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Rufous Scrubbird (Atrichornis rufescens)

The rufous scrub-bird is a small, cryptic, ground-dwelling bird endemic to high-elevation wet forests in New South Wales and Queensland. It is listed as Endangered under the EPBC Act and Vulnerable in both states, so clearing, access tracks, fire, weed control and disturbance in dense wet forest require careful assessment, particularly where the species is detected by its call rather than seen.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Vulnerable.

New South Wales, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Vulnerable.

Breeding season

The species is sedentary and present in suitable habitat throughout the year. Calling and breeding activity peak in spring and early summer, but nests and dependent young can occur outside the peak period.

Month values are January to December. A value of 0 means not typical, 1 means occurs, and 2 means peak. The species remains present in suitable habitat outside the breeding peak.

  • Breeding: Breeding may begin in August and is mostly from September to December. It can continue into January and February.
  • Young: Incubation is about 36 to 38 days. Fledglings leave after 3 to 4 weeks and remain fed by the female for at least another 3 weeks, so dependent young may occur from spring into summer.
  • Territorial calling: Calling occurs throughout the day, peaks from mid-September to December, declines in January and February, and is less frequent and more variable from February to August.
  • Dispersal: The species is sedentary, but juveniles are likely to disperse in search of territories, including through habitat unsuitable for breeding. The timing is not specified, so potential movement should be considered year round.
  • Highest clearing risk: Clearing or intensive ground disturbance is most likely to harm the species from August to December because breeding can begin in August, calling and territory defence peak from mid-September to December, and low nests and dependent young may be present. Extend seasonal controls to February where practicable because breeding can continue until then.

Identification

This is a small, dark, shy bird of dense forest understorey. It is usually detected by its loud, penetrating song, movement through ground cover or survey recordings rather than by a clear view.

Adults are mostly dark rufous-brown above, with faint darker barring and a buff belly. The male has a conspicuous blackish triangle on the chin, throat and breast, blackish patches on the upper sides of the belly, and a bold white malar stripe. The female is more buff below, with a smaller dark throat triangle and smaller dark belly patches.

The head has a long, flat forehead and a short wedge-shaped bill, producing a distinctive triangular head profile. The legs are strong, the wings are short and rounded, and the tail is long and rounded.

Length: 17 to 18.5 cm

Wingspan: About 19 cm

Identification: Sex and age differences

Adult males and females differ in plumage. Juveniles are plainer, warmer red-brown above and uniformly light red-brown below, with less obvious barring. Juveniles of both sexes are similar, while immatures become more like the corresponding adult sex.

The bird is usually seen singly, or occasionally in pairs, and moves quickly through dense vegetation in a mouse-like manner. It is more often heard than seen.

  • Do not rely on a brief brown-bird sighting alone. Confirm the record with the call, a diagnostic photograph, a clear description, or repeated observations at the same location.
  • Separate it from the noisy scrub-bird by range first. The noisy scrub-bird occurs in south-west Western Australia, whereas the rufous scrub-bird occurs in north-east New South Wales and south-east Queensland.

Identification: Calls and other field signs

The territorial call is loud, penetrating and diagnostically rich. A male can be heard up to about 150 m in good conditions. The species can mimic other birds, including grey goshawk, Lewin's honeyeater, eastern yellow robin and Australian logrunner.

Territorial calling occurs throughout the day, peaks from mid-September to December, declines in January and February, and is less frequent and more variable from February to August.

The dome-shaped nest is built close to the ground. It is made from dead leaves and grass and lined internally with a cardboard-like pulp of wood and grass. Nests have been recorded at 15 to 19 cm in diameter and have a side entrance a few centimetres wide.

  • Treat repeated loud calls from dense wet understorey as a possible presence record, even when no bird is seen.
  • Avoid entering dense ground cover to search for a nest unless the survey method and authorisation require it, because the nest is low and difficult to detect.

Distribution: States and bioregions

The rufous scrub-bird is endemic to eastern Australia. Its current range is restricted to high-elevation forest in north-east New South Wales and south-east Queensland, mainly east of the Great Dividing Range.

The species occurs in New South Wales and Queensland. It is recorded in the New England Tablelands, NSW North Coast and South East Queensland bioregions.

Both recognised subspecies generally occur above 600 m elevation. The northern subspecies, A. r. rufescens, occurs from the Mistake Range in Queensland through the Border Ranges and Gibraltar Range area. The southern subspecies, A. r. ferrieri, occurs from the Dorrigo Plateau south to Barrington Tops.

  • Northern subspecies: extreme south-east Queensland and far north-east New South Wales, including the Lamington and Border Ranges, Mount Barney, Main Range and Gibraltar Range areas.
  • Southern subspecies: central north-east New South Wales, including Ebor and Dorrigo, the Hastings Range and Barrington Tops.

Distribution: Strongholds and subpopulations

Seven subpopulations are recognised. They are separated by clusters of records more than 15 km apart, while clusters within 15 km linked by continuous high-elevation vegetation are treated as one subpopulation.

Records also occur in state forests and, for Ebor and Dorrigo, on freehold land. Juveniles may move through habitat that is unsuitable for breeding, so areas between known breeding sites should not automatically be treated as unoccupied.

  • Lamington and Border Ranges: Queensland and New South Wales national parks and adjoining NSW nature reserve.
  • Mount Barney and Main Range: Queensland national parks, with Mount Barney also extending into Mount Nothofagus National Park in New South Wales.
  • Gibraltar Range: Gibraltar Range, Washpool and Barool national parks, with records in adjoining state forests.
  • Ebor and Dorrigo: national parks, Baalijin Nature Reserve, state forests and at least one or two private properties with dense vegetation.
  • Hastings Range: Werrikimbe, Cottan-Bimbang, Oxley Wild Rivers, Willi Willi and Carrai reserves and adjoining state conservation areas and state forests.
  • Barrington Tops: mainly Barrington Tops National Park, especially around Gloucester Tops.

Distribution: Population and trend

The species was estimated to have about 2,050 mature individuals in 2020, with an estimated 58 percent decline from drought between 2017 and 2019 followed by the 2019 to 2020 fires. Some post-fire recovery and recolonisation has been recorded, but the supplied assessment states that substantial recovery is unlikely to have occurred.

Its estimated extent of occurrence is 36,531 km². Estimated area of occupancy is 589 km², with a plausible range from 410 to 768 km² after considering fire impacts and possible recovery.

Mature individuals: About 2,050, estimated range 1,850 to 2,690

Recognised subpopulations: 7

Estimated population decline: 58 percent from drought and the 2019 to 2020 fires

Extent of occurrence: 36,531 km²

Estimated area of occupancy: 589 km², with estimates from 410 to 768 km²

Habitat: Forest types and elevation

Rufous scrub-birds need wet, structurally dense forest with a moist microclimate at ground level. Habitat quality depends on the combination of forest type, deep leaf litter and dense understorey rather than canopy cover alone.

The species occurs in subtropical, warm temperate and cool temperate rainforest, wet eucalypt forest and ecotones between these forest types. The northern subspecies is mainly associated with rainforest. The southern subspecies occurs most often in wet eucalypt forest but also uses rainforest.

Current records are mainly from elevations above 600 m east of the Great Dividing Range. The former range included lowland and coastal rainforest, but the species is thought to be extinct below 400 m, and possibly below 600 m, in much of its former range.

  • Assess dense wet forest and rainforest edges, not only mapped rainforest polygons.
  • Include wet eucalypt forest adjoining rainforest when planning searches or impact buffers.
  • Treat high-elevation forest remnants and connected vegetation between records as potential habitat.

Habitat: Required structure

Suitable habitat has very dense ground cover, a moist microclimate and deep leaf litter. Ground cover can include ferns, shrubs, vines, sedges, logs and other woody debris.

Canopy gaps can allow enough light to promote dense ground cover. Recently disturbed or storm-affected areas can be suitable, but suitability changes with time since disturbance, fire severity and rainfall. In rainforest, suitability can decline as succession reduces ground-cover density.

  • Retain deep leaf litter, logs, fallen branches, ferns, sedges, vines and dense shrubs wherever practicable.
  • Avoid creating wide, dry edges through clearing, as the species depends on moist ground conditions.
  • Map and protect unburnt wet forest refuges and dense ground-cover patches within or beside a proposed work area.

Foraging habitat: Diet

The rufous scrub-bird forages on the forest floor in moist leaf litter beneath dense vegetation and debris. It searches by moving quickly through cover and tossing aside leaves with its bill and head.

The diet is mainly invertebrates. Reported prey includes weevils, longhorn beetles, amphipods, snails and snail eggs. The supplied sources do not identify particular food plants.

Drought can dry the leaf litter and reduce invertebrate prey, which can reduce territory occupancy and bird numbers.

  • Inspect moist leaf litter and dense ground cover as the primary foraging habitat.
  • Retain decaying logs, litter and other debris that support invertebrate prey.
  • Do not clear or rake the forest floor around detected birds, calling territories or likely nest sites unless the action has been assessed and approved.

Foraging habitat: Foraging area and method

The bird is predominantly ground dwelling and usually remains within dense cover. Male territories range from 0.5 to 1.7 ha, but this is a territorial measure, not a confirmed exclusive foraging range.

The bird is seldom airborne and is incapable of sustained flight when it does fly. A cleared strip, access track or open work area can therefore interrupt normal movement through cover, even where birds are not directly injured.

  • Survey the full area of dense wet understorey around a detection, rather than checking only the point where a call was recorded.
  • Maintain connected ground cover between occupied or potentially occupied patches where the project design allows.
  • Use acoustic detections with habitat inspection because foraging birds are difficult to see.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding occurs in dense, moist ground cover where a female can build a low dome-shaped nest. Breeding territories are held by males and can remain occupied for many years.

Males defend permanent territories and females undertake nest building, incubation and feeding of chicks. Breeding generally occurs once each year. The nest is close to the ground and made from dead leaves and grass, with an inner lining of cardboard-like wood pulp.

Breeding season: Mostly September to December, but may extend from August to February

Clutch size: 2 eggs

Incubation: About 36 to 38 days

Fledging: Young leave the nest 3 to 4 weeks after hatching

Post-fledging dependence: The female feeds fledglings for at least another 3 weeks

Age at first breeding: About 1.5 years

Maximum longevity: 8 years

Generation length: 3.2 years, range 2.4 to 4.0 years

  • Search for breeding activity by combining call surveys with careful inspection of dense ground cover.
  • Schedule vegetation removal outside the main breeding period where practicable, while recognising that breeding can start in August and continue to February.
  • Keep spotter and machinery movement out of dense understorey around active territories and suspected nests.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat

The nest is built within dense ground cover, often among leaves, grass and other low vegetation. The recorded nest diameter is 15 to 19 cm, with a side entrance a few centimetres wide.

Breeding males occupy 0.5 to 1.7 ha territories. Territories are well spaced, with a maximum of 4 to 6 territories per square kilometre. Some territories have remained occupied for decades through successive occupancy.

  • Protect dense ground cover and leaf litter within and around occupied singing territories.
  • Treat low domed structures made from leaves and grass as possible nests until checked by an appropriately qualified person.
  • Avoid slashing, mowing, burning, grading and repeated foot traffic through likely nesting cover during August to February.

Sheltering habitat: Cover used by the species

The species does not use tree hollows, burrows or roost caves. It shelters and moves within dense vegetation and litter close to the ground, where moisture and cover reduce exposure.

Rufous scrub-birds use dense ground cover in rainforest, wet eucalypt forest and their ecotones. Important cover includes ferns, shrubs, vines, sedges, deep leaf litter, logs and other debris.

The bird is cryptic, predominantly terrestrial and a poor sustained flier. It can scurry through dense vegetation but is exposed when forced into open areas.

  • Retain continuous low vegetation and deep litter beneath and beside retained trees.
  • Retain fallen logs, woody debris and dense fern, sedge, shrub and vine cover unless their removal is specifically assessed.
  • Protect unburnt rainforest and wet forest patches as refuges during and after fire.

Sheltering habitat: Nests and refuge features

The dome-shaped nest is close to the ground and measures about 15 to 19 cm across. It is made from dead leaves and grass and lined with a cardboard-like wood pulp, with a side entrance a few centimetres wide.

No species-specific use of hollows, dens, burrows, caves or tree roosts is described in the supplied sources. Field protection should therefore focus on the ground layer and moist understorey.

  • Do not assume that clearing beneath retained canopy avoids the impact. The ground layer is the main sheltering and breeding structure.
  • Inspect leaf litter and low vegetation before hand clearing, slashing or machinery access.
  • Mark and protect any confirmed nest and the surrounding dense cover in accordance with the approved fauna management plan.

Threats: Fire and drought

The main threats are high-frequency and high-severity fire, drought and their combined effects. Clearing, fragmentation, forestry disturbance and feral cats add pressure because the species has specialised ground habitat, low dispersal ability and low reproductive output.

Drought from 2017 to 2019 was estimated to cause a 29 percent population decline across the range. The 2019 to 2020 fires were inferred to cause a further approximate 41 percent decline, producing an overall estimated decline of 58 percent.

High-severity fire can remove ground cover and kill birds. Repeated fire can prevent recovery and leave previously suitable plateaux unoccupied. In some areas, habitat can take at least 6 to 7 years to regain suitability, although some sites were reoccupied 2 to 3 years after the 2019 to 2020 fires following three wet years.

  • Avoid prescribed burning or construction-related ignition in occupied or potential habitat unless it is part of an approved, species-informed fire plan.
  • Protect unburnt refuges from subsequent fire and prevent fire-control works from unnecessarily removing dense wet understorey.
  • Assess cumulative fire history, not just the most recent burn.

Threats: Clearing, fragmentation and project disturbance

Clearing removes the dense ground cover, leaf litter and moist microclimate required for feeding, shelter and nesting. Tracks, hardstands and linear infrastructure can fragment habitat and create dry edges or open gaps that are difficult for this poor flier to cross.

Habitat occurs on national park, state forest, nature reserve, freehold and other land tenures. State forest activities may cause habitat loss and disturbance where the species occurs.

  • Before clearing, check records and undertake targeted acoustic and habitat surveys in wet forest above 600 m, including adjacent wet eucalypt forest and rainforest ecotones.
  • Avoid clearing dense understorey, logs and litter even where overstorey trees are retained.
  • Keep temporary compounds, stockpiles, access tracks, drainage works and lighting out of dense wet forest and known territories where practicable.
  • Plan works to retain links between occupied patches, because juveniles may disperse through habitat that is unsuitable for breeding and recolonisation can be slow.

Threats: Predators, roads and hydrology

Predation by feral cats is likely because the species is ground dwelling, cryptic and associated with dense low cover. Roads and construction access can increase direct disturbance, edge exposure and access for predators, although a species-specific road mortality rate is not provided in the supplied sources.

The supplied documents do not identify a specific hydrological alteration threshold for the species. Drainage, dewatering, sediment movement or altered runoff can nevertheless reduce the moist microclimate and leaf-litter condition on which its habitat and prey depend.

  • Apply feral cat and other introduced-predator controls where they are part of an approved recovery or project plan.
  • Keep construction traffic, night works, lighting and informal access away from dense wet understorey and active territories where practicable.
  • Prevent sediment, dirty water and concentrated runoff from entering retained wet forest or drying the ground layer.
  • Record and report detections, nest locations, fire damage and changes in ground-cover condition during and after works.

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat assessment and daytime searches

The rufous scrub-bird is a shy, cryptic, ground-dwelling bird that is more often heard than seen. Survey work should focus on its dense, moist ground habitat, loud territorial calls and the breeding period from August to February, especially September to December.

Map all areas of dense ground cover, deep leaf litter and moist microclimate within subtropical, warm temperate or cool temperate rainforest, wet eucalypt forest and their ecotones.

Search slowly through suitable habitat during daylight, looking for birds moving through dense vegetation, nests, tracks and feeding disturbance in leaf litter.

Record canopy condition, ferns, shrubs, vines, sedges, logs, other ground debris, leaf-litter depth, drainage and recent fire history.

Give particular attention to habitat above 600 metres elevation, while recognising that juveniles may move through lower-elevation habitat that is unsuitable for breeding.

Adult size: About 17 cm long, with a wingspan of about 19 cm.

Typical habitat: Dense ground cover, deep leaf litter and a moist microclimate in high-elevation rainforest and wet eucalypt forest.

Survey methodology: 2. Call and acoustic surveys

Conduct quiet listening surveys in suitable habitat, particularly during the breeding period when territorial calling is most frequent.

Use acoustic sensors where access is difficult or where repeated coverage is needed, and retain the original recordings for verification by a suitably experienced ornithologist.

Treat a strong, penetrating territorial call as a useful detection, but confirm the species because the bird can mimic other birds and may be heard up to 150 metres away in good conditions.

Record the date, start and finish time, weather, observer position, call direction, estimated distance, call type and whether the location is within proposed disturbance.

Call detection distance: A territorial male may be heard up to 150 metres away in good conditions.

Territorial calling: It occurs throughout the day, peaks from mid-September to December, declines in January and February, and is less frequent and variable from February to August.

  • Prioritise September to December for calling surveys, while allowing for breeding activity from August to February.
  • Keep observers quiet and avoid moving through dense ground cover during listening periods.
  • Do not rely on the absence of a call as evidence that the species is absent, because the bird is cryptic and calling varies outside the peak period.

Survey methodology: 3. Targeted field surveys and monitoring

Use repeated field surveys across all mapped habitat patches, including retained habitat adjacent to the work area and likely movement routes between patches.

Use camera monitoring, acoustic sensors and field surveys together where the project may affect occupied or potentially occupied habitat.

Where pre-fire or historical survey locations are available, include them in the survey design so that current results can be compared with earlier records.

Survey both burnt and unburnt habitat where relevant, because the species may reoccupy recovering burnt habitat but usually depends on nearby surviving birds and refugia.

Activity period: Sedentary and diurnal.

Territory size: Breeding male territories range from 0.5 to 1.7 hectares, with a maximum of 4 to 6 territories per square kilometre.

Habitat recovery: Burnt habitat may take at least 6 to 7 years to regain suitability, although some areas were reoccupied about 2 to 3 years after the 2019 to 2020 fires.

  • Set the number, duration and spacing of survey visits in the fauna management plan using the relevant state survey guidance and the size and risk of the project area.
  • Do not apply a generic night survey effort to this species, because it is diurnal and the supplied documents do not specify a standard number of nights, hours, transect length or trap nights.
  • Avoid trapping unless a state-approved method and appropriately authorised personnel are available, because the supplied documents identify observation, acoustic sensors and field surveys rather than a standard trapping protocol.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Survey every patch of potential habitat that may be cleared, excavated, accessed or indirectly affected by noise, fire, drainage change or edge effects.
  • Use more than one survey visit where habitat is suitable but no bird is detected, and include the peak calling period where the program allows.
  • Have an experienced ornithologist review uncertain calls, photographs and acoustic files before concluding that the species is absent.
  • Record survey dates, observers, methods, effort, weather, habitat condition, fire history, detection details, coordinates and photographs.
  • Submit confirmed records and negative survey data, where required, to the relevant state wildlife database, such as BioNet in New South Wales or WildNet in Queensland.
  • Retain raw acoustic files, field sheets, spatial data and any verification advice with the project environmental records.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise

Treat dense, moist ground habitat as potential rufous scrub-bird habitat until a suitably designed assessment shows otherwise. The species has low dispersal ability, small territories and seven recognised subpopulations, so avoid removing occupied habitat or isolating retained patches.

Redesign the footprint to retain rainforest, wet eucalypt forest, rainforest ecotones, dense ground cover, deep leaf litter, ferns, shrubs, vines, sedges, logs and other ground debris.

Retain unburnt rainforest and other moist refugia, particularly where they are connected to known records or could support birds after fire.

Keep retained habitat connected to nearby suitable habitat and avoid creating isolated patches separated by cleared ground, roads, firebreaks or frequently burnt areas.

Avoid clearing during the main breeding period from September to December where practicable, and avoid disturbance from August to February if active nests or dependent young are present.

Do not burn, slash or repeatedly disturb retained ground cover as part of site preparation.

Recognised subpopulations: Seven, comprising four northern and three southern subpopulations.

Dispersal and recolonisation: The species has limited dispersal ability, and recolonisation of suitable habitat more than 5 km from rainforest refugia may take decades.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and project planning

Check whether the proposed action is likely to have a significant impact on this EPBC Act Endangered species and obtain advice on referral requirements before works begin.

Confirm the applicable state listing, approval pathway and wildlife handling requirements with the relevant New South Wales or Queensland authority, depending on the project location.

Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies potential habitat, survey results, no-go areas, exclusion zones, clearing limits, weather constraints, stop-work triggers, handling arrangements and reporting responsibilities.

Use a suitably experienced ecologist to review the footprint, indirect impacts, access routes, temporary works and rehabilitation areas before final approval of the work method.

Current supplied listings: EPBC Act Endangered; New South Wales Vulnerable; Queensland Vulnerable.

Key threats: High-frequency and high-severity fire, drought, the interaction of drought and fire, forestry disturbance and likely predation by feral cats.

  • Include noise, vibration, lighting, dust, drainage changes, weed spread, feral predator access and altered fire risk in the impact assessment.
  • Stage clearing so that retained habitat and escape routes remain available until the affected area has been checked and released by the fauna spotter catcher.
  • Identify a nearby retained release area before any animal handling is required.

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

Complete the pre-clearance survey shortly before works and reassess the site after any fire, flood, major vegetation change or long delay before clearing.

Mark no-go habitat, retained vegetation, logs, dense ground-cover patches, known territories, records and approved access routes on the ground and in the site plans.

Install and maintain exclusion fencing where it can prevent machinery, vehicles and workers entering retained habitat without creating a barrier to bird movement.

Brief all operators and the fauna spotter catcher on the species' appearance, loud call, ground-dwelling behaviour, restricted flight ability and stop-work procedure.

Check machinery, laydown areas and access tracks for weed seed and clean them before entering retained habitat.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery interface

The bird is usually on the ground and cannot sustain flight, so clearing methods that rely on escape into nearby vegetation are unsafe. The spotter catcher must control the work face and keep machinery away from retained moist ground habitat.

Hold a daily pre-start briefing covering the approved clearing limits, current exclusion zones, weather, recent detections and the stop-work process.

The fauna spotter catcher must inspect the work area immediately before clearing and remain positioned where the clearing face, machinery and likely escape routes can be seen.

Clear progressively towards retained habitat only where the approved fauna management plan confirms that this is suitable and safe for the animal.

Keep machinery stopped while the spotter catcher investigates dense ground cover, logs, debris or a suspected call within the clearing area.

Use low-speed, controlled clearing and avoid pushing vegetation, logs or soil into retained habitat or drainage lines.

Stop work during heavy rain, smoke, poor visibility or any other condition in which the spotter catcher cannot safely see the clearing face.

  • The operator must stop immediately on the spotter catcher's signal and must not resume until the spotter catcher gives a clear release.
  • Maintain all marked exclusion zones, fencing and access controls throughout the shift.
  • Record the area cleared, machinery used, start and finish times, spotter catcher name and any fauna observations each day.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat features and ground cover

Inspect dense ground cover, deep leaf litter, ferns, sedges, vines, shrubs, logs and other debris before removal because these features provide the bird's feeding and shelter habitat.

Do not disturb retained leaf litter, logs or ground debris outside the approved clearing footprint.

Move any approved salvageable logs and ground habitat features to nearby retained or rehabilitation habitat under the direction of the ecologist, without placing them across access routes or drainage lines.

Treat active nests, eggs, dependent young and birds sheltering in ground cover as stop-work matters and protect the immediate area until the ecologist gives instructions.

Do not assume that hollow-bearing trees, rocks, burrows or wetlands are the main refuge for this species, but manage them under the project's general fauna protocol where they occur.

  • Do not use fire to remove ground cover or debris in or beside potential habitat.
  • Prevent sediment, spoil, concrete washout, chemicals and altered drainage from entering retained moist habitat.
  • Keep domestic animals and project vehicles out of retained habitat and enforce the site's feral predator controls.

During habitat disturbance: Animal found, injured or unable to move

Stop the immediate work and establish a quiet exclusion zone if a rufous scrub-bird is seen or heard within the work area.

Allow the bird to move naturally into nearby retained habitat where it can do so safely, and do not chase it through dense vegetation.

Only an appropriately authorised and experienced fauna handler may capture, examine or transport the bird.

Do not handle the bird unless it is injured, trapped or at immediate risk from the works, and follow the approved state wildlife and animal-welfare procedure.

If injured, place the bird in a secure, dark, ventilated container suitable for short-term transport and arrange prompt assessment by a veterinarian or authorised wildlife carer.

Release a healthy captured bird only into nearby suitable retained habitat identified in the fauna management plan, subject to approval by the ecologist and relevant authority.

Record the location, time, behaviour, condition, photographs if safe, handler, action taken, release location and authority or wildlife carer involved.

  • Do not relocate the bird to an unapproved distant site.
  • Do not feed, water or treat the bird unless directed by a veterinarian or authorised wildlife carer.
  • Do not use call playback, dogs or unauthorised trapping to flush or capture the bird.

During habitat disturbance: Stop-work triggers and escalation

Stop work if the species is detected in the clearing footprint, if an active nest or dependent young is found, or if the spotter catcher cannot confirm that the work area is clear.

Stop work if clearing breaches a marked exclusion zone, damages retained ground habitat, blocks a known movement route or causes uncontrolled sediment, smoke, fire or drainage impacts.

Notify the project environmental officer and ecologist immediately, then obtain advice from the relevant state authority where the approved plan or permit requires it.

Reassess the footprint and controls before restarting, and update the fauna management plan if the detection shows that the original risk assessment was inadequate.

  • Keep the work area stopped until the animal has moved or been lawfully managed and the ecologist has released the area.
  • Enter all stop-work events, near misses, breaches and corrective actions in the project environmental records.
  • Report any unexpected death, injury, nest destruction or unauthorised clearing through the applicable approval pathway.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearing checks should confirm that no animal, nest or retained habitat feature was missed and that the project has not reduced the quality or connectivity of nearby moist ground habitat.

Inspect the cleared area, retained edge and access routes after each clearing stage for birds, nests, injured fauna, damaged ground cover, displaced logs and unplanned entry into retained habitat.

Repeat targeted call, acoustic and field surveys where the clearing removed or disturbed potential habitat, particularly during the September to December calling period.

Check that exclusion fencing, no-go markers, sediment controls and drainage controls remain intact after storms, vehicle movements and construction changes.

Compare the final cleared footprint with the approved plans and retain georeferenced photographs of the completed work.

  • Do not remove fauna controls until the environmental officer confirms that the approved construction stage is complete and the area is stable.
  • Inspect nearby retained habitat for edge drying, weed invasion, dumped material, altered drainage and increased access by cats or other predators.
  • Record all detections and submit confirmed records to the relevant state wildlife database.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

Monitor retained and rehabilitated habitat using the same acoustic, field and camera methods used for the baseline survey where practical.

Use fixed photo points and repeatable listening or sensor locations so that changes in dense ground cover, leaf litter, moisture and occupancy can be compared over time.

Report construction impacts, fauna incidents, habitat loss, rehabilitation progress, monitoring results and any corrective actions to the approval holder and relevant authorities as required.

Review monitoring results with the ecologist and change weed, predator, access or fire controls if habitat condition or detections decline.

Post-fire monitoring context: Some sites were reoccupied about 2 to 3 years after the 2019 to 2020 fires, but burnt habitat can take at least 6 to 7 years to regain suitability.

  • Include survey effort, dates, weather, observers, equipment, detection records, coordinates and limitations in each monitoring report.
  • Distinguish between a confirmed detection, an unconfirmed call and no detection.
  • Do not treat several surveys with no detection as proof of absence in suitable habitat.

After habitat disturbance: Offsets and residual impacts

Assess residual impacts under the EPBC Act approval, state approval and project biodiversity assessment framework after avoidance, minimisation and rehabilitation measures have been applied.

Where an approval requires an offset, ensure it protects and manages suitable high-elevation rainforest or wet eucalypt habitat, dense ground cover, deep leaf litter and moist refugia that are relevant to this species.

Do not count a future rehabilitation area as equivalent to existing occupied habitat unless the approval framework and evidence support that conclusion.

Link any offset or conservation action to a measurable management plan, funding period, monitoring schedule and reporting requirement.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore habitat structure

Rehabilitation should recreate the cool, moist and structurally dense ground layer used by the rufous scrub-bird. Recovery is likely to be slow where fire, drought, weeds, predators or repeated disturbance prevent leaf litter and ground cover from returning.

Protect natural regeneration of subtropical, warm temperate and cool temperate rainforest, wet eucalypt forest and their ecotones rather than replacing them with a simplified planting area.

Use locally appropriate native rainforest and wet-forest species selected by the restoration ecologist for the site's soil, elevation, rainfall and pre-clearing vegetation community.

Re-establish dense ground cover, including ferns, shrubs, vines and sedges, while retaining natural leaf litter, logs and other woody debris.

Replace salvaged logs and suitable ground debris in stable, moist positions that provide cover and feeding habitat, without burying them or creating erosion hazards.

Control weeds that suppress native ground cover and remove construction spoil, waste and compacted soil from rehabilitation areas.

Prevent stock, vehicles and repeated pedestrian access from compacting soil or removing leaf litter.

Habitat features: Very dense ground cover, a moist microclimate and deep leaf litter, including ferns, shrubs, vines, sedges, logs and other debris.

Ground-layer response: In rainforest, habitat suitability can decrease as succession reduces ground-cover density after disturbance.

  • Do not rely on turf, mown grass or a sparse tree planting pattern to replace this species' habitat.
  • Do not use imported mulch or plant material that could introduce weeds, pathogens or unsuitable species.
  • Design drainage so that rehabilitation areas remain moist without creating erosion, ponding or contamination.

Rehabilitation actions: Fire, weeds and predators

Prepare a fire management plan that avoids high-frequency and high-severity fire in occupied, retained and rehabilitating habitat.

Protect unburnt refugia and use site-specific fire advice from the land manager, ecologist and relevant fire authority before any planned burn or firebreak work.

Manage feral cats and other introduced predators around retained and rehabilitated habitat in accordance with approved state and land-manager programs.

Control weeds before they form a dense, fire-prone or structurally unsuitable ground layer, and inspect rehabilitation areas after fire, flood and drought.

Retain moist refuge patches and avoid fire management that removes all ground cover from wet forest or rainforest edges.

Key fire risk: High-frequency and high-severity fire can cause habitat loss and mortality.

Climate direction: The supplied assessment projects more high-fire-danger days, hotter conditions, longer fire seasons and more frequent or prolonged drought in relevant regions.

  • Do not apply a uniform planned-burning prescription across rainforest, wet eucalypt forest and ecotones.
  • Coordinate fire, weed and predator actions with neighbouring land managers so that controls do not isolate occupied habitat.
  • Record fire extent, severity, weed cover, predator-control effort and any rufous scrub-bird detections.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitoring and success measures

Monitor rehabilitation at fixed photo points and repeatable acoustic or field survey locations during the breeding period from September to December.

Measure survival and cover of planted native species, native ground-cover density, leaf-litter development, weed cover, erosion, soil moisture, retained log cover and evidence of feral predators.

Use species detections, occupied territories or suitable habitat condition as separate measures, because habitat recovery may occur before the bird recolonises.

Maintain monitoring for long enough to identify whether ground cover and moist microclimate are developing, with the duration set by the approval and rehabilitation plan.

Investigate any decline in nearby detections or habitat condition and apply corrective actions such as weed control, access restriction, predator control or revised fire management.

Breeding territories: Usually 0.5 to 1.7 hectares for a breeding male, with a maximum of 4 to 6 territories per square kilometre.

Recolonisation constraint: The species may take decades to recolonise suitable habitat that is separated from rainforest refugia by about 5 km or more.

  • Use the same survey methods and locations across monitoring rounds wherever practical.
  • Report both positive and negative results, with effort and weather conditions stated clearly.
  • Treat recolonisation as a longer-term outcome, particularly where no surviving birds or connected refugia occur nearby.

Sources