VEGETATION MANAGEMENT PLAN for Bidjigal Reserve - Land

Vegetation Management Plan - Bidjigal ReserveTable 4.6: Threats and Recovery Strategies for the Grey-headed Flying-fox known to Occur withinBidjigal Reserve, Baulkham Hills LGA (Sourced from DECC 2008b)THREATS• Unregulated shooting.• Loss of foraging habitat.• Disturbance of roosting sites.• Electrocution on power lines.RECOVERY• Protect roost sites, particularly avoid disturbanceSeptember through November.• Identify and protect key foraging areas.• Manage and enforce licensed shooting.• Investigate and promote alternative non-lethal cropprotection mechanisms.• Identify power line ‘blackspots’ and implement measuresto reduce deaths.4.2.4 Introduced Fauna SpeciesFeral animal invasion and competition with native species is well recognised as a risk to native fauna,and depending on the habitat type invaded, may present either a minor or a significant‘environmental problem’. For example, in sensitive habitats such as wetlands, feral animals willpredate on amphibians and other small animals, destroy vegetation and contribute to the spread ofweeds.There is a known population of the European Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) in the Reserve. Predation bythe Red Fox was listed as a ‘key threatening process’ under the NSW TSC Act in March 1998. Sincetheir introduction to Australia in the 1870s, foxes have contributed to significant declines in thedistribution and abundance of a suite of native fauna, particularly among medium-sized grounddwellingand semi-arboreal mammals, and ground-nesting birds. Of particular relevance to BidjigalReserve, which contains populations of threatened fauna species, the Red Fox is known to prey uponPowerful Owl fledglings and the Eastern Bentwing-bat.A fox control program was conducted in the Reserve (10-21 st November 2008) by Bidjigal ReserveTrust and BHSC. It was anticipated that the program would target both adult and young fox cubs inan attempt to prevent a further increase in the current population size, however no fox baitscontaining 1080 poison were taken (pers. comm. Wendy Goonan).Feral European Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) were observed grazing in the urban-bushlandinterface zones of the Reserve. It is possible that the individuals observed (three [3] in total) hadbeen released or were escaped pets. Grazing and burrowing by rabbits is known to cause erosionproblems, reduce recruitment and survival of native plants, and modify the landscape. Rabbits alsothreaten the survival of a number of native animal species by altering habitat, reducing native foodsources, displacing small animals from burrows, and attracting introduced predators such as foxes.It is recommended that this population be targeted in trapping or poison programs to controlpopulation size before the problem escalates. Additionally, the population should be monitored toidentify any changes in size or location.Two (2) introduced birds were observed within the Reserve. The introduced Common Myna(Acridotheres tristis) was frequently recorded at the urban-bushland interface, probably a result oftheir ability to adapt well to environments modified by humans. There may be some competitionwith native species for resources, in particular for tree hollows, however this species is usuallyassociated with urban environments and rarely ventures into core bushland. The Red-whiskeredUBM Ecological Consultants Pty Ltd 63