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Stephens' Banded Snake (Hoplocephalus stephensii)

Stephens' Banded Snake is a slender, partly tree dwelling, venomous elapid of rainforest, wet eucalypt forest and associated rocky habitat in south eastern Queensland and eastern New South Wales. It is vulnerable in New South Wales and may be affected on development sites by clearing, fragmentation, removal of old trees, loss of tree hollows, frequent fire and disturbance of dense understorey.

Conservation status

New South Wales, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Vulnerable.

Breeding season

Stephens' Banded Snakes mate mainly in spring, with captive courtship and copulation recorded in September and October. Births were recorded from late February to late March, while adults are generally active from September to May and shelter for extended periods in winter. Clearing can harm snakes in tree hollows and other shelters at any time, with additional risk around late summer births.

Reproductive mode: Live-bearing, producing live young.

Litter size: 1 to 9 young in the study summary. Eight tabulated litters contained 2 to 9 young, with a mean of 4.8.

Incubation or gestation: Gestation was not recorded.

Size at birth: About 25 cm snout to vent length. Recorded range was 19.5 to 28.5 cm snout to vent length.

Age at maturity: Males may mature in their third year, at more than 47.9 cm snout to vent length. Females may mature in their fourth year, at more than 56.5 cm snout to vent length, or about 43 to 44 months after birth.

Nest or egg sites: No specific birthing site was recorded. Adults and young use tree hollows, vines, epiphytes, rock crevices, loose bark and other shelters.

Breeding frequency: Females reproduce less than annually. One source reports reproduction approximately every two years.

Confirm timing from local records, rainfall and temperature conditions, because breeding, activity and winter sheltering can vary between sites and years.

  • Mating: Captive courtship and copulation were recorded in September and October, the Austral spring. No sexual interactions were observed in the captive groups during autumn, from March to May.
  • Gravid females: The months when females carry embryos were not recorded. January to March is an inferred risk period immediately before and during the documented February to March births, not a measured gestation period.
  • Births: Captive births occurred from 24 February to 27 March, with four litters in February and six in March in the study records. Litters contained 1 to 9 young in the study summary, with a mean of 4.8 in the eight analysed litters.
  • Newborns: Newborns were recorded in the February to March captive litters. Neonates averaged about 25 cm snout to vent length, with a recorded range of 19.5 to 28.5 cm.
  • Active period: Radio-tracked snakes were generally active from September to May. The species makes long-distance nocturnal movements through cool, often wet undergrowth during this period.
  • Winter inactivity: During June to August, snakes remained inactive or were sequestered for prolonged periods in tree hollows. Extended sheltering can last for days or weeks, and one source reports winter brumation in a tree hollow for up to five months.
  • Highest clearing risk: Risk peaks in February and March when births and newborns were recorded, and in June to August when snakes are inactive in tree hollows and less able to escape machinery. Clearing remains a risk from September to May because active snakes use trees, hollows, vines, epiphytes and dense understorey as shelter and movement habitat.

Identification

Confirm records using the full combination of colour pattern, body form, habitat and behaviour. The species is venomous, so capture and handling should be undertaken only by appropriately authorised personnel using approved procedures.

Stephens' Banded Snake is a medium sized, long and slender snake that can be partly tree dwelling. It is brown or yellow brown above, with irregular broad dark crossbands. The head is black with a brown crown, a brown or cream patch on each side of the nape, and lips barred with black and cream.

Maximum length: About 1 m

Mean adult size: 73 cm snout to vent length

Mean adult mass: 114 g

Identification: Field recognition

Look for a nocturnal snake in rainforest, eucalypt forest or rocky forest habitat. During daylight it may be concealed between loose bark and trunks, in vines, hollow trunks or limbs, rock crevices, or under slabs. At night it may be encountered hunting in trees or dense ground vegetation.

  • Photograph the dorsal pattern, head, nape and lips before attempting identification.
  • Record the tree, hollow, rock feature, vine mass or ground cover where the snake was found.
  • Treat any brown banded snake as potentially venomous until identification is confirmed.

Identification: Similar species and field signs

The supplied sources do not provide a diagnostic comparison with other Hoplocephalus or banded snakes. Identification should therefore be confirmed by an experienced herpetologist or relevant state wildlife authority, particularly where the head and nape markings are not visible.

No reliable species specific information is provided in the supplied sources for tracks, calls, eyeshine, sloughs, nests or characteristic scats. Scat or prey remains may assist an expert, but should not be used alone for field identification.

Distribution: State and bioregional range

The species occurs in coastal and near coastal forest from southern Queensland to Gosford in New South Wales. NSW records extend through the North Coast, New England Tablelands and Sydney Basin bioregions, with additional known and predicted areas in south eastern Queensland.

In New South Wales, the indicative distribution includes the NSW North Coast, New England Tablelands and Sydney Basin IBRA bioregions. Listed NSW subregions include Northeast Forest Lands and Stanthorpe Plateau in the New England Tablelands; Barrington, Cataract, Chaelundi, Coffs Coast and Escarpment, Comboyne Plateau, Dalmorton, Karuah Manning, Macleay Hastings, Mummel Escarpment, Rocky River Gorge, Tomalla and Upper Manning in the NSW North Coast; and Hunter, Kerrabee, Wollemi, Wyong and Yengo in the Sydney Basin.

In Queensland, the species is recorded from south eastern Queensland, including the Burringbar-Conondale Ranges, Clarence Lowlands, Clarence Sandstones, Scenic Rim, Woodenbong and the Sunshine Coast-Gold Coast Lowlands. The Sunshine Coast-Gold Coast Lowlands record is identified as predicted rather than known in the NSW profile.

  • Use the NSW profile map and current state spatial data to check whether a project occurs within known or predicted habitat.
  • Treat subregional mapping as indicative. The profile states that the species may not occur throughout a mapped subregion.

Distribution: Strongholds and population status

The species was formerly continuous across coastal and near coastal forests, but much of this forest has been cleared or highly modified for agriculture, silviculture and urban development. Recent records in the cited study suggested persistence mainly in remnant forest patches larger than 5,000 ha.

Whian Whian State Forest in north eastern New South Wales was studied within an 11,000 ha forest block near Lismore. The Northern Rivers plan also identifies Dinner Creek and Demon Nature Reserve as locations where ecological fire management should protect habitat for this species.

Population size: Not reported in the supplied documents

Population trend: Reported to have declined markedly across much of its former range; a current population estimate is not provided

Reported large forest patch threshold: Recent records in the cited study suggested persistence mainly in forest patches larger than 5,000 ha

Key study area: An 11,000 ha forest block at Whian Whian State Forest, near Lismore, New South Wales

Habitat: Forest types

Stephens' Banded Snake uses structurally complex forest with mature and dead trees, hollows, dense understorey and connected forest cover. It occurs in both rainforest and eucalypt forest and can also use rocky areas.

Recorded habitat includes rainforest and eucalypt forests, including wet forest communities. The species is included in the fauna associated with the Grey Box and Grey Gum Wet Forest of Subtropical Eastern Australia, but the supplied documents do not establish that this ecological community is required at every site.

Retain native forest remnants and connections between remnants where the species may move between suitable trees and feeding areas.

Habitat: Structural features

Important habitat features include old and dead trees, hollow bearing trees, loose bark, hollow limbs and trunks, vines, dense understorey, sedges, logs, rock crevices and rock slabs. These features provide both daytime shelter and access to prey.

The species can occur in forest affected by timber production, but forestry practices that remove old or dead trees reduce habitat quality.

  • Map and retain hollow bearing, mature and dead trees before clearing.
  • Retain dense native understorey, logs, vines and rocky shelter features where practicable.
  • Avoid isolating retained forest patches from nearby native vegetation.

Habitat: Elevation and climate

The NSW profile records the species from sea level coastal and near coastal areas to 950 m. A separate study reports occasional records above 1,100 m, so survey planning should not exclude higher forest solely because of elevation.

Elevation reported in the NSW profile: Up to 950 m

Additional reported elevation: Individuals have been reported above 1,100 m

Foraging habitat: Diet

The species feeds at night in trees, vines and dense ground vegetation. Adults take mostly small mammals, while juveniles also take lizards, and the species uses both active searching and ambush.

Recorded prey includes Bush Rats, Fawn-footed Mosaic-tailed Rats, Brown Antechinus, Eastern Pygmy-possums, Feathertail Gliders, Forest Dragons, frogs and lizards. The study found that adults feed predominantly on mammalian prey, while juveniles also take lizards.

Gape limitation may prevent the species from swallowing adult Bush Rats, so subadult rats that are seasonally available can be important prey.

Recorded prey: Small mammals, frogs, lizards and birds

Commonly reported mammalian prey: Bush Rats, Eastern Pygmy-possums, Feathertail Gliders, Fawn-footed Mosaic-tailed Rats and Brown Antechinus

Juvenile diet: Includes lizards

Adult diet: Predominantly small mammals in the cited study

Foraging habitat: Where and how it feeds

Radio tracked snakes were found feeding or searching in tree crevices, arboreal nests, vine tangles, tree trunks, sedges and dense ground vegetation. Some remained in prey nests or other arboreal sites for days or weeks and took prey there.

Foraging methods range from active searching and pursuit to ambush. Feeding is infrequent, and prey may be taken inside enclosed cavities or dense vegetation.

Mean male home range: 20.2 ha

Mean female home range: 5.4 ha

  • Inspect retained hollow trees, large limbs, vines, epiphytes, dense sedges and log tangles as potential feeding habitat.
  • Do not assume that a snake found on the ground is using only ground habitat. It may be moving between arboreal shelters and feeding sites.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

The supplied study provides reproductive records mainly from captive animals. It indicates low reproductive output and large young, but several field breeding parameters remain unknown.

Eight captive females produced litters between 25 February and 27 March. Litter size ranged from 2 to 9 in those records, with an overall study summary of 1 to 9 young and a mean of 4.8 young across eight litters. Some litters included stillborn young or infertile oocytes.

None of 21 wild caught females examined in the study was reproductive. Well fed captive snakes gained condition, grew and later reproduced, indicating that food availability affects reproduction.

Breeding or birth period reported: Late February to late March in captive records

Litter size: 1 to 9 young in the study summary; 2 to 9 among the eight litters tabulated

Mean litter size: 4.8 young across eight captive litters

Gestation: Not reported in the supplied documents

Incubation: Not applicable to the live bearing reproduction described

Age at maturity: Not reported in the supplied documents

Lifespan: Not reported in the supplied documents

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat features

Breeding habitat is not described separately from general habitat in the supplied documents. Retain the mature and dead trees, hollow limbs, vines, dense understorey and connected forest used for shelter and feeding, because loss of these features can reduce body condition and access to breeding sites.

  • Avoid clearing occupied forest remnants during the late summer breeding and birth period where practicable.
  • Retain arboreal cavities, hollow bearing trees and dense native vegetation around any captured or located animal.

Sheltering habitat: Day shelters

Stephens' Banded Snake spends long periods concealed in arboreal and rocky shelters. Radio tracking found most observations were of hidden snakes, often well above the ground.

Daytime shelters include loose bark against tree trunks, vines, hollow trunks and limbs, rock crevices, rock slabs, arboreal nests, epiphytes and dense sedges. Radio tracked snakes were often hidden in shelter sites more than 20 m above the ground.

The NSW profile also identifies hollow trees, rock crevices and under slabs as shelter features.

Typical height of hidden radio tracked snakes: Often more than 20 m above the ground

Shelter dimensions: No shelter or hollow dimensions are provided in the supplied documents

  • Inspect trees from the ground and, where safe, use an experienced arborist or fauna spotter catcher to assess hollows and loose bark before felling or limb removal.
  • Retain trees with hollows, loose bark, cavities and large limbs, including dead trees where they can be made safe without removing the habitat feature.
  • Check dense vines, epiphytes, sedges, log tangles and rock crevices before disturbing them.

Sheltering habitat: Seasonal sheltering

The species is active mainly from September to May and was more frequently sequestered in winter trees during the radio tracking study. It may remain in a shelter for days or weeks, so a lack of surface observations does not demonstrate absence.

  • Do not rely on short daytime searches to clear a site of this species.
  • Treat suitable hollow bearing trees and dense shelter features as occupied until an appropriately designed survey or fauna handling procedure shows otherwise.

Threats: Clearing and fragmentation

The main documented risks are loss and fragmentation of forest, removal of old and dead trees, frequent fire, grazing impacts on understorey, illegal collection and cane toads. Roads, disease and hydrology change are not identified as species specific threats in the supplied documents.

Clearing for agriculture, silviculture and urban development has removed or modified much of the former coastal and near coastal forest. Fragmentation is associated with the species' decline and may isolate the large forest patches and hollow bearing trees it uses.

  • Retain connected native forest and avoid reducing large remnants to small isolated patches.
  • Stage clearing around retained forest so that hollow trees, dense understorey and movement connections remain functional.
  • Survey all suitable retained forest, not only the proposed impact footprint, because individuals may have home ranges of several hectares.

Threats: Trees, fire and grazing

Forestry practices that remove old or dead trees reduce hollow and shelter availability. Frequent burning for fuel reduction or grazing management can destroy old and dead trees and remove understorey vegetation. Grazing can further reduce the understorey used for shelter and movement.

  • Retain hollow bearing, mature and dead trees where safe.
  • Use fire planning that protects old and dead trees and maintains native understorey.
  • Control grazing in retained habitat where it damages dense ground cover.

Threats: Pests and collection

Cane toads are identified as a potential threat to Stephens' Banded Snake in the Northern Rivers. The NSW profile also identifies illegal collection from the wild as a threat.

  • Apply approved cane toad hygiene and control procedures around project compounds and access routes where relevant.
  • Prevent unauthorised collection, photography handling and removal of snakes from the site.
  • Use licensed fauna spotter catchers and state procedures for capture, temporary holding and release.

Threats: Other project pathways

The supplied documents do not identify roads, disease or hydrology change as specific threats for this species. Roads and drainage works can nevertheless disturb retained forest, rocky shelters, understorey and movement connections, so these features should be assessed during project planning rather than assumed to be irrelevant.

  • Check road alignments, construction compounds, drainage changes and night lighting for effects on retained forest, tree hollows, rocky shelters and dense understorey.
  • Record and report any injured or dead snakes found on roads or within work areas, following project and state wildlife procedures.

Survey methodology: 1. Nocturnal spotlighting

Use a targeted survey that reflects this species' nocturnal, partly tree-dwelling habits and its use of old trees, hollows, vines, rocks and dense ground cover. The supplied documents do not provide a species-specific survey effort standard, so the project ecologist should set effort from the size, condition and connectivity of the habitat being disturbed.

Survey at night when Stephens' Banded Snakes are active, with priority from September to May. Activity is lower in winter because snakes may remain in trees for long periods.

Search tree trunks, loose bark, vines, hollow limbs, rock crevices, dense sedges and other ground-layer cover with spotlights. Look above and below eye level because the species is partly arboreal and may be more than 20 m above ground in shelter sites.

Record weather, start and finish times, observers, route, habitat searched, spotlight hours and all fauna detections. Do not handle a snake unless the person is authorised and trained to work with venomous reptiles.

Known activity period: Active season generally September to May

Recorded adult home range: Mean 20.2 ha for males and 5.4 ha for females

Shelter height: Radio-tracked snakes were often hidden in arboreal shelter sites more than 20 m above ground

  • Walk slowly along existing tracks, habitat edges and through representative retained forest, while avoiding unnecessary trampling of understorey vegetation.
  • Repeat spotlighting on separate suitable nights where the impact area contains connected forest, old trees or large hollow-bearing trees, because detection can be low when snakes are sequestered in shelters.

Survey methodology: 2. Daytime habitat inspection

Inspect the impact area and the adjoining retained habitat during the day for features used as shelters, including loose bark, hollow trunks and limbs, vines, perforated termitaria, rock crevices, rock slabs, dense sedges and other understorey cover.

Map large mature trees, hollow-bearing trees, dead trees, fallen timber, rock features and connected forest patches. Do not dismantle likely shelter sites simply to search for a snake.

Habitat: Rainforest and eucalypt forests, rocky areas, and sites up to 950 m altitude

Known shelter features: Loose bark, tree trunks, vines, hollow trunks and limbs, rock crevices, slabs and dense ground cover

  • Search the bases, trunks and accessible limbs of mature and dead trees from a safe distance, and use qualified arboricultural or fauna personnel where elevated inspection is needed.
  • Record the location, type and condition of each habitat feature, together with its relationship to the proposed clearing boundary and retained vegetation.

Survey methodology: 3. Targeted hollow and tree assessment

Assess hollow-bearing trees and large mature trees before clearing. Stephens' Banded Snakes are tree hollow specialists, and radio-tracking recorded long sequestration periods in tree hollows with infrequent movement between suitable large hollow-bearing trees.

Use a qualified fauna ecologist or arborist to inspect accessible hollows and tree cavities without placing a person at risk. Consider thermal or pole-camera inspection where appropriate and safe, but do not assume that an empty cavity is unused.

Tree use: Long sequestration periods in tree hollows and infrequent movement between suitable large hollow-bearing trees

Adult size: Adults can reach 1 m in length and 250 g in mass

  • Mark trees that contain hollows, loose bark, large limbs, vines or other potential refuge features so machinery operators can identify them.
  • Treat dead trees and trees with loose bark as habitat features, not as low-value vegetation, because fire and forestry activities that remove old or dead trees are identified threats.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Set and document survey effort before fieldwork, including the number of nights, spotlight hours, observers, transect or search routes, area covered, weather and habitat searched, because the supplied documents do not specify a mandatory effort standard.
  • Time surveys to the September to May activity period where practicable, and explain any winter limitations in the survey report.
  • Use safe methods for a venomous snake and do not use hand capture, pitfall trapping or funnel trapping unless the method has been assessed, approved and supervised by appropriately authorised reptile personnel.
  • Report all records, including non-detections, photographs, coordinates, habitat features and handling or relocation events, to the relevant state wildlife database and the project approval authority where required.
  • Check current NSW and Queensland requirements before fieldwork, because the documented distribution extends from southern Queensland to Gosford in NSW.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise

Avoid clearing habitat wherever practicable, then retain the trees, ground cover and connected forest that provide shelter and foraging habitat. Stephens' Banded Snake is listed as Vulnerable in NSW and is not listed under the EPBC Act in the supplied material.

Redesign the footprint to retain old and dead trees, hollow-bearing trees, mature trees, loose bark, vines, dense understorey, fallen timber, rocks and connected forest.

Retain links between forest patches and avoid isolating a small remnant from larger retained forest. The species has been reported mainly from remnant forest patches greater than 5000 ha, although this should not be treated as a site threshold.

Main documented threats: Clearing and fragmentation, loss of old or dead trees through forestry, frequent burning, illegal collection and poor knowledge of habitat preferences

Documented remnant context: Recent records in the study cited by Fitzgerald and colleagues were from remnant forest patches greater than 5000 ha

  • Keep clearing outside retained vegetation and establish no-go areas around habitat features before machinery arrives.
  • Avoid removing large hollow-bearing trees and dead trees unless the approved design demonstrates that removal cannot be avoided.
  • Maintain understorey vegetation and avoid unnecessary widening of access tracks, work compounds and easements.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and planning

Confirm the state threatened species requirements, survey obligations, fauna handling permissions and any clearing controls before works start.

The supplied sources identify the species as Vulnerable in NSW and not listed under the EPBC Act. An EPBC referral is therefore not indicated solely for this species on the supplied status information, but the project must still assess other nationally listed matters and any current legal status.

  • Obtain advice from the relevant state agency before disturbing occupied or potentially occupied habitat.
  • Include Stephens' Banded Snake in the fauna management plan, clearing plan, unexpected finds procedure and incident reporting process.
  • Stage clearing so that retained habitat remains connected and available while each work area is checked and released.

Before habitat disturbance: Pre-clearance preparation

Complete a pre-clearance habitat inspection and targeted nocturnal survey before finalising the clearing sequence.

Mark hollow-bearing trees, dead trees, large mature trees, vines, rock crevices, rock slabs, dense sedges, logs and other potential shelter features on plans and on the ground.

Use exclusion fencing or other clearly visible controls where these measures can protect retained habitat from machinery, people and materials.

  • Brief all workers that the species is venomous, partly arboreal, nocturnal and Vulnerable in NSW.
  • Confirm the identity, authority, equipment and availability of the fauna spotter catcher before clearing starts.
  • Provide a safe holding and transport procedure only if an authorised person may need to handle a snake.

During habitat disturbance: Daily site controls

Clear only within the approved footprint and under direct fauna supervision. The spotter catcher must be able to stop machinery before habitat features are felled, rolled, crushed or disturbed.

Inspect the work area at the start of each shift for snakes, fresh movement, displaced bark, disturbed hollows and changes to exclusion fencing.

Keep machinery, spoil, vehicles and workers outside marked retained habitat and habitat feature exclusion areas.

Maintain a clear communication method between the fauna spotter catcher, site supervisor and machine operators.

  • Stop work immediately if a Stephens' Banded Snake is seen, suspected within a habitat feature being disturbed, injured, trapped or exposed to immediate risk.
  • Stop work if an unmarked hollow-bearing tree, dead tree, rock shelter, log pile or dense refuge area is identified inside the active work zone.
  • Record the date, time, location, activity, habitat feature, people involved, decision and outcome for every fauna event.

During habitat disturbance: Fauna spotter catcher and machinery

The fauna spotter catcher should inspect each tree, log, rock feature and dense refuge before machinery moves, and should direct the operator to proceed only after the feature is cleared or a safe management action is in place.

Do not require the spotter catcher to stand beneath a tree, enter a hollow, climb without suitable qualification or approach a venomous snake without appropriate authority and equipment.

  • Remove or dismantle habitat features only under the agreed method statement and with the spotter catcher positioned where they can observe the work safely.
  • Lower tree sections in a controlled manner where practicable, rather than allowing them to fall uncontrolled onto retained vegetation or potential refuge sites.
  • Keep a safe distance from any snake and prevent workers, dogs and vehicles from approaching it.

During habitat disturbance: If a snake is found

Treat every unidentified snake as potentially venomous until a qualified person confirms otherwise. Keep people clear and allow the authorised fauna handler to assess the animal.

Only an appropriately authorised and trained person should capture, handle, contain or relocate the snake. Do not chase, pin, restrain or repeatedly disturb it.

If relocation is approved, move the snake to nearby suitable retained forest selected by the ecologist, with shelter features and connectivity, and record the release location and conditions.

  • Suspend work around the find until the fauna spotter catcher and project ecologist agree that the animal is safe and the work area can be released.
  • Place an injured snake in an appropriate secure container only under the direction of the authorised handler, and arrange prompt assessment by a veterinarian or wildlife carer experienced with reptiles.
  • Do not retain a wild snake in captivity, and do not allow workers to collect or keep the animal.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat features and stop-work triggers

Protect hollow-bearing trees, loose bark, dead trees, logs, vines, rocks, slabs, rock crevices and dense understorey until they have been assessed by the fauna spotter catcher.

Do not burn retained habitat or use frequent fuel reduction or grazing-management fires in retained areas without a fire plan that protects old and dead trees and understorey vegetation.

  • Stop work for any direct sighting, credible report or suspected occupation of a tree or shelter feature that is about to be disturbed.
  • Stop work after an injury, escape, unauthorised handling event, damage to a no-go area or failure of exclusion fencing until the site supervisor has recorded and corrected the issue.
  • Keep a daily clearing register with weather, personnel, area cleared, habitat features removed or retained, fauna observations, incidents and approvals to resume.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance inspection

Confirm that the cleared area and retained habitat match the approved plan. Post-clearance checks are particularly important where trees, hollows, vines, rocks or dense ground cover were disturbed.

Complete a fauna and habitat inspection after each staged clearing area is released, including checks beneath felled trees, around moved logs and rocks, and along the edge of retained forest.

Search retained habitat for injured or displaced snakes and inspect exclusion fencing, access controls and no-go markers for damage.

Recheck any retained tree or shelter feature that was close to machinery or subject to vibration, impact or partial collapse.

  • Keep machinery out of a cleared area until the fauna spotter catcher has completed the agreed final inspection.
  • Record any animal, carcass, injury, damaged habitat feature, escape, relocation or unexpected clearing in the project register.
  • Notify the relevant authority and approval holder where an approval condition, threatened species incident or unexpected find requires notification.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and controls

Monitor retained forest, hollow-bearing trees, dead trees and habitat connections during construction and operation where the risk assessment or approval requires it.

Use repeat nocturnal searches during the September to May activity period when monitoring is intended to detect continued use of retained habitat.

  • Maintain fencing, no-go areas, lighting controls and access restrictions for as long as they are needed to protect retained habitat.
  • Investigate a decline in habitat condition, repeated snake mortality, increased fire frequency, weed invasion or loss of hollow-bearing trees as a project incident or management trigger.
  • Record monitoring effort as search area, route, nights, spotlight hours, observers, weather, detections and habitat condition.

After habitat disturbance: Reporting and offsets

Provide the completion report to the project approval authority and relevant state agency where required, with maps of cleared and retained habitat, survey effort, records, handling events and incidents.

Assess offsets only where required by the applicable approval or legislation. Any offset or conservation measure should protect and manage suitable forest habitat, old and dead trees, hollows, understorey and connectivity rather than relying on area alone.

  • Submit confirmed records and reliable negative survey information to the relevant state wildlife database.
  • Keep photographs, coordinates, permit details, fauna handler details, veterinary or wildlife carer outcomes and release records with the project environmental records.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore forest structure

Rehabilitation should restore the shelter structure and connected forest that Stephens' Banded Snake uses. Prioritise mature-tree recruitment, hollow development, understorey cover and protection from frequent fire.

Revegetate cleared edges and gaps with locally appropriate native rainforest and eucalypt forest species that match the pre-clearing vegetation community and site conditions.

Retain standing dead trees where safe, protect existing mature trees and plan for replacement hollow-bearing trees over the long term.

Reinstate large logs, bark, vines, rock slabs and suitable rocks where they can be placed safely and will not create a hazard to workers or the public.

  • Do not remove fallen timber and dense understorey from rehabilitation areas unless required for safety or weed control.
  • Use nest boxes only where a qualified ecologist identifies a need and can specify a design, placement and maintenance programme; nest boxes are not a substitute for retaining natural hollows.
  • Maintain connected vegetation between rehabilitation areas and retained forest.

Rehabilitation actions: Fire, grazing, weeds and predators

Manage fire to protect old and dead trees and maintain understorey vegetation.

Manage grazing so that it does not remove dense ground cover or damage regenerating trees and shelter features.

Control weeds where they suppress native understorey, block regeneration or alter shelter structure, while retaining native vines and cover used by fauna.

  • Use a site-specific fire plan that records fire frequency, intensity, season, exclusion areas and protection measures for hollow-bearing and dead trees.
  • Inspect rehabilitation areas for erosion, grazing damage, weed reinvasion and loss of logs, rocks or understorey after disturbance.
  • Include predator and pest management where project activities increase access for feral predators or where an approved management plan identifies a site risk.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitoring and success measures

Monitor survival and growth of planted vegetation, recruitment of mature and hollow-bearing trees, retention of logs and rocks, understorey cover, connectivity and fire impacts.

Use nocturnal spotlighting from September to May to check whether rehabilitated and retained forest continues to support Stephens' Banded Snakes, while recognising that non-detection does not prove absence.

Recommended monitoring period: Prioritise the species' active period from September to May

Habitat features to monitor: Old and dead trees, hollow-bearing trees, loose bark, vines, logs, rocks, dense understorey and connected forest

  • Set success measures before rehabilitation starts, including agreed vegetation survival, weed cover, understorey establishment, protection of habitat features and connection to retained forest.
  • Repeat monitoring at the intervals set by the approval or rehabilitation plan, and repair failed plantings, damaged fencing, lost habitat features or erosion promptly.
  • Report snake records, habitat condition, management actions and failures to the project environmental manager and relevant authority.

Sources