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Australian Painted-Snipe (Rostratula australis)

The Australian Painted-Snipe is a small, secretive wetland bird endemic to Australia. It uses shallow freshwater and brackish wetlands, including temporary wetlands, marshes, claypans, flooded grassland, rice crops and sewage farms. Clearing, drainage, altered flooding, grazing and disturbance can remove or degrade habitat on development sites, even where birds are not present during a particular survey.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Endangered.

New South Wales, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Endangered.

Victoria, Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988: Critically endangered.

South Australia, National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972: Endangered.

Western Australia, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Endangered.

Northern Territory, Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1976: Endangered.

Australian Capital Territory, Nature Conservation Act 2014: Endangered.

Breeding season

Breeding and movement vary with rainfall, flooding and wetland condition. The table shows broad patterns rather than a fixed annual cycle, and suitable habitat may be occupied outside the periods marked as typical.

Before clearing or construction, assess current wetland condition, recent rainfall and historical records. A bird may be absent from a site in a dry year even though the habitat remains important when conditions improve.

  • Breeding: Breeding can occur in all months. Southern Australia has most records from August to February, while northern Queensland breeding has been recorded from May to October. Peak shading reflects the main southern breeding period and does not exclude breeding elsewhere.
  • Eggs and nests: Eggs have been recorded from mid-August to May. Nests are ground scrapes, often on or near small wetland islands. The male incubates for about 15 to 21 days.
  • Dependent young: Chicks are precocial and leave the nest soon after hatching, but they are brooded and dependent for the first few days. Young may remain associated with dense wetland cover after hatching.
  • Movement and wetland use: Movements are poorly known and may be nomadic or dispersive in response to flooding, drying wetlands and drought. Records may increase after major inland flooding, and birds may move between temporary and permanent wetlands.
  • Highest clearing risk: Clearing or disturbance is most likely to harm the species when suitable wetlands are wet and occupied, especially during the broad breeding period, egg period and early dependence of young. Because breeding can occur in all months, seasonal controls alone cannot remove the risk.

Identification

The Australian Painted-Snipe is a stocky, snipe-like waterbird with a long pink to pink-orange bill and rounded wings. It is difficult to detect because it sits quietly in dense wetland vegetation and is usually active around dawn, dusk and at night.

The species has a bulbous-tipped, pink to pink-orange bill that darkens towards the tip, longish bluish-green legs and broad, rounded wings. In flight, the legs protrude beyond the tail and the rounded wing shape helps distinguish it from true snipe such as Latham's Snipe.

The female is larger and more brightly coloured than the male. She has a dark chocolate-brown head and upper breast, a rufous hindneck, metallic green upperparts and a white harness-like marking running from the mantle onto the breast. The male is smaller and duller, with a grey-brown head, buff crown stripe, buff and white wing markings and a broad dark breast band.

Length: Approximately 240 to 300 mm.

Wingspan: Approximately 500 to 540 mm.

Weight: Approximately 125 to 130 g.

Identification: Similar species

When settled, the Australian Painted-Snipe is distinctive but may appear snipe-like. In flight, look for broad rounded wings and legs extending beyond the tail, rather than the narrower wing shape of true snipe.

The sexes differ markedly, so a dull bird is not necessarily a different species. Juveniles resemble adult males.

Identification: Field signs

The species is generally detected by a flush or a brief view in open mud, shallow water or wetland vegetation. Intensive vigilance is needed because birds may remain motionless under cover during daylight.

Nests are shallow ground scrapes, sometimes lined with dry grass or other plant material. They are often on or near small muddy islands, with very shallow water, exposed mud and dense low vegetation nearby. No reliable species-specific information on tracks, scats, calls, sloughs or eyeshine is provided in the supplied documents.

When threatened, the bird may extend both wings to the ground, raise its tail and hiss. This threat display is more likely to be observed at close range than during routine site searches.

  • Search suitable wetlands on foot only where access will not damage wetland vegetation or nests.
  • Use dawn and dusk observations, area searches and careful flushing searches where authorised and safe.
  • Treat a sudden flush from dense wetland cover as potentially significant and record the location, direction of flight and habitat used.

Distribution: Range and strongholds

The Australian Painted-Snipe is endemic to Australia and has been recorded in every mainland state and the Northern Territory. Records are scattered and irregular because the species is secretive, nomadic in response to wetland conditions and poorly detected in remote or dry areas.

The historical range covered most of Australia, including some desert regions. The Murray-Darling Basin, particularly the Riverina of Victoria and New South Wales, appears to have been a stronghold.

Other important or repeated areas include the Channel Country of Queensland and South Australia, the Capricornia coast of central Queensland, south-eastern South Australia and adjacent Victoria, the Swan Coastal Plain and north-west Western Australia. Records also occur in the Lake Eyre Basin, Barkly Tableland, inland and sub-coastal Queensland, inland Northern Territory and savannah regions.

The species is absent from Cape York Peninsula. There is one recorded specimen from Tasmania. The recovery plan also records one confirmed and one possible record from New Zealand, but Australia is the native range.

  • Australian Capital Territory: records are associated with the wider south-eastern inland wetland region.
  • New South Wales: mainly the Riverina and northern river basins west of the Great Dividing Range.
  • Victoria: mainly the Riverina and adjacent south-eastern wetland areas.
  • Queensland: Channel Country, Capricornia coast, northern river basins and coastal wetlands.
  • South Australia: south-east South Australia, the Channel Country and other inland wetlands.
  • Western Australia: historically common on the Swan Coastal Plain, now very rare there, with additional records in the north-west and Kimberley.
  • Northern Territory: inland wetlands, including the Barkly Tableland and savannah regions.
  • Tasmania: one recorded specimen only.

Distribution: Population and trend

The population is treated as one national subpopulation, although birds occur at widely separated wetlands. Numbers and distribution can change with flooding, drought and wetland condition, so a site can be important even when no birds are present during one survey.

The species has declined since European settlement. The recovery plan states that it met the Endangered category because of a severe decline in mature individuals associated with wetland loss and degradation. The population trajectory remained unchanged from 2011 to 2020, with decline continuing.

2020 mature individuals: 340, with a range of 270 to 410 and very low certainty.

Earlier estimates: 1,500 in 1993, 5,000 breeding birds in 2000, and less than 2,500 in 2011 sources.

IUCN estimate: 600 to 1,700 mature individuals in the 2016 assessment.

Trend: Decreasing, with continuing decline in mature individuals and habitat quality.

Generation length: 8.6 years in the IUCN assessment.

Distribution: Site assessment

Known records, historical records and wetland condition should all be considered when assessing a project area. The recovery plan notes that suitable wetlands may be occupied only when conditions are favourable, and that recent absence does not show that habitat is unimportant.

Survey effort should be targeted to suitable wetland conditions, particularly when shallow water, wet mud and emergent cover are present. Development proposals within the indicative range may require surveys even where the species has not recently been recorded.

  • Check state and national records before planning clearing or construction near wetlands.
  • Map both occupied wetlands and suitable wetlands that could be used after rainfall or flooding.
  • Include nearby temporary wetlands, drainage lines, floodplain depressions and modified wetland habitats in the assessment.

Habitat: Wetland types

The Australian Painted-Snipe mainly uses shallow terrestrial freshwater wetlands and, less often, brackish wetlands. Temporary or recently flooded wetlands are especially important, but permanent wetlands with shallow zones and suitable cover can also be used.

Habitat includes temporary and permanent lakes, swamps, claypans, inundated or waterlogged grassland, saltmarsh, farm dams, rice crops, sewage farms, bore drains and irrigation schemes.

Occupied wetlands may be in inland floodplains, arid regions, savannah areas or coastal plains. The species can use modified habitats, although a site being used for feeding does not show that it provides breeding habitat.

  • Shallow freshwater marshes and pools.
  • Seasonal claypans and recently flooded depressions.
  • Waterlogged grassland and saltmarsh.
  • Wetland margins around dams, sewage farms, rice crops and irrigation areas.
  • Floodplain wetlands with natural or semi-natural water regimes.

Habitat: Vegetation and structure

Suitable sites usually contain a mosaic of shallow water, exposed wet mud, low patchy vegetation and denser cover. Vegetation may include grass, sedge, rush, reed, samphire, canegrass, nardoo, lignum, river cooba or scattered tea-tree.

Scattered fallen or washed-up timber and wetland margins lined with trees may also be used. Very dense or continuous reed beds can become unsuitable where altered water regimes remove shallow open areas.

  • Retain shallow water and exposed muddy margins.
  • Retain mixed-height low vegetation, rank grass, sedges, rushes and reeds.
  • Retain clumps of lignum, canegrass, samphire and other low or scattered cover.
  • Avoid removing small islands, wetland edges, fallen timber and adjoining buffer vegetation.

Habitat: Climate and elevation

The documents describe habitat across inland, arid, savannah and coastal regions, including areas influenced by winter rainfall and summer monsoonal or thunderstorm rainfall. No elevation limit is given.

Wetland use is strongly linked to rainfall, flooding, drawdown and local water availability. Areas that are dry during one survey may become suitable after rain or flooding.

Elevation limit: No elevation limit is specified in the supplied documents.

Climate setting: Recorded across inland, arid, savannah and coastal wetland regions of mainland Australia.

Foraging habitat: Food

The Australian Painted-Snipe feeds mainly within wetland vegetation and on adjacent soft mud or open wet areas. It is most active from dusk through the night and may feed in both natural and modified wetlands.

The diet includes plant material and seeds, together with insects, worms, molluscs, crustaceans and other invertebrates. The supplied documents do not identify particular food plant species as required food sources.

The bird probes soft mud with its long bill while walking. It generally remains among wetland cover but may forage on nearby mudflats, ploughed land or grassland.

  • Look for feeding habitat with soft wet mud, shallow water and nearby cover.
  • Retain low, patchy vegetation and small open areas within otherwise covered wetlands.
  • Avoid sediment disturbance, drainage and contamination that could reduce soft-mud feeding areas or aquatic prey.

Foraging habitat: Timing and site use

The species is mainly crepuscular and nocturnal. During the day it usually sits or stands quietly under grass, reeds, low shrubs or other dense cover.

Foraging habitat may differ between breeding wetlands and refuge or stop-over sites such as sewage ponds and water storages. Movement between wetlands is poorly known and may respond to flooding, drying wetlands and drought.

  • Schedule targeted observations at dawn, dusk and shortly after dark where safe and authorised.
  • Inspect nearby mudflats, shallow margins and open grassland as well as dense cover.
  • Assess connected or nearby wetlands because birds may move between drying and permanent water.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding is linked to wetland condition rather than one fixed season. Nests are on the ground, often on small islands or in shallow wetland margins with a combination of bare wet mud and dense low cover.

The female may be polyandrous. The male incubates the eggs and provides most or all care of the young. Chicks are precocial and can leave the nest soon after hatching, but they are brooded and dependent for the first few days.

Breeding has been recorded in all months, with timing varying between regions and in response to rainfall and wetland filling. In southern Australia, most breeding records are from August to February. In northern Queensland, breeding has been recorded from May to October.

Breeding season: Variable. Southern records are mainly August to February, with northern Queensland records from May to October. Eggs have been recorded from mid-August to May.

Clutch size: Two to six eggs, usually three or four.

Incubation: Approximately 15 to 21 days. One source gives 16 days.

Care of young: The male incubates and provides most or all care. Chicks are precocial but dependent on brooding for the first few days.

Age at maturity: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Lifespan: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Female breeding frequency: Females mostly breed every two years, based on the cited literature.

Breeding habitat: Nest habitat

Nest records are all or nearly all from, or near, small islands in freshwater wetlands. Suitable sites combine very shallow water, exposed mud, dense low cover and sometimes taller dense cover.

Nests may occur among canegrass, sedges, tussock grasses, couch grasses, samphire, water-buttons, low saltbush or cumbungi. Gilgai microrelief, with small mounds and hollows in clay soils, is especially suitable in seasonal and temporary wetlands.

Nest form: A scrape in the ground, with scant lining or a shallow bowl of dry grass and other plant material.

Suitable microhabitat: Very shallow water, exposed mud, dense low cover and sometimes taller dense cover, often on or near a small island.

Gilgai features: Small mounds may be 1 to 3 m in diameter and hollows may be up to 0.5 m deep.

  • Protect small wetland islands, muddy margins and shallow water around potential nests.
  • Retain low cover of mixed height, including tussocks and dense patches.
  • Avoid grazing, trampling, earthworks, water-level changes and vehicle access during wetland filling and breeding periods.
  • Search for scrapes before clearing or construction in suitable wetland habitat, using methods that minimise trampling.

Sheltering habitat: Day shelter and refuge

During the day, Australian Painted-Snipe shelter on the ground beneath dense wetland vegetation and low shrubs. Concealment is important because the species is secretive and may remain still even when people are nearby.

Daytime shelter includes clumps of lignum, tea-tree, grass, reeds, rushes, sedges, samphire and other dense low vegetation. Fallen or washed-up timber may also provide concealment.

Refuge and stop-over sites can include permanent wetlands, sewage farms, dams, bore drains, water storages and irrigation schemes. The species may move to permanent wetlands when temporary wetlands dry or away from drought-affected areas.

  • Retain dense ground cover and low shrubs around shallow wetland margins.
  • Keep vehicles, machinery and people out of dense cover unless access is necessary and controlled.
  • Treat dry wetland vegetation and nearby low shrub cover as potential shelter, not as unused ground.

Sheltering habitat: Roosting and concealment

The species rests or loafs on the ground during the day. No tree hollows, burrows, dens or elevated roost structures are described for this species.

The main shelter features are dense ground-level vegetation, low shrubs, wetland islands, muddy margins and occasional timber. Exact minimum cover dimensions are not known.

Roost type: Ground-level shelter beneath dense vegetation or low shrubs.

Known shelter dimensions: No minimum or preferred shelter dimensions are provided.

  • Mark exclusion areas around suitable cover where a bird has been flushed or recorded.
  • Inspect the ground beneath lignum, tea-tree, reed, rush and tussock cover before any disturbance.
  • Do not infer that a wetland is unoccupied because no bird is visible during a daytime inspection.

Threats: Clearing and construction

The main threat is loss and degradation of shallow wetland habitat. Project impacts can occur through direct clearing, drainage, altered water levels, vegetation removal, disturbance, access tracks and changes to the surrounding catchment.

Clearing or filling shallow wetlands, wetland islands, muddy margins, low vegetation and adjoining buffers can remove feeding, breeding and shelter habitat. Fragmentation forces birds to travel further between wetlands and may reduce access to productive sites.

Infrastructure at coastal drought refuges and development around inland wetlands may affect sites used only intermittently. Historical records and suitable habitat should therefore be considered even when birds are not detected during a survey.

  • Avoid clearing natural wetlands and their shallow margins where practicable.
  • Fence or otherwise exclude machinery from wetland edges, islands, dense cover and potential nest sites.
  • Keep access tracks, laydown areas, spoil and sediment controls outside wetland habitat and adjoining buffers where practicable.
  • Recheck wetland condition after rain or flooding before finalising clearing limits.

Threats: Hydrology and water quality

Drainage, water diversion, dams, water-level stabilisation, wetland deepening, removal of islands, altered wetland edges, flood mitigation and changes to surrounding ground levels can make habitat too deep, too dry or structurally unsuitable.

Irrigation and reservoir development have reduced flooding in some wetlands. Deteriorating water quality, salinisation, pollution and reduced runoff can further reduce habitat suitability.

  • Maintain shallow water, seasonal inundation and natural wetting and drying where possible.
  • Prevent drainage of temporary wetlands and avoid diverting water away from wetland depressions.
  • Control sediment, contaminated runoff, fuels and other pollutants entering shallow wetlands.
  • Assess upstream and downstream hydrological changes, not only direct wetland clearing.

Threats: Vegetation, grazing and fire

Grazing and trampling can remove cover, disturb the substrate, enrich water and expose birds, eggs and young to predators. Clearing or cultivation around wetland edges can also increase vulnerability to predation.

Invasive plants can replace native wetland vegetation. Altered water regimes may also produce continuous reed or cumbungi cover, removing the mix of shallow open areas and low vegetation used by the species. The effect of fire is not well understood, but fire can alter wetland vegetation.

  • Exclude stock from sensitive wetland margins during wet and breeding periods where practicable.
  • Retain native grass, sedge, rush, samphire, lignum and canegrass cover.
  • Plan weed and fire treatments around wetland condition and breeding risk rather than treating all cover as expendable.
  • Record vegetation structure before and after works.

Threats: Predators, roads and disturbance

Foxes and cats may prey on eggs and young, although the recovery plan notes that direct evidence for their contribution to population decline is limited. Domestic animals can also disturb wetland habitat.

The supplied documents do not quantify road mortality or identify a species-specific road crossing risk. Roads and construction traffic can still cause indirect harm through wetland drainage, vehicle access, noise, flushing, trampling and fragmentation.

  • Restrict dogs, cats and other domestic animals from wetland work areas.
  • Use fauna spotter catchers where clearing is approved and stop work if a bird, nest or dependent young is found.
  • Limit night works, lighting and vehicle access near occupied or suitable wetlands, particularly during breeding periods.
  • Record and report any predator, road mortality or disturbance observations to inform site controls.

Survey methodology: 1. Targeted stationary observations

Survey for Australian Painted-Snipe must account for its secretive behaviour, low numbers and irregular use of wetlands. Survey when suitable shallow wetland habitat holds water, and use more than one method because birds may remain concealed during the day.

Observe suitable foraging areas at dawn and dusk, when the species is most active. A brief spotlight search shortly after dusk may also detect birds.

Target shallow freshwater or brackish wetlands with muddy margins, low patchy vegetation, lignum, canegrass, samphire, rushes or reeds, including small low-lying islands.

Recommended effort: 10 hours over 5 days

Best timing: Dawn and dusk, with a brief spotlight search shortly after dusk

Detection: Sightings, flushed birds and observations from stationary points

  • Complete 10 hours of targeted stationary observations over 5 days at sites where the wetland holds water but is not flooded.
  • Record birds that are seen, flushed or detected using calls, and note the time, water depth, wetland vegetation and weather conditions.
  • Search quietly because birds usually loaf under low shrubs or other vegetation during the day and may remain concealed even when present.

Survey methodology: 2. Area searches and transects

Search suitable wetlands on foot using area searches or transects. The species is difficult to detect, so intensive vigilance is needed for birds that flush from cover.

Use this method at wetlands of less than 50 hectares when the wetland holds water but is not flooded.

Recommended effort: 10 hours over 3 days

Site condition: Wetlands of less than 50 hectares, holding water but not flooded

Detection: Sightings and flushed birds

  • Complete 10 hours over 3 days of area searches or line transects.
  • Walk through shallow wetland margins, dense low vegetation, grass tussocks, reeds, sedges, lignum, samphire and areas near small muddy islands.
  • Record the search route, area covered, start and finish times, water conditions and vegetation structure.

Survey methodology: 3. Habitat and timing assessment

Inspect all natural wetlands where the species is known or likely to occur, including wetlands that are dry during the inspection but may be used after rainfall or flooding.

Consider historical records as well as recent records because the species uses wetlands opportunistically and may be absent in a particular year.

Typical habitat: Shallow freshwater or brackish wetlands, often temporary, with cover and muddy margins

Breeding habitat: Shallow wetland areas with bare wet mud, mixed height vegetation and sometimes small islands

Activity period: Mainly crepuscular and nocturnal

  • Plan surveys around suitable wetland conditions, including temporary inundation, exposed wet mud and shallow water.
  • Inspect both natural and modified wetland habitat, including dams, rice crops, sewage farms, bore drains and irrigation areas.
  • Give particular attention to the Murray to Darling Basin, the Riverina, the Channel Country, south eastern South Australia, adjacent Victoria, central Queensland and known wetland sites elsewhere in the species range.
  • Do not treat a negative daytime search as evidence that the species is absent.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Use the species specific effort of 10 hours over 5 days for targeted stationary observations and 10 hours over 3 days for area searches or line transects where the guideline conditions apply.
  • Document survey dates, methods, effort, weather, wetland condition, water levels, vegetation, observer names, detection results, photographs and GPS locations.
  • Record a no detection result and explain the survey conditions, because detectability is low and distribution changes with rainfall and flooding.
  • Submit verified records, including incidental records and accurate no impact records where required, to the relevant state or territory wildlife database.
  • Escalate records of the species, nests or potentially occupied breeding habitat to the project ecologist and the relevant approval authority before works continue.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Avoid disturbance to shallow wetlands and their surrounding cover wherever practicable. Treat wetland habitat as potentially occupied even when no bird is recorded during a single survey.

Retain natural shallow wetlands, temporary inundation areas, wet mud, low vegetation, rushes, reeds, sedges, samphire, lignum, canegrass and small muddy islands.

Retain adjoining cover used for daytime loafing and foraging, including dense low shrubs, tussocks and fallen or washed up timber.

Avoid drainage, filling, deepening, water level stabilisation, removal of wetland islands, alteration of wetland edges and diversion of water.

Maintain connections between wetlands and other suitable wetland areas because the species may move in response to flooding, drying wetlands and drought.

Use buffers around nesting, foraging and roosting habitat. Set the buffer width from the activity, wetland type and expert advice, because the recovery plan does not prescribe one distance.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and work planning

Check the current EPBC Act status before works start. The Australian Painted-Snipe is listed as Endangered under the EPBC Act.

Obtain required state or territory approvals, permits and wildlife authorisations before clearing, handling or relocating fauna.

Determine whether the action may affect known or likely habitat, a wetland, a nest or a population, and refer the action under the EPBC Act if required.

Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies habitat to retain, survey effort, exclusion areas, stop-work triggers, fauna handling arrangements, wetland protection measures and reporting responsibilities.

Schedule clearing outside the breeding period where practicable. Breeding can occur in all months, with southern records mainly from August to February and earlier breeding in northern Australia, so timing must reflect local wetland conditions and records.

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

Complete the pre-clearance survey when suitable wetland conditions are present and before machinery enters the work area.

Mark retained wetlands, wet mud, low vegetation, small islands, nesting areas, dense cover and buffers on plans and on the ground.

Install exclusion fencing where it can protect retained wetlands and wetland margins from machinery, vehicles, stock and trampling.

Keep stock, vehicles, spoil, fuel, sediment and runoff out of retained wetlands and their buffers.

Brief all workers on the species identification features, its low detectability, exclusion zones, stop-work procedure and the fauna spotter catcher's authority.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery interface

The fauna spotter catcher must have authority to stop work where an Australian Painted-Snipe, nest or occupied wetland habitat may be affected. Use slow, staged clearing and avoid driving machinery through retained wetland habitat.

Inspect exclusion fencing, wetland buffers, access routes and sediment controls before work each day.

Use a fauna spotter catcher to inspect each work area immediately before disturbance and to remain present during clearing of suitable habitat.

Clear in stages towards retained habitat so animals have an opportunity to move away from machinery, while preventing movement into roads, active work areas or unsuitable habitat.

Keep machinery outside marked wetlands, wet mud, small islands, dense wetland cover and buffers unless the approved work method specifically allows entry.

Stop machinery immediately when the fauna spotter catcher identifies an Australian Painted-Snipe, nest, eggs, chicks or a potentially occupied breeding area.

During habitat disturbance: Fauna and habitat handling

Do not catch, handle or relocate the bird unless the person is authorised under the relevant state or territory requirements and the project approval.

Do not chase a bird through dense cover or repeatedly flush it, because the species is secretive and ground nesting.

If handling is authorised and necessary, place the bird in nearby suitable retained wetland habitat identified by the project ecologist, away from machinery, roads, people and predators.

Use a quiet, shaded holding container only for the shortest practical period and follow the authorised fauna handling procedure.

Take an injured or distressed bird to an appropriately qualified wildlife carer or veterinarian, and notify the relevant wildlife authority as required.

Protect nests, eggs and chicks in place. Establish an exclusion area and obtain advice from the project ecologist and relevant authority before work resumes.

During habitat disturbance: Stop work and records

Stop work if the species is detected in the disturbance area, if a nest or dependent young is found, if wetland water conditions change unexpectedly, or if exclusion fencing or a wetland buffer is damaged.

Do not resume until the fauna spotter catcher, project ecologist and approval authority have confirmed the control measures and any required permit conditions.

Record every detection, including date, time, GPS location, activity, sex if known, behaviour, habitat, water condition, photographs and whether the bird was handled.

Record all stop-work events, injuries, relocations, nest observations, searches, inspections, breaches, corrective actions and approvals to restart.

Submit records to the relevant state or territory wildlife database and the Commonwealth project record where required.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance checks must confirm that no bird, nest or dependent young remains in the work area and that retained wetlands remain suitable. Continue controls for the full period required by approval conditions.

Inspect the cleared area, access routes, wetland margins and exclusion boundaries after each clearing stage and before the next stage begins.

Check retained shallow water, wet mud, low vegetation, small islands, lignum, canegrass, samphire, rushes and reeds for birds and signs of use.

Repeat checks at dawn, dusk or shortly after dusk where the area remains suitable habitat and disturbance is continuing.

Repair damaged fencing, buffers, sediment controls and wetland protection measures immediately.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

Monitor retained and rehabilitated wetlands during suitable wet periods and after flooding, because occupancy is irregular and the species may move between wetlands.

Compare records with the pre-disturbance survey, including changes in wetland area, water regime, vegetation structure, breeding use and bird detections.

Report unexpected impacts, injured or dead birds, nest disturbance, wetland drainage, water quality incidents and control failures to the project manager, ecologist and relevant authority.

Keep survey, clearance, handling, relocation, monitoring and incident records for the approval reporting period.

After habitat disturbance: Offsets and residual impacts

Assess residual impacts under the EPBC Act approval and applicable state or territory requirements after avoidance and mitigation measures have been applied.

Where an offset or compensatory action is required, prioritise protection or restoration of suitable shallow wetland habitat used for breeding, foraging, refuge or movement.

Use recent records and historical records when assessing the importance of a wetland, because a site may be important even when birds are not present during a particular survey.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore wetland structure and water

Rehabilitation should restore shallow, seasonal wetland conditions and the vegetation structure used for cover, foraging and nesting. Success depends on water regime, wetland vegetation, predator control and continued monitoring.

Restore shallow freshwater or brackish wetland areas with muddy margins, shallow water, low patchy vegetation and, where appropriate, small low-lying islands.

Reinstate natural or suitable seasonal inundation and drawdown patterns rather than creating deep or permanently uniform water.

Prevent drainage, excessive water diversion, sediment entry and water level stabilisation that removes shallow zones.

Retain or reinstate patches of grass, sedge, rush, reed, samphire, lignum and canegrass, with mixed vegetation heights and some bare wet mud.

Use locally appropriate native wetland plants and confirm species selection with the wetland ecologist and land manager.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore cover and reduce threats

Retain or reinstate fallen or washed-up timber and dense low cover where these features are part of the local wetland structure.

Control invasive plants that replace native wetland vegetation or make wetland margins unsuitable for the species.

Manage livestock access to prevent concentrated grazing, trampling, nutrient enrichment and disturbance of wetland vegetation, especially during dry periods.

Control foxes and cats where an approved control programme is justified and authorised, particularly near known breeding habitat.

Plan fire management so that fire does not remove the wetland cover or nesting structure needed by the species.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitoring and success measures

Monitor restored wetlands during suitable wet periods, at dawn and dusk, and shortly after dusk where appropriate.

Use the species survey methods and effort in the survey guidelines when measuring occupancy, including 10 hours over 5 days for targeted stationary observations or 10 hours over 3 days for area searches or line transects where the site conditions apply.

Measure wetland area, water depth and timing, exposed wet mud, vegetation structure, invasive plant cover, livestock damage, predator activity and use by Australian Painted-Snipe.

Treat successful rehabilitation as more than planting establishment. Look for persistent shallow wetland habitat, suitable cover, reduced threats and a positive trend in detections or breeding use compared with the approved baseline.

Review management after each monitoring period and adjust water management, grazing controls, weed control, predator control or fire planning where the habitat is not developing as intended.

Sources