Wars
After WWI, development of the southern Brigalow
Belt progressed slowly, due largely to the resilient
nature of the plant and the lack of technology to deal
with its defences.
Between 1880 and 1934, the southern Brigalow Belt
was invaded by prickly pear (Opuntia species).
The successful control of prickly pear in the early
1930s meant that development of brigalow lands
began again. At first, development was relatively
slow due to a lack of mechanisation.
8
The settlers were a hardy lot and by the outbreak of
WWII large blocks of brigalow in southern districts
like Tara had been cleared by axe, burning and
intensive sheep grazing.
Broad-scale clearing
Following WWII, technological change increased the
pace of brigalow development.
One famous land clearing contractor, Joh Bjelke-
Peterson – later Premier of Queensland – pioneered
a technique for quickly clearing scrub by connecting
a heavy anchor chain between two bulldozers.
Mechanised clearing soon became a common
practice and by 1954 the most determined efforts to
clear brigalow woodlands began.
In the eight years between 1953 and 1961, 1 million
ha were cleared at a rate of 120,000 ha per year.
In 1962, The Brigalow and Other Lands Development
Act was passed. Under the Brigalow Development
Scheme, approximately 2 million ha was allocated
in the Bauhinia, Taroom and Duaringa districts, with
a further 2.4 million ha in the Brigalow Belt North.
Properties were to be large enough to stock 1,000
cattle. State and Commonwealth governments
provided loans of up to $60,000 for settlers to cover
development costs, plus paying for the construction
of 1,200 km of development roads.
By the 1970s, most of the brigalow scrub had
disappeared. Vast areas of sucker regrowth were
controlled by aerial spraying with 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D,
burning and mechanical means, in preparation for
improved pastures and cropping.
Sheep numbers declined markedly matched by a rise
in cattle numbers and the area under crops.
The rise in cropping was linked to a severe decline in
cattle prices in the 1970s and to the more effective
control of Brigalow regrowth using blade ploughing,
whereby the roots were cut off under the soil.
Lynelle, Amy, Jemma & Warren Urquhart on Warrowa
Warrowa
Warren and Lynelle Urquhart, owners of Warrowa, 26 km
west of Moonie, believe in the values of biodiversity and try to
manage their cropping and cattle grazing for both economic
and environmental long term sustainability.
What is now “Warrowa” (3,600 ha) was part of “Ulupna”
(29,000 acres), a prickly pear ballot that was drawn in 1934 by
Archibald Telford and worked by him and his brother, George.
In 1945 George took up Warrowa as his own and set about
developing the property integrating native brigalow vegetation
retention (both remnant and regrowth) mostly as shade lines
around each paddock, which was continued by the Urquharts
when they took over in 2000.
“About 20% of Warrowa is retained as both remnant and
regrowth brigalow mostly in shade lines that border each
paddock, creating corridors that stretch throughout the length
& breadth of the property. Another 15% of Warrowa is mixed
eucalypt woodland on a ridge of red, sandy loam running
through the property. We see these wooded areas as valuable
assets for stock sheltering from temperature extremes,
for wind breaks for crops and pastures and reduction in
evapotranspiration of soil moisture, reducing drainage below
pasture root zones to keep salt levels where they should be, as
well as important habitat for native flora and fauna.
We know that the fauna (e.g., crows, bats, and other insect
eaters) play an important role in pest minimisation in our crops
and pastures. Often there can be flocks of 200 crows behind
the tractor devouring all the mice and grubs they can!
We realise that the shade lines could theoretically be razed to
increase the area of crops or pasture grown now, which would
increase short term cash flow, but we believe that this practice
would be detrimental to the long term health of this land and
therefore also to the economic sustainability of farming here.
It’s important to allot real value to the natural environment.
Just because humans aren’t using it for a direct and immediate
financial benefit at present, doesn’t mean it is “wasted”.
We’re planning for the long term health and sustainability of
Warrowa, which isn’t just ours or our children’s tenure on the
land, but hopefully for many, many generations. We need to
make sure we can feed people into the future so we try to run
our farm business in an economically and environmentally
balanced way.”
Warren & Lynelle Urquhart, January 2011

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
Brigalow Woodland:
Why is it so important?
Popular opinions of brigalow woodlands have changed considerably over the last 50–100 years. During the days
of heavy prickly pear infestation brigalow was viewed as having no use for agricultural production. However, these
views soon changed when prickly pear was controlled and the productivity of cleared brigalow lands was realised.
During the 1950s, 60s, 70s and into the 1980s, the most valued brigalow lands were those that were kept clean of
any natural vegetation.
It is only in the last two decades, after most of the brigalow
woodlands have been permanently lost, that there has been
increasing recognition of their ecological value as home to
a rich diversity of fauna and flora. In fact, the Brigalow Belt
bioregion is recognised as a national biodiversity hotspot.
For example, the bioregion supports more resident bird
species than any other bioregion in Australia. This diversity
arises from the east to west overlap of species common to
coastal and arid zone environments, and the north to south
overlap of tropical and temperate species.
they support and you will be rewarded with the chorus of
birdsong filling the air. If there has been recent rain you may
also hear and see frogs taking advantage of the conditions
and may be lucky to see species like the tiny crucifix toad
with its bright yellow, red and green colours. Many of
the reptiles and small mammals are hard to find in these
woodlands, but a night time walk with a torch may reveal
the bright eye-shine of geckos and you may be lucky to
encounter nocturnal snakes in search of a feed, like the
woma python.
The common birds of the brigalow woodlands include many
species in decline further south, such as yellow thornbills,
grey-crowned babblers and eastern yellow robins. Large
groups of apostlebirds and white-winged choughs can
make a walk in brigalow woodland a noisy affair. Spotted
bowerbirds are seen more rarely. Reptiles are also well
represented in the region, with several species that occur
nowhere else, like the golden-tailed gecko and brigalow
scaly-foot. Other threatened reptile species include the
common death adder and the yakka skink.
Native mammals including koalas, possums and gliders,
kangaroos and wallabies, bandicoots and small carnivores
all occur in the Brigalow Belt. Tiny but ferocious carnivorous
marsupials like the common and narrow-nosed planigales
and common dunnarts, despite their names, are now
rarely encountered. Bats are also rarely seen up close,
but brigalow woodlands support many species of the tiny
nocturnal insectivorous ‘microbats’, including the little pied
bat and the yellow-bellied sheathtail bat. Wallabies and
kangaroos are more commonly encountered, including red,
eastern grey and western grey kangaroos, wallaroos, and
black-striped, red-necked and whiptail wallabies.
It is hard to imagine what early settlers exploring vast
stands of brigalow woodland would have encountered. It
is rare these days to enter a patch of brigalow woodland
and not be able to see through the trees to the other side—
nowadays patches are often narrow and the understorey
has been opened up by grazing stock.
Some idea of the pre-European vegetation conditions
can be gained from a walk in one of the few large stands
contained in national parks like Erringibba or Southwood.
If you walk far enough into the woodland you can quickly
feel disoriented as the woodland looks the same in every
direction. It is not hard to sense why the early settlers felt
uneasy in these woodlands.
If you take an early morning walk through a remnant of
brigalow woodland you will also realise how much life
TOP: Golden-tailed Gecko, BOTTOM (L-R): Stripe-faced Dunnart and
Grey-crowned Babbler. IMAGES: WILL GOULDING
9

threats to brigalow
Although the brigalow ecological community was originally extensive in Queensland and northern New South
Wales, less than 10% is left.
Most of the brigalow is in small patches, shade-lines and
roadside strips. Because of this, and ongoing threats to
remaining brigalow, the ecological community is listed
as nationally threatened under the Commonwealth
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
1999.
Luckily, even relatively small patches of brigalow can still
be habitat for many species of fauna. The remnant patches
support at least 17 threatened species of animals including
birds, bats, wallabies and reptiles. Some threatened
species even occupy regrowth brigalow, particularly as it
ages.
Nevertheless, there are still significant threats to remaining
brigalow woodland.
Weeds and fire
While there are many weeds that threaten the remnant
brigalow ecosystems, some have potentially disastrous
consequences. In particular, grasses that are useful in
pasture, such as buffel grass (Cenchrus cilaris) and green
panic (Panicum maximum var. trichoglume), can spread
throughout brigalow remnants, changing habitat structure
for ground-dwelling fauna and increasing the risk of fire.
Brigalow and most of the plant species which grow in
brigalow woodland are killed by intense fire, so control of
grassy weeds within and close to brigalow remnants is the
key to their survival. Tree thinning and soil disturbance can
help weeds enter brigalow woodland patches, and livestock
can bring in weed seeds. Careful management of grazing
and its exclusion from intact stands of brigalow where
possible can help reduce the risk of weed invasion.
MICHIALA BOWEN
Overgrazing
Brigalow shade-lines and clumps of trees are valuable
as shelter for livestock. Careful consideration of stocking
numbers and livestock camp sites is important to avoid
damage to the woodland understorey. Heavy grazing and
trampling reduces the value of the woodland for wildlife,
and often encourages undesirable species such as weeds
and feral animals. Rotational grazing regimes and lower
stocking rates both help to maintain the value of brigalow
woodland for livestock and wildlife.
MICHIALA BOWEN
Clearing
Even though less than 10% of original brigalow ecosystems
remain, pressure to remove more brigalow continues.
Feral animals
Foxes and cats are common in the Brigalow Belt, and
can threaten native species (See page 19). Mediumsized
mammals (between 50–500 g) are at most risk from
these predators, and they are also known to take native
reptiles and birds as prey. Pigs cause damage to brigalow
woodlands and adjacent farmland, destroying young plants
and disturbing the soil.
Controlling pigs, foxes and cats requires a coordinated
approach, preferably among groups of neighbours and
ideally across subregions.
10
CAMERON GRAHAM
Sometimes this is for large infrastructure, mining and gas
extraction projects, and sometimes it is for smaller-scale
maintenance of roads and fences.
Every bit lost has an impact on wildlife – many animals
cannot simply move elsewhere when their habitat is cleared,
as there is nowhere to go that is not already occupied by
other individuals.
In the longer-term, the tendency of brigalow to regrow
presents an opportunity to compensate for losses of habitat
that cannot be avoided. Although it is not clear whether the
habitat values of mature, remnant brigalow can be entirely
replaced by regrowth as it ages, careful management of
regrowth vegetation might result in new suitable habitat
being created, which can help to reduce the impacts of
clearing (see page 15).

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
Climate, VARIABILITY & CHANGE
Climate variability, a critical concern for agricultural production in the Brigalow Belt, also affects brigalow
ecosystems. Drought stresses trees and can cause their death, while extreme wet years such as 2010 allow
widespread regeneration of native trees, shrubs and grasses.
The 2001–2007 drought was comparable in severity and
duration with the Federation drought (1898–1903), the worst
drought on record.
Over the past decade, the variability in rainfall is well within
the range expected from natural variability for the region
recorded for the 130 years of records. However, the recent
drought was hotter and the future climate of the region is
projected to be hotter.
Over the past decade, average annual temperature in the
region has increased by 0.5 o C. This trend is expected to
continue, with a projected increase in temperature of 3–5 o C
by 2070.
For example, the number of hot days per year above 35 o C
for Miles is likely to triple from 31 days to 93 days by 2070.
Rainfall is also likely to decline with a resulting increase
in evaporation by 6–15%. The number of frost days will
decrease. These changes are well outside the range of
historical climate variability.
Changes in temperature and rainfall will place added
pressures on farming communities, agricultural production
and brigalow ecosystems. Heatwaves are known to cause
physical stress for wildlife that may result in death; koalas
are one example of a species that is known to suffer higher
mortality during heatwaves.
In addition to the physical stresses of high temperatures,
prolonged droughts result in lowered food availability.
Stressed plants may fail to flower and produce fruits and
insect prey items may become scarce. In 2006–2007 the
prolonged drought conditions in Victorian woodlands
resulted in the failure of eucalypt trees to flower and the
number of nectar-feeding birds declined sharply.
Animals living in fragmented brigalow landscapes will be
particularly vulnerable to the effects of hotter and drier
conditions as the fragments of habitat are too few and far
between to allow animals to move further afield to find
scarce resources.
In addition to these pressures, high temperatures and
rainfall deficits will hamper efforts to restore brigalow
landscapes—slow growth rates and die-back will result in
much longer time periods before regrowth can develop into
mature habitat.
11

Scales of Habitat Management
Managing brigalow woodland for a diverse range of fauna requires thinking about habitat use at multiple scales.
For example, some animals spend most of their lives in a small area of a hectare or less, but others need to move
over distances of hundreds of kilometres.
A step back:
the whole patch
It is not just what happens in the stand
of brigalow that is important to the
fauna that live there.
A patch is an area of woodland or
forest that has more or less uniform
characteristics and is bounded by a
land-cover type that is very different.
For example, the edge of a brigalow
woodland patch might be where it
meets a paddock of wheat.
Up close:
the Forest Stand
Just like people, animals need to have
a place they call home, a place that
provides them with shelter from the
elements and from other animals that
might hunt them, a place to sleep and
raise their young.
A home may be as simple as a cavity
under a log, the crevice under some
peeling bark on a brigalow tree, or the
dense foliage of a mistletoe plant.
Traditionally used by forest harvesters,
the term ‘stand’ refers to a small
area within a forest patch. The stand
is a useful way to take a close up
look at what is found within a patch
of brigalow woodland and how the
animals that live in the woodland may
see things.
At this fine scale, consider how many
fallen logs are on the ground, how tall
the trees are, how close together the
trees are and how many shrubs you
can see.
From the animal’s perspective, a
complex or messy woodland is often
WILL GOULDING
a sign of good habitat. Fallen timber,
standing dead trees, shrubs and a
thick leaf litter are all signs of good
homes for wildlife.
Managing brigalow
woodland stands
for fauna:
Good ground cover and a
shrubby understorey can be
achieved by minimising the
impact from grazing animals –
by excluding stock for periods
of time to allow low plants to
recover from browsing and
trampling.
Many animal homes can be
provided by leaving dead trees
standing and allowing dead
timber to rot where it falls on the
ground.
Sometimes defining a patch is difficult;
there may be no sharp boundary
where it joins unmodified pasture. The
size and shape of the entire woodland
patch are important, as well as the
distance between one woodland
patch and another. For example, many
animals need to move throughout a
patch of woodland and perhaps to
other patches of woodland to find
food.
Honeyeaters, like the striped
honeyeater, will travel widely within a
day to find flowering or fruiting plants
(such as mistletoes and eucalypt
blossom). Less frequent but longer
distance movements are necessary
too. Seasonal visitors to the brigalow
woodlands include the threatened
painted honeyeater that travels widely
in New South Wales, Queensland and
the Northern Territory and returns
to the brigalow woodlands to breed
during the summer months.
Other species like the metallic green
Horsfield’s bronze-cuckoo and the
raucous channel-billed cuckoo
travel all the way from Papua New
Guinea and Indonesia to the brigalow
woodlands to breed during summer.
It’s not just migratory species that
need to travel long distances. Many
young animals need to leave their
family home when they become
independent and they need to move
considerable distances to find another
suitable location that is unoccupied.
12

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
These movements can be much more difficult in agricultural
areas. Animals differ in their ability to travel across open
country to find other woodland patches and are at greater
risk of predation when crossing open country. Some
animals can only move within woodland patches, so if the
woodland patch they live in is too small, they will perish or
be unable to breed.
Managing brigalow woodland
patches for wildlife:
Leaving large patches of woodland on your property
will provide habitat for those species that cannot
travel across open country.
Leaving trees and patches, or even clumps of
regrowth, in your paddocks will maintain connections
between habitat patches by providing ‘stepping
stones’ for the more mobile species.
Connecting your shade-lines to one another will help
animals that need to visit multiple brigalow woodland
patches.
Keeping your shade-lines as wide as possible, ideally
> 100 m, will make it easier for animals to avoid the
edges of woodland and farmland if they need to.
MICHIALA BOWEN
Taking in the big picture:
the landscape
Animal populations need to maintain connections with other
populations in the landscape to maintain genetic diversity
and long-term persistence.
In defining the term ‘landscape’, we need to think about
individual animals to decide what makes a landscape for
them. In general, a landscape is defined as an area of land
that is large compared to the scale of movement of the
animal and often includes both suitable and less-suitable
habitat.
A landscape for a tiny burrowing frog can be only a
few hundred metres across, while for a honeyeater, the
landscape might be kilometres across.
In a practical sense, it is best to think of a landscape in
terms of the area of land that you manage, i.e., the entire
property or multiple neighbouring properties. At this
landscape scale, it is important to think about the total
amount of woodland compared to areas of production in
your area of management, and how well connected it is to
other areas of woodland.
This doesn’t necessarily mean a physical line of trees –
many animals can cross small gaps between patches – but
if you are able to encourage woodland regeneration close
to areas of existing woodland, this is better than creating an
isolated patch.
Most importantly, the more woodland cover you have in
your landscape, the better it is likely to be for wildlife. Every
little bit counts.
If you carefully think about how you manage the woodland
stands, patches and entire landscape of your property then
you are likely to achieve the best you can for a range of
animals.
Managing your
landscape for wildlife:
Leaving as much woodland in the landscape as
possible will result in more wildlife.
Protect woodland edges by avoiding herbicide and
pesticide spray drift into woodland patches – this will
help to avoid degradation and shrinkage of woodland
patches.
Good habitat quality at large scales can be achieved
by working with neighbours to manage habitat on
more than one property.
13

How much vegetation?
The main reason so many of our native animals have become rarer, and even threatened with extinction, is because
we have removed much of their habitat. Less habitat means fewer individuals, leading to population decline.
Smaller populations are at more risk of going extinct through chance events; in many regions, several species have
disappeared altogether. So how much habitat do we need to retain in our landscape if we want to keep most of our
wildlife?
The answer is complicated, because
different species need different types
and amounts of habitat. However,
there are some general patterns that
we can use as rules-of-thumb in the
absence of detailed, species-specific
information.
For example, research in southern
Australian woodlands suggests that
the number of bird species in the
landscape declines most rapidly if
vegetation cover drops below 10%.
Yet work in the brigalow suggests
that this threshold might be higher. In
brigalow landscapes, more vegetation
means more bird species at least up to
30% vegetation cover.
Our research has shown that there
is no clear target for the amount
of woodland necessary to support
diverse reptile communities in
the brigalow. But we can say that
landscapes with less than 20%
native vegetation support much lower
diversity and abundance of reptiles,
particularly species that have limited
ability to move across open country.
Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management
As with birds, the more brigalow
woodland in the landscape, the better
the reptile community.
This means that every effort to retain
vegetation helps to maintain the
richness of wildlife communities – and
this is especially true in landscapes
with less than 30% of the original
vegetation remaining. It also means
that every small increase in vegetation
cover, such as through retention of
regrowth vegetation, will help species
return to the landscape. Actively
encouraging the regeneration of
brigalow regrowth in these landscapes
is one of the best things that can
be done for wildlife, with the aim of
returning overall woodland cover to at
least 30% wherever possible.
All native vegetation contributes to
wildlife habitat – and in landscapes
with less remaining habitat, every bit
is crucial
MICHIALA BOWEN
14

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
Regrowth is important
Regrowth represents a conservation bargain because regrowth can grow into mature woodlands without the large
investment of time and resources associated with tree planting schemes. Brigalow has a remarkable capacity to
regrow from root stock in the soil, sometimes even after a decade of cultivation.
Long regarded as a nuisance by
landholders, brigalow regrowth
currently occupies large areas in
the Brigalow Belt. In comparison
to tree planting, brigalow regrowth
offers a cost-effective and less
labour-intensive means for
conducting broad-scale habitat
restoration. This does not mean
that restoration of habitat is without
costs for the landholder – the
choice to allow brigalow regrowth
to regenerate could result in lost
production. An increasing number
of government-funded schemes
provide compensation funds to
landholders who restore former
production lands.
The structure and floristic
composition of brigalow regrowth
vegetation is often very different
from the original remnant
woodlands.
Above: The number of woodland dependent bird species occupying regrowth stands
increases with woodland age. After 30 years, regrowth can support as many bird
species as remnant woodlands.
After clearing, young brigalow
regrowth (≤15 years) is low,
with no trees and few shrubs (apart from the brigalow
itself). Intermediate age regrowth (16 – 30 years) exhibits
characteristics overlapping both young and old regrowth,
but is often more similar to old regrowth. Old regrowth (>
30 years) is taller, has fewer stems and a more ‘tree-like’
shape than the younger shrubby regrowth. Fallen timber,
hollows and a complex ground and shrub layer are still
missing from old regrowth and may take more than 100
years to develop. These differences in the characteristics of
regrowth woodland compared with remnant brigalow mean
that regrowth does not provide identical habitat as the
original woodland.
Over time, brigalow regrowth can develop into important
habitat. Few woodland birds are able to use brigalow
regrowth in the first couple of decades of growth, but after
30 years the regrowth can support the same number of
species that are found in mature woodlands.
This does not mean that only old regrowth is valuable for
fauna. Long before it can provide habitat for a diverse
range of species, it can provide other benefits such as
providing movement pathways for species that cannot
cross paddocks and crops. The dense shrubby structure of
young regrowth is important breeding habitat and shelter
for animals hiding from introduced predators like cats and
foxes. Tiny birds like the superb and variegated fairy-wrens
love to hide their nests in the young brigalow shrubs.
Remnant
CleareD
Young regrowth
(< 15 yrs)
intermediate
regrowth (15- 30 yrs)
OLD regrowth
(> 30 yrs)
15

Managing dense Brigalow regrowth:
To thin or not to thin?
Brigalow regrowth is often very dense (sometimes > 15,000 stems per hectare) because of the plentiful root suckers
produced following clearing. Very high densities are particularly common after multiple pulling attempts on deep
clay soils with gilgais.
Stems compete intensely with one
another and grow slowly, so slowly
that dense stands are often described
as “stunted” or “locked up”. Given
enough time, dense brigalow regrowth
will almost certainly grow into
woodlands akin to virgin stands, but is
it possible to speed up the process by
thinning manually? The answer is yes.
An experimental thinning trial in dense
27 year old regrowth near Millmerran
showed that thinning to 4000 – 6000
stems per hectare produces the best
results for woodland recovery and
wildlife habitat. More severe thinning
will open up the canopy and allow
grasses to establish. While this might
seem a positive result for grazing
purposes, it is not so good for wildlife.
High grass cover, particularly buffel
grass, increases the risk of fire (see
pgs 10 & 19), which will slow down the
restoration process by killing trees or
promoting even thicker regrowth.
If the goal is to manage brigalow
regrowth for wildlife habitat, then
canopy cover should be maintained at
more than 50% (i.e. on average more
than half of the ground is shaded by
tree canopy) in southern Queensland
and northern New South Wales. In
central and northern brigalow regions
we recommend maintaining tree cover
at 70% because buffel grass grows
more vigorously in these regions.
In younger regrowth (e.g. 10–15 years
old) it will be necessary to retain more
stems in order to maintain adequate
tree cover. In these cases it may be
best to thin in stages, for example thin
down to 10,000 stems per ha initially,
then a few years later thin down to
6,000 stems per ha.
If providing habitat for native fauna
is not the primary goal of managing
regrowth, then the manager might
want to encourage the growth of
introduced pasture grasses and
manage fire risk by grazing. It is
16
important to know that sites that are
managed in this way will not support
the same richness of fauna that they
would if managed in the way we
describe, as wildlife habitat. However,
from a wildlife perspective, some trees
are better than no trees at all, and so
the more common fauna will even use
regrowth areas which are managed for
grazing and stock shelter.
Thinning methods
Obviously ringbarking takes a lot of
time and effort, and there may be more
efficient methods available. Regardless
of the method used, secondary
suckering will occur less if thinning is
done after good rain. When thinning, it
is important to retain a range of stem
sizes in a “natural” arrangement.
For example, a completely random
selection of stems yields very natural
arrangements.
Thinning for carbon
Trees sequester carbon as they grow,
but some species sequester more
carbon than others. Brigalow is a
high biomass species, meaning that
it stores a lot of carbon compared to
other species from a similar climate.
Brigalow regrowth therefore has
considerable potential to be used
as carbon sinks. Although thinning
releases some carbon (through the
decay of treated stems), thinned
stands will recoup this carbon quickly
and reach their carbon capacity sooner
than unthinned stands. Although
slower, unthinned stands are still likely
to sequester carbon reasonably
quickly.

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
roadside vegetation and tree-lines:
are they too narrow?
Narrow linear strips of brigalow remnant woodland are a common feature in brigalow landscapes. Long narrow bands
of woodland can extend for kilometres along the edges of roads, and shade-lines mark the boundaries between
paddocks, providing shade for stock and protecting crops from wind damage and heat stress.
These narrow strips of vegetation are often thought to be
unimportant for wildlife and often do not appear on maps of
protected remnant woodland because they are too narrow.
However, our research has shown that these patches of
brigalow are of great importance to wildlife, supporting a
wide variety of birds and reptiles.
Many have a high abundance of mistletoe plants that
provide important fruit and nectar food sources for
woodland birds, like the rare painted honeyeater. These
woodlands also provide corridors for animals to move
among patches of woodland.
While wider patches generally provide better habitat
for wildlife, even the very narrowest of patches are still
important habitat. Very narrow (< 50 m wide) strips are
particularly vulnerable to further degradation from spraydrift
from adjacent cropping areas and over browsing and
trampling by cattle and sheep, as well as wind and storm
damage.
The more heavily grazed of these narrow strips have few
young trees regenerating in the understorey to replace
mature trees as they die. The future of these woodlands is
uncertain, but there are ways to protect them from further
damage.
Excluding stock, or reducing the frequency of stock access,
will help to ensure that younger trees can grow to maturity.
Careful use of herbicides and retaining regrowth woodland
on the edges of these patches are all ways to buffer these
important habitat features against further damage.
MICHIALA BOWEN
17

Key habitat features
What are the most important features for fauna in a brigalow woodland stand?
18
High-quality Brigalow habitat
complex habitat
structure
For most fauna, a tree canopy is
not enough. In a patch of brigalow
woodland, more complex habitat
structure means more species will
find a home. For example, small birds
such as finches and fairy-wrens need
dense vegetation, preferably spiny
shrubs, for protection from predators.
Dense understorey also helps to keep
aggressive noisy miners out.
Reducing grazing pressure within
areas of brigalow woodland can
preserve the important shrub layer and
allow it to regenerate. Even areas of
young regrowth brigalow can act as
shrubby habitat for small birds.
WILL GOULDING
MICHIALA BOWEN
a messy ground layer
A messy ground layer is a good ground
layer. Terrestrial reptiles and small
mammals need fallen timber and leaf
litter for shelter, and this environment
also favours the invertebrates on which
they feed. Melon holes hold water and
create important microhabitats for
frogs and reptiles which prefer damp
areas.
MICHIALA BOWEN
Mistletoes
Mistletoes are an often misunderstood
component of Australian woodlands.
There are many native species of these
semi-parasitic plants in Australia and
they provide important food (fruit and
nectar), shelter and nesting habitat for
many types of animals. Their leaf litter
also benefits ecosystems by returning
nutrients to the soil and enriching the
ground layer.
Grey mistletoes (Amyema quandang)
are particularly abundant in narrow
linear strips of remnant brigalow.
Although many people worry that
heavy mistletoe infestation will cause
tree death, the science is less clear. We
do know that their benefits generally
out-weigh any negative effects. They
are unlikely to harm healthy host
trees and they are very important
for maintaining the abundance and
diversity of woodland birds that live in,
or travel along, these remnant strips.
Hollows and logs
Hollows, cracks and crevices in trees
and fallen logs are homes and havens
for animals and plants in the brigalow.
They provide places for animals to
hide, breed, feed and bask. We often
see lizards soaking up the sun’s rays
on a log, but many animals prefer to
stay out of harm’s way in hollows and
crevices: sleeping, laying eggs, giving
birth or caring for young. Cracks and
crevices in old and dead trees harbour
native species that will be rendered
homeless if needlessly removed.
Logs on the ground help trap moisture
and reduce erosion as well as acting
as a refuge for plants and animals.
Bryophytes (collective term for
mosses, hornworts and liverworts) are
often conspicuous on logs; the highest
bryophyte abundance and diversity
occur on old logs.
Numerous species of invertebrate eat
bryophytes, lay their eggs on them or
shelter in them and this gives rise to a
chain of higher order organisms that
utilise this abundance of invertebrates.
For example, many ants use older,
decaying logs and this attracts their
predators such as native legless and
burrowing lizards.

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
Problem species
ALEX McTAVISH
Noisy miner
The noisy miner (or mickey bird) is a native, but problematic
species. Despite the name, it is not related to the
introduced common (or Indian) myna, but to the Australian
honeyeaters. Unlike most of our birds, it has benefited from
the changes that humans have wrought in the landscape,
and is more common now than prior to European
settlement.
Unfortunately, it is very aggressive towards other birds.
Living in large groups, noisy miners will chase and ‘mob’
intruders to their territory. In almost all cases, smaller birds
are chased away. Larger birds are attacked too, but are
often a bit more resilient.
This means that a patch of woodland which is home to a
colony of noisy miners is generally only habitat for large,
common species like apostlebirds, magpies, butcherbirds
and large parrots, while all the small woodland birds – many
of which are declining – are absent. In fact, noisy miners
pose one of the greatest challenges for conservation of our
woodland birds in eastern Australia.
To control noisy miners, we need to look at what it is that
makes a landscape suitable for them in the first place.
Noisy miners prefer woodlands that have an open tree
structure, with little understorey, and which is grazed. If
we can increase the density of trees in sparse brigalow
vegetation, the number of noisy miners will be reduced and
this means that small birds will return.
Some of the key things that can be done to help woodland
birds to avoid aggression from noisy miners include:
1) encourage and protect shrubby understorey;
2) manage grazing pressure so that it does not degrade
native vegetation; and
3) value dense stands of trees and regrowth, which noisy
miners do not like.
Around the house, planting dense shrubs in the garden
and limiting the amount of nectar-producing shrubs and
trees can help too. Most of our honeyeaters (like the spinycheeked,
striped and singing honeyeaters of the brigalow)
actually mostly eat insects, so they won’t mind!
CAMERON GRAHAM
Foxes and cats
Introduced predators like the European red fox and the
feral cat are not just a nuisance for farmers but also have
a devastating effect on wildlife. A wide range of native
animals are vulnerable to predation by these exotic species,
including small mammals like dunnarts and planigales, birds
that nest and feed near the ground, and many different
reptile species.
Landscapes dominated by cropping and with many roads
and small fragments of brigalow provide optimal conditions
for cats and foxes to hunt and breed. We recorded the
greatest frequency of feral predator activity near linear
woodlands and roadsides, and the least in the interior of
large brigalow patches. Therefore, focusing pest control
along roads and linear strips may increase success in
controlling these pests, and using regrowth to buffer and
enlarge brigalow patches could help reduce their impact on
wildlife.
ANDREW SMITH
Buffel and green panic
Non-native pasture grasses like buffel and green panic
may be good for grazing animals, but when they grow
in brigalow woodland they out-compete the native
understorey plants, which are an important part of wildlife
habitat. They also increase the risk of bush-fires that kill
the brigalow trees. Our research in the region between
Goondiwindi and Emerald has shown that these grasses
will thrive in linear strips of brigalow that have a more open
tree canopy as a result of droughts and other disturbances
causing tree deaths. These grasses are particularly
abundant in the northern Brigalow Belt as they prefer areas
with a high mean maximum temperature and high mean
annual rainfall.
With predictions for a hotter regional climate across the
Brigalow Belt, these non-native grasses may replace the
native understorey plants that are important for wildlife
habitat.
19

Iconic species and their habitat
WILL GOULDING
Painted honeyeater
The painted honeyeater is threatened nationally, but
brigalow woodlands are one of its last strongholds. This
small, strikingly marked bird is a mistletoe specialist, so the
mistletoe-rich brigalow landscapes are the key to its longterm
survival.
Painted honeyeaters are very mobile, nomadically following
mistletoe resources. They follow roadside vegetation
especially in the brigalow where linear strips have very high
densities of mistletoe, and may even breed in these linear
strips. Some of the most important requirements for painted
honeyeaters are mistletoe—of any species, but preferably
at high densities—and a lack of noisy miners (as painted
honeyeaters are susceptible to being chased off by this
aggressive honeyeater).
ROBERT SUTHERST
Grey-crowned babbler
One of the species most familiar to those living in the
Brigalow Belt is the grey-crowned babbler. Yet for most
people living in the woodland zone to the south, the species
is a rarity.
It is now extinct in South Australia and almost so in western
Victoria. It is endangered in northern Victoria, where the
revegetation efforts of a group of dedicated people have
brought it back from the brink, and it is declining in New
South Wales. So those of uswho still enjoy the garrulous
antics of a local babbler group are lucky! Yet it seems
the wave of grey-crowned babbler decline is heading
northward. Now is the time to take preventative action—to
try to avoid the declines occurring further south.
Babblers live in family groups, and breed cooperatively,
with everyone helping out at the nest. Therefore, they need
to range over a large area to support the group, preferably
without having to cross very large open areas. They also
need shrubs or young trees for the large nests they use for
breeding and roosting. Ensuring that connectivity between
woodland patches is not reduced can help, as well as
making sure that woodlands are regenerating to provide
shelter and nest sites.
Eastern yellow robin
The sweet, piping note of the eastern yellow robin is heard
only in the denser stands of brigalow, which it favours. It
prefers woodlands where there is not too much non-native
pasture grass and plenty of fine leaf litter, even along
roadsides and in relatively small patches. However, the
species seems to be disappearing from smaller woodland
remnants further south, and our recent research in the
brigalow found the robins had higher levels of stress where
they lived in the most fragmented landscapes. Ideally,
a patch of at least 30 hectares of brigalow seems to be
needed for eastern yellow robins to be healthy.
These and other species of robin pounce upon invertebrate
prey from their perch on the trunks of trees and low
branches, so although they like dense woodland, they avoid
areas with dense grassy ground layers. Leaf litter and fallen
branches create ideal foraging conditions and so leaving
branches where they fall will encourage the robins and
other ground-foraging species.
20
ROBERT SUTHERST
WARATAHSOFTWARE.COM.AU
White-throated treecreeper
The white-throated treecreeper might be the next bird to
disappear from brigalow woodlands. Today, it only occurs
in the very largest patches of brigalow—e.g., Southwood
and Erringibba National Parks. It is one of only two barkforaging
specialists in the brigalow (the other is the varied
sittella). Family groups of up to three to five individuals
forage from tree to tree, starting at the base and working
their way up, clinging to the trunks with their strong claws.
The females disperse to join other groups or start new
groups–but now, there are few places for young female
treecreepers to disperse to.

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
WILL GOULDING
Planigales
While four species of mammal in the brigalow have severely
declined and about ten have become extinct, the planigales
manage to persist. However, they are not commonly
encountered.
The two species most likely to occur in the brigalow are
the common planigale and the narrow-nosed planigale.
With average weights around 11 grams for males and 7.5
grams for females they are a diminutive marsupial with a flat
body shape (and are thus sometimes called ‘flat weasels’).
They are rarely seen because of their small size and quick,
furtive habits. Planigales eat a variety of insects that include
grasshoppers and moths, but will also eat small skinks.
Common planigales shelter by day under rocks, fallen
timber and bark, while narrow-nosed planigales spend
much of their time in the cracks of cracking clay soils to
avoid the heat.
WILL GOULDING
Death adder
While it may seem difficult to embrace the value and beauty
of snakes, they are important to the ecology of the brigalow.
Snakes should be left alone; they are protected under State
legislation, and trying to kill them is dangerous. Snakes can
actually be very useful as pest controllers—rats and mice
are common prey items. Be snake aware, look out for them
and appreciate their elegance. Many species have now
become so rare through years of persecution and habitat
loss that you are lucky to encounter them. The death adder
is one of those species whose numbers have crashed and
may be facing extinction, though they are secretive and
difficult to see anyway.
It is difficult to confuse the death adder with any other
snake when seen properly, but they do frequently lie
motionless and concealed within leaf litter. The tail can be
wiggled so that it looks like a worm and is used to attract
prey. The strike is lightning fast!
LUKE HOGAN
microbats- eastern cave bats
Microbats are common throughout the Brigalow Belt.
Microbats are a group of small insect eating bats with
poorly developed eyes. Unlike the megabats (or flying
foxes) which have well developed sense of sight and smell,
microbats use echolocation to navigate around and locate
their prey. In other words they emit sounds in order to get
echoes from objects within their environment; no echo
indicates a space, while a returned echo indicates either an
object to be avoided or sought after if it is moving prey.
Microbats are capable of demolishing insect pests in
considerable volume. Approximately 20 species of microbat
have been identified by recent studies in the Brigalow Belt,
including the eastern cave bat (pictured), which as its name
implies roosts mainly in small groups in the well-lit areas
of caves and overhangs. Other species of microbat utilise
tree hollows as their roosts and this is why it is important to
conserve large old trees with hollows, cracks and crevices.
WILL GOULDING
Geckoes
The house gecko, also known as the ‘wall tiger’, is one of
the most familiar reptiles of the brigalow. It has remarkable
ability to cling to vertical walls and defy gravity by clinging
to ceilings. Their toes are made up of folds that allow them
to perform their hanging feats.
They are one of the most common reptiles in human
structures and on trees and provide a great service in
consuming small irritating insects. They are completely
harmless.
A gecko with arguably greater beauty is slightly less
harmless, although you are unlikely to encounter it indoors!
The threatened golden-tailed gecko (pictured) has an ability
to secrete a sticky fluid from pores along the length of its
tail, which if it gets into the eyes is highly irritating. This
beautiful species mostly spends the day hidden in hollow
21

limbs and under loose bark on old trees. At night it hunts for
insects in the branches and foliage of brigalow trees.
WILL GOULDING
SHINGLEBACK SKINK
Widespread in semi-arid regions of Australia, the
shingleback (also known as the stumpy-tail or sleepy lizard)
is a large species of skink that feeds mostly on vegetation.
Shinglebacks have large coarse scales that give them a
heavily armoured appearance.
MICHIALA BOWEN
Crucifix toad
The crucifix toad (or holy cross toad) earns its name by the
yellow and red spots arranged in a cross on its yellow to
olive back. This brightly coloured species is abundant on
the black soil floodplains of the Brigalow Belt, but typically
only rises from its subterranean haunt following heavy rain.
Its call is a series of long-owl-like ‘whoo-oos’. If handled, it
can secrete a pasty yellow substance that can be difficult to
remove from hands.
When feeling threatened they will open their mouth wide
to reveal a bright blue tongue in an attempt to frighten
off potential predators. Despite their tough attitude and
appearance, their habit of sun baking on roads means that
most people will encounter these impressive skinks as
road-kill victims.
STEWART MCDONALD
BRIGALOW SCALY-FOOT
While the brigalow scaly-foot may appear superficially to be
a snake, it is in fact a flap-footed lizard. That means it has
no forelimbs and the hind limbs are merely small and scalelike
flaps. Unlike snakes it has a broad and fleshy tongue,
ear openings and a very long tail, which (like other lizards)
they are capable of losing if caught by the tail.
MARTIN BENNETT
ROUGH COLLARED FROG
The rough collared frog belongs to a group of frogs that are
terrestrial and/or aquatic in habit. They have very powerful
hind limbs which assist in burrowing. It is a somewhat rarely
encountered species that is restricted to an arid and semiarid
region across the Queensland-NSW border. There is
concern that populations of this species are in decline.
Rough collared frogs are found on black-soil and heavy clay
plains which are typically flooded by heavy rains. Males
are heard calling after rain usually from flooded areas and
females lay eggs as a loose mass attached to submerged
plants in a flooded depression or waterhole, following rain.
The brigalow scaly-foot is a smooth glossy reptile that
has a dark and a light band across the neck. The lizard is
active by night and during the day it hides in thick leaf litter,
woody debris on the forest floor and beneath rocks or logs.
Confusingly to both humans and its predators, it is capable
of rearing up like a snake.
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CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
Types of landscapes
We have outlined many of the things you can do to help encourage wildlife on your property. But no-one can
do everything. What are the most important things for wildlife? In part, the answer depends on what sort of
landscape you are dealing with. Below we list the highest-priority management actions for some examples
of different landscape types.
Management Priorities:
High cover landscape
Maintain habitat condition:
• maintain low grazing pressure
• control weeds
• control exotic animals
• avoid removing habitat like fallen timber
moderate cover (connected) landscape
Increase small habitat patch size and linear patch widths by buffering existing
patches with regrowth
Maintain habitat condition:
• maintain low grazing pressure
• control weeds
• control exotic animals
• avoid removing habitat like fallen timber
• allow regrowth for long periods of time (decades)
MODERATE COVER (DISCONNECTED) LANDSCAPE
Increase connectivity:
• Retain regrowth to connect nearby patches to one another
Maintain habitat condition:
• maintain low grazing pressure
• control weeds
• control exotic animals
• avoid removing habitat like fallen timber
• allow regrowth for long periods of time (decades)
LOW COVER LANDSCAPE
Increase habitat amount:
• increase patch sizes by retaining a buffer of regrowth vegetation
• create more habitat patches by retaining regrowth vegetation
Increase connectivity:
• retain regrowth to connect nearby patches to one another
Maintain habitat condition:
• maintain low grazing pressure
• control weeds
• control exotic animals
• avoid removing habitat like fallen timber
Remnant vegetation
Old regrowth
Young regrowth
Cleared land
Medium aged regrowth
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LIST OF VERTEBRATE SPECIES
recorded in the brigalow belt south during university of queensland field surveys
How many species do you have on your property? Do you have any we didn’t record?
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CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
25

QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE
1. How much vegetation is enough?
Patches of all sizes contribute to habitat for wildlife, but
larger patches can also support some species that don’t
like small patches. Even small patches and individual trees
are stepping stones through the landscape for wildlife.
At the scale of an entire landscape (e.g., 1000s ha),
the more vegetation the better, especially in heavily
cleared landscapes. In such landscapes, every bit of
extra vegetation contributes to the number of species
the landscape can support. Retaining at least 20–30 %
natural vegetation in the landscape will result in high faunal
biodiversity. Natural vegetation may include a mixture of
remnant and regrowth.
2. What are the priority areas to restore?
The answer to this question varies depending on the
individual landscape in question.
When landscapes have high amounts of remnant
woodlands (> 70%), restoration priorities may include a
focus on: controlling grazing and exotic species disturbance
to maintain high quality habitat condition. In moderate cover
landscapes (30–70%) maintaining habitat condition and
also buffering small patches are the best activities. Finally,
in landscapes with low native vegetation cover (

CONSERVING BIODIVERSITY IN BRIGALOW LANDSCAPES
Useful contacts & resources
http://www.uq.edu.au/brigalow/
http://condaminealliance.com.au/
http://www.qmdc.org.au/
http://www.brg.cma.nsw.gov.au/
http://www.derm.qld.gov.au/vegetation/index.html
http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicshowcommunity.pl?id=28
http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/brigalow-regrowth.html
http://www.qhatlas.com.au/content/prickly-pear
http://www.qhatlas.com.au/content/brigalow
http://www.myallparkbotanicgarden.org.au
http://www.brigalowbirds.org
Further reading
Bowen, M.E., McAlpine, C.A., Seabrook, L., House, A.P.N., Smith, G.C., 2009. The age and amount of regrowth forest
in fragmented brigalow landscapes are both important for woodland dependent birds. Biological Conservation 142,
3051–3059.
Bowen, M.E., McAlpine, C.A., House, A.P.N., Smith, G.C., 2009. Agricultural landscape modification increases the
abundance of an important food resource: Mistletoes, birds and brigalow. Biological Conservation 142, 122–133.
Bowen, M.E., McAlpine, C.A., House, A.P.N., Smith, G.C., 2007. Regrowth forests on abandoned agricultural land: A
review of their habitat values for recovering forest fauna. Biological Conservation 140, 273–296.
Brigalow Birds Educational Project 2010, Brigalow birds. Lesterlyons Publishing, Brisbane
Chandler, T.S., Buckley, Y.M., Dwyer, J.M., 2007. Restoration potential of Brigalow regrowth: Insights from a crosssectional
study in southern Queensland. Ecological Management & Restoration 8, 218–221.
Collard, S., Le Brocque, A., Zammit, C., 2009. Bird assemblages in fragmented agricultural landscapes: the role of small
brigalow remnants and adjoining land uses. Biodiversity and Conservation 18, 1649-1670.
Dwyer, J.M., Fensham, R., Buckley, Y.M., 2010. Restoration thinning accelerates structural development and carbon
sequestration in an endangered Australian ecosystem. Journal of Applied Ecology 47, 681–691.
Dwyer, J.M., Fensham, R.J., Butler, D.W., Buckley, Y.M., 2009. Carbon for conservation: Assessing the potential for winwin
investment in an extensive Australian regrowth ecosystem. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 134, 1–7.
Lester, N.C., 2008. Woodland to weeds. 2nd Edition, Copyright Publishing, Brisbane.
Lowik, P.J., 2010. Spatial patterns of habitat use by microchiropteran bats in a fragmented landscape of the southern
Brigalow Belt, Queensland, Australia. Honours thesis, School of Geography, Planning and Environmental Management,
The University of Queensland.
Maron, M., Main, A., Bowen, M., Howes, A. L., Kath, J., Pillette, C.and McAlpine, C. A. 2011. Relative influence of habitat
modification and interspecific competition on woodland bird assemblages in eastern Australia. Emu: Austral Ornithology
111: 40-51
Maron, M, Bowen, M., Fuller, R A, Smith, G C, Eyre, T, Mathieson, M., Watson, J E M & McAlpine, C A. In press. Spurious
relationships and the relationship between species richness and vegetation cover. Global Ecology and Biogeography
Nix, H., 1994. The Brigalow, In Australian environmental history. Essays and cases. ed. S. Dovers, pp. 198–233. Oxford
University Press, Melbourne, Victoria.
Seabrook, L., McAlpine, C., Fensham, R., 2008. What influences farmers to keep trees? A case study from the Brigalow
Belt, Queensland, Australia. Landscape and Urban Planning, 84, 266-281.
Seabrook, L., McAlpine, C., Fensham, R., 2007. Spatial and temporal analysis of vegetation change in agricultural
landscapes: A case study of two brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) landscapes in Queensland, Australia Agriculture,
Ecosystems & Environment, 120, 211-228.
Seabrook, L., McAlpine, C., Fensham, R., 2006. Cattle, crops and clearing: Regional drivers of landscape change in the
Brigalow Belt, Queensland, Australia, 1840-2004. Landscape and Urban Planning, 78, 373-385.
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