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Monaro Grassland Earless Dragon (Tympanocryptis osbornei)

The Monaro Grassland Earless Dragon is a small, short-lived agamid restricted to native tussock grasslands on the Monaro high plains of New South Wales. It is listed as Endangered under the EPBC Act and in New South Wales, and may be affected by clearing, soil disturbance, rock removal, altered grazing, weeds and fire on agricultural, construction and infrastructure sites.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

New South Wales, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Endangered.

Breeding season

The species lays eggs in shallow soil nests from late spring to early summer. Eggs develop through summer and hatch from late summer to early autumn. Juveniles grow quickly, while adults shelter in burrows, cracks and beneath rocks during the colder months. Clearing can affect eggs, young and animals sheltering below ground, so controls should cover the full annual cycle.

Reproductive mode: Oviparous. Females lay eggs.

Clutch size: 3 to 6 eggs.

Incubation: Approximately 9 to 12 weeks.

Size at hatching: Not recorded.

Age at maturity: Females can breed in their first year. Males mature earlier than females.

Nest or egg sites: Shallow nests in surface soil, including soil associated with wolf spider burrows beneath partially embedded rocks. Areas under rocks and other grassland refuges may also be used.

Breeding frequency: Usually one clutch in the wild. A second clutch has occasionally been recorded in captivity.

Confirm timing locally before works, particularly at higher elevations and in colder areas, because rainfall, soil moisture and temperature can alter laying, hatching, surface activity and the onset of winter inactivity.

  • Mating: Mating occurs mainly in spring, with the usual cycle leading to egg laying in November and December. Autumn mating has also been suggested from reproductive condition, but this is not confirmed as a regular event.
  • Gravid females: The documents do not define a confirmed period when females carry eggs. This timing is inferred from late spring to early summer egg laying, with the highest likelihood immediately before laying in November and December.
  • Egg laying: Eggs are laid in late spring or early summer, generally November to December. The species lays its clutch in shallow surface soil, including sites associated with wolf spider burrows and partially embedded rocks.
  • Incubation: Eggs develop in shallow nests for approximately 9 to 12 weeks. Incubation therefore commonly extends from November or December through February to April, depending on laying date and conditions.
  • Hatchlings: Hatching and recruitment are mainly recorded from late summer to autumn. Monaro juveniles were first caught from February to May in the available years, with late summer and autumn the main period of recruitment and growth.
  • Active period: Adults have been captured in most months and can move on warm winter days. Surface activity is reduced during colder conditions, and high temperatures can also reduce daily foraging time. No seasonal peak in activity is established.
  • Winter inactivity: The species is generally torpid or at low activity from May to September. Animals shelter in wolf spider burrows, cracks in soil, beneath rocks and in rock-associated refuges, with fidelity to overwintering burrows increasing as winter begins.
  • Highest clearing risk: Risk is high from November to April because nests, eggs, hatchlings and dispersing juveniles may be affected. Risk is also high from May to September because torpid animals may be unable to escape machinery in burrows, soil cracks or beneath rocks.

Identification

This is a small, squat, rough-scaled lizard of open native grassland. It is cryptic and has a low detection rate, so a brief visual search should not be treated as evidence that it is absent.

Adults are red-brown to grey-brown, with five pale, straight-edged stripes along the back and sides. The pattern overlays six or seven dark transverse bands, while the tail has 12 to 14 dark blotches. The belly and throat are whitish and often heavily speckled with black.

The outer ear opening is hidden under scales. The dorsal scales include enlarged, pointed scales directed towards the rear. The throat scales are smooth and the thighs lack scattered enlarged tubercular scales.

Snout to vent length: 49 to 58 mm

Total length: Approximately 9 to 12 cm, with NSW guidance stating up to 16 cm including the tail

Weight: Not reported in the supplied documents

Identification: Separating similar species

The species is geographically isolated on the Monaro high plains and is not known to overlap with another Tympanocryptis species. The geographically closest similar species is the Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon, T. lineata.

The Monaro species usually has 12 to 14 tail blotches, compared with usually 7 to 11 in T. lineata. The Monaro species also lacks enlarged tubercular scales on the thighs and has more strongly pointed dorsal scales.

  • Do not rely on the absence of a visible ear opening, because this feature is shared by the grassland earless dragons and other Tympanocryptis species.
  • Use the combination of five pale dorsal stripes, six or seven dark crossbands, 12 to 14 tail blotches and the lack of enlarged thigh tubercles when identification is required.

Identification: Field signs and detection

Individuals have been found beneath partially embedded surface rocks, in rock crevices, depressions and burrows excavated by wolf spiders. These burrows may be used for shelter, overwintering and egg laying.

The supplied documents do not report species-specific tracks, scats, sloughs, eyeshine or nest mounds. Vocalisations and display behaviour have been observed in captive animals and in the field, but no diagnostic call is provided.

  • Treat occupied or potentially occupied habitat as including native tussock grassland with surface rocks, spider burrows, open inter-tussock spaces and low-growing forbs.
  • Avoid lifting, moving or removing rocks during searches or works unless this is covered by an approved survey or salvage method.
  • Record the location and condition of rocks, spider burrows, soil cracks and tussock structure when assessing habitat.

Distribution: National and regional range

The Monaro Grassland Earless Dragon is endemic to New South Wales. Its known range is concentrated on the Monaro high plains, with records from private agricultural land, travelling stock reserves and Kuma Nature Reserve near Cooma.

The species is known only from New South Wales, in an area approximately 20 by 60 km. The area is bounded by the Maclaughlin and Murrumbidgee rivers, the Monaro Highway and Berridale.

It occurs within the South Eastern Highlands natural temperate grassland region and the Natural Temperate Grassland of the South Eastern Highlands ecological community.

  • No records or established populations are reported from Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory or any other Australian state or territory.
  • Known records are associated with the Monaro high plains around Cooma and areas towards Bunyan, Springfield, Avon Lake, Nimmitabel and Bombala.

Distribution: Known strongholds and subpopulations

The species occurs mostly on freehold agricultural land, with additional records from several travelling stock reserves and Kuma Nature Reserve near Cooma. Kuma Nature Reserve was last recorded as occupied in 1998 and may no longer support the species.

Current management areas include Sherwin's Range, Cooma, the Brothers and Dry Plain. Surveys in 2019 confirmed occupancy at several travelling stock reserves and private properties.

  • Known sites may be separated by up to 50 km, although some suitable native grassland may provide connectivity.
  • Extant sites are reported to be no more than 650 ha and are often separated by cultivated improved pastures or other unsuitable habitat.

Distribution: Population status

The total population size is unknown because detection rates are very low and access to private land has limited survey coverage. The species was reported as relatively common at some sites in the mid 1990s to early 2000s, but surveys from 2011 to 2015 failed to detect it at some previously occupied sites.

The species has shown signs of decline and range contraction since the Millennium Drought. The NSW assessment identifies continuing decline in geographic distribution, area of occupancy, habitat quality, number of locations and number of subpopulations.

Estimated extent of occurrence: 1258 km²

Estimated area of occupancy: 124 km², calculated using 2 by 2 km grid cells

Threat-defined locations: Three locations in the NSW assessment

Population size: Unknown

Population trend: Continuing decline is inferred across distribution, habitat, locations and mature individuals, although quantitative population data are limited

Habitat: Vegetation and soils

The species is a specialist of open, native, temperate tussock grassland. Suitable habitat is usually on well-drained, gently elevated ground with surface rocks and a discontinuous grass structure.

Records are mainly from rocky grasslands on basalt-derived heavy clay soils. Dominant grasses include Poa sieberiana and Austrostipa scabra, with Rytidosperma caespitosum or Rytidosperma racemosum often present as subdominants.

The species has also been recorded in grassland dominated by African lovegrass in the northern part of its range. Grasslands dominated by Themeda triandra may have lower occupancy.

  • Prioritise native-dominated grassland for assessment, including grassland that has not been ploughed, sown to exotic pasture or substantially modified.
  • Do not exclude habitat solely because African lovegrass is present, as the species has been recorded in such areas, although dense weed growth can obscure burrows and reduce habitat quality.

Habitat: Structural features

Preferred sites are open in structure, with obvious spaces between tussocks containing bare ground, cryptogams, low-growing forbs and rocks. The NSW farming guidance describes suitable habitat as a balance between grass cover and open ground, rather than cropped or densely overgrown grassland.

Well-drained north-facing slopes have been associated with records. Drainage areas with dense tall grasses are rarely occupied according to NSW guidance.

Indicative optimal structure: Native-dominated grassland with short to medium tussocks, clear inter-tussock spaces, approximately 5% bare ground, rocks, short grasses and forbs

  • Retain surface rocks, tussocks, low grasses, forbs, cryptogams and inter-tussock spaces.
  • Avoid compaction, cultivation, fertiliser application, herbicide use, pasture improvement and removal of surface rocks in native grassland.
  • Assess both short, overgrazed grassland and tall, dense grassland as potentially degraded habitat, because both can reduce the preferred open tussock structure.

Habitat: Elevation and climate

The species has been recorded from approximately 755 to 1240 m above sea level, with higher elevation sites more likely to contain it. It is adapted to the cold, seasonal conditions of the Monaro high plains and becomes torpid during winter.

Drought can reduce vegetation cover, increase soil and burrow temperatures, reduce foraging time and increase egg and hatchling mortality. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of drought, heatwaves and fire in south-eastern Australia.

Foraging habitat: Diet and feeding method

The Monaro Grassland Earless Dragon is a sit-and-wait predator that feeds from the ground surface and from open spaces between native tussocks.

The diet consists mainly of small invertebrates, including ants, beetles, spiders and moths. NSW farm guidance also identifies grasshoppers as prey.

The species waits for prey rather than travelling widely in search of food. Maintaining a diverse, open grassland structure supports both hunting opportunities and the invertebrates that occupy the grassland.

  • Retain native grasses, low-growing forbs, cryptogams, bare inter-tussock spaces and surface rocks.
  • Avoid broadscale ploughing, pasture improvement, excessive grazing, fertiliser and inappropriate herbicide use, which can reduce invertebrate abundance and the burrowing invertebrates used by the species.

Foraging habitat: Foraging range

Direct movement data for the Monaro species are limited. The closely related Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon generally moved less than 100 m during six weeks of monitoring and occupied home ranges of 925 to 4768 m² around one or two burrows.

NSW guidance states that the Monaro species generally remains within 100 m of its burrows. Juveniles are considered the most likely stage for dispersal.

  • Treat habitat within at least 100 m of suitable burrows and surface rocks as potentially used for foraging and shelter.
  • Do not assume that an individual will move away from machinery, clearing or stock disturbance, particularly during winter torpor.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding occurs in native tussock grassland containing shallow nest sites, suitable soil and nearby burrows or rocks. Most information is inferred from related grassland earless dragons, but the available advice applies the breeding pattern to the Monaro species.

Females lay eggs in shallow nests in late spring or early summer. Eggs develop through summer and hatch in late summer or early autumn. Young probably disperse soon after hatching and reach adult size by late autumn to early winter.

Females can breed in their first year. Most females in the wild appear to survive long enough to produce only one clutch, although a second clutch has been recorded in captivity in the related Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon.

Breeding and laying season: Late spring to early summer, approximately November to December

Clutch size: 3 to 6 eggs

Incubation: Approximately 9 to 12 weeks

Hatching period: Late summer to early autumn, approximately February to April

Age at maturity: Females can breed in their first year; males mature earlier than females

Lifespan: Usually 1 to 3 years in the wild

Generation length: Estimated at 1 to 2 years

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

Eggs are laid in shallow nests, and burrows excavated by wolf spiders beneath partially embedded rocks are also reported as egg-laying locations. The surrounding habitat is open native grassland with inter-tussock spaces and low-growing vegetation.

Soil disturbance, compaction, ploughing, rock removal and dense weed growth can remove or degrade nest and burrow habitat.

  • Retain partially embedded rocks, spider burrows, soil depressions and undisturbed native grassland during breeding season.
  • Avoid clearing, grading, trenching, vehicle access and stock concentration near suitable burrows and rocks from November to April unless impacts have been assessed and managed.

Sheltering habitat: Burrows and rocks

Shelter is closely associated with surface rocks and burrows made by invertebrates. These features provide protection from temperature extremes, livestock trampling and predators, and may also be used for overwintering and egg laying.

Individuals have been detected beneath surface rocks, in rock crevices, depressions and burrows excavated by wolf spiders. Burrows associated with partially embedded rocks are particularly important.

The species has strong fidelity to overwintering burrows as winter approaches. It is generally torpid from May to September, when it may be less able to avoid ground disturbance.

Known shelter structures: Wolf spider burrows, rock crevices, depressions and burrows beneath partially embedded surface rocks

Known shelter dimensions: No species-specific burrow dimensions are reported

  • Retain all surface rocks and avoid rolling, lifting, burying or relocating them.
  • Protect spider burrows, soil cracks, depressions and rock crevices from vehicle traffic, excavation, trenching, grading and stock trampling.
  • Include adjacent tussock cover and inter-tussock spaces in the protection area, rather than isolating individual rocks.

Sheltering habitat: Seasonal refuge

Winter shelter is particularly important because the species is torpid between May and September. In summer, tussocks provide cover from predators and overnight shelter, while rocks provide basking and refuge sites.

Reduced vegetation cover during drought can increase exposure to predators and reduce the effectiveness of thermal refuges.

  • Maintain a mosaic of native tussocks, short grass, bare ground and rocks rather than removing all cover or allowing dense biomass to develop.
  • Schedule ground disturbance away from the winter torpor period where practicable, and treat occupied shelter features as non-mobile fauna habitat.

Threats: Clearing, construction and fragmentation

The main risk to the Monaro Grassland Earless Dragon is loss and degradation of native grassland. Small home ranges, low detectability, short lifespan and dependence on burrows and surface rocks increase the risk from local disturbance.

Ploughing, cultivation, pasture improvement, infrastructure works and rural development can remove native vegetation, destroy burrows and rocks, compact soil and create barriers between populations.

The species has restricted movement, and suitable sites may be separated by cultivated pasture or distances greater than the movement range recorded for the related Canberra species. A clearing footprint can therefore affect both occupied habitat and movement between habitat patches.

Known movement scale: Usually less than 100 m in the related Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon during six weeks of monitoring; NSW guidance states the Monaro species stays within 100 m of burrows

Known site size: Extant Monaro sites are reported to be no more than 650 ha

  • Survey native tussock grassland, including private land, travelling stock reserves and proposed development areas within the known Monaro range.
  • Avoid clearing native grassland, surface rocks, spider burrows and soil depressions wherever practicable.
  • Keep machinery, spoil, laydown areas, access tracks and fencing out of native grassland and known or potential shelter areas.
  • Manage retained habitat as connected grassland where possible, rather than leaving isolated rock or tussock remnants.

Threats: Grazing, soil disturbance and weeds

Overgrazing, crash grazing, trampling and close mowing remove tussock structure and increase bare ground. Too little grazing can produce dense biomass and remove the open inter-tussock spaces used for foraging and movement.

African lovegrass, serrated tussock, Chilean needle grass and St John's wort can alter grassland structure. Dense African lovegrass can block movement and obscure burrows.

  • Manage stocking rates and timing to maintain native tussocks with open spaces, short grasses, forbs, cryptogams and approximately 5% bare ground.
  • Prevent stock concentration and pugging around rocks, spider burrows and known occupied habitat.
  • Control priority weeds using methods that avoid unnecessary soil disturbance and non-target impacts.
  • Do not use fertiliser or herbicide in occupied habitat unless the action has been assessed and approved for conservation management.

Threats: Fire and drought

High-intensity or too-frequent fire can kill individuals, alter tussock structure and reduce prey. Fire during drought can compound the loss of cover and thermal refuge.

Cool mosaic burns may be used for biomass management where appropriate, but NSW guidance recommends leaving 30% unburnt and undertaking burns from late autumn to early spring when dragons are overwintering in burrows.

  • Use site-specific fire planning and retain unburnt refuge areas around occupied or potential habitat.
  • Avoid high-intensity, broadscale or repeated burns that remove all tussocks, rocks and ground cover.
  • Review grazing and fire arrangements during drought because drought increases egg, hatchling and adult exposure risks.

Threats: Predators and introduced fauna

Feral cats, foxes, raptors, ravens, magpies and snakes may prey on individuals. Reduced vegetation cover from drought or overgrazing can increase exposure to predators.

Rabbits and feral pigs disturb soil, promote erosion and encourage weed invasion, reducing the quality of grassland microhabitat.

  • Control rabbits and feral pigs where they disturb occupied or potential habitat.
  • Consider targeted fox and feral cat control around small grassland sites, particularly near urban, industrial and waste facilities.
  • Retain suitable grass cover and tussock structure to reduce exposure to predators.

Threats: Roads, hydrology and disease

The supplied documents identify infrastructure works, soil compaction, erosion and habitat fragmentation as risks, but do not provide species-specific estimates of road mortality or a documented disease threat.

No species-specific hydrology threshold or disease has been reported. Changes that waterlog normally well-drained slopes, alter drainage patterns, compact soil or increase erosion may reduce the grassland structure and burrow conditions associated with records.

  • Keep drainage, sediment, spoil and runoff controls from altering retained native grassland, surface rocks or burrow sites.
  • Avoid placing roads, tracks and utilities through occupied grassland where practicable, and prevent vehicle access to retained habitat.
  • Report sick or dead animals through the relevant NSW wildlife and threatened species reporting channels, because disease information for this species is limited.

Survey methodology: 1. Targeted active searches

Survey this species in open, native tussock grassland on the Monaro high plains, with particular attention to rocky, north-facing slopes and sites that retain open spaces between tussocks. Detection is difficult and the species is torpid from May to September, so survey planning must account for seasonal activity and the need to inspect shelter features carefully.

Search during the active period outside the usual May to September winter torpor period, with priority to late spring, summer and early autumn.

Walk slowly through suitable native grassland and inspect partially embedded rocks, rock crevices, depressions and wolf spider burrows.

Do not remove rocks or collapse burrows during searches, because these features provide shelter, overwintering sites and egg-laying locations.

Record the search area, start and finish times, weather, observer effort, habitat condition, rock cover, tussock structure and all detections or evidence of occupancy.

Typical adult size: Approximately 9 to 12 cm total length in the conservation advice; approximately 49 to 58 mm snout to vent length in the taxonomic description.

Known elevation: Approximately 755 to 1240 m above sea level, with records also reported from 758 to 1234 m.

Preferred search habitat: Rocky, open native grassland on basalt-derived heavy clay soils, with inter-tussock bare ground, cryptogams and low-growing forbs.

Survey methodology: 2. Burrow and spider-tube searches

Inspect wolf spider burrows associated with partially embedded surface rocks, because these burrows are used for shelter, overwintering, refuge and egg laying.

Use spider-tube transects to assess recruitment by checking for juveniles, as recommended for this species.

Keep the transect layout, number of tubes or burrows checked, search date, weather, observer effort and results with the project survey records.

Treat a failure to detect the species as inconclusive where habitat remains suitable, because the species has a very low detection rate and has been missed at previously occupied sites.

Survey methodology: 3. Habitat assessment and occupancy survey

Survey all known historical sites, occupied sites and areas of potentially suitable native grassland within the proposed disturbance area and its access routes.

Assess vegetation condition and structure using the grassland fauna habitat assessment method, including tussock height, inter-tussock spacing, bare ground, rocks, short grasses and forbs.

Collect habitat data at three-year intervals where ongoing monitoring is required, using spring, September to November, as the timing specified in the Commonwealth conservation advice.

Map each detection and each suitable habitat patch, including patches on private land, travelling stock reserves and reserves.

Known distribution: An approximately 20 by 60 km area of the Monaro high plains, bounded by the Maclaughlin and Murrumbidgee rivers, the Monaro Highway and Berridale.

Known site scale: Extant sites are reported to be no more than 650 ha, with known locations separated by up to 50 km.

Survey methodology: 4. Survey timing and detection limits

Avoid treating winter surveys from May to September as a reliable test of absence, because the species is torpid during this period and shows increased fidelity to overwintering burrows.

Give priority to the breeding and active period identified for land management, November to March, while also considering late spring and early autumn conditions suitable for habitat and occupancy work.

Plan repeat visits where the first survey produces no detection but suitable habitat remains, because intensive surveys from 2011 to 2015 failed to detect the species at some previously occupied sites.

Do not state that a site is unoccupied solely because no dragon was found during a single visit.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Use a documented, repeatable search design covering every suitable habitat patch that may be disturbed, including temporary work areas, access tracks, compounds and indirect impact areas.
  • Record the actual number of observers, search hours, transect length, burrows or spider tubes checked, area searched, dates, times, weather and habitat conditions; the supplied documents do not prescribe a fixed number of nights, hours, trap nights or transect length for this species.
  • Submit confirmed records and negative survey results, with spatial data and survey effort, to the relevant NSW wildlife database, including BioNet where the work is in New South Wales.
  • Report any suspected Monaro grassland earless dragon record promptly to the project ecologist and the relevant state threatened species authority before disturbance proceeds.
  • Retain photographs of the animal, habitat and diagnostic features, because the species has no visible external ear openings and may be confused with other grassland earless dragons.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise

Avoid disturbing native Monaro grassland wherever practicable. Before clearing or construction, identify and retain the open tussock structure, surface rocks and wolf spider burrows on which this short-ranging species depends.

  • Redesign the work area to retain native-dominated grassland, open inter-tussock spaces, surface rocks, rock crevices, depressions and associated wolf spider burrows.
  • Avoid ploughing, pasture improvement, fertiliser, herbicide, rock removal, soil compaction and infrastructure placement in occupied or suitable habitat.
  • Retain habitat connections between occupied patches where they remain, because the species has restricted movement and suitable sites may be separated by unsuitable cultivated pasture.
  • Avoid placing spoil, machinery, temporary fencing, access tracks or storage areas over rocks, burrows or native tussock grassland.
  • Keep disturbance outside the species’ active and breeding period where practicable, particularly November to March, and obtain species-specific ecological advice where timing cannot be avoided.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and project controls

Commonwealth status: Endangered under the EPBC Act.

NSW status: Endangered under the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act framework.

  • Check whether the proposed action is likely to have a significant impact on this EPBC Act Endangered species and obtain an EPBC Act referral or approval where required.
  • Obtain the relevant NSW threatened species, clearing, reserve, travelling stock reserve and animal handling approvals before work starts.
  • Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies occupied and potential habitat, survey results, exclusion areas, stop-work triggers, authorised handlers, relocation procedures, injury response and reporting requirements.
  • Include the species in the project’s unexpected threatened species discovery procedure and brief all supervisors, operators and subcontractors before mobilisation.
  • Consult the relevant NSW agency, local land managers and Traditional Owners where conservation work or access affects Country.

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

  • Complete the pre-clearance survey during a suitable active period and update the work footprint if new habitat or records are found.
  • Mark retained rocks, burrows, native tussock patches, exclusion zones and access routes on site plans and in the field.
  • Use exclusion fencing where it will prevent machinery, vehicles, stock or people entering retained habitat without creating additional barriers to the species.
  • Place fencing far enough from rocks, burrows and tussock habitat to prevent accidental damage, with the setback determined by the fauna ecologist and project constraints.
  • Inspect exclusion fencing each work day and after weather or construction events that could displace it.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery interface

Keep a fauna spotter catcher involved whenever machinery or people may disturb native grassland, rocks, burrows or soil features. The spotter catcher should have authority to pause work and should remain able to see the active work area.

  • Hold a daily pre-start briefing covering the species’ appearance, habitat features, exclusion zones, access routes and stop-work procedure.
  • Inspect the work area before machinery enters and confirm that marked rocks, burrows, tussocks and retained habitat remain undisturbed.
  • Keep the fauna spotter catcher in the active clearing zone, within safe visual contact with machinery and outside the plant exclusion distance set by the site safety plan.
  • Use a spotter catcher to direct staged clearing, with machinery progressing only after the next section has been inspected and released.
  • Prevent operators from driving over rocks, burrows, native tussocks or marked habitat features unless the approved management plan specifically allows the action.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat features and staged clearing

  • Treat partially embedded rocks, rock crevices, depressions and wolf spider burrows as fauna habitat features and do not disturb them without ecological approval.
  • Clear progressively in small sections so the spotter catcher can inspect each section and respond to animals before the next section is disturbed.
  • Do not use broad-scale rock removal, grading or soil stripping where it can be avoided in native grassland.
  • If a rock or burrow must be disturbed, stop machinery, inspect the feature and follow the approved fauna management plan for any animal found.
  • Do not relocate habitat features unless the ecologist has confirmed that the action is lawful, safe and consistent with the approved plan.

During habitat disturbance: Animal found, injury and stop work

  • Stop work immediately around the animal and keep people, vehicles and machinery clear.
  • Have the fauna spotter catcher or another person authorised under the relevant permit confirm the identification before any handling occurs.
  • Do not handle the dragon unless the person is trained, authorised and working under the project fauna management plan and applicable permit conditions.
  • If relocation is authorised, place the animal in nearby retained, suitable native grassland with rocks, open tussock structure and shelter features, following the approved relocation method.
  • Do not release the animal into cultivated pasture, dense tall grass, heavily modified exotic grassland or a location separated from retained habitat by the project works.
  • Place an injured animal in a secure, temperature-appropriate container and transfer it promptly to a veterinarian or authorised wildlife carer under the project procedure.
  • Stop work and seek advice if more than one animal is found, if an animal is found outside the approved impact area, if habitat damage exceeds the approval, or if an occupied burrow or previously unknown population is identified.

During habitat disturbance: Records and incident reporting

  • Record every observation, handling event, relocation, injury, mortality, habitat feature disturbance and stop-work event on the day it occurs.
  • For each record, note the location, date, time, observer, identification, photographs, habitat feature, action taken and final outcome.
  • Notify the project environmental officer and relevant approving authority of a threatened species incident within the timeframe required by the approval or permit.
  • Update the site map after each incident and retain the records with the project environmental management file and state wildlife database submission.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

After clearing, confirm that retained habitat and exclusion controls remain effective and check whether construction has altered the features needed by the species. Monitoring should focus on occupancy, habitat structure, recruitment and threats.

  • Inspect the cleared boundary and retained habitat for damaged rocks, collapsed burrows, soil compaction, trampling, weed spread and altered tussock structure.
  • Complete a post-clearance fauna inspection before removing exclusion fencing or releasing the work area from fauna controls.
  • Confirm that no spoil, sediment, drainage works, fencing, lighting or vehicle access has encroached into retained native grassland.
  • Repair or replace damaged exclusion fencing and reinstate protection where construction continues beside retained habitat.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

  • Repeat targeted occupancy searches at affected and retained sites during suitable active conditions, rather than relying on winter surveys from May to September.
  • Use the same search areas, transects, spider-tube checks and habitat measures used before disturbance so results can be compared.
  • Monitor tussock structure, inter-tussock spaces, bare ground, rock cover, wolf spider burrows, weeds, grazing pressure and evidence of predators.
  • Assess recruitment by checking spider tube transects and report juveniles separately from adults.
  • Submit monitoring records to BioNet or the relevant state wildlife database and provide required reports to the approval authority.

After habitat disturbance: Ongoing controls and offsets

  • Maintain exclusion fencing, weed controls, grazing controls and access restrictions for the period required by the fauna management plan and approval.
  • Manage any offset or biodiversity stewardship commitment so that it protects and improves native grassland, surface rocks, burrows and habitat connectivity for the species.
  • Use the project monitoring results to trigger additional weed control, grazing changes, predator management or habitat restoration where the agreed success measures are not met.
  • Do not treat an absence of detections as evidence that a retained patch is no longer important, given the species’ low detectability.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore grassland structure

Rehabilitation should recreate open, native-dominated tussock grassland rather than a dense pasture. The target is a grassland with medium tussocks, inter-tussock spaces, approximately 5 percent bare ground, short grasses and forbs, and retained or reinstated surface rock.

Preferred structure: Native-dominated grassland with medium-height tussocks, open inter-tussock spaces, bare ground, rocks, short grasses and forbs.

Poor condition to avoid: Cropped or direct-drilled pasture, removed rock, or tall dense grass with limited short grass and forbs.

  • Use locally appropriate native grassland species, including Poa sieberiana, Austrostipa scabra, Rytidosperma caespitosum and Rytidosperma racemosum where suitable to the site.
  • Avoid converting the site to improved exotic pasture and avoid fertiliser or herbicide practices that reduce native vegetation or invertebrate abundance.
  • Restore open structure with visible inter-tussock spaces, low-growing forbs, cryptogams, short grass and approximately 5 percent bare ground where site conditions allow.
  • Do not establish dense tall grass that removes inter-tussock spaces or obscures burrows.
  • Retain existing surface rocks and reinstate displaced rocks only under an approved ecological method that does not crush burrows or animals.

Rehabilitation actions: Manage grazing, fire and weeds

  • Set stocking rates and timing to maintain tussock structure without overgrazing, trampling or excessive bare ground.
  • Where biomass control is required, consider grazing or cool mosaic burns under an approved fire plan, leaving 30 percent unburnt as specified in the NSW land management guidance.
  • Schedule suggested increased grazing for summer and autumn after native seed set, with attention to wet soil pugging and the seasonal condition of the grassland.
  • Plan cool mosaic burns from late autumn after first rains to early spring when C4 grasses are inactive and more flammable, while recognising that dragons are overwintering in burrows.
  • Control African lovegrass, serrated tussock, Chilean needle grass and St John’s wort, prioritising small or isolated outbreaks in native grassland.
  • Keep rabbits and pigs controlled where they disturb soil, burrows or native vegetation, and manage foxes and feral cats where predation risk is identified.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitoring and success measures

  • Monitor occupancy during the active period using repeat targeted searches and spider-tube checks at restored and reference sites.
  • Measure native vegetation cover, tussock height and spacing, approximately 5 percent bare ground, rock retention, burrow availability, weed cover, grazing impacts and fire history.
  • Record juveniles separately and use recruitment as an indicator alongside adult detections, because population size is difficult to estimate from detection records alone.
  • Collect habitat condition data every three years where the site is part of an ongoing conservation program, using the nominated grassland fauna habitat assessment method.
  • Set project success against retained or reference habitat, with no loss of rocks or burrows, native grassland dominance, open tussock structure, controlled weeds and evidence that the site remains suitable for occupancy.

Sources