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Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa)

The black-tailed godwit is a large migratory shorebird that breeds in the Northern Hemisphere and uses Australian coastal wetlands, estuaries and some inland wetlands during the austral summer. It is Endangered under the EPBC Act and is vulnerable to clearing, hydrological change, disturbance and degradation of muddy feeding and roosting sites on development projects.

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: Endangered.

Northern Territory, Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1976: Near threatened.

Breeding season

Timing varies between regions. The pattern below describes the usual Australian cycle, while recognising that some non-breeders remain in northern Australia during the Northern Hemisphere breeding season.

Some non-breeders remain in northern Australia during winter, and small numbers may occur further south outside the main period. Site-specific surveys are needed before clearing or construction because use varies among coastal and inland wetlands.

  • Australian presence and northern arrival: Birds arrive in north-west Australia from late August, with arrivals in northern Australia and some southern regions from August to December. Northern Australia supports the largest numbers.
  • Peak Australian non-breeding use: Numbers are relatively stable in the Gulf of Carpentaria and Hunter River estuary from December to February. Many birds remain in northern Australia during the Northern Hemisphere winter.
  • Breeding and laying overseas: Breeding occurs in Northern Hemisphere spring and early summer. Egg laying is from April to mid-June, with three to five eggs, usually four.
  • Young dependent overseas: Incubation takes 22 to 24 days and the nestling period lasts 28 to 34 days. Chicks are associated with wet meadows, grassy marshes, damp pastures and shallow pools.
  • Return movement north: Birds move north from Australian sites mainly during March and April. East coast movements occur in March and April, and birds use passage sites in South-East Asia and China from March to May.
  • Highest clearing risk: Clearing and disturbance are most likely to affect the species when Australian feeding and roosting habitat is occupied, especially during the main arrival, non-breeding and departure periods from August to April. September and October are also the highest annual risk period for arrival of high pathogenicity avian influenza.

Identification

The black-tailed godwit is a tall, long-legged wader with a long, mostly straight bill. Birds seen in Australia are usually in grey-brown non-breeding plumage or juvenile plumage.

Adults are 40 to 44 cm long, with a wingspan of 63 to 75 cm and a weight of 200 to 300 g. The non-breeding plumage typical in Australia has dark grey-brown upperparts, a paler face, foreneck and breast, and white underparts. The legs and feet are grey-black or greenish-black, and the bill has a pink or flesh-coloured base with a black distal section.

In flight, look for a strong white wing-bar, white underwing coverts, a sharply defined white rump and a black tail. The long legs project beyond the tail. Some birds show chestnut or rufous breeding plumage after arrival in spring or before departure in autumn.

Size: 40 to 44 cm long

Wingspan: 63 to 75 cm

Weight: 200 to 300 g

Identification: Separating similar godwits

The species can be confused with the more common bar-tailed godwit, especially when feeding on the ground. Black-tailed godwits have a straighter, generally more pink-based bill, a leggier and more erect appearance, and a black tail with a contrasting white rump in flight. The breast is generally not strongly streaked in non-breeding birds.

Females are slightly larger than males and usually have duller breeding plumage. Juveniles have cinnamon-buff head, neck and breast tones, black streaking on the crown, and no strong ventral barring.

Identification: Field signs and behaviour

Black-tailed godwits are highly gregarious and commonly occur in mixed flocks with bar-tailed godwits. They may gather in flocks of hundreds or thousands at favoured roosts and passage sites.

The main field call is described as a high-pitched, nasal and rather strident call during the breeding season, including a repeated weeka-weeka-weeka. Flock calls include softer kip kip or chut chut notes. Australian birds are normally encountered feeding or roosting rather than nesting, because breeding occurs in the Northern Hemisphere.

Distribution: Australian range

The Australian population is a migratory component of the eastern subspecies, Limosa limosa melanuroides. Birds occur in every Australian state and territory during the non-breeding season, with the highest numbers on northern coastal shores.

The species occurs in all Australian states and territories during the austral summer, although coastal areas support the highest densities. The largest Australian populations are on the north coast between Darwin and Weipa, particularly in coastal Arnhem Land and the south-eastern Gulf of Carpentaria.

Smaller numbers occur along the east and south coasts, including the Hunter River estuary, Gulf St Vincent, Victoria and south-west Western Australia. Some birds use inland wetlands, especially muddy lake margins, flooded areas and wetlands in the Murray-Darling Basin.

  • In New South Wales, regular records are concentrated at Kooragang Island in the Hunter River estuary, with scattered coastal and inland records.
  • In Queensland, the species occurs along the east coast and in the Gulf of Carpentaria, with small numbers moving through the Mt Isa region from September to November.
  • In Victoria, birds arrive mainly from August and may occur as far south as Corner Inlet, but few records occur after May.
  • In South Australia, Gulf St Vincent supports birds from November to April, with numbers increasing from February to April.
  • In Western Australia, birds occur on the south-west coast and in inland areas during passage, especially in March and April.
  • In the Northern Territory, important areas include the northern coast and Darwin region, with passage through Darwin from November.
  • In Tasmania, records are rare.

Distribution: Bioregions and important sites

In New South Wales, known or predicted records extend across coastal, inland and tableland bioregions. Known records include the NSW North Coast, Ocean, Sydney Basin, South East Corner, Riverina, Darling Riverine Plains, Cobar Peneplain and the NSW South Western Slopes. Predicted habitat also occurs in the Brigalow Belt South, Broken Hill Complex, Channel Country, Mulga Lands, Murray Darling Depression, Nandewar, New England Tablelands, South Eastern Highlands and Simpson Strzelecki Dunefields.

The National Directory of Important Migratory Shorebird Habitat identifies feeding and roosting sites in Australia. A site is internationally important for this species if it regularly supports more than 1,600 individuals, and nationally important if it regularly supports more than 160 individuals.

Internationally important site threshold: More than 1 percent of the flyway population, estimated at more than 1,600 black-tailed godwits

Nationally important site threshold: More than 0.1 percent of the flyway population, estimated at more than 160 black-tailed godwits

Distribution: Population and trend

The Australian population was estimated at 42,900 mature individuals reaching Australia annually in 2020. The wider wild population estimate in the Australian conservation advice was 126,300 mature individuals, with a continuing decline, while BirdLife estimated the global population at 614,000 to 809,000 individuals.

The estimated decline over three generations was 52 to 77.5 percent. The most recent analysis estimated an average annual change of minus 5.5 percent from 1993 to 2021, equivalent to an estimated 77.5 percent decline over three generations.

Australian mature individuals reaching Australia annually in 2020: 42,900

Wild mature individuals in the conservation advice estimate: 126,300, with a range of 108,400 to 172,400

Three-generation decline: 52 to 77.5 percent over about 23 years

Estimated annual change, 1993 to 2021: Minus 5.5 percent

Habitat: Coastal and inland habitat

Black-tailed godwits need a connected set of shallow-water feeding areas and nearby undisturbed roosts. In Australia, habitat is mainly coastal, but inland wetlands can support passage and non-breeding birds.

Primary habitat includes sheltered bays, estuaries and lagoons with extensive intertidal mudflats or sandflats. Saltmarshes, sandy beaches, shell bars and soft wet sand can provide feeding or roosting areas.

Inland habitat includes muddy lake shores, shallow pools, swamps, flooded grasslands, irrigated rice fields, wet fields and wastewater treatment works. Inland water is generally less than 10 cm deep where the species feeds or roosts.

Artificial wetlands, including aquaculture areas, saltworks, ports, power sites and wastewater facilities, may provide alternative habitat, but these sites do not necessarily provide the same food supply or low disturbance conditions as natural wetlands.

Habitat: Structure and connectivity

Retain open, unvegetated or sparsely vegetated mud and soft sand for probing. Maintain nearby high, dry or shallowly inundated roosts on mud, sand and shell bars.

A site should be assessed as part of the wider wetland network. Birds need multiple feeding, roosting and passage sites along the East Asian to Australasian Flyway, and the loss of one site can affect birds that use other sites during the annual cycle.

Habitat: Hydrology and climate

The source material does not identify a specific elevation limit. Habitat is associated with lowland coastal wetlands, estuaries and shallow inland wetlands rather than a defined altitude range.

Maintain natural tidal exchange, seasonal flooding, sediment supply and water levels where possible. Changes to river flows, drainage, stormwater inputs, salinity or sediment movement can reduce feeding and roosting habitat.

Foraging habitat: Food

Black-tailed godwits feed in soft mud, wet sand and shallow water. They probe with the bill and also pick food from the ground and vegetation, both during the day and at night.

The diet is omnivorous. Animal food includes insects, crustaceans, molluscs, annelid and polychaete worms, larvae, spiders, fish eggs, frog eggs and tadpoles. Seeds and berries are also important in the Northern Hemisphere breeding range, and birds may take plant material, rice grains and berries during migration or winter.

No particular Australian food plant is identified in the supplied documents. The main food resource to protect on Australian sites is the soft-sediment invertebrate community, together with shallow-water and wetland prey.

Foraging habitat: How and where it feeds

Birds feed by probing soft mud or shallow water with the bill, locating prey by touch and sight. They also glean prey from the ground and vegetation.

Feeding occurs across the tidal range, but birds are expected to spend more time on upper tidal flats because these areas remain exposed for longer. Suitable areas include intertidal mudflats, sandflats, saltmarsh edges, estuary margins, shallow lakes, wet fields and flooded grasslands.

  • Avoid filling, compacting or covering soft intertidal sediments with spoil, access tracks, construction platforms or permanent structures.
  • Prevent sediment, nutrient, chemical and stormwater discharges from reducing water quality or altering the salinity and structure of feeding areas.
  • Keep feeding areas connected to suitable roosts, because a feeding area without a safe nearby roost may be of reduced value to the species.

Foraging habitat: Foraging distance

The supplied documents do not provide a standard daily foraging distance or home range for black-tailed godwits. Assess the full tidal wetland unit, including feeding areas, roosts and movement routes between them, rather than limiting assessment to the construction footprint.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat

Black-tailed godwits breed in the Northern Hemisphere and do not normally breed in Australia. Australian project assessments should therefore focus on non-breeding habitat, passage habitat and the international breeding and stopover network.

Breeding habitat includes lowland wet meadows, herb-rich grasslands, grassy marshes, damp pastures, raised bogs, moorland, lake margins and damp grassy depressions in steppes. The nest is placed on the ground in short vegetation, usually in a shallow scrape lined with grass, leaves and other vegetation.

Breeding populations can also use cattle pastures and hayfields. Herb-rich meadows and shallow pools within managed grasslands provide better conditions for breeding and chick development than grassland monocultures.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Egg laying occurs from April to mid-June in the Northern Hemisphere. Birds show nest site fidelity, and some natal philopatry has been recorded. Australian works are unlikely to encounter nests or dependent chicks, but disturbance to Australian stopover and non-breeding habitat can affect later breeding performance.

Breeding season: Northern Hemisphere spring and early summer; egg laying from April to mid-June

Clutch size: Three to five eggs, usually four

Incubation: 22 to 24 days

Nestling period: 28 to 34 days

Age at maturity: Not stated in the supplied documents

Lifespan: Not stated in the supplied documents

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

Breeding sites require short or moderately tall grass, wet soils, shallow pools and nearby insect-rich feeding areas. Tall, diverse, herb-rich vegetation provides better chick habitat than intensively managed monocultures.

Drainage, conversion to arable land, intensive grazing, trampling, early mowing, frequent cutting, fertilisation, scrub encroachment and predation can reduce breeding success.

Sheltering habitat: Roost features

In Australia, black-tailed godwits mainly shelter in communal roosts rather than dens, hollows or burrows. Roosts are often close to feeding flats and may be used by mixed flocks.

Roosting habitat includes sheltered bays, estuaries and lagoons, sandy beaches, exposed mud banks, sand and shell bars, saltmarsh edges, shallow wetland margins and low banks. Birds may also roost at muddy lakes, wet fields, wastewater treatment works and other artificial wetlands.

Roosts are often used by mixed flocks with bar-tailed godwits. The supplied documents do not provide a standard roost size or minimum separation distance from disturbance.

  • Protect roosts from people, dogs, vehicles, drones, boats, jet skis, construction noise and night lighting.
  • Keep access tracks, temporary works, stockpiles and machinery away from open roost surfaces and the shallow-water margin.
  • Survey both feeding and roosting areas, including sites that are dry at the time of inspection but can become suitable after tidal or rainfall changes.

Sheltering habitat: Other shelter structures

The species does not use dens, tree hollows, burrows or mammal-like refuges. No Australian nest, roost or shelter dimensions are provided in the supplied documents.

During migration, birds depend on a network of stopover sites for rest and refuelling. A site can therefore be important even when it is used for only part of the year.

Threats: Clearing and development

The main project risks are loss or modification of intertidal and shallow-water habitat, disturbance at feeding and roosting sites, and changes to water flow, sediment and salinity. Threats elsewhere in the Flyway can also affect birds using Australian sites.

Filling, reclamation and clearing for housing, ports, roads, marinas, canals, resorts, industrial works and coastal infrastructure can remove feeding and roosting habitat. Development near wetlands can also alter hydrology, salinity, sediment movement and access to roosts.

Aquaculture, oyster farming, bait harvesting, vehicle compaction, beach nourishment, nutrient enrichment and rubbish can modify soft sediments and reduce the species' ability to probe for prey.

  • Avoid clearing or filling intertidal mudflats, sandflats, saltmarsh, shallow wetland margins and known roosts.
  • Map feeding areas, roosts and movement links before finalising the construction footprint.
  • Retain natural wetland connections and provide buffers that reduce direct disturbance, runoff and lighting.

Threats: Disturbance and fragmentation

People, off-road vehicles, camping, dogs, drones, fishing, jet skis, boating and construction activity can disturb feeding and roosting birds. Repeated disturbance can reduce feeding time, increase energy use and cause birds to abandon suitable roosts.

Fragmentation is a concern because the species needs multiple sites along its migration route. Loss of one feeding or roosting area can reduce the value of connected wetlands elsewhere.

  • Use exclusion zones around active feeding and roosting flocks and keep disturbance away from high-tide roosts.
  • Schedule noisy or high-traffic works outside the period when birds are present where practicable.
  • Control dogs, vehicles, lighting and access at wetland margins, especially at communal roosts.

Threats: Hydrology, weeds and pollution

Drainage, altered river flows, reduced flooding, changed tidal exchange, stormwater and sediment changes can remove shallow feeding habitat or alter salinity. Sea level rise can reduce coastal wetland area where seawalls prevent wetland migration inland.

Mangrove expansion and invasive Spartina can replace open mudflats with dense vegetation. Pollution from urban runoff, agriculture, industry, aquaculture, oil and chemical spills can contaminate prey and reduce benthic food resources.

  • Maintain natural flow regimes, seasonal inundation, tidal exchange and sediment delivery.
  • Prevent contaminated runoff, oil, chemicals, excessive nutrients and construction sediment from entering wetlands.
  • Inspect wetland edges for mangrove or invasive cordgrass expansion and manage weeds under approved controls.

Threats: Predators, disease and other risks

Foxes can disturb and prey on roosting shorebirds in New South Wales. Marine debris can entangle or be ingested, and microplastics can reduce condition or cause mortality.

High pathogenicity avian influenza is a potential additional risk. The highest risk of arrival into Australia is during September and October, when migratory shorebirds arrive and form dense mixed flocks. Hunting remains a threat in parts of the East Asian to Australasian Flyway, although hunting of migratory shorebirds has been prohibited in Australia for decades.

The supplied documents do not identify a species-specific Australian fire response. Fire can still affect wetland edges, saltmarsh, grassland and access controls, so avoid burning or disturbance that removes roost cover or changes wetland structure without site-specific ecological advice.

  • Do not allow domestic dogs or other predators to access known roosts.
  • Remove construction waste, wire, netting and other debris that could entangle birds.
  • Follow current wildlife disease hygiene and reporting procedures when sick or dead shorebirds are found, particularly during September and October.
  • Assess fire, smoke and emergency access controls where works adjoin wetland or grassland habitat.

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat and records review

Survey black-tailed godwit habitat as migratory shorebird habitat, rather than as a terrestrial fauna assemblage. Focus on exposed soft sediments, shallow wetlands, roost sites and movement links, and survey when birds are present in Australia.

Before fieldwork, review recent records, important migratory shorebird habitat mapping, wetlands, estuaries, tidal flats, shallow inland lakes and known roost sites within and near the project area.

Map both feeding and roosting habitat because the species needs a network of sites during the Australian non-breeding season and during movements between sites.

Australian presence: Present in all states and territories during the austral summer, with highest densities on the north coast between Darwin and Weipa.

Typical Australian period: Arrival from August, with most birds leaving Australia from March or April; some non-breeders remain in northern Australia during winter.

  • Inspect sheltered bays, estuaries, lagoons, intertidal mudflats, sandflats, saltmarsh, sandy roost bars, shallow muddy lakes, flooded grassland, wet fields and wastewater treatment areas.
  • Include inland wetlands with water less than 10 cm deep and exposed muddy margins, particularly where the project may change water levels or flow paths.
  • Record nearby habitat that provides movement or linkage between feeding and roosting areas, even if no birds are present during the inspection.

Survey methodology: 2. Targeted shorebird counts and searches

Conduct systematic visual searches and counts across all suitable feeding and roosting habitat. The supplied documents do not specify a fixed number of transects, survey hours or repeat visits for this species, so effort must cover the full area that could be disturbed and all connected wetland habitat likely to be affected.

Identification size: 40 to 44 cm long, with a wingspan of 63 to 75 cm.

Key field marks: Long, mostly straight pink bill with a black tip, black tail, white rump and white wing bar; the non-breeding plumage seen in Australia is greyish-brown above and white below.

  • Survey intertidal flats through the tidal cycle where practicable, giving particular attention to upper tidal flats because godwits may spend disproportionate time there.
  • Search exposed muddy margins, shallow water, saltmarsh, sand and shell bars, wet fields and wastewater areas from a distance that avoids flushing birds.
  • Complete repeat counts where birds may move between feeding and roosting areas, and record the date, start and finish time, tide or water level, weather, observers, search area and survey conditions.
  • Use binoculars or a telescope for identification and counting, and avoid entering roosts or approaching flocks closely enough to cause flight or repeated disturbance.

Survey methodology: 3. Timing and detection

Prioritise surveys during the Australian non-breeding season, when the species is expected in Australia. Plan additional surveys during periods when water levels expose muddy margins or when tidal flats are available for feeding.

NSW timing: The species generally arrives in August and leaves in March; small numbers may remain further south, with winter records as far south as Corner Inlet, Victoria.

Peak NSW site information: Kooragang Island in the Hunter River estuary is the most frequent NSW location, with scattered coastal and inland records elsewhere.

  • In coastal areas, survey around suitable tides and inspect both feeding areas and high-tide roosts because birds can relocate between them during the day.
  • In inland areas, survey when lake, marsh or floodplain conditions provide exposed mud or shallow water, and repeat the inspection if hydrology changes.
  • Expect small numbers in many southern and inland areas, so do not treat one negative survey as evidence that suitable habitat is unused.
  • Record mixed flocks and distinguish black-tailed godwits from bar-tailed godwits by the black tail, white rump, bill shape and more upright, leggier appearance.

Survey methodology: 4. Minimum effort and reporting

  • Survey every part of the proposed disturbance footprint that contains or could affect wetland, intertidal, shallow-water, mudflat, saltmarsh or roost habitat.
  • Document the area searched, survey dates, tidal or water conditions, weather, observer names, equipment, search method, detection distances, flock size, behaviour, habitat use and photographs or coordinates.
  • Record absence and presence separately for feeding, roosting and movement habitat, and explain any areas that could not be surveyed safely or at suitable water levels.
  • Use the nationally important threshold of more than 1,600 black-tailed godwits regularly supported at a site, and the nationally important threshold of more than 160 birds, as screening information for site significance, not as a substitute for project-specific assessment.
  • Submit verified records, including zero counts where requested, to the relevant state or territory wildlife database and the Australian Government species or migratory shorebird data system.
  • Escalate a project assessment if the site regularly supports large flocks, connects feeding and roosting areas, or may affect a Ramsar site or other important migratory shorebird habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: 1. Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Avoid disturbance to feeding, roosting and movement habitat before considering mitigation. The species depends on multiple linked wetlands across the East Asian to Australasian Flyway, so a small local action can affect access to food or roosting space.

Retain the largest practicable area of open mud, soft wet sand, shallow water, saltmarsh and low, unvegetated roosting surfaces. Do not assume that artificial wetlands can replace natural intertidal habitat.

Habitat critical to survival: A mosaic of feeding and roosting habitat, including intertidal mudflats, sandflats, saltmarsh, coastal beaches, shallow inland wetlands, lake shores and flooded grasslands.

Site thresholds: International importance for this species is more than 1,600 birds regularly supported; national importance is more than 160 birds regularly supported.

  • Avoid reclamation, filling, drainage, compaction, vehicle access and structural changes to intertidal or shallow-water feeding areas.
  • Retain high-tide roosts on sand, mud and shell bars and keep a clear, connected route between feeding and roosting areas.
  • Prevent changes to tidal exchange, freshwater inflows, salinity, sediment movement and water depth that could remove exposed feeding margins.
  • Keep lighting, noise, dust, vibration, people, dogs, drones, boats and machinery away from roosts and feeding flocks.
  • Avoid removing open tidal flats through mangrove, cordgrass or other weed spread, and prevent construction materials or spoil from entering wetlands.

Before habitat disturbance: 2. Approvals and environmental controls

Confirm the species records, habitat values and approval pathway before finalising the design. Black-tailed godwit is listed as Endangered under the EPBC Act and is also listed under state or territory legislation in the supplied project information.

  • Assess whether the action is likely to significantly affect a listed threatened species, listed migratory species, Ramsar wetland or habitat critical to survival, and make an EPBC referral where required.
  • Check the current threatened species, wildlife and vegetation legislation, permit requirements and survey standards for the state or territory in which the project occurs.
  • Obtain any required authority to handle, catch, possess, transport or rehabilitate native fauna before works begin.
  • Include wetland hydrology, tidal access, sediment, pollution, lighting, noise, vehicle movement, recreation and invasive plants in the environmental management plan.
  • Identify the person responsible for ecological decisions, stop-work calls, fauna handling, incident reporting and regulator contact.

Before habitat disturbance: 3. Work staging and site preparation

Stage works to keep feeding and roosting habitat available throughout the period when birds are using the site. The preferred timing depends on local records, water conditions and the approved impact assessment.

  • Schedule high-disturbance works outside the period when the site supports black-tailed godwits where this can be achieved without delaying essential environmental controls.
  • Complete a pre-clearance inspection immediately before works, including all wetland margins, roost bars, shallow water, spoil areas and access routes.
  • Mark exclusion zones around occupied roosts, feeding flocks, wetland edges and retained movement links before plant enters the site.
  • Install exclusion fencing or other visible barriers where these can protect habitat without blocking bird movement or tidal exchange.
  • Brief all operators on the species, its field marks, no-go areas, lighting restrictions, speed limits, reporting chain and stop-work triggers.

During habitat disturbance: 1. Daily controls and machinery interface

Keep works predictable, contained and under ecological supervision. The main project risks are habitat removal, disturbance that repeatedly flushes birds, altered wetland conditions, pollution and loss of access between feeding and roosting sites.

The fauna spotter catcher or project ecologist should inspect the work area and exclusion zones before each shift and after any change in water level, tide, weather or work footprint.

  • Keep plant, vehicles, workers, dogs, drones, lights and stock outside marked feeding, roosting and exclusion areas.
  • Use defined access routes, low speeds and clean plant to prevent compaction, sediment movement, weed spread and accidental entry into wetland margins.
  • Direct lighting away from wetlands and roosts, and limit night works near habitat used by birds.
  • Maintain sediment, erosion, spill, dust, wastewater and rubbish controls throughout the shift.
  • Stop or relocate works if machinery, noise, vibration, people or light cause birds to flush repeatedly, abandon a roost or lose access to feeding habitat.
  • The spotter catcher must have authority to pause plant and must remain in communication with the supervisor and machine operators.

During habitat disturbance: 2. Fauna response and handling

Black-tailed godwits are mobile migratory shorebirds, so capture is not a routine mitigation measure for habitat disturbance. First remove the disturbance and allow birds to move to retained habitat.

  • If a bird is found in the work area, stop nearby activity, create a quiet route to retained habitat and allow the bird to leave without pursuit.
  • Do not chase, net or handle a healthy bird unless the person is authorised under the relevant state or territory requirements and handling is necessary for an approved management action.
  • If capture is authorised, use the least stressful method, minimise restraint and holding time, and release the bird into nearby suitable habitat that is outside the work area and connected to feeding or roosting resources.
  • Do not relocate a bird to an isolated wetland, unsuitable deep water, exposed construction area or site without suitable food and roosting surfaces.
  • Place an injured or sick bird in a dark, quiet, ventilated container and contact an authorised wildlife carer or veterinarian immediately.
  • Do not provide food, water or medication unless directed by an appropriately qualified wildlife rehabilitator or veterinarian.
  • Treat any suspected disease event, including unusual mortality or birds showing illness, as an incident and follow current government wildlife disease directions.

During habitat disturbance: 3. Habitat features, stop work and records

For this species, the relevant habitat features are wetland surfaces and hydrological connections rather than tree hollows. Handle the wetland as a functioning feeding and roosting system.

  • Do not remove, bury, drain, isolate or compact mudflats, shallow pools, saltmarsh, sand or shell roosts without confirming the approved impact controls.
  • Keep spoil, concrete washout, fuels, chemicals, rubbish and sediment out of tidal flats, shallow water and drainage lines.
  • Stop work for any unapproved entry into a wetland exclusion zone, injury or mortality, unexpected flock concentration, pollution event, major hydrological change or repeated disturbance of occupied habitat.
  • Record each observation, flock count, behaviour, location, habitat, disturbance source, response, handling event, release location, injury, mortality and corrective action.
  • Photograph and map any damaged wetland, blocked flow path, spill, failed fence or altered roost surface, and notify the project environmental officer before work resumes.
  • Report protected fauna incidents and any required records to the relevant state or territory authority and approval holder within the timeframes in the approval or permit.

After habitat disturbance: 1. Completion checks

Leave the site safe for birds before removing controls. Check that works have not removed feeding or roosting habitat, altered water conditions or severed movement between wetland areas.

Complete a post-clearance and post-construction inspection of the footprint, access routes, wetland margins, spoil areas and retained habitat before demobilisation.

  • Remove temporary materials, spoil, litter, fencing and sediment controls that obstruct bird movement or wetland function, unless they are required for rehabilitation or ongoing protection.
  • Check that tidal channels, drainage paths, shallow pools, exposed mud and roost bars retain the approved extent and function.
  • Confirm that no birds, injured fauna, carcasses, entangled animals, contaminated areas or trapped fauna remain within the work area.
  • Repeat targeted shorebird counts during the next suitable Australian non-breeding period where the approval, risk assessment or project conditions require monitoring.

After habitat disturbance: 2. Monitoring and reporting

Monitor whether black-tailed godwits continue to use retained and rehabilitated feeding, roosting and movement habitat, not only whether the site appears visually restored.

  • Record flock size, frequency of use, feeding and roosting behaviour, disturbance events, water depth or tidal condition, habitat condition and any management response.
  • Compare monitoring results with pre-works records and investigate a decline in use, loss of exposed mud, reduced roost availability, changed salinity or altered water levels.
  • Maintain exclusion zones, visitor controls, lighting controls, weed controls and predator controls for as long as monitoring identifies a risk.
  • Provide completion and monitoring reports to the approval holder, relevant regulator and wildlife database where required, including maps, photographs, survey effort, incidents and corrective actions.
  • Apply approved offsets or other compensatory measures where residual impacts remain and the approval requires them; do not treat an offset as permission to damage habitat that can be avoided.

Rehabilitation actions: 1. Restore feeding and roosting habitat

Rehabilitation should restore the wetland processes and open surfaces used by black-tailed godwits. Planting alone is not a suitable endpoint because the species feeds by probing soft mud or shallow water and roosts on open low banks, sand, mud and shell bars.

Design rehabilitation around the local wetland type, tidal range, sediment supply, salinity and water regime. Retain or recreate a connected mosaic rather than a single uniform wet area.

Foraging depth: The species uses shallow water and inland wetlands with water less than 10 cm deep, as well as exposed soft sediments.

Diet available through habitat restoration: Insects, crustaceans, molluscs, worms, larvae, spiders, fish eggs, frog eggs and tadpoles from soft mud, shallow water and vegetation.

  • Reinstate shallow water, exposed mud, soft wet sand, intertidal flats, saltmarsh edges, sandy beaches, shell bars and low roost banks where those features occurred before disturbance.
  • Restore natural tidal exchange, freshwater inflows, seasonal flooding and drainage patterns where these were altered by the project.
  • Use local native wetland and saltmarsh plants appropriate to the site, while retaining sufficient open mud and low open roosting surfaces for shorebirds.
  • Do not densely revegetate feeding flats or roost bars, and do not establish mangroves or invasive cordgrass in areas intended to remain open shorebird habitat.
  • Control weeds, including invasive plants that colonise mudflats, saltmarsh or roosts, using methods that do not contaminate water or repeatedly disturb birds.

Rehabilitation actions: 2. Reduce predators and disturbance

Manage the restored site so birds can feed and roost without repeated disturbance or loss of condition.

  • Control foxes and other introduced predators where they threaten roosting birds or cause direct mortality, using approved fauna management methods.
  • Control domestic dogs, off-road vehicles, camping, drones, fishing, jet skis, boating and other recreational disturbance near occupied habitat.
  • Use signs, gates, fencing or buffers where they are needed to keep people and vehicles away from feeding and roosting areas without blocking bird movement.
  • Prevent rubbish, marine debris, microplastics, oil, chemicals, nutrient-rich runoff and sediment from entering restored habitat.
  • Use fire management that protects saltmarsh, wetland margins and roost surfaces, and obtain ecological advice before burning any habitat used by shorebirds.

Rehabilitation actions: 3. Monitoring and success measures

Set measurable completion criteria before rehabilitation begins and monitor across suitable tides, water levels and the Australian non-breeding season.

Relevant scale for assessment: Internationally important habitat regularly supports more than 1,600 black-tailed godwits; nationally important habitat regularly supports more than 160.

Network requirement: During the non-breeding season in Australia, the species requires a network of sites to cope with environmental changes.

  • Confirm that the rehabilitated area contains the intended extent of open feeding surface, shallow water, roosting surface and movement connection.
  • Measure water levels or depth, tidal connection where relevant, sediment stability, vegetation cover, weed presence, predator activity, human disturbance and pollution.
  • Conduct repeat visual counts using consistent locations, dates, observers and search areas, and record whether birds feed, roost or merely pass through.
  • Treat regular use by black-tailed godwits and other migratory shorebirds, stable or improving habitat condition, and no recurring disturbance or pollution as key indicators of success.
  • Continue monitoring and corrective management until the site meets the approved criteria and supports the intended wetland functions.

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