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Southeastern Long-eared Bat (Nyctophilus corbeni)

The South-eastern Long-eared Bat is a relatively large, insect-eating forest bat of inland south-eastern Australia. It is listed as Vulnerable under the EPBC Act and is relevant to development sites because it depends on larger, dense woodland remnants, hollow-bearing trees and long-unburnt habitat, all of which can be affected by clearing, fragmentation and fire.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Vulnerable.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Vulnerable.

New South Wales, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Vulnerable.

Victoria, Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988: Endangered.

South Australia, National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972: Vulnerable.

Breeding season

This species is not migratory in the supplied sources. It may move frequently between roosts, but the timing of those movements is not described as seasonal. The calendar below is therefore centred on the November breeding record and the warmer-season survey window.

Month order is January to December. Seasonal timings are based on the supplied records and may vary across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.

  • Breeding: Breeding occurs in early summer. Pregnant and lactating females have been reported in November.
  • Young: Twins are typical for long-eared bats. The supplied documents do not give the duration of dependence, so the October to February marking indicates the breeding and likely early-young period rather than a confirmed dependency period.
  • Roost movement and dispersal: Individuals may move frequently between roosts, with an average distance of nearly 2 km between successively used roosts. No seasonal movement pattern is provided.
  • Warm-season survey window: Survey guidelines recommend warmer nights from October through April. Capture methods are needed because calls are not reliably diagnostic.
  • Highest clearing risk: Clearing and disturbance are most likely to affect breeding females, maternity roosts and young from October to January, with November and December marked as peak risk because breeding activity is reported in November.

Identification

This is one of Australia's larger long-eared bats. Identification in the hand is more reliable than identification from ultrasonic calls, because its calls can overlap with several other species.

The bat has a solid body, broad robust skull, long ears and light brown to dark grey-brown fur. The ears are erect when the animal is alert and fold back when it is resting.

The forearm is 40 to 50 mm and the ears are approximately 30 mm long. Females are generally heavier than males.

Head and body: 50 to 75 mm

Forearm: 40 to 50 mm

Tail: 35 to 50 mm

Weight: 11 to 21 g

Identification: Similar species and calls

It is similar in appearance to Gould's Long-eared Bat. Hand identification should use an appropriate diagnostic key and include assessment of outer canine width.

Ultrasonic calls are not reliably distinguishable from those of Gould's Long-eared Bat, Lesser Long-eared Bat and Large-footed Myotis using standard Anabat zero-crossing analysis. A Nyctophilus-like recording should therefore be treated as an identification lead, not a confirmed record.

  • Use capture, close examination and an experienced bat handler when species-level confirmation is required.
  • Do not identify the species from an ultrasonic call alone where the local species assemblage includes other similar bats.

Identification: Field signs

The species is most likely to be detected directly by harp trapping or mist-netting in woodland, mallee, forest, cluttered flyways or over nearby water. Passive acoustic detection can indicate use by a long-eared bat but cannot normally confirm this species.

No species-specific tracks, scats, nests, burrows or eyeshine characters are described in the supplied documents. Roost inspection should focus on hollow-bearing trees, dead trees, dead spouts and loose bark, while avoiding disturbance of occupied roosts.

  • Record the tree, hollow or bark feature associated with any captured or observed bat.
  • Treat unidentified Nyctophilus calls as requiring follow-up trapping where the species may occur.

Distribution: National range

The South-eastern Long-eared Bat has a patchy distribution across inland south-eastern Australia. Most records are inland of the Great Dividing Range and much of the known range lies within the Murray-Darling Basin.

The range extends from central Queensland through central western New South Wales and north-western Victoria to eastern South Australia. In New South Wales, the species occurs through much of the inland part of the state, and at least 50 percent of the species' distribution is reported to occur there.

Relevant bioregional settings include the Brigalow Belt South and Nandewar bioregions in New South Wales and Queensland, the Murray-Darling Basin, the Victorian Mallee and Northern Plains, and inland mallee and Murray River woodland in South Australia.

  • Most records are from inland of the Great Dividing Range.
  • The species is absent from the more arid areas of far north-western New South Wales.
  • In Victoria it is confined to the north-west, with scattered records in the Mallee and Northern Plains.

Distribution: Strongholds and subpopulations

The Pilliga scrub region is identified as a distinct stronghold. In Victoria, the Nowingi and Hattah-Kulkyne National Park area is the only area with multiple recent records and is considered the main known Victorian stronghold.

The Victorian assessment identifies three subpopulations and describes the species as very rare in that state. At most Victorian sites there has been only one record.

  • Protect large, connected woodland remnants even where recent records are absent.
  • Treat records from the Pilliga, north-western Victoria and inland woodland remnants as potentially important for local populations.

Distribution: Population information

A national population estimate is not provided in the supplied documents. The Victorian assessment infers 250 to 1,500 mature individuals for the Victorian taxon assessment, although the evidence was considered too weak for a Criterion C assessment.

The species is suspected to have declined by about 40 to 50 percent over the preceding 12 to 15 years in the Victorian assessment. Future decline is expected to remain possible because of dependence on long-unburnt mallee and the projected increase in fire frequency and severity.

Estimated mature individuals in the Victorian assessment: 250 to 1,500, inferred estimate

Estimated Victorian area of occupancy: 52 km², based on 2 by 2 km grids from accepted post-1970 records

Victorian locations: Three locations or subpopulations were identified for the assessment

Past suspected reduction: 40 to 50 percent over 12 to 15 years in the Victorian assessment

Habitat: Vegetation types

The species uses inland woodland and forest habitats, particularly where vegetation is dense and relatively continuous. Habitat suitability depends on both vegetation cover and the availability of old trees with hollows.

Recorded and suitable habitats include box, ironbark and cypress pine woodlands, mallee, Callitris woodland, dry sclerophyll forest, open woodland, semi-arid woodland, river red gum forest, Buloke woodland and woodland with Allocasuarina or Casuarina.

In South Australia, the species is associated with tall shrublands along the Murray River and has been recorded roosting in hollows of Eucalyptus gracilis.

  • Prioritise large remnants of box, ironbark, cypress pine, mallee and Callitris woodland.
  • Retain dense understorey and old-growth vegetation rather than assessing canopy cover alone.
  • Include suitable woodland outside formal reserves in pre-clearing habitat assessment.

Habitat: Structure and condition

The species is more abundant in large woodland blocks than in small patches. Studies report higher use of woodland with a distinct canopy, dense cluttered understorey, high tree density and old regrowth.

In mallee, long-unburnt vegetation is strongly associated with roosting habitat. In the Nowingi and Hattah-Kulkyne area, 28 of 29 recorded roosts were in long-unburnt mallee or woodland.

Roosts in long-unburnt habitat in one Victorian study: 28 of 29 roost sites

  • Map the size, connectivity, canopy density, understorey clutter and fire history of woodland remnants.
  • Retain dead trees, dead spouts, loose bark and other hollow-bearing structures.
  • Avoid treating narrow road reserves as equivalent to large woodland blocks, although they may provide movement and foraging corridors.

Habitat: Climate and elevation

The supplied documents describe an inland, semi-arid to dry woodland distribution, but do not provide a reliable elevation range. The species occurs from central Queensland to eastern South Australia, including the Mallee and Murray-Darling Basin.

Foraging habitat: Diet

The South-eastern Long-eared Bat is a narrow-space forager that hunts slowly and manoeuvrably within cluttered vegetation. It generally forages below the canopy and can work close to ground level.

The diet comprises diverse invertebrate prey, mainly moths, with beetles, flies and lacewings also recorded.

The species is associated with woodland structure that supports abundant invertebrates, including dense understorey and foliage clutter.

Main prey: Moths

Other recorded prey: Beetles, flies and lacewings

  • Retain understorey, leaf litter and native vegetation that support insect prey.
  • Avoid broad-spectrum insecticide use near occupied woodland where alternative pest management is available.

Foraging habitat: Foraging settings

Foraging occurs in dense forest and woodland, including mallee, box, ironbark, cypress pine and Allocasuarina or Casuarina communities. The species favours areas with a distinct canopy and dense, cluttered understorey.

Survey guidance recommends placing harp traps and mist nets within cluttered vegetation, along open flyways and over water where present. The species may forage below the tree canopy, often to ground level.

Known foraging range: A precise foraging distance is not given; home range is described as probably large.

  • Sample both internal woodland habitat and connected flyways when planning targeted surveys.
  • Give additional trapping effort to open water bodies, watercourses and temporary pools near suitable woodland.
  • Treat dense road-verge vegetation as potential movement and foraging habitat where it connects larger remnants.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding is seasonal and uses small hollows or fissures in dead trees. Maternity groups are small, while individuals otherwise commonly roost alone.

Pregnant and lactating females have been recorded in November. In one study, females formed small maternity colonies in small hollows or fissures in dead trees. Maternity colonies elsewhere in the range typically contain 10 to 20 individuals, while the Victorian study reported groups of fewer than 10 bats.

Twins are typical for long-eared bats. The supplied documents do not provide a species-specific gestation period, dependent-young period or confirmed breeding age for this species.

Breeding season: Early summer, with pregnant and lactating females reported in November

Young: Twins are typical for long-eared bats

Maternity colony size: Typically 10 to 20 elsewhere in the range; fewer than 10 in one Victorian study

Gestation: Not stated in the supplied documents

Age at maturity: About 10 months is used as a general insectivorous bat estimate in the generation-length calculation

Lifespan: About 8 to 10 years is used in the generation-length calculation

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

Breeding habitat includes small hollows or fissures in dead trees, including trees with hollow-bearing limbs and dead spouts. Large, old woodland blocks with a supply of suitable hollow-bearing trees are preferred over isolated patches.

The recorded breeding features include hollows in dead trees with a diameter of less than 40 cm DBH in one study. This does not define all suitable breeding trees across the species' range.

Recorded maternity hollow tree size: Dead trees with a small diameter, less than 40 cm DBH, in one study

  • Retain dead trees and hollow-bearing live trees within and beside the clearing footprint.
  • Survey potential breeding trees before clearing, particularly in dense woodland and long-unburnt mallee.
  • Avoid clearing and high-noise activity around confirmed maternity roosts during the November breeding period.

Sheltering habitat: Roost types

Roosting habitat is centred on tree hollows and other cavities in old woodland. Individuals commonly change roosts and may move between successive roosts over distances much greater than those reported for other long-eared bats.

Individuals usually roost alone for much of the year in tree hollows. Recorded roosts include hollows in large mallee trees, dead trees, dead spouts of live trees and, less often, loose bark or dense foliage.

In South Australia, roosting has also been recorded in hollows of Eucalyptus gracilis. The species appears to favour dead hollow-bearing trees and may avoid roosting close to riparian zones in some studies.

Typical roost occupancy: Solitary for much of the year

Roost switching: Average distance between successively used roosts was nearly 2 km in one study

  • Retain standing dead trees, dead spouts, hollow limbs, loose bark and large mallee trees.
  • Inspect trees proposed for removal for hollows, fissures and loose bark before machinery enters the work area.
  • Do not assume that a dead tree has low habitat value.

Sheltering habitat: Roost protection

Roosts may occur in long-unburnt mallee or woodland that is several centuries old, based on the age suggested for large hollow-bearing mallee trees. Fire can reduce hollow availability even when burns are relatively mild.

Where a confirmed or suspected roost tree cannot be retained, works should be planned with a qualified bat ecologist and fauna spotter catcher. The supplied documents do not specify a standard exclusion distance or artificial-roost replacement design for this species.

  • Retain groups of hollow-bearing trees and surrounding woodland, not only isolated trees.
  • Keep fire, clearing, vibration, light and high noise away from known roost areas where practicable.
  • Use trapping and inspection to resolve species presence when acoustic records cannot distinguish this species from similar bats.

Threats: Clearing and fragmentation

The main project-related risks are removal and fragmentation of woodland, loss of hollow-bearing trees, fire and degradation of the understorey. These effects can occur together and reduce both roosting and foraging habitat.

Clearing for agriculture has removed about 75 percent of the eastern part of the species' range in New South Wales, and extractive industries are increasingly affecting remaining areas. The species prefers larger remnants and is likely to be vulnerable to isolation of small populations.

Development can directly remove occupied foraging and breeding habitat. In one assessed gas project, 885 ha of habitat was proposed for direct clearing and a further 175.4 ha was subject to indirect impacts including fragmentation, weeds, feral animals, noise and light.

Eastern New South Wales range cleared: About 75 percent, as stated in the conservation advice

Example assessed direct habitat impact: 885 ha

Example assessed indirect habitat impact: 175.4 ha

  • Avoid clearing large, dense woodland remnants and connected hollow-bearing stands.
  • Retain woodland corridors and scattered trees that maintain movement between remnants.
  • Map direct and indirect habitat impacts, including weed, feral-animal, light and noise effects.

Threats: Fire and hollow loss

Bushfire and planned burning can kill bats and remove roost hollows and foraging habitat. The species is associated with long-unburnt mallee, and even relatively mild fires have been reported to reduce the availability of preferred hollows.

Climate change is expected to increase the risk of more frequent and severe fires, accelerate collapse of hollow-bearing trees and reduce the availability of suitable roosting habitat.

  • Record fire history and retain long-unburnt woodland where it supports hollow-bearing trees.
  • Avoid unnecessary burning, slashing and removal of dead timber in known or potential habitat.
  • Include hollow-tree loss and post-fire habitat recovery in project impact assessments.

Threats: Predators, grazing and chemicals

Feral cats and foxes may prey on roosting or foraging bats, although the level of impact on this species is not known. Feral goats and rabbits can reduce understorey and limit woodland regeneration.

Insecticides and other poisons may affect bats near agricultural areas through direct application, spray drift, secondary poisoning or bioaccumulation. Competition for hollows from introduced bees is also identified as a possible threat.

  • Control feral cats, foxes, goats and rabbits around retained habitat in accordance with approved pest management programs.
  • Prevent weed and feral-animal incursions into retained woodland during construction.
  • Manage chemical application and spray drift near occupied or potential habitat.

Threats: Roads, light, noise and hydrology

The supplied documents identify road-verge woodland as a potential dispersal corridor and foraging area, but do not quantify road mortality for this species. Clearing or degrading these corridors can reduce connectivity.

Noise and light were identified as indirect impacts in an assessed development. The supplied documents do not identify a species-specific hydrology or disease threat, so any project-related changes to watercourses, surface water or chemical exposure should be assessed against the species' woodland, prey and roost requirements.

  • Avoid unnecessary removal of vegetated road verges and retain scattered trees where corridors must be crossed.
  • Limit night lighting and construction noise near retained woodland and known roosts.
  • Assess changes to water bodies, watercourses, drainage and insecticide use as potential indirect effects rather than assuming no impact.

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat assessment and survey planning

Survey this species in suitable woodland, mallee and forest habitat, especially larger remnants with dense understorey, hollow-bearing trees and dead trees. Acoustic records alone cannot reliably confirm the species, so follow acoustic detection with trapping where the species may be present.

Map the size and pattern of woodland remnants before fieldwork, particularly in agricultural or heavily modified areas.

Prioritise box, ironbark, cypress pine, mallee, Callitris, Allocasuarina and Casuarina woodland with dense understorey, hollow-bearing trees, dead trees and loose bark.

Inspect retained vegetation and nearby water points because the species forages below the canopy and may use open water for drinking.

Plan survey sites in both open flyways and cluttered vegetation, and include any watercourses, dams, fire dams, open tanks or temporary pools near the work area.

Preferred survey period: October to April, on warmer nights

Known roost locations: Tree hollows, dead trees or dead spouts of live trees, loose bark and possibly dense foliage

Typical roost movement: Individuals may move between roosts, with an average distance of nearly 2 km between successively used roosts

Survey methodology: 2. Passive acoustic detection

Use bat detectors to identify areas used by long-eared bats and to guide follow-up trapping.

Deploy detectors along woodland edges, flyways and within suitable dense vegetation, as demonstrated by the Goschen survey, which placed eight ultrasonic recorders at these locations for four consecutive nights.

Treat Nyctophilus-like calls as unresolved records because calls of this species cannot be reliably distinguished from Gould's Long-eared Bat, Lesser Long-eared Bat and Large-footed Myotis using standard Anabat or zero-crossing analysis.

Do not use an unconfirmed acoustic identification as evidence that the species is absent or present without considering habitat and, where necessary, completing capture-based confirmation.

Example project effort: Eight SM2Bat+ and SM4Bat FS recorders, four consecutive nights

Acoustic limitation: Calls are not reliably distinguishable from several sympatric bat species using standard zero-crossing analysis

Survey methodology: 3. Harp trapping and mist-netting

Use harp traps and mist nets to confirm presence after acoustic detection or where suitable habitat is being assessed for disturbance.

Place traps in woodland, mallee and forest because the species forages below the tree canopy, often close to ground level.

Use both open flyways and cluttered vegetation, and give substantial effort to mist-netting or harp trapping over open water where water bodies occur in or near the project area.

Where no surface water occurs, the survey guideline allows temporary water pools to be constructed specifically for survey purposes.

Use experienced, authorised personnel and follow current animal ethics, wildlife permit and workplace safety requirements for all capture work.

Recommended capture methods: Harp traps and mist nets

Trap placement: Open flyways, cluttered woodland vegetation and water points

Survey conditions: Warm nights, preferably between October and April

Survey methodology: 4. Confirmation, handling and effort

Identify captured animals using appropriate morphological characters and current taxonomic references, including the outer canine width where required for confirmation.

Record capture location, habitat, weather, trap type, trap position, start and finish times, effort and all release or injury details.

The species is often solitary, although maternity colonies elsewhere in its range typically contain 10 to 20 individuals, and one Victorian study reported maternity colonies of fewer than 10 bats in small hollows or fissures in dead trees.

Minimise handling time, release bats at the point of capture where safe, and obtain expert confirmation for uncertain Nyctophilus records.

Body size: Head and body length 50 to 75 mm, forearm length 40 to 50 mm, tail length 35 to 50 mm

Mass: 11 to 21 g

Breeding period: Pregnant and lactating females have been reported in November

Roost use: Most individuals roost alone outside maternity colonies

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

Survey during October to April, using warm nights and weather suitable for bat activity and safe trapping.

Use passive acoustic detection to locate activity, but complete harp trapping or mist-netting where species-level confirmation is required.

Increase effort where habitat is large, continuous, dense, long unburnt or connected to known records, and document the basis for the final effort level.

Report confirmed records, probable records and unresolved Nyctophilus-like calls separately.

Submit confirmed records and relevant survey data to the relevant state wildlife database, and provide records and assessment results to the project approval authority where required.

Retain detector files, call-analysis settings, trap maps, effort data, photographs, specimen or swab details where collected, and chain-of-custody records.

Before habitat disturbance: 1. Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Treat large, continuous woodland remnants and old hollow-bearing or dead trees as high-value habitat. The species is vulnerable to clearing, fragmentation, fire and loss of roost hollows, and has been recorded in project areas subject to major habitat removal.

  • Avoid clearing large blocks of box, ironbark, cypress pine, mallee, Callitris, Allocasuarina and Casuarina woodland wherever practicable.
  • Retain dense understorey, old-growth or long-unburnt vegetation, hollow-bearing trees, dead trees, dead spouts and trees with loose bark.
  • Retain woodland corridors and connected remnants because the species is more abundant in larger blocks than in small patches and may move nearly 2 km between successive roosts.
  • Do not remove fallen timber or standing dead trees unless the approved method specifically requires it and the habitat value has been assessed.
  • Keep lighting, noise, dust, weeds, feral animal access and other indirect impacts away from retained woodland and known or potential roost habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: 2. Approvals and project controls

  • Check whether the proposed action is likely to have a significant impact on this EPBC Act listed vulnerable species and refer the action if required.
  • Check the relevant state listing, wildlife handling requirements, scientific or wildlife survey permits and animal ethics requirements before fieldwork or clearing.
  • Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies habitat, survey results, avoidance measures, clearance limits, spotter catcher responsibilities, stop-work triggers and reporting requirements.
  • Stage clearing so that retained habitat and movement corridors remain available while each work area is surveyed and cleared.
  • Schedule high-risk clearing outside the main breeding period where practicable, noting that breeding has been reported in November.

Before habitat disturbance: 3. Pre-clearance preparation

  • Complete a targeted pre-clearance survey in suitable woodland and mallee habitat before finalising the clearing boundary.
  • Mark hollow-bearing trees, dead trees, dead spouts, loose-bark trees, dense roosting vegetation, fallen timber and retained corridors on the ground and in the clearing plan.
  • Use acoustic monitoring and capture-based follow-up where pre-clearance habitat is suitable but occupancy is uncertain.
  • Install exclusion fencing only where it will protect retained habitat and will not block bat movement or create entrapment risks for other fauna.
  • Brief machinery operators and the fauna spotter catcher on the marked exclusion areas, clearance sequence, emergency contacts and stop-work triggers.

During habitat disturbance: 1. Daily clearance controls

Clear only within the approved footprint and use a staged, supervised process. The fauna spotter catcher must be able to stop work before habitat features are felled or damaged.

  • Inspect the work area each day before machinery enters and confirm that exclusion fencing, habitat markers and the approved clearing boundary remain intact.
  • Recheck hollow-bearing and dead trees before felling, particularly where acoustic or capture surveys identified bat activity.
  • Clear in stages from the disturbed edge towards retained vegetation where this is safe and suitable, so mobile fauna can move towards connected retained habitat.
  • Keep machinery, lighting, generators and worker activity away from retained woodland, known roost trees and marked corridors.
  • Suspend clearing during unsafe weather, smoke or fire conditions and whenever the fauna spotter catcher cannot safely inspect the next habitat feature.

During habitat disturbance: 2. Spotter catcher and machinery coordination

  • Use an appropriately authorised fauna spotter catcher who has clear authority to direct machinery and stop work.
  • Position the spotter catcher where they can inspect the tree, stump, log or other habitat feature before machinery acts on it.
  • Lower or dismantle habitat features in a controlled manner where approved, rather than allowing them to fall unpredictably into retained vegetation or access areas.
  • Keep workers clear of hollow-bearing trees and dead timber until the spotter catcher has checked the feature and declared it safe.
  • Record each inspected or removed feature, the action taken, any fauna found and the final relocation or treatment outcome.

During habitat disturbance: 3. Habitat feature handling

  • Retain hollow-bearing trees and dead trees in place wherever practicable because the species commonly roosts in hollows and may use dead trees or dead spouts of live trees.
  • Inspect hollows, loose bark, dead spouts, dense foliage, fallen timber and nearby ground cover before disturbance.
  • If a roost feature must be removed, use the approved fauna management procedure and retain suitable sections of hollow timber in nearby connected habitat where safe and ecologically appropriate.
  • Do not burn, chip or remove felled hollow timber until it has been inspected and cleared by the fauna spotter catcher.
  • Protect retained understorey and woodland edges because the species uses cluttered vegetation for slow, manoeuvrable flight and forages below the canopy.

During habitat disturbance: 4. Animal finds, incidents and stop-work triggers

  • Stop work immediately if a South-eastern Long-eared Bat is found, injured, trapped, roosting in a feature due for disturbance or present in an unsafe clearance area.
  • Do not handle the bat unless authorised, trained and operating under the approved fauna management plan and relevant permit.
  • Allow a healthy bat to leave unaided where safe, or relocate it only under the direction of the authorised fauna professional to nearby retained habitat with suitable cover and roosting resources.
  • Place an injured or distressed bat in an appropriate secure container and transfer it promptly to a veterinarian or licensed wildlife carer through the project emergency procedure.
  • Stop work if a suspected maternity group, repeated roost use, unidentified bat mortality, fire impact or unexpected concentration of bats is detected, and obtain advice before restarting.
  • Record the date, time, exact location, habitat feature, identification confidence, photographs, handling, release or treatment details and people involved.

After habitat disturbance: 1. Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance work must confirm that no bats or roost features were missed and that retained habitat remains connected and protected. Use the project approval conditions and fauna management plan to set the monitoring period and reporting requirements.

  • Inspect the cleared footprint, retained edges, felled hollow timber and nearby refuge areas after each clearance stage.
  • Complete additional acoustic monitoring or capture-based surveys if bats were detected during clearance, if an occupied roost was removed or if the initial survey could not resolve Nyctophilus calls.
  • Check that retained hollow-bearing trees, dead trees, dense understorey and corridors have not been damaged by machinery, fire, erosion, weeds or unauthorised access.
  • Remove temporary exclusion fencing only when the responsible ecologist confirms that it is no longer needed and that removal will not expose retained habitat to works.

After habitat disturbance: 2. Monitoring and adaptive management

  • Monitor retained woodland and any replacement roost features during warm periods between October and April where occupancy or project risk warrants follow-up.
  • Compare detector activity, confirmed captures, roost observations, habitat condition and mortality records with the pre-disturbance baseline.
  • Investigate reduced activity, new roost loss, repeated bat injury, fire damage, weed invasion or feral animal activity and amend controls promptly.
  • Maintain connectivity between retained remnants and prevent new barriers, excessive lighting and avoidable disturbance along woodland edges.

After habitat disturbance: 3. Reporting and offsets

  • Submit required completion reports, incident reports, survey records and confirmed species records to the approval authority and relevant state wildlife database.
  • Report any breach of an EPBC Act condition, state approval condition or fauna management plan immediately through the project compliance system.
  • Apply approved offsets or habitat protection measures where residual impacts remain and offsets are required by the relevant approval.
  • Document the area of habitat cleared, the area retained, indirect impacts, hollow-bearing trees removed or retained, fauna incidents and rehabilitation commitments.

Rehabilitation actions: 1. Rebuild woodland structure

Rehabilitation should rebuild connected woodland habitat and protect the roost and foraging features used by this narrow-space bat. It will not quickly replace old hollows, so retain existing mature and dead trees wherever possible while replacement habitat develops.

  • Revegetate cleared edges and corridors with locally appropriate box, ironbark, cypress pine, mallee, Callitris, Allocasuarina and Casuarina species suited to the site.
  • Re-establish a dense, structurally varied understorey rather than planting only widely spaced canopy trees.
  • Connect isolated remnants with continuous or stepping-stone woodland plantings, while avoiding designs that remove existing mature trees or simplify retained habitat.
  • Use locally sourced native plant material and protect plantings from grazing, browsing and machinery damage until established.

Rehabilitation actions: 2. Replace lost roost resources

Recorded roost setting: Twenty-eight of 29 Victorian roost sites in the Nowingi and Hattah-Kulkyne area were in long-unburnt mallee or woodland

Roost tree context: Large hollows used by the species may occur in mallee trees that are several centuries old

  • Retain all safe hollow-bearing and dead trees during rehabilitation and protect them from firewood collection, slashing and unnecessary removal.
  • Retain suitable hollow logs and sections of felled hollow timber in nearby connected habitat where they are stable and do not create a safety hazard.
  • Install artificial roost boxes only where approved by the project ecologist and design, position and monitor them for this species' hollow-roosting requirements.
  • Treat replacement boxes as supplementary habitat because the species uses large hollows and some roost trees may be several centuries old.

Rehabilitation actions: 3. Manage threats after construction

  • Control weeds before they alter the understorey and continue follow-up control until native vegetation is established.
  • Prevent feral cat, fox, rabbit and goat access where practicable, and monitor grazing, predation and regeneration impacts.
  • Prevent insecticide drift and avoid unnecessary chemical use near retained woodland, roost trees and foraging habitat.
  • Prepare a fire management approach that protects long-unburnt roost habitat, avoids broad-scale loss of hollow-bearing trees and accounts for the species' sensitivity to fire.

Rehabilitation actions: 4. Rehabilitation monitoring and success measures

  • Monitor plant survival, native understorey cover, weed cover, grazing or browsing, predator activity, hollow-tree retention and corridor continuity against the rehabilitation plan.
  • Use warm-season acoustic monitoring and, where justified, harp trapping or mist-netting to test whether rehabilitated areas are being used by long-eared bats.
  • Treat successful rehabilitation as retained or restored connected woodland with functioning understorey, protected hollow and dead-tree resources, controlled weeds and feral animals, and no unplanned fire damage.
  • Continue monitoring until the project ecologist and approval authority accept that habitat condition and protection measures meet the approved completion criteria.

Sources