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Dibbler (Parantechinus apicalis)

The dibbler is a small, endangered carnivorous marsupial found only in fragmented populations in south-west Western Australia, including the Fitzgerald River National Park and several offshore islands. On development sites, dense long-unburnt heath, mallee-heath and Banksia woodland may provide habitat, including areas used for movement or future recolonisation, even where dibblers are not detected during a survey.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Western Australia, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Endangered.

Breeding season

Timing varies slightly between mainland and island populations. The calendar below represents the main pattern described in the sources and should be refined for the local population and project.

The sources do not define a closed breeding season for every population. Mainland births may precede island births by several weeks.

  • Breeding: Mating occurs in autumn, mainly March and April. Boullanger Island mating is reported in late March.
  • Births and pouch young: Births occur from late April to early May on the mainland and in late May on Boullanger Island. Females carry up to eight young and provide care for about 3 to 4 months.
  • Juvenile dispersal: Juveniles are first trapped in September and usually disperse in September and October.
  • Highest clearing risk: Clearing and disturbance are most likely to harm dibblers from mating through the period of pouch young and dependent juveniles, with additional risk during juvenile dispersal. Dense habitat should be protected year-round because adults occupy stable but overlapping home ranges.

Identification

Dibblers are small, active marsupials that are difficult to detect during daylight. Identification depends mainly on the distinctive face pattern, freckled fur, body shape and confirmed trapping, camera or genetic records.

The dibbler has brownish-grey, coarsely freckled fur above and grey-white to yellow-tinged fur below. The most distinctive feature is a clear white ring around each large eye. It has a pointed snout, long whiskers, strong jaws, sharp teeth and a hairy, tapering tail.

The species is small and compact. Males are generally larger and heavier than females, and mainland animals are generally larger than island animals.

Adult weight: Approximately 40 to 125 grams overall; males commonly 60 to 100 grams and females 40 to 75 grams.

Average length: Males about 145 millimetres and females about 140 millimetres.

Sexual dimorphism: Males are larger than females.

Identification: Similar species

On Boullanger Island, investigators must distinguish dibblers from the Boullanger Island dunnart and the introduced house mouse, both of which may also occur in pitfall traps. The dibbler is larger and more robustly built than a mouse, has a freckled coat, a hairy tapering tail and conspicuous white eye rings.

A positive identification should not rely on a brief view alone where similar small mammals are present. Use an appropriately permitted capture, photograph, camera record or specialist identification process.

Identification: Field signs and detection

Dibblers are most likely to be encountered at dawn or dusk. They move quickly through dense vegetation and can jump or climb to catch prey. Their activity period is narrow, so daytime searches alone are unlikely to detect them reliably.

They vocalise during courtship, including during chasing and attempted mountings, but the available sources do not describe a distinctive call that can be used for routine field identification. No reliable species-specific description of tracks, scats or nests is provided in the sources.

Dibblers may use natural hollows under shrub roots, bush-rat burrows and seabird burrows. Seabird burrow use is recorded particularly on the Jurien Bay islands, but the sources do not establish whether these burrows are used mainly for shelter, foraging or rest.

  • Prioritise dawn, dusk and targeted trapping or camera work when confirming presence.
  • Treat dense vegetation, natural hollows, burrows and seabird burrows as potential fauna resources during pre-clearing inspections.
  • Do not treat the absence of tracks, scats or daytime sightings as evidence that dibblers are absent.

Distribution: Current range

The dibbler is endemic to Western Australia. Its former distribution was much wider, but current indigenous populations are restricted to a few fragmented areas in the south-west and mid-west of the state, with additional translocated populations.

Current indigenous populations are known from the Fitzgerald River National Park on the south coast and Boullanger and Whitlock Islands near Jurien Bay. The species has also been recorded historically at Cheyne Beach, Torndirrup National Park and other south-coast sites, but some of these populations have not been detected for many years.

The former range extended across much of south-west Western Australia. Subfossil evidence indicates a former distribution extending from Shark Bay on the mid-west coast to the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia, and inland to Peak Charles. Current wild records do not establish that the species still occurs in South Australia.

Current state records: Western Australia only.

Main biogeographic areas described in the sources: South coast, including the Fitzgerald River National Park, and the mid-west coast around Jurien Bay.

Former national range: South-western Australia, with subfossil evidence extending from Shark Bay to the Eyre Peninsula and inland to Peak Charles.

Distribution: Known populations and strongholds

The Fitzgerald River National Park is the principal mainland stronghold and contains the most genetically diverse known population. Boullanger and Whitlock Islands support the main indigenous island populations.

Translocated populations have been established or attempted at Escape Island, Peniup, Gunton Island and Dirk Hartog Island. Other mainland translocations, including sites in the Stirling Range National Park, Waychinicup National Park and Whiteman Park, were unsuccessful or have uncertain status.

Fitzgerald River National Park: Approximately 3,000 square kilometres; the principal known mainland population.

Boullanger Island: Approximately 26 to 31 hectares in the cited studies.

Whitlock Island: Approximately 5 to 5.4 hectares in the cited studies.

Estimated wild population: Fewer than 1,000 individuals, including translocated populations, in the 2020 assessment; fewer than 700 mature individuals were estimated in the 2022 review.

Distribution: Population trend

Numbers fluctuate between years and seasons. Capture rates on Boullanger Island have shown a decreasing trend since 2012, and Whitlock Island has shown a decline since 2017, although evidence of breeding and many subadults indicated some recovery after higher winter rainfall in 2021.

Detection rates in parts of the Fitzgerald River National Park have declined, particularly after wildfire and during periods of below-average rainfall. The status of the Peniup population is uncertain, with no trap captures since autumn 2018 and the last reported remote-camera sighting in November 2019.

Habitat: Vegetation and substrate

Dibblers use dense, structurally complex vegetation. On the mainland, the strongest association is with long-unburnt heath, mallee-heath and Banksia woodland with a dense heath understorey.

Mainland records are typically from heathland, mallee-heath or Banksia woodland with dense understorey. Capture sites are often on sandy substrates, although occasional records occur on laterite.

Island habitat differs from mainland habitat. Dibblers occur in low, dense coastal vegetation, including low-closed heath, foredune heath, dunal scrubland, open scrubland, succulent heath and Lepidosperma thicket.

Preferred structure: Dense canopy or shrub cover greater than 1 metre has been associated with mainland capture sites.

Typical fire age: Usually at least 10 years unburnt, and often 15 to 16 years or more.

Substrates: Usually sand, with some records from laterite.

Habitat: Habitat condition and connectivity

Dense vegetation provides cover from introduced predators and may support higher invertebrate abundance in deep litter. Areas recently burnt may become suitable again as vegetation structure and litter recover.

For impact assessment, potential habitat includes occupied vegetation, recently burnt areas that could become suitable, natural vegetation that allows movement between occupied areas, and suitable vegetation within the former range that could support undiscovered or reintroduced populations.

  • Map dense heath, mallee-heath and Banksia woodland separately from recently burnt or highly open vegetation.
  • Retain continuous native vegetation around known records and avoid creating narrow isolated remnants where practicable.
  • Treat suitable unoccupied habitat as relevant when assessing clearing, fragmentation and access routes.

Habitat: Climate and elevation

The sources describe the species as a temperate, south-west Australian mammal. They do not provide a reliable elevation limit. Island and mainland populations are associated with coastal or near-coastal heath and mallee-heath environments, but the species formerly occupied a much broader area.

Foraging habitat: Diet

Dibblers forage mainly for invertebrates in dense vegetation and litter, especially during the crepuscular periods around dusk and dawn. They are generalist predators and may climb or jump to reach prey.

The diet is dominated by insects, including beetles, cockroaches, grasshoppers, ants and termites, as well as spiders. Reptiles, birds and mice have also been recorded, and plant material is eaten occasionally.

Berries, especially seaberry saltbush berries, and flower nectar may supplement the diet. Plant material made up about 20 per cent of the diet in the source summarised by Animal Diversity Web.

Main prey: Beetles, cockroaches, grasshoppers, ants, termites and spiders.

Other recorded food: Small reptiles, birds, mice, berries, other plant material and nectar.

Key plant food: Seaberry saltbush, Rhagodia baccata, berries when in season.

Foraging habitat: Foraging sites and method

On Boullanger Island, dibblers forage for prey larger than 2 millimetres on the litter surface and in trees. Dense vegetation and accumulated litter are likely to support both prey and concealment.

Island food resources are linked to plant productivity and seabird-derived nutrients. Seabird density can increase soil nutrients, plant productivity and the abundance of invertebrate prey.

Activity period: Late afternoon to soon after dusk, and from first light for about 2.5 hours.

Foraging range: Specific foraging distances are not established in the sources. Individuals occupy distinct but overlapping home ranges, with males generally using larger home ranges than females.

  • Inspect dense litter, shrub bases, low vegetation, fallen timber and tree or shrub surfaces as potential foraging habitat.
  • Avoid assuming that open ground between vegetation patches is of low value, because dibblers may move through it between dense foraging and shelter sites.
  • Consider introduced house mice as a potential competitor for food on Boullanger and Whitlock Islands.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Dibblers breed once each year in autumn. Breeding habitat needs dense cover and sufficient food to support females, pouch young and recently independent juveniles.

Mating occurs in autumn. On Boullanger Island it occurs in late March, while births have been recorded in late May. On the mainland, births may occur earlier, from late April to early May.

Females carry the young in a shallow pouch. Juveniles are first trapped in September and generally disperse in September or October. Males may die after breeding in some island populations and years, but this is not a consistent feature of mainland populations or every island breeding season.

Breeding season: Autumn, mainly March and April.

Births: Late April to early May on the mainland, and late May on Boullanger Island.

Litter size: Up to eight pouch young.

Gestation: Approximately 44 to 53 days.

Pouch dependence: Young remain dependent on the female for about 3 to 4 months.

Age at sexual maturity: Approximately 10 to 11 months.

Lifespan: Approximately 2 to 3 years in captivity and the wild.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

Breeding sites are not described as constructed nests in the available sources. The habitat requirements inferred from occupied sites are dense, long-unburnt heath or mallee-heath, a substantial litter layer, and enough invertebrate prey to support the female during gestation and lactation.

Protect dense cover and nearby shelter resources during autumn breeding and through the period when pouch young become independent. Avoid fire or clearing that removes large continuous patches of cover before juveniles disperse.

Sheltering habitat: Recorded refuges

Dibblers rest in concealed sites within dense vegetation and may use natural hollows and existing burrows. Shelter is generally above ground, but underground refuges are also recorded.

Radio-tracking in the Fitzgerald River National Park indicated that rest sites were usually above ground. Dibblers moved away when approached and were not observed constructing nests resembling historical descriptions.

Individuals were found using natural hollows under shrub roots and entering bush-rat burrows. On the islands, dibblers often enter seabird burrows, which may provide refuge, foraging opportunities or resting places.

Known shelter dimensions: The sources do not provide dimensions for dibbler shelters, burrows or hollows.

Home ranges: Individuals occupy distinct but overlapping home ranges. Males generally have larger home ranges than females.

  • Retain dense shrub cover, root hollows, fallen timber, rock gaps and existing animal burrows during pre-clearing planning.
  • Inspect seabird burrows and other burrows before disturbance on islands or coastal sites, and prevent collapse from vehicles, machinery or stockpiles.
  • Do not excavate or block burrows during clearing without a species-appropriate fauna management procedure and relevant approvals.

Sheltering habitat: Cover requirements

Dense vegetation is likely to reduce exposure to foxes, feral cats and predatory birds. Long-unburnt vegetation also supports deep litter, which may increase invertebrate prey and provide concealment.

High-intensity fire can remove all vegetation, and recovery of dense cover may take decades if drought follows. This makes retained shelter habitat important even where the immediate work area contains no confirmed record.

Threats: Clearing, fragmentation and construction

The principal risks to dibblers are loss and fragmentation of dense native vegetation, introduced predators, inappropriate fire, Phytophthora dieback and, on islands, introduced house mice and accidental introduction of predators.

Clearing can remove occupied habitat, shelter, litter and food resources. Fragmentation can interrupt movement between occupied patches and reduce the amount of dense vegetation available after fire or disease.

The recovery plan identifies clearing or further fragmentation of occupied or potential habitat as a possible significant adverse impact. Areas that could support future reintroduction or movement are also relevant to impact assessment.

  • Avoid clearing dense heath, mallee-heath and Banksia woodland, particularly where it is long unburnt and connected to known records.
  • Keep access tracks, laydown areas, compounds and drainage works out of dense native vegetation where practicable.
  • Use pre-clearing surveys and fauna spotter catchers, but do not rely on non-detection to justify clearing suitable habitat.

Threats: Fire and smoke management

Frequent, extensive or high-intensity fire is a major risk because dibblers are usually associated with vegetation that has been unburnt for at least 10 years and often much longer. A 2008 wildfire in the western Fitzgerald River National Park burnt approximately 50,000 hectares, after which dibbler capture rates declined and remained low.

Firebreaks, prescribed burns and hot works can increase the risk of wildfire or reduce the availability of dense cover. On islands, fire should not be deliberately introduced.

  • Maintain fire controls around retained dibbler habitat and prevent hot works from igniting heath or mallee vegetation.
  • Plan fuel reduction and prescribed burning so that large areas of suitable long-unburnt habitat are not removed at once.
  • Include retained unburnt habitat and post-fire recovery areas in fire planning.

Threats: Predators and roads

Red foxes and feral cats prey on dibblers and occur throughout the known mainland distribution. Fox predation has been confirmed from remains in fox scats. Roads and construction access can increase vehicle movement, predator access and disturbance in otherwise protected habitat.

The sources do not provide a species-specific road mortality rate or crossing distance. The practical risk is highest where roads or tracks cut through dense habitat, connect mainland predator populations to reserves, or increase night-time vehicle activity.

  • Control access and night-time vehicle speeds near known or suitable dibbler habitat.
  • Do not create food, shelter or waste conditions that attract foxes, cats or other predators to work areas.
  • Maintain predator control programs where they are already operating and ensure construction activities do not prevent baiting or monitoring.

Threats: Phytophthora dieback and hygiene

Phytophthora cinnamomi can kill susceptible plants and alter the structure, floristics, litter layer and food resources of heath and mallee-heath communities. Much of the mainland dibbler habitat on the south coast contains susceptible plants.

Plant disease is considered a major management concern in the Fitzgerald River National Park. Soil, mud, vehicles, machinery and footwear can spread dieback between sites, especially when soil is wet.

  • Apply site-specific dieback hygiene procedures to vehicles, machinery, footwear and soil movement.
  • Keep machinery out of infected or susceptible areas unless it has been cleaned and cleared under the relevant hygiene procedure.
  • Do not move soil, gravel, mulch or plant material from infected areas into dibbler habitat.

Threats: Island threats, climate and hydrology

House mice on Boullanger and Whitlock Islands may compete with dibblers for food and may affect juvenile survival. Mouse control is difficult because dibblers can consume bait and poisoned mouse carcasses may create a secondary poisoning risk.

Introduced foxes, cats, weeds and pathogens would pose a serious risk if they reached dibbler islands. Climate change may increase drought, reduce winter and spring rainfall, increase mouse pressure and reduce island carrying capacity through erosion, rising water levels and extreme sea-level events.

No project-specific hydrology threshold is provided. Hydrology changes that dry, flood, erode or otherwise alter dense coastal heath and its litter and invertebrate resources should be treated as potential habitat impacts.

  • Prevent unauthorised landing, camping, fire lighting and waste disposal on islands supporting dibblers.
  • Use island biosecurity controls to prevent introduction of foxes, cats, weeds, mice or Phytophthora.
  • Assess changes to drainage, groundwater, inundation, erosion and soil moisture where works occur near coastal or island habitat.

Survey methodology: 1. Assess potential habitat

Survey the proposed disturbance area and adjoining retained vegetation for dibblers, their habitat and signs of activity before works begin. Focus on dense, long-unburnt heath, mallee heath and Banksia woodland with a dense understorey, and survey in both autumn and spring where practicable.

Use current vegetation mapping, aerial imagery and field inspection to identify dense heath, mallee heath and Banksia woodland with a dense understorey.

Give priority to vegetation that has been unburnt for at least 10 years, noting that many mainland records came from vegetation unburnt for 15 years or longer.

Record dense canopy or shrub cover, sandy or lateritic substrates, deep litter, logs, rocks, burrows and other potential shelter or foraging features.

Search the full project area, or representative areas within each habitat type, rather than relying only on disturbed edges or previously recorded locations.

  • For small sites, conduct systematic habitat searches along transects spaced 50 to 100 metres apart, or in quadrats that represent the relevant habitats.
  • For sites larger than 5 hectares, replicate survey effort across each relevant vegetation type and habitat condition.
  • Record fire history, vegetation density, dieback symptoms, fox and cat activity, access tracks and any barriers to dibbler movement.

Survey methodology: 2. Elliott trapping

Use Elliott traps as the primary direct detection method where permits, animal welfare requirements and site conditions allow.

Place traps in dense vegetation, near litter, logs, rocks, burrows and likely foraging areas, including long-unburnt heath and mallee heath.

Run trapping in autumn and spring where practicable, because these are the established monitoring seasons for dibbler populations.

Dibblers are most active from late afternoon until soon after dusk and from first light for about 2.5 hours, so inspect and close traps in accordance with the approved animal welfare and project trapping protocol.

Known monitoring frequency: Twice yearly, in autumn and spring, where weather and resources permit.

Peak activity periods: Late afternoon to soon after dusk, and first light for about 2.5 hours.

  • Use a stratified design that samples all suitable habitat units and records trap locations with coordinates.
  • Do not treat a low capture rate as evidence of absence, because dibblers can be difficult to recapture and detection rates vary with rainfall, fire history and trapping conditions.
  • Record trap effort as trap nights, trap spacing, dates, weather, rainfall, bait, captures, non-target animals and trap faults.

Survey methodology: 3. Pitfall and hair sampling surveys

Use pitfall trapping as an additional method for small ground-dwelling mammals where the design is approved and risks to dibblers and other fauna are controlled.

Use hair funnels or hair tubes as supplementary detection methods where they are suitable for the site and an identified sample can be obtained.

Follow the threatened mammal survey guideline for trap design, deployment, checking, weather limits, animal welfare and sample handling.

  • Do not rely on hair sampling alone for a presence or absence decision, because the survey guideline lists several direct and indirect methods for small ground-dwelling mammals.
  • Arrange specialist identification or DNA confirmation when a hair or other indirect sample cannot be reliably identified in the field.
  • Check whether the proposed design could trap or injure non-target species before deployment, particularly on islands or in dense heath.

Survey methodology: 4. Camera and activity searches

Deploy remote cameras where trapping is unsuitable, access is restricted or predator activity also needs to be measured.

Place cameras beside dense cover, likely movement routes, bait stations or other locations selected from the habitat assessment.

Use late afternoon, dawn and dusk searches as supplementary activity surveys because dibblers are crepuscular.

  • Use cameras to record dibbler presence, fox and feral cat activity, fire impacts and the response of retained habitat after works.
  • Record camera locations, deployment dates, operating hours, bait or lure, habitat condition and independent detection events.
  • Treat spotlighting and visual searches as supplementary methods, not as a substitute for trapping or camera monitoring.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Complete a desktop assessment, habitat inspection and targeted field survey before clearing or construction starts.
  • Survey each suitable habitat unit using a combination of systematic habitat searches and an approved direct detection method, with supplementary cameras, pitfalls or hair sampling where appropriate.
  • Repeat surveys in autumn and spring where the project program permits, and avoid relying on a single visit after drought, fire or other conditions that may reduce detection.
  • Record survey dates, start and finish times, weather, rainfall, fire age, vegetation condition, method, area covered, trap or camera effort, coordinates, photographs and all dibbler and predator detections.
  • Submit confirmed records and relevant negative survey results to the relevant state wildlife database and provide them to the approving authority where required.
  • Report any suspected dibbler record promptly to the relevant state conservation agency and retain photographs, location data and identification evidence.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise impacts

Plan the project around the dibbler's dependence on dense vegetation, long-unburnt heath and connected habitat. Avoid removing occupied habitat or creating fire, disease and predator risks that could affect retained or potential dibbler habitat.

Avoid clearing occupied dibbler habitat, long-unburnt heath, mallee heath and Banksia woodland wherever practicable.

Retain dense understorey, deep litter, natural movement routes and adjoining vegetation that could support feeding, shelter or recolonisation.

Avoid fragmentation of retained habitat and maintain vegetated connections between occupied areas, potential habitat and reintroduction areas.

Design the work footprint to exclude areas affected by recent fire only where the vegetation is expected to recover and remain suitable for dibblers.

  • Do not increase the likelihood of wildfire, Phytophthora spread, habitat clearing or fragmentation in dibbler habitat.
  • Keep construction compounds, access tracks, soil stockpiles and washdown areas outside retained dibbler habitat.
  • Apply dieback hygiene procedures, especially when moving soil, water, vehicles or machinery through susceptible mainland heath and mallee heath.
  • Prevent domestic dogs, cats and other introduced predators from entering the work area or retained habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: Confirm approvals and plan the works

National status: Endangered under the EPBC Act.

Western Australian status: Endangered under the state listing provided.

Breeding period: Autumn, with young generally dispersing in September and October.

  • Check the EPBC Act listing before works start and refer the action if it may have a significant impact on the Endangered dibbler or its habitat.
  • Obtain all required state or territory wildlife, clearing, trapping, handling and relocation permits before survey or clearing activities begin.
  • Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies suitable habitat, exclusion areas, survey methods, spotter catcher responsibilities, handling arrangements, stop-work triggers and reporting requirements.
  • Schedule clearing and high-noise activities outside the autumn breeding period where practicable, while retaining autumn and spring survey opportunities.
  • Stage clearing so that retained habitat remains connected and fauna can move towards suitable retained vegetation without being directed towards roads, machinery or open ground.
  • Consult the relevant state conservation agency before proposing any relocation beyond nearby retained habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: Prepare the site

  • Complete a pre-clearance survey immediately before disturbance and repeat it after any substantial change in weather, fire, access or work footprint.
  • Mark all occupied sites, dense retained habitat, movement routes, dieback areas, logs, rocks, burrows and other shelter features shown on the fauna management plan.
  • Install clearly visible exclusion fencing around retained habitat and no-go areas where fencing will not block dibbler movement or create a predator or entrapment risk.
  • Brief machinery operators on the approved clearing direction, exclusion zones, inspection requirements and stop-work triggers.
  • Inspect plant, vehicles and footwear for soil and plant material before entering or leaving susceptible habitat.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery interface

Use a controlled clearing sequence with the fauna spotter catcher present and able to stop work. The spotter catcher should direct machinery away from retained cover and check each work area for dibblers and other fauna before disturbance.

  • Hold a daily pre-start briefing covering the approved footprint, exclusion zones, weather, fire conditions, dieback controls, fauna risks and contact details for the spotter catcher.
  • Keep the fauna spotter catcher within effective viewing distance of the clearing face and stop machinery whenever the spotter catcher cannot inspect the next section safely.
  • Clear progressively in small sections towards retained vegetation, leaving an escape route rather than surrounding fauna with machinery or open ground.
  • Do not push vegetation, logs, rocks or soil into retained habitat, drainage lines or suspected shelter sites.
  • Keep speed, lighting and noise to the minimum needed for the task, particularly around dawn, dusk and known dibbler habitat.
  • Inspect machinery, stockpiles, trenches and temporary drainage structures each day for trapped fauna.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat feature handling

Treat dense heath, litter, logs, rocks, burrows and seabird burrows on islands as potential shelter or foraging features until inspected.

Do not burn, chip, bury or remove habitat features inside retained areas unless this is authorised in the fauna management plan.

  • Check logs, rocks, litter piles and burrows before they are moved, crushed or buried.
  • Where an approved relocation is required, place suitable natural features in nearby retained habitat with similar dense cover and substrate.
  • Do not create pits, trenches, pipes or uncovered excavations that could trap a small ground-dwelling mammal overnight.
  • Cover or ramp excavations at the end of each shift and inspect them before work resumes.
  • On islands, prevent collapse of seabird burrows and prevent the introduction of foxes, cats, weeds, soil and pathogens.

During habitat disturbance: If a dibbler is found

  • Stop work immediately within the animal's likely movement area and keep workers, machinery and dogs away.
  • Do not chase, corner, feed or handle the animal unless the person is authorised under the relevant permit and fauna management plan.
  • Allow the animal to move into nearby retained dense vegetation where it can do so safely.
  • If capture is necessary, use only approved equipment and methods, minimise handling time and keep the animal cool, quiet and protected from predators.
  • Relocate a healthy animal only to nearby retained habitat approved by the relevant authority, and record the release location.
  • Place an injured or distressed dibbler in an appropriate secure container and transfer it promptly to an authorised wildlife carer or veterinarian.
  • Stop work and obtain advice from the relevant state conservation agency if the animal cannot be safely moved, if more than one dibbler is found, or if a dependent female or pouch young is involved.

During habitat disturbance: Stop-work triggers and records

  • Stop work if a dibbler is found in the active work area, if an occupied site is identified, if exclusion fencing fails, or if fauna cannot safely escape the clearing face.
  • Stop work during conditions that materially increase wildfire risk or prevent safe fauna detection and handling.
  • Stop work if soil, water, vehicles or equipment could spread Phytophthora into susceptible retained or potential habitat.
  • Record each fauna observation, capture, relocation, injury, death, escape, release location, habitat feature affected and response taken.
  • Report deaths, injuries, repeated sightings and any suspected new population promptly to the project environmental officer and relevant conservation agency.
  • Retain photographs, coordinates, times, weather, personnel, permit details and machinery activity for the project record.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance work must confirm that fauna has not been left in the footprint and that retained habitat remains connected, clean and protected. Monitoring should be scaled to the amount of habitat disturbed and the risk to nearby populations.

  • Complete a systematic inspection of the cleared area, retained edges, trenches, stockpiles, machinery and temporary infrastructure before demobilisation.
  • Search for live or injured fauna, carcasses, tracks, scats, burrows and other evidence of dibbler activity.
  • Remove or make safe all temporary pits, trenches, pipes, netting and other fauna hazards.
  • Confirm that exclusion fencing, dieback controls and predator controls remain in place until the site is stable and no longer presents a fauna risk.

After habitat disturbance: Monitor retained habitat

  • Monitor retained and rehabilitated habitat with repeat camera, Elliott trapping or other approved surveys where the project affects known or potential dibbler habitat.
  • Use comparable locations, seasons and effort for repeat surveys so that changes in detection can be interpreted.
  • Include rainfall, fire history, vegetation recovery, dieback, fox and cat activity, and house mouse activity in the monitoring record where relevant.
  • Investigate reduced detections rather than treating them as evidence that dibblers have left the area, because detection is affected by rainfall, fire and population fluctuations.

After habitat disturbance: Close-out and offsets

  • Provide the regulator and relevant state wildlife database with survey results, confirmed records, handling and relocation details, injuries, deaths and habitat areas disturbed.
  • Report any breach of approval conditions, unexpected clearing, fire, dieback spread or predator incursion through the project incident system and to the relevant authority.
  • Maintain weed, dieback, fire and predator controls for the period specified in approvals and the fauna management plan.
  • Apply approved offsets or conservation payments where residual impacts remain after avoidance and mitigation, and document how the offset benefits dibbler habitat or recovery.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore dibbler habitat

Rehabilitation should restore dense, connected native cover and the litter and shelter conditions used by dibblers. Recovery can take years after fire or major disturbance, so protect the site while vegetation develops.

Re-establish native heath, mallee heath or Banksia woodland appropriate to the local plant community, with a dense understorey and ground cover.

Use local provenance species identified from the adjoining intact vegetation, including local Banksia and other heath plants where they form part of the original community.

Restore habitat links between retained vegetation and rehabilitation areas rather than creating isolated planting patches.

Preferred mainland habitat: Dense heath, mallee heath or Banksia woodland with heath understorey, commonly unburnt for at least 10 years.

Habitat recovery consideration: High-intensity wildfire can remove all vegetation and dense cover may take decades to recover if drought follows.

  • Retain and reinstate natural leaf litter, fallen logs and suitable rocks where they occur in the local habitat and can be moved without spreading dieback.
  • Do not introduce tree hollows or nest boxes as a substitute for dense ground and shrub cover unless another species management requirement justifies them.
  • Control weeds and prevent new access tracks from opening through recovering vegetation.
  • Use dieback-free soil, mulch, water and plant stock, and apply hygiene controls during all rehabilitation work.

Rehabilitation actions: Manage fire, predators and disease

  • Protect rehabilitation from high-intensity wildfire and maintain a fire plan that protects areas of long-unburnt vegetation.
  • Use strategic fuel management only where it is approved and designed to retain suitable dense cover for dibblers.
  • Maintain fox and feral cat control around mainland habitat and monitor predator activity with cameras or other approved methods.
  • Prevent introduced predators, weeds and pathogens from reaching island dibbler populations.
  • Monitor for Phytophthora symptoms and restrict access when wet soil conditions create a high risk of soil movement.
  • Assess house mouse activity on relevant islands and obtain approval before any mouse control, because dibblers and other native animals may take bait or poisoned carcasses.

Rehabilitation actions: Measure recovery

  • Monitor survival of planted vegetation, native cover, litter depth, logs and rocks, weed cover, dieback, fire age and predator activity.
  • Use repeat approved trapping and camera surveys in autumn and spring once the site provides suitable cover and the monitoring design has been approved.
  • Set success measures for establishment of a continuous native understorey, protection from fire and dieback, absence or control of foxes and cats, and confirmed use by dibblers where monitoring is required.
  • Continue monitoring until the site meets the approval conditions and the habitat is connected, self-maintaining and no longer dependent on temporary project controls.
  • Review the rehabilitation method if vegetation remains sparse, drought affects establishment, predator activity increases or dibbler detections decline.

Sources