Gouldian Finch (Chloebia gouldiae)

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Endangered.

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

Breeding season

The pattern below describes a typical northern Australian year. Timing varies with rainfall, grass seed production, fire and local conditions. Extended wet seasons can lengthen breeding into later months.

Survey effort should account for seasonal detectability. Targeted watches at waterholes are recommended in the late dry season, and searches associated with Black-faced Wood-Swallows can assist in the early wet season.

• Breeding: Breeding usually occurs from February to April and may extend from January to August after prolonged rains. Nests are in hollows or termite-formed structures.
• Young: Eggs are incubated for about 13 days and nestlings remain in the nest for about 21 days. Two or three broods may be raised in a favourable season.
• Movement and feeding shift: After breeding, birds may move between hill woodland, lowland feeding areas and coastal areas. Dry season birds use grass seed and persistent waterholes, while wet season movements follow new grass seed.
• Highest clearing risk: Clearing from January to August can affect eggs, nestlings, dependent young and active nest hollows, with the highest risk generally during the main February to April breeding period. Clearing at any time can remove food, water and future nest sites.

Identification

Adult Gouldian Finches are distinctive, but juveniles can be confused with other small finches. Detection is often easier at waterholes, in feeding flocks and around suitable tree hollows than by call alone.

Adults have a bright green back and wings, purple breast, yellow belly, pale blue rump and pointed black tail. The head may be black, red or, rarely, yellow. The black-faced form makes up about 75% of birds and the red-faced form about 25%.

The bill is pale or whitish with a red tip. Males are brighter than females, particularly on the underparts. Juveniles have an ashy-grey head and neck, an olive-grey upper body and wings, and paler underparts.

Adult length: 11 to 12.5 cm.

Head colour: Usually black, sometimes red and rarely yellow.

Sex differences: Males are more brightly coloured than females.

Identification: Similar species and behaviour

Adults are generally unmistakable because of their combination of green upperparts, purple breast, yellow belly and blue rump. Juveniles are more olive and bulkier than other finches, but the green flush to the mantle helps distinguish them from immature co-occurring finches.

The species is usually quiet and gives a high-pitched, sibilant contact call described as 'ssitt'. Birds may occur in mixed flocks with Masked and Long-tailed Finches.

• Check flocking birds carefully rather than relying on a single brief flight view.
• Use the call, body colour and association with other finches together when identifying distant birds.

Identification: Field signs and survey clues

Useful field clues include direct sightings at waterholes, feeding flocks, calls, feathers and nests. Gouldian Finches may gather at waterholes to drink during the dry season and can be shy, flying directly to trees or cover when disturbed.

Nests are usually in tree hollows, including hollows formed in or associated with termite structures. Potential nest cavities are generally 6 to 13 m above the ground. At development sites, inspect hollow-bearing trees and termite-formed hollows, and watch nearby waterholes during the late dry season.

Recommended targeted survey effort: 12 hours over 4 days at waterholes during the dry season or near early wet season flocks.

Recommended area search effort: 20 hours over 5 days in suitable areas smaller than 50 ha.

• Search suitable habitat by area searches and targeted watches at waterholes.
• During the early wet season, check flocks associated with breeding Black-faced Wood-Swallows.
• Record direct sightings, calls, feathers, nests, occupied or recently used hollows, and the location of nearby water.

Distribution: National range

The Gouldian Finch is restricted to tropical northern Australia. Its distribution is patchy, and birds can occur irregularly outside known sites because of seasonal movements and changing food and water availability.

The range extends from the Kimberley region of Western Australia, including the Dampier Peninsula, through the Northern Territory to north-west Queensland, the Gulf of Carpentaria, the Einasleigh Uplands and Cape York Peninsula.

In Queensland, the species is reported from the Gulf region, the Einasleigh Uplands and thinly across central Cape York Peninsula. In the Northern Territory, records extend from the Katherine and Yinberrie Hills area across northern and central parts of the Territory. In Western Australia, the Kimberley is the principal known range.

Estimated extent of occurrence: 1,780,000 km² in the 2022 assessment.

Earlier estimated range: 101,000 km² in older assessments.

Distribution: Strongholds and populations

Important known areas include Yinberrie Hills in the Northern Territory and Mornington Wildlife Sanctuary in the Kimberley. The species also occurs across suitable savanna from the Kimberley to the Gulf of Carpentaria and Cape York Peninsula.

Genetic studies indicate one broadly connected population, with no substantial genetic structuring across northern Australia and contemporary gene flow between the Kimberley and the Northern Territory.

Population estimate: 5,000 to 50,000 mature individuals, best estimate 25,000.

Recent trend: Stable in reporting-rate analyses from 2000 to 2019 and in the 2022 assessment.

Yinberrie Hills example: The site of conservation significance covers about 102,500 ha.

Distribution: Movement and site use

Outside the breeding season, birds may move in large flocks towards coastal areas and return inland when the rainy season arrives. Local shifts occur between hill woodland used for breeding and lowland or other woodland used for wet season feeding.

Long distance movements are possible. Banded juveniles have moved 200 km in a few weeks, and vagrants have been recorded up to 1,000 km south of the normal range.

Habitat: Overall habitat

Gouldian Finches use tropical savanna, eucalypt woodland, paperbark woodland, thickets and grassy areas, usually near reliable water. Habitat use changes through the year as grass seed matures and birds move between breeding and feeding areas.

The species occupies open tropical woodland and savanna with a grassy understorey. It is seldom far from water because birds may drink several times during the day.

Breeding habitat in the Northern Territory and Western Australia commonly consists of hilly, gently sloping sandstone or rocky terrain with smooth-barked gums near small waterholes or springs that persist through the dry season.

Water relationship: Breeding sites are commonly within 2 to 4 km of small waterholes or springs that persist through the dry season.

Typical terrain: Hilly or gently sloping rocky or sandstone terrain, including slopes of about 15 degrees at many Northern Territory breeding sites.

Habitat: Vegetation and structure

Important breeding woodland includes hills salmon gum, Eucalyptus tintinnans, snappy gum, Eucalyptus brevifolia, northern white gum, Eucalyptus leucophloia, bloodwood, Corymbia dichromophloia, and woollybutt, Eucalyptus miniata.

In Queensland, nesting has also been recorded in poplar gum, Eucalyptus platyphylla, and ghost gum, Corymbia dallachiana. The understorey may include annual and perennial grasses, spinifex and tussock grassland.

• Retain hollow-bearing smooth-barked gums and connected grassy understorey.
• Retain small waterholes, springs and the vegetation around them.
• Map the relationship between breeding trees, grass seed areas and water rather than assessing cleared patches in isolation.

Habitat: Site example and limits

At a 2023 Mount Todd survey area, suitable woodland comprised Eucalyptus tectifica with scattered Eucalyptus tintinnans, Corymbia latifolia and Corymbia confertifolia. The understorey was a patchy tussock grassland dominated by Sorghum stipoideum and Themeda triandra.

The supplied documents do not give a reliable elevation limit for the species. They describe a tropical, seasonal climate and habitat associated with wet season rainfall, late dry season water availability and grass seed production.

Mount Todd woodland survey: 9.1 ha in the proposed waste rock dump extension and 3.0 ha in the proposed accommodation camp area.

Observed understorey cover at Mount Todd: About 50%, with recent burning affecting the patchiness.

Foraging habitat: Diet

Gouldian Finches feed mainly on grass seed and usually forage on the ground, although food may also be taken in flight. The key food resource changes with rainfall, fire history and grass maturity.

For most of the year, the diet consists mainly of ripe or half-ripe grass seed. During breeding, insects may form a much larger part of the diet because they provide protein for growing young.

In the wet season, important grasses include cockatoo grass, Alloteropsis semialata, golden beard grass, Chrysopogon fallax, giant spear grass, Heteropogon triticeus, white grass, Sehima nervosum, ricegrass, Xerochloa laniflora, and kangaroo grass, Themeda triandra.

In the dry season, birds feed on shed seed, especially Sorghum species and other annual spear grasses. They may also use spinifex, including Triodia bitextura, T. acutispicula, T. bynoei and T. schinzii, and may take non-native grasses when native seed is scarce.

Main food: Ripe or half-ripe grass seed.

Dry season food: Shed seed, particularly Sorghum species and annual spear grasses.

Additional food: Insects, especially during breeding or when seed is scarce.

Foraging habitat: Foraging places and method

Birds forage on the ground in grassy woodland, lowland drainages, savanna and spinifex-dominated communities. They feed in small to large groups and may take food from the ground or in flight.

Wet season feeding areas may be in lowland woodland and drainage areas where perennial grasses begin setting seed from about mid-December. Dry season feeding areas are commonly associated with annual spear grasses, native sorghum and small rocky waterholes.

Preferred nest to food and water distances: Optimal 0 to 500 m, marginal 500 to 2,500 m, distant 2,500 to 7,000 m, and unreachable beyond 7,000 m.

• Inspect grass seed areas within and around proposed clearing, including drainage lines and lowland patches.
• Assess grass seed availability across the wet and dry seasons, not only immediately before clearing.
• Protect the connection between feeding areas, water and hollow-bearing breeding woodland.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Gouldian Finches breed in small social colonies and depend on suitable hollows close to food and water. Several pairs may share a hollow, and breeding can continue for longer when wet season conditions provide enough seed.

The species usually breeds in the second half of the wet season. Both parents incubate and brood the young. Two or three broods may be reared in a season when conditions are favourable.

Nests are usually shallow grass cups placed in tree hollows or holes in termite-formed structures. The species is unusual among Australian grassfinches because it nests almost exclusively in tree hollows or holes in termite mounds.

Breeding season: Usually February to April; may extend from January to August after prolonged rains.

Clutch size: Usually 4 to 8 eggs; another assessment gives an average clutch of five eggs.

Incubation: About 13 days.

Time in nest: About 21 days.

Independence: About 40 days after hatching.

Age at maturity: Not reported in the supplied documents.

Lifespan: Reported as 2.7 to 9 years, although up to 3 years is generally observed in one assessment.

Breeding habitat: Breeding site requirements

Most known breeding sites are in open woodland on hilly or gently sloping rocky terrain, with hollow-bearing smooth-barked gums and reliable water nearby. Nest entrances are commonly 6 to 13 m above the ground.

Hollow availability, hollow dimensions, proximity to food and water, and competition from other hollow-nesting finches affect breeding success. Nest boxes can increase available nest sites as an interim management measure, but they do not replace protection of mature hollow-bearing trees.

Typical nest height: 6 to 13 m above ground.

Potentially suitable cavity example: At Mount Todd, 20 of 141 recorded cavities, about 14%, were assessed as potentially suitable for Gouldian Finch use.

• Inspect all hollow-bearing trees within the clearing footprint and nearby works area.
• Record hollow entrance size, height, tree species, tree condition and proximity to grass seed and water resources.
• Avoid clearing or vibration-producing works around active nests during the breeding season.

Sheltering habitat: Hollows and termite structures

The main shelter and nesting structures are tree hollows and, less often, holes in termite mounds. Birds also fly to trees or cover when disturbed and use woodland and thickets outside the breeding season.

Gouldian Finches nest almost exclusively in tree hollows or holes in termite mounds. Suitable hollows are commonly in smooth-barked eucalypts, especially Eucalyptus tintinnans and Eucalyptus brevifolia, and are often 6 to 13 m above the ground.

Several pairs may use one hollow, so a tree without an observed nest may still be important during the breeding season. Frequent fire can reduce the supply of suitable hollows, and competition with Long-tailed Finches can affect access to cavities.

Example cavity screening size: The Mount Todd survey recorded cavities with minimum entrances of 2.5 cm, although this was a preliminary screen and probably overestimated actual suitability.

• Retain live and dead hollow-bearing trees, including trees outside the immediate construction footprint that may be used for nesting or refuge.
• Protect termite-formed hollows and avoid damaging cavity-bearing trunks, limbs and root zones.
• Treat cavities with entrances from about 2.5 cm as potential finch cavities until their suitability has been assessed more closely.

Sheltering habitat: Cover and water-associated refuge

Outside breeding, birds use a wider range of woodland habitats, including thickets, paperbark woodland and savanna edges. When disturbed they may fly directly to trees or cover.

Small rocky waterholes and springs that persist into the late dry season are important daily refuge and drinking locations. Vegetation around these sites can also provide cover and access to nearby seed resources.

• Keep waterholes, springs and their surrounding vegetation free from unnecessary disturbance, sediment entry and livestock or vehicle trampling.
• Maintain woodland links between water, breeding trees and grass seed areas.

Threats: Clearing and development

The main project risks are clearing hollow-bearing woodland, removing grass seed habitat, altering water sources and changing fire patterns. Impacts can occur even where birds are not recorded during a short survey because they are mobile and irregularly detected.

Clearing can remove breeding trees, potential nest hollows, grass seed areas and the links between these resources. Mining and other developments can affect breeding habitat locally, including in areas where birds are recorded irregularly.

At Mount Todd, proposed changes were assessed as potentially clearing about 35.7 ha of breeding habitat and 11.4 ha of foraging habitat, in addition to approved clearing of 158 ha of potential breeding habitat and 458 ha of potential foraging habitat.

Mount Todd additional clearing example: About 35.7 ha of breeding habitat and 11.4 ha of foraging habitat.

Mount Todd approved clearing example: 158 ha of potential breeding habitat and 458 ha of potential foraging habitat.

• Map breeding trees, potential cavities, grass seed communities and persistent water together before finalising the clearing footprint.
• Avoid clearing during the main breeding period from February to April where practicable, and apply nest checks before any vegetation removal.
• Treat absence during one survey as inconclusive where suitable habitat is present.

Threats: Fire and grazing

Frequent, extensive and hot late dry season fires can reduce grass seed production, remove cover, damage or destroy nest hollows and reduce body condition. Birds also tend not to nest in burnt tree hollows.

Cattle, buffalo, horses and feral pigs can reduce wet season grass seed resources through grazing and alter grass composition and timing. Trampling and grazing around waterholes can degrade drinking sites.

• Retain a mosaic of burnt and unburnt habitat rather than applying broad, uniform burns.
• Protect wet season grasses and late dry season waterholes from grazing and trampling.
• Schedule fuel reduction and construction access to avoid removing seed resources immediately before the early wet season food shortage.

Threats: Other threats

Climate change may alter wet season rainfall timing and quantity, grass seed production, dry season surface water and wildfire frequency or intensity.

The species was heavily trapped for aviculture in the past, but substantial trapping has not occurred for about 30 years. The air-sac mite Sternostoma tracheacolum caused mortality in the past but has not been noted as a recent threat in wild populations.

• Manage dust, runoff, weeds and site access so that grass communities and small water sources remain functional.
• Record any sick or dead finches and seek specialist advice if respiratory disease or unusual mortality is observed.

Survey methodology: 1. Targeted searches and waterhole watches

Survey Gouldian Finch habitat before clearing or construction, with emphasis on dry season waterholes, breeding woodland and wet season grass seed resources. The species is shy, mobile and often quiet, so combine targeted searches with area searches and habitat assessment.

Conduct targeted searches and watches at waterholes during the late dry season, from September to November, when birds gather to drink. Also search for flocks associated with breeding black-faced woodswallows from November to January.

Search for direct sightings, the high-pitched contact call, feeding flocks and birds flying to trees or cover. Check nearby tree hollows and holes in termite mounds for nesting activity.

Use the guideline effort of 12 hours over 4 days for targeted searches.

Preferred timing: September to November at waterholes; November to January for associations with breeding black-faced woodswallows

Recommended effort: 12 hours over 4 days

• Give priority to small waterholes or springs that persist through the late dry season.
• Record the waterbody location, date, time, weather, observer effort, flock size, behaviour and direction of movement.
• Repeat watches across suitable water sources because birds may shift between water and feeding areas.

Survey methodology: 2. Area searches in suitable habitat

Search tropical eucalypt or paperbark woodland, savanna, thickets and grassy plains near water. Include hill woodland used during breeding and adjacent lowland woodland used during the wet season.

Search on foot through areas of suitable habitat and inspect birds in pairs, small groups and larger non-breeding flocks. The species may mix with masked and long-tailed finches.

Use the guideline effort of 20 hours over 5 days where suitable habitat is less than 50 hectares.

Recommended effort: 20 hours over 5 days in suitable habitat less than 50 hectares

Breeding period: Usually February to April, extending from January to August when prolonged rain provides ample seed

• Time searches to cover both breeding habitat and wet season foraging habitat where the project contains both.
• Record all detections, including calls, feathers, nests, tree hollows, feeding birds and birds flushed into trees.
• Treat absence cautiously because birds can occur irregularly and briefly at locations outside their usual sites.

Survey methodology: 3. Habitat and nest-site assessment

Map hollow-bearing trees, termite mounds, persistent water, grass seed resources, recent fire, grazing impacts and connections between breeding and foraging areas.

Inspect woodland dominated by smooth-barked gums, including hills salmon gum, Eucalyptus tintinnans, and snappy gum, Eucalyptus brevifolia. Potential nests are generally 6 to 13 metres above ground in tree hollows.

Assess the distance between potential nest sites, food and water. Sites within 500 metres of feeding or watering areas are described as optimal, 500 to 2,500 metres as marginal, 2,500 to 7,000 metres as distant and beyond 7,000 metres as unreachable.

Typical nest height: 6 to 13 metres

Optimal food or water distance: 0 to 500 metres

Marginal food or water distance: 500 to 2,500 metres

Distant food or water distance: 2,500 to 7,000 metres

• Use binoculars or other non-destructive methods to inspect cavities from the ground.
• Record tree species, cavity height, entrance size where visible, evidence of use, nearby water and the condition of the grass understorey.
• Map perennial and annual grass patches used for wet season and dry season feeding, including Sorghum, Schizachyrium, Triodia, cockatoo grass, golden beard grass, giant spear grass, white grass and kangaroo grass where present.
• Do not climb trees or open cavities during a standard fauna survey unless the method is separately approved and undertaken by appropriately trained personnel.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

• Use the targeted and area-search effort in the survey guideline unless a documented, evidence-based alternative is approved for the project.
• Record survey dates, start and finish times, weather, observers, methods, survey area, habitat condition, fire history, grazing, water availability and all detections.
• Submit confirmed records and suitable evidence to the relevant state or territory wildlife database and include the records in the project environmental report.
• Report the scientific name consistently, noting that the survey guideline uses Erythrura gouldiae and current sources use Chloebia gouldiae.
• Retain georeferenced photographs, maps, field sheets, call records and cavity or nest observations with the project records.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Plan the works around the species' dependence on hollow-bearing woodland, persistent water and seasonal grass seed. Avoid clearing wherever practicable, especially where these features occur together.

• Retain hollow-bearing smooth-barked gums, particularly hills salmon gum and snappy gum, and retain nearby woodland with a grassy understorey.
• Retain small waterholes or springs that persist through the dry season, together with the surrounding vegetation used for drinking and access.
• Retain wet season and dry season grass seed areas, including patches of Sorghum, Schizachyrium, Triodia and other documented food grasses.
• Keep breeding woodland connected to adjacent wet season foraging woodland and water sources; do not create isolated retained patches where a practicable alternative exists.
• Use the species' food and water distances to identify high-value habitat, with sites within 500 metres of feeding or watering areas receiving the highest planning priority.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and project controls

Federal listing: Endangered under the EPBC Act

Northern Territory listing provided: Vulnerable

• Check whether the action may have a significant impact on this EPBC Act Endangered species and refer the action under the EPBC Act where required.
• Check the applicable state or territory listing, permits and wildlife handling requirements before survey, clearing or relocation work begins.
• Prepare a species-specific fauna management plan that identifies breeding habitat, wet season foraging habitat, dry season water sources, hollow-bearing trees, survey results, exclusion areas and stop-work controls.
• Stage clearing to retain habitat and water while adjacent works proceed, and schedule high-disturbance activities outside the breeding period where the risk assessment shows this is practicable.
• Include a named fauna spotter catcher, an authorised wildlife carer or veterinarian, an ecologist and the project environmental officer in the response plan.

Before habitat disturbance: Pre-clearance preparation

• Complete a pre-clearance inspection immediately before works, with timing suited to the species' mobility and the planned clearing sequence.
• Mark retained trees, potential nest hollows, water sources, grass seed areas, movement routes and exclusion zones on the ground and in the construction drawings.
• Fence or otherwise exclude retained habitat, waterholes and marked trees where fencing can be installed without blocking bird movement or access to water.
• Brief machinery operators on the marked features, the daily fauna inspection process, stop-work triggers and the requirement to follow the fauna spotter catcher's directions.
• Reinspect any area where fire, grazing, earthworks or changed water availability has altered the habitat after the original survey.

During habitat disturbance: Daily work controls

Use active fauna supervision during clearing and ground disturbance. The fauna spotter catcher should control the sequence around habitat features and should have authority to pause work when an animal, nest or unexpected habitat feature is found.

• Inspect the work area and exclusion fencing before machinery starts each day.
• Clear progressively towards retained habitat so birds and other fauna have an open route to nearby retained woodland, water and cover.
• Keep machinery, vehicles, spoil, lighting and workers out of marked water sources, retained hollow-bearing trees and exclusion areas.
• Stop work during conditions that reduce detection, such as poor visibility, heavy rain, smoke or unsafe access, and resume only after the fauna spotter catcher confirms that searching is effective.
• Check freshly cleared areas, tree bases, fallen timber and adjacent retained habitat for birds, nests, feathers and other evidence.

During habitat disturbance: Fauna spotter catcher and machinery

• Position the fauna spotter catcher where the clearing face, trees and ground are visible, while maintaining a safe separation from machinery.
• Require operators to stop before felling or pushing any tree that contains a potential hollow, nest or animal, and allow the spotter catcher to inspect it from a safe position.
• Use agreed hand signals or radio calls so the spotter catcher can stop machinery immediately without entering the machine exclusion zone.
• Do not allow personnel to climb trees, reach into hollows or handle a Gouldian Finch unless they are authorised, trained and permitted to do so.
• Keep a second observer or pause the activity where vegetation, smoke, distance or machinery noise prevents reliable detection.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat features and animal response

• Treat hollow-bearing trees as potential breeding habitat and retain them where practicable; if an approved removal is unavoidable, inspect the tree and surrounding area for birds, nests and dependent young before work.
• Do not disturb termite mounds, waterholes, logs, rocks or dense cover unnecessarily, and retain these features in the approved habitat area where they support fauna movement or shelter.
• If a Gouldian Finch is found, stop nearby work, keep people and machinery back, and allow the bird to move to retained habitat where it can do so safely.
• Only an appropriately authorised and trained person may capture or relocate the bird, and relocation should be to nearby retained habitat that provides woodland, grass seed and access to water.
• Take an injured bird to a veterinarian or authorised wildlife carer as soon as practicable, following the relevant state or territory wildlife requirements.

During habitat disturbance: Stop work and records

• Stop work if a Gouldian Finch, active nest, dependent young, unexpected hollow-bearing tree, occupied termite mound or unapproved clearing of retained habitat is found.
• Stop work if exclusion fencing fails, a water source is damaged, smoke or dust prevents detection, or the approved clearing footprint is exceeded.
• Notify the project environmental officer and ecologist, assess the risk, and resume only after the fauna management plan and approval conditions have been met.
• Record the date, location, habitat, animal condition, photographs, action taken, handler, destination, permits, injury outcome and time work resumed.
• Report any mortality, injury, nest disturbance, unauthorised clearing or approval breach to the relevant regulator and approval holder within the required timeframe.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance inspection

Confirm that the approved footprint was cleared, retained habitat remains functional and any fauna response was completed. Keep controls in place while construction continues to affect nearby habitat.

• Inspect the cleared area and retained edge for injured or trapped fauna, active nests, damaged hollows, blocked movement routes and changes to water access.
• Confirm that all marked breeding trees, persistent water sources, grass seed areas and exclusion zones were retained as shown in the approved plans.
• Remove temporary fencing only when the environmental officer confirms that construction no longer presents a risk to the retained habitat.
• Reinspect retained woodland after major earthworks, blasting, fire, flooding or changes to drainage.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

Useful monitoring periods: September to November at waterholes; February to April during the usual breeding period

• Monitor retained breeding and foraging habitat using repeat area searches and targeted watches at waterholes, with timing selected around the late dry season and breeding period.
• Compare detections, habitat condition, water persistence, grass seed availability, fire effects and grazing pressure with the pre-clearance baseline.
• Report all Gouldian Finch records and any injury, mortality, nest disturbance, habitat loss or approval non-compliance to the project environmental officer and relevant regulator.
• Maintain georeferenced monitoring data and submit records to the relevant state or territory wildlife database.

After habitat disturbance: Offsets and corrective action

• Apply any offset, rehabilitation or additional conservation measure required by the EPBC Act approval, state approval or development consent.
• Repair damaged exclusion fencing, reinstate blocked habitat links and protect any water source affected by construction.
• Escalate corrective action if monitoring shows loss of access to water, reduced grass seed resources, hollow damage, repeated disturbance or declining site use.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore woodland and nesting features

Rehabilitation should restore the combination of hollow-bearing woodland, grass seed resources and reliable dry season water used by Gouldian Finches. Set targets that can be checked through habitat inspections and repeat bird surveys.

• Re-establish open tropical eucalypt woodland with a grassy understorey around retained habitat and water sources.
• Use locally appropriate smooth-barked gum species identified as nesting trees, including Eucalyptus tintinnans and Eucalyptus brevifolia where suitable to the local site and approved planting schedule.
• Retain existing hollow-bearing trees and protect replacement trees as they mature; use nest boxes only where an approved recovery or habitat plan identifies them as suitable interim support.
• Do not remove dead trees or stag trees from rehabilitation areas where they provide cavities, unless they create an unmanaged safety risk.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore food, water and shelter

• Reinstate a diverse native grass understorey that includes locally suitable food grasses such as Sorghum, Schizachyrium, Triodia, cockatoo grass, golden beard grass, giant spear grass, white grass and kangaroo grass where they naturally occur.
• Protect small waterholes or springs and design drainage so suitable water persists through the dry season without causing erosion or unsafe pooling.
• Retain or reinstate logs, rocks, termite mounds and dense vegetation where they support habitat structure and movement.
• Control weeds and grazing so grass species can flower and set seed, particularly at the start of the wet season when food scarcity can be severe.

Rehabilitation actions: Fire management and success measures

• Develop a site fire regime that avoids frequent, extensive, hot, late dry season burns and maintains a mosaic of burnt and unburnt habitat.
• Protect wet season grass seed resources from late dry season fire and monitor whether fire has reduced suitable nest hollows.
• Monitor survival of planted trees, grass cover and seed production, water persistence, cavity availability, grazing and weed cover.
• Use repeat targeted searches at waterholes and area searches during the breeding and wet season periods to measure Gouldian Finch use of the rehabilitated area.
• Define success in the rehabilitation plan using measurable targets for retained or established hollow-bearing trees, native grass cover, persistent water, fire condition and confirmed Gouldian Finch detections.

Sources

• Threatened species and ecological communities publications, Australian Government DCCEEW: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/biodiversity/threatened/publications
• Gouldian Finch (Chloebia gouldiae) | Text, datazone.birdlife.org: https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/gouldian-finch-chloebia-gouldiae/text
• Gouldian Finch, Australian Museum: https://australian.museum/learn/animals/birds/gouldian-finch/
• Mount Todd Referral, Northern Territory Government: https://ntepa.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/1278018/attachment-r2-gouldian-finch-literature-review-and-habitat-assessment_2.pdf
• Survey guidelines for Australia's threatened birds, Australian Government DCCEEW: https://www.agriculture.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/survey-guidelines-birds-april-2017.pdf