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Northern Bettong (Bettongia tropica)

The northern bettong is a small, nocturnal potoroid restricted to upland sclerophyll forests and woodlands on the western edge of rainforest in north eastern Queensland. It is Endangered under the EPBC Act and Queensland legislation, so clearing, fire changes, access roads and predator pressure require careful controls wherever suitable habitat or signs occur.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Endangered.

Breeding season

Breeding occurs throughout the year, and northern bettongs do not undertake seasonal migration. Clearing risk is therefore present in every month, with additional concern wherever occupied burrows, dense cover or dependent young are detected.

Months are January to December. The supplied documents do not identify a seasonal breeding peak or a month when clearing can be considered low risk.

  • Breeding: Mating and births can occur throughout the year. Females can produce up to three young per year when conditions remain optimal.
  • Young: A single young remains in the pouch for about 102 to 112 days, then continues developing and is weaned at about 166 to 185 days.
  • Foraging and local movement: Foraging is nocturnal and occurs throughout the year. The species is sedentary rather than migratory, with overlapping home ranges of about 49 hectares for females and 72 hectares for males on average.
  • Fire and food sensitivity: Food availability and foraging patterns can change after fire and through the dry season. Recent research found that unburnt patches of tall grass and fallen timber provide shelter and foraging habitat.
  • Highest clearing risk: Risk is high in every month because breeding is year round and dependent young may be present at any time. Risk is highest at a particular site when active burrows, fresh diggings, dense refuge cover or a female with pouch young is detected.

Identification

Northern bettongs are small rat-kangaroos with a rounded back, long hind legs and a grey coat. They are most likely to be detected at night, in cage traps or camera traps, or indirectly through characteristic digging in suitable sclerophyll forest.

Adults have soft grey fur, darker above and paler below, with an adult weight of about 1.2 kg. The tail has a short black crest of fur near its upper distal end. The forelimbs are short and held close to the body when the animal hops, while the hands have long nails used for digging.

The head and body measures 302 to 337 mm and the tail measures 320 to 335 mm. Males and females are similar in appearance and size.

Head and body: 302 to 337 mm

Tail: 320 to 335 mm

Weight: 1,000 to 1,400 g, average about 1,200 g

Identification: Similar species

The northern bettong may be confused with the rufous bettong where their distributions meet. Northern bettongs are associated with moist or wet eucalypt forest with a generally dense canopy, a well developed woody understorey and a sparse ground layer, whereas rufous bettongs are more associated with shorter, drier eucalypt forest with a dense ground layer and few woody understorey plants.

The species is similar in appearance and genetics to the woylie, but the northern bettong is the north eastern Queensland species. Identification from a photograph, trapping record or genetic sample may be needed where similar potoroids occur.

Identification: Field signs and detection

Look for small conical digging pits in the soil, often associated with fungi or other underground food resources. Diggings alone do not confirm the species because other bandicoots and potoroids also dig; record their size, shape, location and associated tracks or food remains, then use camera trapping or live trapping to confirm the animal.

Northern bettongs dig and shelter in burrows. Burrows, dense ground cover, nests or shelter beneath boulders and fallen timber can indicate suitable refuge habitat, but the supplied sources do not provide a species specific burrow or nest dimension.

The species is nocturnal and can be detected by cage trapping, camera trapping, spotlighting, hair sampling and searches for diggings or burrows. No reliable species specific call description or eyeshine characteristic is provided in the supplied documents.

  • Photograph and map all suspected bettong diggings before soil disturbance.
  • Use targeted camera traps or an appropriately designed cage trapping survey to confirm suspected presence.
  • Treat a suspected burrow, nest or dense refuge patch as occupied until a qualified ecologist has assessed it.

Distribution: National range

The northern bettong is endemic to north eastern Queensland. Its known range is a narrow, fragmented band of upland eucalypt forest and woodland along the western edge of the Wet Tropics rainforests, extending into the eastern Einasleigh Uplands.

The species is known only from Queensland. Records and populations are concentrated in the Wet Tropics biogeographic region and adjoining eastern Einasleigh Uplands, generally at about 800 to 1,200 metres above sea level.

The historical range was larger. The species has disappeared from the Dawson Valley and the greater Ravenshoe area, and has contracted from several former localities.

Australian state: Queensland only

Main bioregions: Wet Tropics and adjoining eastern Einasleigh Uplands

Typical elevation: About 800 to 1,200 m above sea level

Distribution: Known strongholds and subpopulations

Recent conservation findings describe two remaining populations: the larger Lamb Range population, including Davies Creek, and the smaller, less secure Mt Spurgeon population. Earlier recovery information recorded small populations at Mt Carbine Tableland and Coane Range, near Paluma, and a probable or recently extant population at Mt Windsor Tableland.

Within the Lamb Range, Davies Creek, Emu Creek and Tinaroo subpopulations were genetically distinct but geographically close in the recovery plan. Population boundaries and occupancy should be checked against current Queensland Government records before field work.

Distribution: Population size and trend

The supplied documents do not provide a current total population estimate. The recovery plan described Lamb Range as the only substantial population at that time, with very small, low density populations at Mt Carbine and Coane Range. More recent project material reports continuing range declines despite conservation management and identifies only two current populations.

Current population count reported: Two populations in the 2021 project factsheet: Lamb Range and Mt Spurgeon

Mt Carbine survey result in 1996: Two individuals in 559 trap nights over 102 hectares

Coane Range survey result in 1997: Eight individuals in 378 trap nights over about 350 hectares

Habitat: Vegetation and setting

Northern bettongs occupy eucalypt forests and woodlands at the ecotone between rainforest and open woodland. Suitable habitat is defined by vegetation structure, fire history and the availability of underground fungal and plant foods, rather than by soil type alone.

Habitat forms a narrow band along the western edge of Wet Tropics rainforest and the eastern edge of open eucalypt woodland. It includes very tall, wet Eucalyptus grandis forest, tall Eucalyptus resinifera and Syncarpia glomulifera forest, and medium height, drier Corymbia citriodora or Eucalyptus platyphylla forest and woodland.

Northern bettongs are generally absent from closed rainforest. Occasional rainforest sightings are considered likely to be movements from adjacent eucalypt habitat.

Habitat: Structure and environmental limits

The preferred structure described in the recovery plan is a generally dense canopy, a well developed woody understorey and a sparse ground layer. Drier habitat can have a lower moisture regime and may be dominated by lemon scented gum or poplar gum.

Northern bettongs occur on basalt, granite, metamorphic and alluvial soils, so soil type alone is not a reliable exclusion criterion. Suitable habitat is commonly associated with sufficient diversity, abundance and year round availability of truffles and other underground foods.

Elevation: About 800 to 1,200 m above sea level

Soils recorded: Basalt, granite, metamorphic and alluvial derived soils

Key habitat feature: Ectomycorrhizal truffles in sufficient abundance, diversity and with low seasonality

Habitat: Fire and habitat condition

Fire maintains the eucalypt vegetation associations and helps retain food resources. Long unburnt tall, wet sclerophyll forest can lose some or all of the food resources used by northern bettongs as rainforest invades.

Recent research found that patchy, cool burns can be compatible with conservation where they leave unburnt refuges, including tall grass and fallen timber. Bettongs generally remained within their existing home ranges after fire but could contract their activity into unburnt patches.

  • Retain connected patches of mature eucalypt forest, tall grass and fallen timber during site preparation and fire management.
  • Assess rainforest invasion, canopy structure, ground cover and food resources before clearing or altering fire regimes.

Foraging habitat: Diet

Northern bettongs forage on the ground at night, using their long claws to dig for underground fungi and plant storage organs. Their distribution is closely linked to the abundance, diversity and seasonality of these foods.

Hypogeal ectomycorrhizal fungi, or truffles, generally comprise about 45 percent of the diet, varying between about 30 and 70 percent by location and season. Fungi from about 35 to 36 species have been recorded in the diet.

Roots and tubers become particularly important in the early dry season. Cockatoo grass, Alloteropsis semialata, and lilies of the genus Hypoxis are important foods. Herbs, invertebrates and seeds are eaten in smaller quantities.

Truffles in diet: Generally about 45 percent, varying from about 30 to 70 percent

Other important foods: Roots, tubers, cockatoo grass and Hypoxis lilies

Other foods: Herbs, invertebrates and seeds, collectively about 10 percent in the recovery plan

Foraging habitat: Foraging method and habitat

Bettongs forage nocturnally across the forest floor and dig for truffles, roots, tubers and other underground food. Digging can aerate soil and disperse fungal spores, so feeding activity may be concentrated where ectomycorrhizal fungi occur beneath eucalypts and sheoaks.

Recently burnt areas can receive concentrated foraging activity, with more sinuous paths and higher foraging success reported soon after fire. Food availability can decline in the late dry season, particularly for truffles.

  • Protect soil and litter layers beneath mature eucalypts and other likely ectomycorrhizal host trees.
  • Avoid removing patches with repeated fresh diggings, especially where truffle fruiting bodies, cockatoo grass or Hypoxis lilies are present.
  • Survey food resources and digging activity across the proposed clearing footprint and adjacent retained habitat.

Foraging habitat: Foraging range

Mean movement ranges were about 72 plus or minus 10.9 hectares for males and 49 plus or minus 8.4 hectares for females. Individual ranges overlapped within and between sexes, so a clearing footprint can affect more than one animal even when only one animal is detected.

Male movement range: 72 plus or minus 10.9 hectares

Female movement range: 49 plus or minus 8.4 hectares

Maximum range reported in source summary: Up to about 120 hectares

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Northern bettongs can breed throughout the year and usually produce one young at a time. Breeding habitat is closely tied to secure ground refuges, nearby food resources and connected eucalypt forest.

Females can produce up to three young per year when conditions remain optimal, although recruitment of subadults in the wild is probably low. The young is born after a short gestation and develops mainly in the pouch before following its mother.

Females show post partum oestrus and embryonic diapause, allowing another embryo to remain dormant while a pouch young is dependent.

Breeding season: Throughout the year, with no clear seasonal peak

Litter size: One young

Gestation: 20 to 23 days

Pouch emergence: About 102 to 112 days after birth

Weaning: About 166 to 185 days

Female maturity: About 301 days

Expected wild lifespan: About 5 to 7 years

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

Breeding animals need suitable food within their normal movement range and refuge habitat such as burrows, dense grass, fallen timber and other ground cover. Recent fire research found that small unburnt patches within burnt areas were used for shelter and foraging.

Because breeding occurs in every month, there is no reliable seasonal period when clearing can be assumed to avoid dependent young. Any occupied habitat should be managed as potential breeding habitat year round.

  • Retain connected refuge patches around active diggings, burrows and dense ground cover.
  • Plan clearing outside occupied habitat where possible, but do not treat winter or the dry season as low breeding risk.
  • Use fauna spotter catcher procedures only after a qualified ecologist has assessed the suitability of the habitat and any detected animal or refuge.

Sheltering habitat: Burrows and ground refuges

Northern bettongs shelter on the ground, using burrows and cover during the day. They may also use boulder cover, dense grass and fallen timber, particularly where recent fire has left unburnt patches.

The species is fossorial and digs its own burrows. Sources also report daytime refuge beneath boulders or in burrows, but do not provide a standard burrow diameter, depth or nest dimension.

Recent fire research identified tall grass and fallen timber left unburnt as important shelter and foraging refuges. These features should be retained where practicable in and beside work areas.

  • Inspect proposed clearing areas during the day for burrows, fresh diggings, dense grass, fallen timber and boulder cover.
  • Mark and protect suspected occupied refuges until targeted surveys and ecological assessment are complete.
  • Retain unburnt refuge patches and movement links between them when applying fire or construction controls.

Sheltering habitat: Detection and handling implications

Northern bettongs are nocturnal, so daytime absence does not demonstrate that a site is unoccupied. Indirect signs can be useful, but diggings cannot reliably distinguish a northern bettong from all other potoroids or bandicoots.

Where clearing cannot be avoided, use a survey design suited to medium sized ground dwelling mammals. The Australian survey guideline identifies daytime searches, searches for diggings and burrows, spotlighting, camera traps, hair sampling and cage trapping as available methods.

  • Schedule active searches and camera trapping to account for nocturnal activity.
  • Do not destroy a suspected burrow or collapse a refuge as part of site preparation.
  • Obtain species confirmation before relocation or disturbance because the supplied documents do not provide a standard northern bettong den relocation method.

Threats: Clearing and fragmentation

The northern bettong has undergone a major range contraction and remains vulnerable because populations are small, isolated and dependent on specialised food resources. Project risks include direct habitat loss, loss of connectivity, altered fire, introduced predators and disturbance of occupied ground refuges.

Clearing eucalypt forest and woodland removes feeding, shelter and breeding habitat. Fragmentation is a particular concern because remaining populations are disjunct, the species has a restricted range, and individuals use movement ranges of about 49 to 72 hectares on average.

Rainforest invasion can reduce the tall and medium sclerophyll habitat required by the species. The recovery plan estimated that up to 70 percent of some tall forest types may have become unsuitable or marginal through rainforest invasion over the previous 200 years.

  • Avoid clearing mature eucalypt habitat at the rainforest edge and retain links between suitable patches.
  • Survey both the clearing footprint and adjacent habitat because individuals can range well beyond the footprint.
  • Protect active diggings, burrows and unburnt refuge patches from machinery, stockpiles and access tracks.

Threats: Fire and food resources

Fire affects the vegetation associations and underground foods on which northern bettongs depend. Long unburnt wet sclerophyll forest can lose food resources as rainforest invades, while extensive or intense fires can remove cover and may increase hunting efficiency by feral cats.

Evidence from the Lamb Range supports patchy, cool burns that leave tall grass, fallen timber and other unburnt refuges. Bettongs did not generally shift home ranges after fire but could concentrate activity in remaining unburnt patches.

  • Use patchy, cool fire regimes where fire is required for habitat maintenance and retain unburnt refuges.
  • Do not burn all available ground cover within a home range at once.
  • Monitor truffles, other food plants, ground cover and predator activity after fire.

Threats: Predators, roads and other project risks

Feral cats and red foxes are recognised predators. The recovery plan also identified feral pigs as potential competitors and recommended assessing overlap in diet and foraging range. Recent work detected only one cat in Lamb Range bettong habitat over three years, but cats on adjacent private land show why monitoring remains necessary.

Dogs accompanying campers have been observed killing bettongs. New roads, construction traffic, lighting, temporary camps and increased access can increase encounters with vehicles, domestic dogs and predators, although the supplied documents do not quantify road mortality for this species.

  • Control domestic dogs in or beside occupied habitat and prevent access by camp dogs.
  • Use cameras to monitor cats and foxes before, during and after construction or fire management.
  • Manage food waste and temporary accommodation to avoid attracting predators or feral pigs.
  • Keep vehicles to defined access routes and use low speed controls wherever nocturnal fauna may cross roads.

Threats: Disease and hydrology

The supplied documents do not identify a confirmed disease threat or a documented hydrology change as a principal driver for northern bettong decline. Hydrology changes should still be assessed where they alter wet sclerophyll vegetation, soil moisture, fungal fruiting or access to food plants, because habitat suitability depends on food abundance and seasonality.

  • Avoid drainage, sediment deposition and altered runoff that could change the ground layer or underground food resources.
  • Use hygiene controls between sites when trapping, handling animals or moving soil and vegetation.
  • Record and report sick or injured animals to the relevant Queensland wildlife authority or wildlife veterinarian.

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat assessment and site stratification

Survey effort must be designed for Northern Bettong habitat, particularly tall and medium eucalypt forest on the western edge of rainforest in the Wet Tropics. The species is nocturnal, difficult to detect at low density and may be present where only diggings or other feeding signs are found.

Before deploying detection methods, map the proposed disturbance area and retained areas by vegetation structure, rainforest invasion, elevation, ground cover and food resources.

Give particular attention to wet and moist eucalypt forest, drier eucalypt woodland, dense canopy, a well-developed woody understorey, sparse ground cover, grass tussocks, fallen timber, boulder outcrops and areas with suitable truffles, Cockatoo Grass and Hypoxis lilies.

Northern Bettongs are recorded mainly between 800 and 1,200 metres above sea level and occur in a narrow, fragmented band between rainforest and open eucalypt woodland.

Use a stratified design where the site is larger than 5 hectares, with survey effort replicated across the relevant habitat types and plant communities.

Typical habitat elevation: 800 to 1,200 metres above sea level

Survey design reference area: 5 hectares or less for the minimum effort described in the supplied guideline extract

Survey methodology: 2. Spotlighting

Conduct nocturnal spotlight searches on foot through suitable eucalypt forest, woodland edges, retained habitat and areas containing feeding signs.

Search slowly and record the route, search time, weather, observers, spotlight type and all animal observations.

Give additional attention to the ground around logs, grass tussocks, boulders, burrow entrances and likely foraging areas.

Spotlighting is a supplementary method because Northern Bettongs are nocturnal, cryptic and may remain in burrows or other shelters during the day.

Survey methodology: 3. Cage trapping and mark recapture

Use cage trapping where direct detection is required, particularly in suitable habitat identified during the desktop and field assessment.

Obtain the required animal ethics, scientific and state approvals before trapping, and use trained personnel to inspect traps, process animals and release them.

Place traps to sample each relevant habitat unit and likely movement or foraging area, rather than concentrating all effort in one accessible location.

Historical surveys detected two individuals in 559 trap nights over 102 hectares at Mount Carbine, eight individuals in 378 trap nights over about 350 hectares at Coane Range, and a 1 percent trap rate at Mount Carbine; these figures describe past surveys and are not a substitute for a project-specific effort calculation.

Record trap nights, trap locations, capture identity, sex, age class, body condition, reproductive condition, location and release details.

Historical Mount Carbine survey: 2 individuals in 559 trap nights over 102 hectares

Historical Coane Range survey: 8 individuals in 378 trap nights over about 350 hectares

Survey methodology: 4. Camera trapping

Deploy camera traps in areas with reliable sightings, suitable habitat, suspected population boundaries, feeding signs and likely movement routes.

Use cameras to extend survey coverage into remote or difficult-to-access areas and to detect animals without handling them.

Place cameras near diggings, burrow entrances, logs, grass cover and other features likely to be used during nocturnal foraging or sheltering.

Record camera location, deployment and retrieval dates, operating hours, bait or lure use, habitat unit and independent detection events.

Survey methodology: 5. Diggings, burrows and other signs

Search for conical foraging pits, burrows, tracks, scats and other signs during the day, then target positive sites with direct detection methods.

Northern Bettongs dig for underground fungi, roots, tubers and other food, so record the location, dimensions, substrate, nearby vegetation and any remaining fungi or plant material.

Do not rely on diggings alone where other potoroids or bandicoots occur, because signs can be difficult to distinguish between related species.

Record fungi fruiting bodies where present, as their presence can assist in interpreting bettong or potoroo diggings.

Search for shelter resources including dense understorey, hollow logs, grass hummocks, boulders and rock outcrops.

Survey methodology: 6. Hair sampling and supporting methods

Hair sampling devices may be used as a non-invasive supplementary method where a suitable sample can be collected and an appropriately qualified specialist is available for identification.

The supplied survey guideline identifies Northern Bettong hair as potentially identifiable, but hair sampling should not replace trapping, camera trapping or other direct confirmation where species identification is uncertain.

Consider targeted searches for truffles and other food resources when assessing whether apparently suitable habitat can support the species.

Use consistent spatial recording and retain photographs of signs, habitat features and any diagnostic material.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Prepare a survey design that covers all suitable habitat within the disturbance footprint and relevant retained habitat, and replicate effort across habitat units where the site exceeds 5 hectares.
  • Use a combination of habitat assessment, nocturnal spotlighting, camera trapping, searches for diggings and burrows, and cage trapping where direct confirmation is required.
  • Treat the absence of detections cautiously where habitat is suitable, populations are small or survey access is limited.
  • Record dates, times, effort, weather, observers, coordinates, methods, equipment settings, habitat descriptions, photographs and all positive and negative results.
  • Submit confirmed records and reliable negative survey information to the relevant state wildlife database and provide the records to the project approval authority.
  • Report any suspected Northern Bettong record promptly to the relevant state threatened species authority and project environmental representative.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Treat suitable Northern Bettong habitat as a high-risk constraint before clearing or construction begins. The species has a restricted range, fragmented populations and a strong dependence on particular forest structure and underground food resources.

  • Avoid clearing tall and medium eucalypt forest at the rainforest edge, especially habitat containing truffles, Cockatoo Grass, Hypoxis lilies, dense canopy, sparse ground cover, fallen timber, grass tussocks or boulder cover.
  • Retain continuous habitat between occupied or potentially occupied areas wherever practicable, because remaining populations are small, isolated and vulnerable to local extinction.
  • Keep disturbance away from known population areas and retain the largest practical area of suitable habitat around them.
  • Do not remove fallen timber, grass cover, boulders or other shelter features from retained habitat unless the approved fauna management plan requires their relocation.
  • Avoid activities that promote rainforest invasion into retained eucalypt habitat and avoid unnecessary soil disturbance in areas supporting truffles and other underground food resources.

Before habitat disturbance: Check approvals and plan the works

  • Check whether the proposed action requires referral or approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 because the Northern Bettong is listed as Endangered.
  • Confirm Queensland threatened species requirements, permits, animal ethics approvals and any authority needed for trapping, handling, relocation, vegetation clearing or work in protected areas.
  • Prepare a species-specific fauna management plan before works begin, including survey results, no-go areas, clearing limits, fauna spotter catcher responsibilities, stop-work triggers, release sites and reporting requirements.
  • Stage clearing so that occupied or potentially occupied habitat can be surveyed, managed and monitored before each work area is opened.
  • Schedule high-risk works to avoid periods when fire, food shortage or other project pressures could reduce shelter and foraging resources, and coordinate timing with the approved fire and habitat management program.
  • Include adjacent private land in predator and habitat planning where cats or other introduced predators could enter retained habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: Prepare the site

  • Complete a pre-clearance survey using the methods appropriate to the habitat and record all signs, burrows, feeding areas and shelter features before machinery arrives.
  • Mark approved clearing limits, retained vegetation, no-go areas, burrows, active diggings, logs, boulders, grass refuges and release areas on plans and in the field.
  • Install exclusion fencing only where it will direct animals away from the work area without blocking movement between retained habitat patches.
  • Brief all workers on the species identification, its nocturnal habits, the role of the fauna spotter catcher, speed limits, stop-work procedures and prohibited handling.
  • Keep machinery, vehicles, lighting, spoil, materials and temporary compounds out of retained habitat and planned release areas.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery coordination

Clearing must be controlled, staged and supervised by an authorised fauna spotter catcher. Northern Bettongs may be missed during daytime searches because they are nocturnal, fossorial and capable of sheltering in burrows or dense ground cover.

  • Inspect the work area each day before clearing and confirm that the fauna spotter catcher, supervisor, machinery operator and environmental representative understand the approved clearing limits.
  • Clear progressively towards retained habitat and leave an open escape route where this is consistent with the approved fauna management plan.
  • Use slow, controlled machinery movements and stop the machine immediately when directed by the fauna spotter catcher.
  • Do not allow machinery to enter marked no-go areas, retained habitat, release areas or areas containing active signs unless the approval and fauna management plan specifically allow the activity.
  • Keep lighting, noise, vehicle movements and material storage away from retained habitat as far as practicable.

During habitat disturbance: Handling habitat features

  • Inspect burrows, diggings, logs, grass tussocks, boulders and dense ground cover before they are disturbed.
  • Avoid disturbing active burrows and feeding sites until the fauna spotter catcher has checked them and the environmental representative has confirmed the approved action.
  • Retain fallen timber, grass cover and boulders in place wherever practicable because these features provide shelter and foraging opportunities.
  • If a habitat feature must be moved, relocate it intact to nearby retained habitat that has been assessed as suitable and record its original and final coordinates.
  • Treat hollow-bearing trees as fauna habitat even though the supplied documents do not identify hollows as a specific Northern Bettong requirement, and manage them under the approved general fauna procedure.
  • Do not drain, fill or contaminate wetlands or moist ground that supports eucalypt habitat, truffles or other food resources.

During habitat disturbance: If a Northern Bettong is found

  • Stop work within the immediate area and keep people, vehicles and machinery away from the animal.
  • Allow the fauna spotter catcher to assess whether the animal can leave without intervention and prevent workers from chasing, cornering or feeding it.
  • Only a person authorised under the relevant permit and fauna management plan may capture, handle, examine or relocate the animal.
  • Release an uninjured animal into nearby retained habitat that is suitable, connected to other retained habitat where practicable and outside the work area, unless the approval or wildlife authority directs otherwise.
  • Use a secure, ventilated container and minimise handling time, heat, noise and exposure during any authorised transfer.
  • Take an injured, shocked or orphaned animal to an appropriately qualified wildlife carer or veterinarian under the relevant authority and record the transfer.
  • Do not relocate an animal to an unapproved distant site, captive facility or habitat type that has not been assessed as suitable.

During habitat disturbance: Stop-work triggers and records

  • Stop work if a Northern Bettong is found, if an active burrow or repeated feeding signs are discovered, if clearing exceeds the approved boundary, or if the fauna spotter catcher cannot safely inspect the next work area.
  • Stop work if fire, smoke, machinery or other activity is reducing the unburnt shelter patches needed by animals in retained habitat.
  • Notify the project environmental representative and relevant authority when a listed animal is injured, killed, relocated, trapped, found outside the approved area or detected in an area not covered by the fauna management plan.
  • Record the date, time, coordinates, personnel, work activity, animal condition, photographs, identification method, action taken, release location and authority notifications.
  • Retain daily clearing logs, fauna observations, habitat feature registers, incident reports and photographs with the project environmental records.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance work must confirm that no animals or occupied habitat features were missed and that retained habitat remains usable. Monitoring should focus on the species' known food resources, shelter features, predators and fire condition.

  • Inspect the cleared area and its edges for fresh diggings, burrows, tracks, carcasses, injured animals and animals confined by fencing or construction barriers.
  • Check retained logs, boulders, grass patches, burrows and dense understorey for disturbance, compaction, sediment, weeds or accidental removal.
  • Repeat camera trapping, spotlighting or other approved detection methods where a pre-clearance survey identified suitable habitat, signs or a possible animal within the work area.
  • Remove temporary fencing, lighting, materials and access tracks that are no longer required, unless they form part of an approved wildlife exclusion or protection measure.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and control maintenance

  • Monitor retained and rehabilitated habitat for Northern Bettong use, feeding signs, body condition where animals are captured under approval, and changes in the extent of suitable forest.
  • Continue predator surveillance, particularly for feral cats and red foxes, and implement the approved control response if detections increase.
  • Maintain fencing, access controls, sediment controls and no-go markers until the environmental representative confirms that the site is stable.
  • Monitor fire effects and retain unburnt patches of tall grass and fallen timber within suitable habitat.
  • Use the monitoring results to revise construction controls, fire management, predator control and rehabilitation actions.

After habitat disturbance: Reporting and offsets

  • Submit final fauna and threatened species records to the relevant state wildlife database and approval authority.
  • Report clearing areas, retained habitat, relocated animals, injuries, deaths, incidents, survey effort and monitoring results against the approval conditions and fauna management plan.
  • Apply any approved offset, habitat protection, restoration or contribution requirement where residual impacts cannot be avoided or minimised.
  • Keep evidence that the project met its approval conditions, including maps, photographs, survey data, incident reports and rehabilitation records.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore habitat structure and food resources

Rehabilitation should recreate the structure and food resources of Northern Bettong habitat rather than only replacing canopy cover. The target is connected eucalypt habitat with suitable ground cover, shelter, underground food resources and an appropriate fire regime.

  • Re-establish locally appropriate tall or medium eucalypt vegetation on the western edge of rainforest or in comparable moist to dry eucalypt habitat, using the reference vegetation community for the site.
  • Use locally suitable tree and understorey species associated with Northern Bettong habitat, including Eucalyptus grandis, Eucalyptus resinifera, Syncarpia glomulifera, Corymbia citriodora and Eucalyptus platyphylla where those communities naturally occur at the site.
  • Restore a dense canopy, a well-developed woody understorey and a sparse ground layer where these features match the local Northern Bettong habitat type.
  • Protect or re-establish Cockatoo Grass, Alloteropsis semialata, Hypoxis lilies and ectomycorrhizal host vegetation that supports truffle production.
  • Avoid planting rainforest species into retained or rehabilitated eucalypt habitat where rainforest invasion would reduce habitat suitability.

Rehabilitation actions: Reinstate shelter and manage fire

  • Retain or reinstate fallen timber, grass tussocks, boulders and other ground features that provide shelter and foraging cover.
  • Use cool, patchy, early season burns only where fire is approved as part of the site management program and where the burn leaves multiple unburnt patches within the habitat.
  • Avoid extensive or intense burns that remove tall grass, fallen timber and other cover across an entire home range.
  • Plan fire mosaics with land managers and Indigenous fire practitioners where appropriate, and monitor the response of bettong habitat, truffles, vegetation and predator activity.
  • Do not use fire as a substitute for weed control, rainforest invasion management or protection of retained habitat.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitor rehabilitation success

  • Monitor plant survival, canopy and understorey development, ground cover, fallen timber, boulder cover, rainforest invasion, weeds and the condition of retained habitat.
  • Monitor truffle abundance, diversity and seasonal availability where rehabilitation is intended to support Northern Bettong persistence.
  • Use camera traps, spotlighting, searches for diggings and approved trapping to measure Northern Bettong use of restored habitat.
  • Track feral cat and red fox activity and respond before predator numbers become established in or near retained habitat.
  • Set success measures that include stable or increasing use by Northern Bettongs, maintenance of unburnt shelter patches, suitable food resources across seasons and no new loss of connected habitat.
  • Submit rehabilitation monitoring results and confirmed species records to the relevant state wildlife database and approval authority.

Sources