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Atherton Ctenotus (Ctenotus monticola)

The Atherton Ctenotus is a small, diurnal terrestrial skink recorded from Queensland. It is listed as Endangered in Queensland and has been recorded in open woodland and forest habitats, so clearing, ground disturbance and fragmentation require targeted searches and careful handling on project sites.

Conservation status

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Endangered.

Breeding season

The Atherton Ctenotus is an egg-laying, diurnal skink, but the months for mating, egg laying, hatching and seasonal activity are not well documented. Plan clearing as a year-round risk in suitable habitat, with local timing refined using rainfall and temperature observations.

Reproductive mode: Oviparous

Clutch size: Average 2.5 eggs

Incubation: Not recorded

Size at hatching: Not recorded

Age at maturity: Not recorded

Nest or egg sites: Not recorded

Breeding frequency: Not recorded

Confirm timing locally before clearing, using rainfall and temperature patterns, local records and observations of gravid females, eggs, hatchlings and surface activity.

  • Mating: Mating months have not been recorded for this species. Most Ctenotus in one tropical study bred in the dry season, but tropical Ctenotus also include wet-season breeders, so no monthly peak can be assigned to the Atherton Ctenotus.
  • Gravid females: The presence and timing of gravid females have not been recorded. Treat gravid females as possible in any month until local surveys establish a seasonal pattern.
  • Egg laying: The species lays eggs and has an average clutch of 2.5 eggs, but egg-laying months and sites are not recorded. No monthly peak can be assigned.
  • Incubation: Incubation length and the months when eggs remain in nests or soil are not recorded. Treat occupied suitable ground as potential egg habitat throughout the year.
  • Hatchlings: Hatching and juvenile emergence have not been recorded. No period of higher hatchling abundance can be identified, so young animals should be considered possible in all months.
  • Active period: The species is diurnal, but its active season has not been recorded. No seasonal peak or inactive period can be assigned.
  • Winter inactivity: Brumation, hibernation and seasonal low activity have not been recorded. Check ground cover, litter, rocks, soil cracks and fallen timber in every month because sheltering animals may not escape machinery.
  • Highest clearing risk: No seasonal peak is known. Use a year-round precautionary setting because nests, eggs, gravid females, hatchlings and sheltering animals may occur in suitable habitat at any time.

Identification

The Atherton Ctenotus is a small four-legged skink in the family Scincidae. External description is limited, so field identification should use the species name, locality, habitat and expert confirmation together rather than size alone.

Adults reach a maximum snout to vent length of 65 mm. The greatest reported body mass is 5.5 g, although this value was calculated from body length and was not obtained by weighing an animal.

Maximum snout to vent length: 65 mm

Maximum reported mass: 5.5 g

  • Record the snout to vent length, total length if safely available, sex if apparent, exact location and habitat photograph for each capture.
  • Use a qualified herpetologist or an appropriate regional identification key where other small Ctenotus species occur.

Identification: Activity and handling

The species is terrestrial and diurnal. It has four legs and is not venomous, with no fangs recorded.

Activity period: Diurnal

Lifestyle: Terrestrial

  • Search during daylight and keep animals shaded and cool during processing.
  • Minimise handling time and release animals at the point of capture or at an approved nearby location within suitable habitat.

Identification: Field signs and similar species

No diagnostic colour pattern, call, track, scat, nest, slough or eyeshine description is known. Sex-specific size data are not well documented, so sex should not be assigned from size alone.

  • Do not rely on tracks, scats or visual size estimates as confirmation of this species.
  • Photograph the dorsal, lateral and ventral surfaces where permitted, and retain capture records and expert determinations for the project file.
  • Treat small skinks in suitable Queensland habitat as potential Atherton Ctenotus until identified.

Distribution: Known distribution

The species occurs in Queensland, within the Australo-Pacific region. A complete state-by-state range map and confirmed bioregional boundaries are not available.

The species is recorded from Queensland and is listed as Endangered under Queensland state listings. A Queensland Government wildlife record lists Atherton Ctenotus in the eastern Gulf of Carpentaria area, with 56 records and 5 specimens dated 19 November 2021.

The species has a recorded range size of 2023 km² and is a mainland animal. Separate subpopulations or strongholds have not been identified.

State record: Queensland

Queensland listing: Endangered

Queensland Government eastern Gulf record: 56 records and 5 specimens, dated 19 November 2021

Recorded range size: 2023 km²

Mainland or island: Mainland

  • Prioritise database checks and targeted surveys in Queensland project areas that contain suitable open woodland or forest habitat.
  • Do not assume that a site is outside the range solely because the species has not been recorded there.

Distribution: Population information

The population trend for Ctenotus monticola is unknown. No population estimate, density, home range, generation length or confirmed subpopulation structure has been established.

Population trend: Unknown in Queensland

Population size: Not reported

Known subpopulations: Not reported

  • Report all confirmed records to the relevant project database and state wildlife authority processes so that new locality information can improve knowledge of the species.

Habitat: Habitat types

The species is terrestrial and is associated with forest, tropical and subtropical grassland, savanna and shrubland biomes. In Queensland it is assigned to open woodland, but detailed habitat structure and elevation limits are not well documented.

The species account records forest as its habitat and places it in the Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands biome. The Queensland habitat table lists open woodland for Ctenotus monticola.

Recorded habitat: Forest

Queensland table habitat: Open woodland

Biome: Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands

  • Inspect open woodland, forest edge and other structurally suitable terrestrial habitat within the project footprint.
  • Map retained native vegetation and connected patches before clearing, including areas outside the immediate disturbance footprint that may support local movement.

Habitat: Site features and limits

Preferred ground cover, litter depth, rock cover, canopy structure, soil type, elevation range and climatic limits are not well documented. No elevation records are available.

Elevation limits: Not reported

Detailed structural requirements: Not reported

  • During pre-clearance surveys, record vegetation community, canopy cover, ground cover, litter, fallen timber, rocks, soil surface and nearby drainage features.
  • Avoid treating any single structural feature as a confirmed habitat requirement until site observations or additional species-specific studies support it.

Foraging habitat: Diet and feeding

The species is diurnal and terrestrial, but its diet and feeding method have not been recorded. Project surveys should therefore focus on detecting the animal directly in suitable ground habitat rather than using prey remains or feeding signs.

Diet and hunting methods are not well documented. It is not known whether the species eats arthropods, vertebrates or plant matter.

Diet: Not reported

Foraging method: Not reported

  • Do not use food plants, prey remains or feeding sign as a species-specific survey method.
  • Record the ground habitat and vegetation community at every capture because these observations may help define foraging habitat locally.

Foraging habitat: Foraging area

No home range, foraging range, density or movement distance is available. The animal is terrestrial and diurnal, so searches should cover the ground layer during daylight in suitable habitat.

Foraging range: Not reported

Activity period for searches: Daylight

  • Search across the full proposed clearing footprint and along access tracks, stockpile areas and temporary work zones.
  • Retain connected ground habitat where practicable because the species' local movement requirements are unknown.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

The Atherton Ctenotus lays eggs, but its breeding season, incubation period, maturity and lifespan are not well documented. Any egg-laying site requirements remain unknown.

The species is oviparous and the average clutch is 2.5 eggs. The smallest and largest clutch sizes, egg dimensions, incubation period, age at maturity and lifespan are not reported.

Breeding mode: Oviparous

Average clutch: 2.5 eggs

Breeding season: Not reported

Incubation period: Not reported

Age at maturity: Not reported

Lifespan: Not reported

  • Treat all occupied suitable habitat as potentially breeding habitat because the location of nests and eggs is not known.
  • Where an animal is captured during works, seek advice from the fauna spotter catcher or species expert before relocation or release.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

No nest location, egg-laying substrate, soil condition, shelter feature or breeding-site fidelity is described. The available habitat information is limited to forest and open woodland associations.

  • Before clearing, inspect ground habitat and likely shelter sites across the work area, including retained forest and open woodland patches.
  • If eggs or a suspected nest are found, stop work locally and obtain species-specific advice before proceeding.

Sheltering habitat: Known refuge information

Specific refuges used by the Atherton Ctenotus are not well documented. The species is terrestrial, so ground-level habitat within clearing areas should be checked before disturbance.

No information is provided on burrows, hollows, rock crevices, fallen timber, leaf litter, nests or other shelter types used by this species. No shelter dimensions are available.

Known refuge type: Not reported

Refuge dimensions: Not reported

  • Inspect ground cover, litter, fallen timber, rocks, soil cracks and other potential refuges during pre-clearance searches.
  • Use staged clearing and maintain an escape route towards retained suitable habitat where this is consistent with the approved fauna management plan.

Sheltering habitat: Capture and release

The species is a small diurnal terrestrial skink with a maximum snout to vent length of 65 mm. Its preferred body temperature has not been recorded.

Maximum snout to vent length: 65 mm

Preferred body temperature: Not reported

  • Avoid exposing captured animals to direct sun or excessive heat during processing.
  • No species-specific thermal target has been published because no preferred body temperature is available.

Threats: Clearing and fragmentation

The species is listed as Endangered in Queensland, and its population trend is unknown. Species-specific threats have not been tested, so project risk assessment should focus on direct habitat loss and disturbance while documenting site evidence for future assessment.

Clearing open woodland or forest can remove the terrestrial habitat used by the species. Fragmentation may reduce the amount of connected habitat available, although species-specific movement distances are not reported.

Queensland status: Endangered

Population trend: Unknown

Recorded habitat affected by potential clearing: Forest and open woodland

  • Avoid clearing native vegetation where practicable and keep disturbance footprints to the approved minimum.
  • Retain connected habitat patches and avoid isolating small retained areas within roads, compounds and construction zones.
  • Search all vegetation and ground habitat proposed for removal, including temporary work areas.

Threats: Construction disturbance and roads

Road construction, vehicle movements, soil disturbance and machinery can kill small terrestrial skinks or remove their ground shelter. Road mortality and a species-specific road crossing distance are not well documented.

  • Apply low-speed fauna controls and pre-start inspections in known or potential habitat.
  • Use fauna spotter catchers during clearing and stop work when an animal is located in the active work area.
  • Prevent unnecessary vehicle movements through retained habitat and keep material storage outside suitable ground habitat.

Threats: Fire, predators and other pressures

Species-specific evidence on fire, introduced predators, disease, hydrology change and other pressures is lacking. Record these factors where they alter the open woodland or forest ground layer used by terrestrial skinks.

  • Record recent fire, weed invasion, feral predator activity, drainage alteration and changes to ground cover during habitat assessment.
  • Avoid making broad threat conclusions from records for other Ctenotus species.

Survey methodology: 1. Daytime active searches

No species-specific survey guideline or standard effort has been published for Atherton Ctenotus. It is a small, terrestrial, diurnal skink associated with forest and open woodland habitats, so surveys should target ground-level activity during suitable daylight conditions and be designed by a qualified ecologist.

Search suitable ground habitat during daylight when the species is active.

Inspect the ground surface and cover used by small terrestrial skinks, including leaf litter, fallen timber, loose rocks, tussock bases and surface debris.

Record the search area, start and finish times, weather, observers, habitat condition and all detection and non-detection results.

Treat a visual identification as provisional until confirmed by an appropriately qualified person, because Ctenotus species can be similar in appearance.

Survey methodology: 2. Targeted habitat searches

Give priority to forest and open woodland within or adjoining the proposed disturbance area, because these are the habitat types described for the species.

Map the extent and condition of suitable ground cover, connected retained habitat and isolated habitat patches before selecting survey locations.

Search retained habitat next to the work area as well as the area proposed for clearing, because animals may move into retained ground cover during disturbance.

Survey methodology: 3. Survey timing and conditions

Plan repeated daytime searches across suitable weather conditions rather than relying on a single visit.

Avoid treating cold, wet, very windy or otherwise unsuitable conditions as evidence of absence, and document those conditions in the survey report.

Record the date, time and conditions for every search so that the result can be interpreted against the species' diurnal activity pattern.

Survey methodology: 4. Minimum effort and reporting

  • Use a written survey design that states the search area, transect or search route, observer hours, number of visits, dates, weather and detection method.
  • Do not report a negative result as proof that the species is absent where suitable habitat was not searched under suitable conditions.
  • Keep photographs, coordinates and habitat descriptions for each record, and identify the taxon to species level only where the evidence supports it.
  • Submit confirmed records, including zero records where required by the project approval, to the relevant Queensland wildlife database and any other relevant state or territory biodiversity database.
  • Report the species' state conservation status and the current EPBC Act status in the project assessment and approval documents.

Vegetation associations: Woodland

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

The Queensland habitat table lists open woodland for Ctenotus monticola.

Automatically indexed from existing profile text. Not a verified preference, mapped occurrence or habitat requirement. Check the original source and regional qualifiers before use.

Evidence: Unreviewed profile-derived candidate

Confidence: Not independently verified

Region: Scope as described in the quoted profile text; not independently verified. Profile states: QLD.

Habitat use: general

Attribution gap: No sentence-level reference is attached to the original profile block. Review the profile bibliography; this candidate is not source-verified.

Vegetation associations: Shrubland

The species account records forest as its habitat and places it in the Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands biome.

Automatically indexed from existing profile text. Not a verified preference, mapped occurrence or habitat requirement. Check the original source and regional qualifiers before use.

Evidence: Unreviewed profile-derived candidate

Confidence: Not independently verified

Region: Scope as described in the quoted profile text; not independently verified. Profile states: QLD.

Habitat use: general

Attribution gap: No sentence-level reference is attached to the original profile block. Review the profile bibliography; this candidate is not source-verified.

Vegetation associations: Tussock grassland

The species account records forest as its habitat and places it in the Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands biome.

Automatically indexed from existing profile text. Not a verified preference, mapped occurrence or habitat requirement. Check the original source and regional qualifiers before use.

Evidence: Unreviewed profile-derived candidate

Confidence: Not independently verified

Region: Scope as described in the quoted profile text; not independently verified. Profile states: QLD.

Habitat use: general

Attribution gap: No sentence-level reference is attached to the original profile block. Review the profile bibliography; this candidate is not source-verified.

Ecosystem associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific ecosystem association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Soil and substrate associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific soil association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Water and wetland associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific water association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Fauna records and mapped habitat: Not yet analysed

Record locations can be overlaid with mapping, but record frequency alone does not measure habitat preference. No species is excluded from desktop assessments by this analysis.

No quality-controlled record-to-map analysis has been completed for this species. The existing generalised distribution dots and indicative range polygons have not been treated as precise occurrence coordinates.

A defensible run needs dated, independently attributable records, coordinate uncertainty, duplicate and captive-record checks, layer versions and regional scope. Preference and absence require additional survey-effort and detection evidence.

Habitat limitations and contrary evidence: No supported exclusion recorded

Not recorded is not the same as cannot occur. Low suitability, resident habitat, breeding habitat and occasional movement are different conclusions.

This library has not established a vegetation, ecosystem or soil-type exclusion for this species. This does not mean all habitat is suitable; the evidence needed to justify an exclusion has not been assembled.

Habitat limitations and contrary evidence: Before using a negative association

  • Confirm the taxon, geographic region, life stage and habitat function covered by the evidence.
  • Check survey methods, season, repeated effort and detectability before interpreting non-detection.
  • Investigate credible contradictory records and microhabitats absent from broad mapping.
  • Do not convert a missing map class, low record count or failed data request into species absence.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise

Treat suitable ground habitat as potential Atherton Ctenotus habitat before clearing or construction. The species is listed as Queensland Endangered, and it occurs in open woodland and forest settings.

  • Retain connected patches of suitable forest and open woodland ground cover wherever practicable.
  • Retain leaf litter, low vegetation, fallen timber, loose rocks and other surface cover that can provide shelter for a small terrestrial skink.
  • Avoid creating isolated retained patches surrounded by cleared ground, and maintain links between retained habitat areas where the design allows.
  • Keep construction compounds, access tracks, stockpiles and spoil outside retained habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and planning

  • Confirm the current EPBC Act listing before works begin, even though the species is recorded as not listed nationally.
  • Obtain and comply with Queensland permits, approvals and conditions that apply to a Queensland Endangered species and to fauna disturbance or relocation.
  • Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies survey methods, exclusion areas, spotter catcher responsibilities, stop-work triggers, handling arrangements and reporting requirements.
  • Stage clearing so that the spotter catcher can inspect each work area immediately before disturbance.

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

  • Complete a pre-clearance survey of all proposed disturbance areas and adjacent retained habitat using the approved project method.
  • Mark habitat to be retained, access limits, exclusion zones and any fauna protection areas before machinery enters the site.
  • Use exclusion fencing only where it can be installed without trapping animals and where it will direct animals towards retained habitat rather than into active work areas.
  • Brief operators and supervisors on the species' identification, its diurnal activity and the requirement to stop when fauna is detected.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls

Use active fauna controls throughout clearing and earthworks. A fauna spotter catcher should have authority to pause the work area and must be able to inspect ground cover before it is removed or crushed.

  • Inspect exclusion fencing, retained habitat markers and access controls before work starts each day.
  • Conduct a daily pre-start fauna check in the active work area, including ground cover, fallen timber, rocks, leaf litter and machinery parking areas.
  • Keep the fauna spotter catcher in direct contact with the supervisor and machinery operators while clearing or ground disturbance is underway.
  • Clear progressively in small work areas so that each section can be checked, disturbed and released before the next section begins.
  • Do not leave excavations, spoil piles or stored materials open where they can trap small terrestrial fauna.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat feature handling

  • Have the spotter catcher inspect logs, rocks, debris, leaf litter and low vegetation before they are moved or removed.
  • Move suitable ground cover only under fauna supervision and place it in nearby retained habitat where this is allowed by the fauna management plan.
  • Do not assume that a feature is unused because no animal is visible during a single inspection.
  • Inspect any trench, pit or excavation that remains open and provide an approved escape route or cover it when unattended.

During habitat disturbance: If an animal is found

  • Stop machinery and people in the immediate area when an Atherton Ctenotus is seen, and keep the animal in sight without chasing it.
  • Allow the animal to move into nearby retained habitat where it can do so safely.
  • Only an appropriately authorised fauna handler should capture, handle or relocate the animal, and handling should be limited to what is required for safety, identification or approved relocation.
  • Relocate an animal only to nearby suitable retained habitat and only in accordance with the permit and fauna management plan.
  • Take an injured animal to an appropriately qualified veterinarian or authorised wildlife carer as soon as practicable.
  • Resume work only after the spotter catcher has inspected the immediate area and the supervisor has confirmed that the stop-work condition is cleared.

During habitat disturbance: Triggers and records

  • Stop work if the animal cannot be located, if the spotter catcher loses visibility of the active work area, if exclusion controls fail, or if unexpected suitable habitat or fauna is found.
  • Record every sighting, capture, relocation, injury, mortality and stop-work event with date, time, coordinates, habitat description, photographs where permitted and the action taken.
  • Report any mortality, repeated use of the work area or discovery of a concentration of animals to the project ecologist and approval authority as required.
  • Maintain daily records of cleared area, machinery used, personnel present, weather, inspections and fauna outcomes.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance controls should confirm that no animals remain trapped in the work area and that retained habitat is still functioning as a connected refuge. The regional Queensland source records the species from the Eastern Gulf of Carpentaria area, including a record dated 19 November 2021.

  • Inspect the completed disturbance area, exclusion fencing, trenches, pits, stockpiles and retained habitat edges after each clearing stage.
  • Remove or make safe temporary structures that could trap small terrestrial fauna.
  • Check relocated animals and release sites in accordance with the approved fauna management plan and permit conditions.
  • Investigate any unexpected animal record or mortality and update the work controls before the next stage.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

  • Monitor retained habitat and rehabilitation areas using the method and frequency specified in the approval or fauna management plan.
  • Use the same search and recording approach on repeat visits so that changes in detections can be compared over time.
  • Report survey effort, detections, non-detections, relocations, injuries, mortality, breaches and corrective actions to the project environmental officer and relevant regulator.
  • Submit confirmed records to the relevant state wildlife database and retain the coordinates and supporting evidence in the project fauna register.

After habitat disturbance: Maintain controls and offsets

  • Keep exclusion fencing, habitat protection markers, weed controls and access restrictions in place until the site is stable and the responsible ecologist approves their removal.
  • Check whether residual impacts require an offset or other compensatory measure under the applicable Queensland approval framework.
  • Do not use an offset as a substitute for retaining suitable habitat and avoiding unnecessary clearing.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore habitat structure

Rehabilitation should restore connected, ground-level shelter in the forest or open woodland habitat used by this terrestrial species. Species-specific plant lists, nest boxes, wetland requirements and rehabilitation success thresholds are not well documented.

  • Re-establish locally appropriate native ground cover and low vegetation suited to the pre-clearing forest or open woodland community.
  • Reinstate leaf litter, fallen timber and suitable loose rocks where these were present before disturbance and where their placement is safe.
  • Reconnect rehabilitation areas with retained habitat rather than creating narrow isolated strips or bare corridors.
  • Keep rehabilitation free of unnecessary compacted surfaces, stored materials and regular vehicle traffic.

Rehabilitation actions: Manage threats

  • Control weeds that reduce native ground cover or alter the structure of the retained and rehabilitated habitat.
  • Manage erosion, sediment movement and drainage so that ground cover and shelter are not washed away.
  • Apply fire management that protects the habitat structure required by small terrestrial skinks and follows the approved regional fire plan.
  • Use predator control only where it is supported by the project risk assessment and approved by the relevant authority.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitoring and success measures

  • Set rehabilitation success measures for native ground cover, retained surface shelter, connectivity, weed cover and absence of construction impacts before works begin.
  • Inspect rehabilitation after establishment, after major rainfall and after any fire or maintenance event.
  • Use repeat daytime searches in suitable weather to check whether Atherton Ctenotus or other native terrestrial skinks are using restored habitat.
  • Replace failed plantings, repair erosion, restore displaced logs or rocks and correct weed or access problems when monitoring shows that the site is not meeting its approved targets.
  • Report rehabilitation results and any confirmed species records to the project environmental officer and the relevant wildlife database.

Sources