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Proserpine Rock Wallaby (Petrogale persephone)

The Proserpine rock wallaby is an endangered macropod restricted to rocky outcrops, rock piles and dry vine forest in the Whitsunday region of Queensland, with introduced animals on Hayman Island. Clearing, fragmentation, road construction, traffic, predators, disease, weeds and toxic plants can remove shelter and feeding areas or isolate colonies on development sites.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Endangered.

Breeding season

Breeding and young are possible in every month, so there is no reliable low-risk clearing season. Movement to forest edges and grassy feeding areas is more likely during dry periods.

Month values are Jan to Dec. No peak breeding or dependent-young months are established in the supplied documents.

  • Breeding: Breeding occurs throughout the year. Females can mate again soon after giving birth, with embryonic diapause during lactation.
  • Young: Young remain in the pouch for approximately 203 to 215 days and are fully weaned 105 to 139 days after leaving the pouch, so dependent young may occur in every month.
  • Movement to feeding edges: During dry periods, wallabies move towards vine forest edges to feed on grasses. The supplied documents do not define fixed calendar months for the dry period.
  • Night activity: Activity is mainly nocturnal, with some daytime activity and sunning in cool weather. Construction lighting and night traffic can therefore affect animals throughout the year.
  • Highest clearing risk: Clearing or disturbance can harm adults, pouch young and young at foot in every month because breeding is year round and young remain dependent for approximately 308 to 354 days from birth.

Identification

Identification should combine the animal's appearance with habitat and shelter features. The species can overlap geographically with the unadorned rock wallaby, so photographs, habitat assessment and genetic or hair analysis may be needed where identity is uncertain.

The Proserpine rock wallaby is a relatively large rock wallaby with brown to dark grey fur, a light cream underside and black feet. It has a dark tail, often with a white tip, rufous patches near the base of the tail and ears, and no bold facial pattern. The hind feet have fleshy pads and short, stout, hooked nails suited to climbing on rocks.

Head and body length: 520 to 640 mm

Average weight: 5.2 kg for females and 7.2 kg for males

Reported weight range: 3.6 to 9.6 kg

Identification: Separating similar rock wallabies

The unadorned rock wallaby occurs near the Proserpine rock wallaby's range, but it is associated with rocky habitat in open forest rather than deciduous vine forest. Proserpine rock wallabies are larger, usually brown, lack bold facial markings and commonly have rufous patches at the tail base and ears, with a white tail tip in many individuals.

The two species have not been recorded together at known sites in the supplied sources. Hybridisation occurs within Petrogale, so species identity should not be based on a single visual feature where a formal record is required.

  • Use habitat, body size, colour pattern and photographs together when making a field identification.
  • Use hair or tissue genetic analysis, or appropriately permitted cage trapping, if visual identification is not sufficient.

Identification: Field signs and survey indications

Daytime searches should inspect boulder piles, rock ledges, caves, rocky creeks and shelter entrances for tracks, scats and rocks worn smooth by repeated resting. The species is most likely to be seen near shelter sites during the day or becoming active at dusk, rather than moving far from its refuge.

Baited camera traps can help confirm presence and identity, particularly near refuge exits, known shelter sites and water sources. The supplied sources do not provide a reliable species-specific call, nest, slough or eyeshine character for field identification.

  • Search all suitable rocky habitat, including ledges and holes, rather than only the largest visible rock piles.
  • Use experienced personnel and at least two investigators where steep or unstable rocky terrain creates a safety risk.
  • Avoid helicopter detection surveys for this species because vine thickets reduce their usefulness and disturbance may injure animals.

Distribution: State and regional range

The species has one of the smallest distributions of any Australian rock wallaby. Its natural range is confined to coastal Queensland around Proserpine, Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday region, with an introduced population on Hayman Island.

In Australia, the species is known only from Queensland. Records are concentrated around the Conway Range, Conway National Park and Conway State Forest, Airlie Beach, Gloucester Island National Park, Dryander National Park and Dryander State Forest, Proserpine State Forest, the Clarke Range, Mount Julian, Mount Lucas and areas around Proserpine Dam.

The supplied documents describe the range geographically but do not assign it to a named IBRA bioregion. For project screening, treat rocky dry vine forest and associated open forest in the Whitsunday coastal ranges as potential habitat, rather than relying only on mapped records.

Australian state: Queensland only

Known locations: Twenty-four locations were positively identified during surveys from 1989 to 2002; the survey guidelines refer to 26 sites in the Whitsunday region.

Mapped essential habitat: Approximately 14,000 ha in the recovery plan mapping.

Distribution: Strongholds and subpopulations

Natural colonies are scattered and may form metapopulations where continuous habitat connects separate rock piles. The Proserpine Dam and Clarke Range colony was identified as potentially one of the largest and most viable colonies in the region.

An introduced population was established on Hayman Island. Twenty-six animals were initially released in 1998, and the population had more than doubled by the time of the recovery plan's 2006 report. The island population was intended to provide a possible source for future translocations.

Typical colony size: Colonies of approximately 15 to 30 animals inhabit larger rock piles.

Hayman Island release: Twenty-six animals were initially released in 1998.

Population trend: The recovery plan reports that the Hayman Island population more than doubled after release; a current national population estimate and overall trend are not provided.

  • Treat connected rock piles, rocky creeks and intervening dry vine forest as one functional unit where wallabies can move between colonies.
  • Check private and leasehold land as well as protected areas, because approximately 40 to 50 percent of mapped habitat was estimated to occur on freehold and leasehold land.

Habitat

Proserpine rock wallabies require rocky shelter within or beside dry vine forest. Habitat assessment must include the rock features and the vegetation linking those features to feeding areas.

On the mainland, preferred habitat is rocky outcrops, rock piles and cliffs within sloping microphyll or notophyll semi-deciduous dry vine forest. The preferred setting is often a narrow band between wet tropical forest and open forest or woodland, especially on foothills.

The species has not been recorded in wet tropical rainforest on the mainland. At higher elevations, it also uses rocky outcrops, rock piles and rocky creeks within Acacia open forest.

Key vegetation: Microphyll or notophyll semi-deciduous dry vine forest and dry vine scrub.

Other habitat: Beach scrub on Gloucester Island and Acacia open forest at higher elevations.

Shelter boulder size: Favourable locations contain boulders larger than 0.6 m in diameter.

Daytime activity elevation: Occasional daytime activity has been reported above 140 m.

  • Map all boulder piles, cliff lines, rock ledges, caves and rocky creeks within or near dry vine forest.
  • Retain continuous vegetation between shelter sites and nearby grass or woodland feeding areas.
  • Include habitat on private land, road reserves, forest edges and development interfaces in the assessment.

Habitat: Structural requirements

Large rock piles provide refuge from predators and reduce exposure to high temperatures and humidity during summer. Rocky watercourses can provide feeding areas during dry periods and safer movement routes between shelter and feeding habitat.

On Gloucester Island, rock piles and outcrops are covered by dry vine scrub and are usually associated with beach scrub. The habitat can include low vine thickets over volcanic outcrops, as documented for the Hayman Island introduction site.

  • Do not clear, blast, bury or isolate rock piles while retaining only the surrounding vegetation.
  • Protect rocky creek lines and the vegetated links between refuge sites and forest edges.
  • Assess proposed roads, drains, retaining walls and quarrying against their potential to remove or sever movement routes.

Foraging habitat: Diet and feeding sites

The species is an opportunistic herbivore that feeds close to rocky refuges. Foraging habitat commonly occurs at forest edges, in adjoining open forest or woodland, and along rocky watercourses.

The diet includes grasses, shrubs, forbs, leaves, flowers, seeds, vines and other readily accessible plant material. Ground-layer plants provide approximately 60 percent of the diet in the information summarised by the supplied sources.

Grass made up approximately 54 percent of the diet in the wet season and 52 percent in the dry season in one study. Trees made up 34 percent in the wet season and 32 percent in the dry season. Fungi made up 1 percent in both seasons, while forbs made up less than 1 percent.

During dry periods on the mainland, wallabies move towards the edge of vine forest to feed on grasses. On Gloucester Island, beach scrub is used for feeding and animals browse plants including young Pandanus brookei.

Diet: Herbivorous and opportunistic.

Ground plant contribution: Approximately 60 percent of the diet in the cited summary.

Home range estimate: Approximately 13.6 ha for males and 12.4 ha for females in the dry season; 20.1 ha for males and 9.7 ha for females in the wet season.

Earlier isolated-hill estimate: Approximately 30 ha.

  • Retain grassy forest edges and adjoining open woodland within the movement area of each rock refuge.
  • Check proposed clearing for introduced toxic plants because opportunistic feeding can expose wallabies to toxic species such as pink periwinkle.
  • Avoid assuming that apparently modified grassed areas are unused if they adjoin rocky refuge habitat.

Foraging habitat: Movement while feeding

Individuals remain near rock shelters while foraging and move between colonies where continuous habitat connects the shelter sites. Rocky watercourses can provide safer access to feeding areas, particularly during dry periods.

  • Survey both the refuge and the adjoining feeding area, not just the rock pile.
  • Maintain vegetated links across road corridors and development edges wherever they connect shelters with forest-edge feeding habitat.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding can occur throughout the year. Females need secure rocky refuges close to feeding areas because pouch young and recently emerged young remain dependent for many months.

The species has embryonic diapause and post-partum oestrus. A female can mate again soon after giving birth, while the new embryo remains paused as a blastocyst during lactation. The young remains in the pouch for approximately 203 to 215 days and is fully weaned 105 to 139 days after leaving the pouch.

Breeding season: Throughout the year.

Litter size: One young.

Gestation: 30 to 34 days before birth.

Pouch period: 203 to 215 days.

Weaning: 105 to 139 days after leaving the pouch, or approximately 308 to 354 days from birth.

Female maturity: 20.5 to 25.1 months.

Male maturity: 24.8 to 25.2 months.

Wild lifespan: Up to approximately 10 years.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

The supplied sources do not identify a separate nest or breeding den. Breeding habitat is therefore the same connected refuge and feeding system used by adults, with large rock piles providing daytime shelter and protection for females and young.

Because breeding is possible in every month, clearing near occupied rock piles can affect breeding animals or dependent young at any time of year.

  • Treat occupied rock piles, shelter entrances, nearby forest and feeding edges as breeding habitat unless a qualified assessment demonstrates otherwise.
  • Plan pre-clearing surveys and fauna handling around the possibility of pouch young, young at foot and females returning to the same refuge.

Sheltering habitat: Rock refuges

Rock piles, outcrops, cliffs, ledges, caves and rocky creek features are the main shelter resources. These features can support several animals and can remain important even when vegetation around them appears disturbed.

Large rock piles protect wallabies from predators and reduce heat and humidity exposure during summer. Animals rest in rocky shelters during the day and generally do not move far from them while foraging.

Four to eight individuals commonly share a rock pile, although up to 35 animals have been recorded using one pile. The recovery plan describes colonies of approximately 15 to 30 animals in larger rock piles.

Favourable boulder size: Boulders larger than 0.6 m in diameter.

Animals commonly sharing a rock pile: Four to eight individuals.

Maximum recorded group at one rock pile: Up to 35 individuals.

Colony size in larger rock piles: Approximately 15 to 30 animals.

  • Inspect boulder fields, rock ledges, caves, crevices, cliff bases and rocky creek margins for scats, tracks and smooth resting surfaces.
  • Keep machinery, blasting, spoil placement and storage areas away from refuge entrances and the rock structures themselves.
  • Retain vegetation around shelters so that animals can move between refuge sites and feeding areas without crossing cleared ground.

Sheltering habitat: Survey and handling considerations

Daytime searches are suitable for checking shelter resources and signs of activity. Camera traps can be placed near refuge exits, known shelter sites and water sources. Steep rocky terrain requires experienced personnel and appropriate safety procedures.

The species is nocturnal or partly diurnal. Animals may bask in cooler weather, but surveys should not rely on daytime basking observations alone.

  • Use a minimum of two experienced investigators where terrain is steep, unstable or requires climbing.
  • Do not enter or dismantle shelters to search for animals.
  • Use permits and animal care procedures for cage trapping, hair collection or other invasive survey methods.

Threats: Clearing and fragmentation

The main development risk is the loss or separation of rocky refuges from dry vine forest and feeding edges. Roads, domestic animals, disease and introduced plants add risks around urban, tourism, transport and infrastructure projects.

Residential development, tourism, quarrying, grazing and transport corridors can clear habitat and isolate colonies. Habitat loss was identified as the single biggest threat in the recovery literature, followed by road mortality in particular areas.

Colonies depend on continuous habitat for movement and genetic connection. Clearing only part of a rock pile or its adjoining vine forest can remove shelter, feeding access or movement between colonies.

  • Avoid clearing rocky outcrops, rock piles, cliffs, rocky creeks and connecting dry vine forest.
  • Map habitat outside protected areas because approximately 40 to 50 percent of habitat was estimated to occur on freehold and leasehold land.
  • Keep development footprints, quarry faces, stockpiles and access tracks out of known colony and refuge areas.

Threats: Roads and traffic

Road mortality is a recognised threat, especially where wallabies move from rock refuges to grassy feeding areas. Road deaths have been reported around Shute Harbour Road, Mandalay Road, Staniland Drive and Dingo Beach Road.

Trials found road reflectors ineffective in deterring wallabies. Spraying guinea grass and planting shading vegetation reduced movement onto road verges in some treated areas, and turf was planted near Proserpine Dam to encourage feeding away from the road.

  • Identify road crossing points between shelters and feeding areas during habitat and sign surveys.
  • Use site-specific speed reduction, verge management, fencing or alternative crossing measures where supported by the project risk assessment.
  • Do not rely on wildlife reflectors as the sole mitigation measure.

Threats: Predators, disease and introduced plants

Feral dogs and cats can kill wallabies and transmit disease. Toxoplasmosis and hydatidosis are identified threats. Native predators include dingoes, carpet pythons, goannas and large eagles, while eagle attacks were recorded during the Hayman Island introduction.

Introduced toxic plants are a risk because the species feeds opportunistically. Feral goats can compete for food, particularly on islands, and grazing, weeds and inappropriate fire regimes can degrade habitat.

Named diseases: Toxoplasmosis and hydatidosis.

Named introduced predator threats: Feral dogs and cats.

Named toxic plant example: Pink periwinkle, Catharanthus roseus.

  • Control or exclude feral and domestic dogs and cats from occupied habitat in accordance with approved local programmes.
  • Prevent construction activity from creating food, shelter or access conditions that attract feral predators.
  • Replace toxic introduced plants with suitable native plants and control weeds around feeding areas.
  • Apply appropriate fire management, particularly on Hayman Island and in dry vine forest adjoining rock refuges.

Threats: Fire and hydrology

The recovery plan identifies grazing, weeds and fire as processes requiring habitat management, and specifies appropriate fire management for Hayman Island. It also identifies rocky watercourses as feeding and movement features, especially during dry periods.

The supplied documents do not identify a separate hydrology change threat or provide a flow threshold. However, drainage, dam works, creek diversion and erosion controls that alter rocky watercourses may remove feeding areas or movement routes and should be assessed as potential habitat impacts.

  • Protect rocky creek structure, adjacent vegetation and access between creek features and rock refuges.
  • Assess changes to drainage, runoff, creek crossings and watercourse stability wherever works occur near occupied habitat.
  • Avoid high intensity or poorly timed fire that removes dry vine forest cover around refuges.

Survey methodology: 1. Desktop review and habitat search

Survey for Proserpine rock-wallabies should focus on rocky shelter sites and connected feeding habitat in semi-deciduous vine forest, dry vine scrub, beach scrub and adjoining open forest. Use non-invasive methods first, and obtain all required Queensland permits before trapping, collecting samples or handling animals.

Review previous records, essential habitat mapping, aerial imagery, development plans and local habitat information before field work.

Search areas up to 5 hectares using a stratified design that targets suitable habitat. For larger areas, replicate the survey across habitat types and plant communities.

During daylight, inspect rocky outcrops, boulder piles, cliffs, rocky ledges, caves, rocky creeks and shelter entrances in semi-deciduous vine forest or dry vine scrub.

Record boulders, shelter sites, feeding areas, watercourses, connecting vegetation and barriers such as roads or cleared land. Boulders larger than 0.6 metres in diameter may provide shelter.

Use at least two experienced investigators where terrain is steep or difficult, and apply rock-climbing and site-safety procedures where required.

Survey methodology: 2. Searches for signs

Search rocky shelters and adjoining runs during daylight for scats, tracks, worn smooth rock shelters and other signs of activity.

Inspect all suitable rocky habitat, including mid-level ledges, holes, crevices and the exits of known or potential refuges.

Give particular attention to habitat edges where animals may feed on grasses during dry periods, and to rocky watercourses used for feeding and movement.

Collect hair or other samples only where an authorised genetic or hair-identification assessment is required, using an approved sampling and storage protocol. Hair analysis can identify this species.

Treat scats as indicative rather than conclusive where the unadorned rock-wallaby occurs nearby, and obtain expert or genetic confirmation when species identity is uncertain.

Survey methodology: 3. Camera trapping

Use baited infrared camera traps to confirm presence and identity where signs are inconclusive or direct observation is unlikely.

Place cameras at refuge exits, known shelter sites, runs, water sources or other locations with scats. Targeting these features is preferred to relying only on broad camera grids.

Use cameras without damaging vegetation or blocking animal movement, and check them at an interval that avoids prolonged equipment failure or bait spoilage.

Record camera location, deployment and retrieval dates, bait used, habitat features, images and identification confidence.

Survey methodology: 4. Direct observation and trapping

Conduct ground-based observations from below suitable habitat at dawn, dusk or during daylight periods when wallabies may bask, particularly in cooler weather.

Do not rely on helicopter observations to detect Proserpine rock-wallabies. Vine thickets reduce the usefulness of aerial searches, and aircraft may frighten wallabies or cause injury in rugged rock habitat.

If direct observation cannot resolve species identity, consider cage trapping or genetic analysis of hair or tissue only after obtaining the required Queensland and Commonwealth permissions, licences and animal ethics approvals.

Use trapping only under an approved method statement, with trained personnel, welfare checks and a release plan for nearby retained habitat. The supplied guideline does not provide a species-specific trap-night total in the available text.

Avoid prolonged disturbance, habitat trampling and unnecessary handling. Survey work in steep rocky terrain should be completed by experienced personnel.

Survey area basis: Recommended minimum effort is based on a subject site up to 5 hectares; larger sites should be replicated within habitat types or plant communities.

Activity pattern: Generally nocturnal, with some daytime activity and basking in cooler weather.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

Complete a desktop review and targeted ground search before concluding that the species is absent.

Survey every suitable rocky shelter and connected habitat patch within the disturbance footprint, and extend the search into retained habitat where animals could move during works.

Use camera traps or other follow-up methods when habitat is suitable but field signs are absent or ambiguous.

Document dates, start and finish times, weather, observers, search tracks, effort, habitat features, signs, images, samples, permits and the basis for any negative finding.

Submit confirmed records, including reliable negative or injured-animal records where requested, to the relevant Queensland wildlife database and provide records to the project approval authority.

Report records of a nationally listed species through the project’s EPBC compliance and approval reporting process where required.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise

Treat rocky shelter sites, adjoining dry vine forest and the vegetation linking colonies as habitat for the species. Avoid removing these features wherever practicable, because colonies depend on refuge sites and connected habitat for movement and recovery after local declines.

  • Redesign the footprint to retain rocky outcrops, boulder piles, cliffs, caves, ledges, rocky creeks and the surrounding semi-deciduous vine forest.
  • Retain feeding areas at the forest edge and maintain vegetated links between shelter sites, feeding areas and rocky watercourses.
  • Avoid clearing connected habitat between colonies, especially where the works would isolate a refuge site or create a new road or cleared barrier.
  • Keep machinery, spoil, laydown areas, lighting and access tracks outside retained rocky habitat and movement routes.
  • Control weeds and prevent the introduction of toxic ornamental or garden plants into retained or restored habitat.
  • Use site-specific exclusion distances and buffers based on the mapped refuge, feeding and movement features, terrain and approval conditions. The supplied documents do not prescribe a universal buffer distance.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and planning

Conservation listing: EPBC Act Endangered; Queensland Endangered.

  • Check whether the 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 Queensland permits and approvals for surveys, trapping, genetic sampling, handling, relocation and clearing of protected habitat.
  • Confirm state essential habitat, protected-area, vegetation-clearing and local government requirements before finalising the footprint.
  • Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies known and potential shelter sites, survey results, exclusion areas, fauna spotter catcher responsibilities, stop-work triggers, release sites and reporting requirements.
  • Stage clearing so that retained habitat and movement routes remain available until the relevant disturbance area has been checked and fauna management controls are in place.

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

  • Complete a pre-clearance survey using the targeted methods in the survey methodology, including a daylight inspection of rocky shelters and signs.
  • Mark all retained rocky outcrops, boulder piles, shelter entrances, rocky creeks, feeding areas, connecting vegetation and no-go zones before machinery enters the site.
  • Install exclusion fencing where it can protect retained habitat and guide animals away from machinery without blocking access to retained shelters or movement routes.
  • Brief operators on the species’ appearance, shelter habitat, likely movement routes, stop-work triggers and the spotter catcher’s authority to pause works.
  • Plan a safe release area in nearby retained habitat before any authorised capture or relocation. Do not release animals across roads, into isolated habitat or into unsuitable open areas.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls

Clearance must proceed under direct fauna supervision in suitable habitat. The fauna spotter catcher should control the sequence of inspection, staged removal and machinery movement, with work stopping whenever an animal or an unexpected shelter feature is detected.

  • Inspect the work area, exclusion fencing, access routes and retained habitat at the start of each day and after any interruption or change in the work footprint.
  • Keep machinery outside marked no-go areas and use staged clearing so the spotter catcher can inspect each section before removal.
  • Clear from the disturbed edge towards retained habitat only where this directs animals away from machinery and towards safe retained shelter; do not drive animals into roads, open work areas or isolated habitat.
  • Keep noise, lighting, vehicle speed, dust, vibration and unnecessary pedestrian movement as low as practicable near rocky refuges.
  • Maintain communication between the fauna spotter catcher, supervisor and machine operators, and stop machinery immediately when directed by the spotter catcher.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat feature handling

  • Do not move or break rocks, boulders, ledges, caves or shelter piles until the spotter catcher has inspected them and confirmed that no animal is present.
  • Inspect the underside, edges and exits of rock piles and crevices from a safe position before disturbance.
  • Retain rocky creeks and watercourses where practicable, and keep temporary crossings and sediment controls from blocking movement between refuge and feeding areas.
  • Retain logs, ground cover and native plants around rocky shelters unless their removal is authorised and assessed by the fauna spotter catcher.
  • Do not use hollow-bearing tree, nest-box or wetland procedures as a substitute for inspection of the rocky shelters and vine forest features used by this species.

During habitat disturbance: Animal encounters and handling

  • Stop work and establish a quiet exclusion area if a Proserpine rock-wallaby is seen, trapped, injured or found sheltering in the work zone.
  • Allow an uninjured animal to move into nearby retained suitable habitat where this can occur safely without handling.
  • Capture, handle or relocate an animal only by an appropriately authorised and trained person, under the relevant permit and fauna management plan.
  • Use a secure, ventilated container and minimise restraint, heat exposure, noise and transport time if handling is authorised.
  • Relocate an uninjured animal only to nearby retained habitat that contains rocky shelter, suitable vegetation and safe access, and only in accordance with the approved release plan.
  • Take an injured, sick or orphaned animal to an appropriately experienced wildlife veterinarian or licensed wildlife carer, and record the transfer.
  • Do not attempt to treat an animal, separate a female from a pouch young or release an animal without the required authority and expert direction.

During habitat disturbance: Stop-work triggers and records

  • Stop work if an animal is found, an active or potentially occupied shelter is exposed, exclusion fencing fails, the approved footprint changes or the fauna spotter catcher cannot safely inspect the next section.
  • Stop work if clearing isolates a refuge, blocks a movement route, damages retained habitat or creates a risk of road mortality or predator access.
  • Record the date, time, location, habitat feature, animal condition, photographs, identification method, action taken, release or treatment details, personnel and permit number.
  • Notify the site supervisor and the relevant environmental officer of every encounter, injury, mortality, relocation and unapproved disturbance.
  • Escalate any mortality, repeated road movement, disease sign or unexpected colony location under the project’s approval and incident-reporting requirements.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance work should confirm that no animal remains in the disturbed area, that retained refuges remain usable and that construction controls do not sever movement between shelter and feeding habitat.

  • Inspect the cleared area, rock piles, shelter entrances, retained vegetation edges and access routes after each staged clearance and before the area is handed to construction crews.
  • Check for live wallabies, tracks, scats, fresh disturbance, injured animals and newly exposed shelter sites.
  • Remove temporary hazards such as open trenches, unsecured pipes, loose netting and uncovered pits, or fence them so animals cannot enter.
  • Confirm that exclusion fencing, fauna escape ramps and access controls remain effective for the duration of construction.
  • Update the habitat map with retained refuges, damaged features, confirmed records, relocation sites and areas requiring restoration.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

  • Monitor retained shelter sites and connecting habitat with repeat daylight searches, sign searches, camera traps or direct observations where required by the fauna management plan or approval.
  • Increase monitoring after blasting, major vibration, road opening, vegetation removal or other work that may affect rocky refuges or movement routes.
  • Record post-clearance effort and results using the same locations and methods as the pre-clearance survey where comparison is needed.
  • Report confirmed records, injury, mortality, relocation, habitat damage and any failure of controls to the project environmental officer and approval authorities.
  • Submit relevant species records to the Queensland wildlife database and retain photographs, coordinates and supporting documents in the project environmental record.

After habitat disturbance: Maintain controls and offsets

  • Maintain no-go areas, fencing, speed controls, wildlife signage, road verge management and access restrictions until construction is complete and the site is stable.
  • Keep vehicles and workers out of retained refuge and movement habitat during operation and maintenance activities.
  • Apply any approved offset or compensatory habitat action to habitat that contains rocky refuges and connected dry vine forest, rather than treating cleared ground alone as equivalent habitat.
  • Manage offset and retained areas under the approval conditions, including weed, feral predator, fire and access controls where specified.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore shelter and vegetation

Rehabilitation should recreate the linked shelter, feeding and movement features used by Proserpine rock-wallabies. The recovery plan supports habitat mapping, restoration, weed and fire management, predator control and community participation, but does not provide a universal planting list or numerical rehabilitation target.

  • Reinstate or protect large rock piles, boulders, rocky ledges and rocky creek features where these were temporarily disturbed and can be rebuilt safely.
  • Use locally appropriate native plants from the surrounding semi-deciduous microphyll or notophyll dry vine forest, dry vine scrub, beach scrub and adjoining open forest communities.
  • Restore a vegetated connection between rocky refuges, forest edges, feeding areas and rocky watercourses.
  • Revegetate forest edges and dry-season feeding areas with native ground and shrub cover, while keeping sight lines and access around existing refuges consistent with the surrounding habitat.
  • Do not plant introduced toxic species or species that are not appropriate to the local plant community.

Rehabilitation actions: Manage threats

  • Control weeds and prevent weed invasion around restored refuge sites, feeding areas and movement corridors.
  • Implement approved feral cat and dog controls, and maintain dog registration and responsible-pet measures near occupied habitat.
  • Manage fire so that refuge sites, vine forest, connecting vegetation and feeding areas are not exposed to inappropriate fire intensity, frequency or season.
  • Manage roads and construction access to reduce wallaby movement onto carriageways, using site-specific verge vegetation, barriers, speed controls or other measures supported by monitoring.
  • Keep domestic stock and feral goats away from restored habitat where grazing would reduce food or vegetation cover.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitor success

Known refuge use: Larger rock piles may support colonies of 15 to 30 wallabies, and connected habitat allows movement between colonies.

Home-range context: A preliminary mainland study indicated a home range of about 30 hectares, while another source reports seasonal estimates of 13.6 to 20.1 hectares for males and 9.7 to 12.4 hectares for females.

  • Inspect restored rock piles, rocky creeks, vegetation links and forest edges after construction and after major wet or dry seasons.
  • Use repeat searches for scats, tracks and worn shelters, camera traps at refuge exits and direct observations at dawn or dusk to assess use.
  • Compare monitoring results with pre-disturbance records and document whether animals are using restored shelters, feeding areas and movement routes.
  • Record weed cover, native plant establishment, erosion, fire impacts, predator activity, road mortality and damage to rock features.
  • Maintain monitoring until the approval’s completion criteria are met, and repair failed plantings, eroded areas, blocked connections or damaged refuge features.

Sources