Habitat use and ecological observations of the Ooldea dunnart (Sminthopsis ooldea) at Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park, Northern Territory
Kerrie Bennison A D , Christopher R. Dickman B and Robert Godfree CA Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park, Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, Northern Territory, Australia.
B Desert Ecology Research Group, School of Biological Sciences A08, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
C CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
D Corresponding author. Email: Kerrie.Bennison@environment.gov.au
Australian Mammalogy 35(2) 175-179 https://doi.org/10.1071/AM12048
Submitted: 15 November 2012 Accepted: 31 January 2013 Published: 3 May 2013
Abstract
The Ooldea dunnart (Sminthopsis ooldea) is a small (10–11 g) and poorly known dasyurid marsupial that is endemic to the central and western arid regions of Australia. Surveys carried out at Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park, Northern Territory, from 1994 to 2010 yielded 37 captures of this elusive species, providing novel insights into its biology. Most captures were made in pitfall traps, with spring breeding confirmed by the presence of pregnant or lactating females during October and November. Animals were captured in mallee and mulga woodland and spinifex (Triodia spp.) dominated dune fields and sand plains. Capture rates were variable in most habitat types, but were relatively consistent in one site dominated by mulga (Acacia aneura). Although we found no consistent association between captures of S. ooldea and prior rainfall, fewest animals were captured in the two wettest years of the study. Ooldea dunnarts showed no clear response to fire. We suggest that mulga is a key habitat for S. ooldea, but also that the demography of this species may be shaped by biotic and/or abiotic factors that remain to be fully elucidated.
Additional keywords: arid zone, Dasyuridae, demography, fire, mulga, rainfall.
References
Archer, M. (1981). Results of the Archbold Expeditions. No. 104. Systematic revision of the marsupial dasyurid genus Sminthopsis Thomas. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 168, 61–223.Aslin, H. J. (1977). New records of Sminthopsis ooldea Troughton from South Australia. South Australian Naturalist 51, 9–12.
Aslin, H. J. (1983). Reproduction in Sminthopsis ooldea (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae). Australian Mammalogy 6, 93–95.
Baynes, A., and Baird, R. F. (1992). The original mammal fauna and some information on the original bird fauna of Uluru National Park, Northern Territory. The Rangeland Journal 14, 92–106.
| The original mammal fauna and some information on the original bird fauna of Uluru National Park, Northern Territory.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Brandle, R. (1998). Mammals. In ‘A Biological Survey of the Stony Deserts, South Australia, 1994–1997’. (Ed. R. Brandle.) pp. 147–182. (South Australian Department for Environment, Heritage and Aboriginal Affairs: Adelaide.)
Burbidge, A. A., McKenzie, N. L., Chapman, A., and Lambert, P. M. (1976). The wildlife of some existing and proposed reserves in the Great Victoria and Gibson Deserts, Western Australia. Wildlife Research Bulletin Western Australia 5, 1–16.
Bureau of Meteorology (2010). Available at: www.bom.gov.au [Accessed on 2 October 2011].
Cole, J., and Woinarski, J. (2002). ‘A Field Guide to the Rodents and Dasyurids of the Northern Territory’. (Surrey Beatty: Sydney.)
Dickman, C. R. (2003). Distributional ecology of dasyurid marsupials. In ‘Predators with Pouches: the Biology of Carnivorous Marsupials’. (Eds M. Jones, C. Dickman and M. Archer.) pp. 318–331. (CSIRO Publishing: Melbourne.)
Dickman, C. R., Haythornthwaite, A. S., McNaught, G. H., Mahon, P. S., Tamayo, B., and Letnic, M. (2001). Population dynamics of three species of dasyurid marsupials in arid central Australia: a 10-year study. Wildlife Research 28, 493–506.
| Population dynamics of three species of dasyurid marsupials in arid central Australia: a 10-year study.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Director of National Parks. (2010). Ulu
Foulkes, J. N. (2008). Ooldea dunnart Sminthopsis ooldea Troughton, 1965. In ‘The Mammals of Australia’, 3rd edn. (Eds S. Van Dyck and R. Strahan.) pp. 154–156. (Reed New Holland: Sydney.)
Letnic, M., and Dickman, C. R. (2010). Resource pulses and mammalian dynamics: conceptual models for hummock grasslands and other Australian desert habitats. Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society 85, 501–521.
| 1:STN:280:DC%2BC3cjgtlCkuw%3D%3D&md5=a1753449b0b99ca8254ead6a15113702CAS | 20015313PubMed |
Letnic, M., Dickman, C. R., Tischler, M. K., Tamayo, B., and Beh, C.-L. (2004). The responses of small mammals and lizards to post-fire succession and rainfall in arid Australia. Journal of Arid Environments 59, 85–114.
| The responses of small mammals and lizards to post-fire succession and rainfall in arid Australia.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Letnic, M., Tamayo, B., and Dickman, C. R. (2005). The responses of mammals to La Niña (El Niño Southern Oscillation) – associated rainfall, predation and wildfire in central Australia. Journal of Mammalogy 86, 689–703.
| The responses of mammals to La Niña (El Niño Southern Oscillation) – associated rainfall, predation and wildfire in central Australia.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Levine, M. L., Berenson, M. L., and Stephen, D. (2008). ‘PHstat – a Statistical Add-in for Microsoft Excel.’ (Prentice Hall Inc.: New Jersey.)
Masters, P. (1993). The effects of fire-driven succession and rainfall on small mammals in spinifex grassland at Uluru National Park, Northern Territory. Wildlife Research 20, 803–813.
| The effects of fire-driven succession and rainfall on small mammals in spinifex grassland at Uluru National Park, Northern Territory.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
McKenzie, N. L., Rolfe, J. K., and Youngson, W. K. (1994). Vertebrate fauna. In ‘The Biological Survey of the the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia. Part 10. Sandstone–Sir Samuel and Laverton–Leonora Study Areas’. (Eds N. J. Hall, N. L. McKenzie and G. J. Keighery.) pp. 51–85. (Western Australian Museum: Perth.)
Reid, J. R. W., Kerle, J. A., and Morton, S. R. (1993). Ulu
Robinson, A. C., Copley, P. B., Canty, P. D., Baker, L. M., and Nesbitt, B. J. (2003). A Biological Survey of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Lands, South Australia. South Australian Department for Environment and Heritage, Adelaide.
Shephard, M. (1995). ‘The Great Victoria Desert’. (Reed Books: Sydney.)
